Australian Painted Lady Vanessa kershawi

This is beautiful. Looks alot like Vanessa cardui but V. cardui doesn't have the blue eyespots on the hindwings.

I wonder what the caterpillars look like? I'll have to look into that. But this is what Wikipedia has to say:

Vanessa kershawi, commonly known as the Australian Painted Lady, is a butterfly that is mostly confined to Australia, although westerly winds have dispersed it to islands east of Australia, including New Zealand.

During spring adult butterflies migrate south in large numbers from northern states of Queensland and New South Wales. In 1889, this migration was so large that trains were unable to generate sufficient traction because of the large numbers of butterflies resting on the tracks.

A major food plant is Ammobium alatum.

The rest of the info can be found here. Funny how all Vanessa sp. used to be under the genius name Cynthia and how both of these names are names of people.

I wonder how that came about? That's something else to look into. But for later.

NZ Red Admiral Vanessa gonerilla

This is absolutely drop dead gorgeous. I was researching various Nymphalid butterflies and I decided to look into various Vanessa sp. Let me tell you I have no idea how that happened. It just did. So I came across several and this is one of them.

You'll be seeing more I promise you. As I mentioned before I had the pleasure of raising Vanessa cardui for many years. I hope to do it again this year.

Idk we'll see. For now some info from Wikipedia:

Red Admirals occur most frequently during summer and may live for several months, they overwinter as adults so can be seen on warm winters days.

They are long lived, surviving up to 6 months in the summer, and perhaps 9 months for those who over-winter.

The adults feed on nectar from various plant species (native and introduced) and occasionally on seepage of sap.

The fact that they can live longer then monarchs ( monarchs can live up to 8 months ) is shocking. The fact that I believed my butterfly documentary saying that longest lived butterfly is the monarch is shocking.

I believed it for years without doing proper research. Unless of course the narrator was talking about the longest lived American butterfly ( even though monarchs are international )?

I'm rambling here but.....do you see my point? Anyway some more info:

It is difficult to distinguish between Red Admiral and Yellow Admiral caterpillars. Caterpillars on the Tree Nettle (Ongaonga) (Urtica ferox) are more likely to be Red Admirals than Yellow Admirals.

Looking at the 4th and 6th body segments, the Yellow Admiral has a wider light colored area than the Red Admiral.

When compared side by side it may be noted that the pupae of the Red Admiral tends to be thinner and longer than that Yellow Admiral, but otherwise they are very difficult to tell apart.

Well that must be nice for the people who want to raise them and can't tell them apart. XD

The rest of the info can be found here. Enjoy

Yellow Admiral Vanessa itea

I found some rather substantial info on these:

Clicky!
Wikipedia

Oh and of course there's this. A bunch of different Vanessa sp. I love this genius of Nymphalid butterflies. And I am proud to say that I have raised Vanessa cardui from caterpillars.

I want to do it again. Hopefully this year I'll be able to along with Luna moths.

Cute!

I love these things.

Illeis koebelei

Yes my friends, what you're seeing is indeed a yellow ladybug. Would I lie to you? I didn't think so. So without further ado I bring what I could find on this adorable beetle.

If I find anymore I'll be sure to post it. :)

Seasonal use of powdery mildews by the mycophagous ladybird, Illeis koebelei, was observed in Setagaya. In the field, I. koebelei shows seasonal changes in host use and breeds regularly on Microsphaera pulchra var. pulchra that infests Benthamidia florida, Oidium sp., that infests Pyracantha coccinea in spring, Phyllactinia moricola that infests Morus australis, and Sphaerotheca cucurbitae that infests Trichosanthes kllirowii var. japonica in autumn.

On these fungus species under laboratory conditions, larval development of the ladybird was completed (within 20 days at 24°C) with a high survival rate. Thus, the seasonal occurrence of I. koebelei may be synchronized with the abundance of essential fungi.

This study showed that I. koebelei feeds on 11 species of powdery mildews, including Sphaerotheca, Podosphaera, Microsphaera, Phyllactinia and Oidium. However, no species of the Uncinula, Uncinuliella and Erysiphe genera were suitable food for the ladybird.

While I don't understand half of it ( probably because it was translated from Japanese, more on that later ) what I could get from it is that it's a fungus feeding ladybug.

And a cute on at that. Now I could be evil and invade their privacy by showing you a pic of them "getting it on" but I'll save that for later......>:)

The site that I got the above info is here. Click on it and you'll see why I said I think it was translated from Japanese.

I'm going to browse that site and see what else they have on ladybugs.

Happy Groundhog Day! ^.^

Adelgids

I'm still looking into these things as I've never heard of them but there's quite a bit on them:

Adelgidae
Gall Adelgids
Hemlock Woolly Adelgid ( Adelges tsugae )
Balsam Woolly Adelgid ( Adelges piceae )

I'm still trying to find a decent picture of a "typical Adelgid" if there's such a thing as the things are apparently so tiny you can hardly see them in a decent picture.

This is interesting indeed. Enjoy educating yourselves. XD

Spiders On Drugs

This is what happens when you give spiders drugs.

*Giggle*

A Notice

~♥ OFF TOPIC ♥~

So I've been noticing assholes posting stuff on my cbox the latest being:

Some Asshole Wrote:

I wanna have sex. I wanna have sex with you Habibi18

There are 2 reasons why this creeps me out:

1. I'm not someone you wanna do it with
2. This guy or girl *shudder* knows my username

Now how he/she came to know my username is a mystery....sort of. The only way they could know such a thing is if they know me and the username that I go by on most insect forums or they clicked on the link my friend ( koolkid ) posted in there.

I'm seriously hoping that it's the second one. Now onto why I posted this. I won't tolerate things like this much longer. If it continues I'll have to take the cbox down.

I don't want to do this ( for obvious reasons ). So please refrain yourselves from posting such smut and stuff on it because I want nothing to do with you perverts.

Thank you and have a nice day. Now lets get back to the bugs shall we?

New Spider Species!

CLICKY!

I find this amazing and I hope that they can save it.

Cicadas

Watch it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjLiWy2nT7U

For some reason I'm having problems posting this one.

OMG!

Damn this is AMAAZING!

I would love to see one of these but I know I probably never will.

Ladybug Overload!

CLICKY!

OMG! Look at all of them! *So pretty*

*Squee* I'm going to have fun researching all of these! I love ladybugs!

I'm so happy right now.

Bees

If anyone knows what kind of bees these are please tell me.

Thank you.

Bug Of The Month Australian Ladybug Australoneda burgeoisi

This ( if it's a ladybug and not a tortoise beetle ) is one of the most beautiful ladybugs I've come across ( online ). Unfortunately there's nothing on them. I Googled them and no info whatsoever came up on them.

But I'll ask around on some of the bug forums I'm on and see if there's anything they can dig up. I mean there's got to be something.

Such a beautiful beetle it's worthy of being bug of the month.

Fungus Eating Ladybug

The Fungus-eating Ladybird (Illeis galbula) is a species of Coccinellidae. Adults are 4-5mm in size while the larvae are between 8 and 10mm. Adults are bright yellow with black markings, larvae and pupa are white with black dots.

During the day it is fast moving and readily flies or drops when disturbed. Adults feed on black mold and other fungi. The pupa are active and often stand on end. They are found in Australia and are a non-native species in New Zealand.

~ Wikipedia

I think they're pretty.

Opiliones

I don't remember if I did something on these a while back or not but I just found a site that has some pretty interesting info on the classification of these interesting creatures.

I just wish there was more on them.

CLICKY!

If there's anything else on them that I manage to come across it automatically goes on here. :P

Blue Ladybugs Continued: Steelblue Ladybug Halmus chalybeus

Another gorgeous ladybug. Honestly how many species of blue ladybugs are there? And this one I think puts the other 2 species that I mentioned on here to shame. =)

Such a gorgeous beetle. Too bad they're not from here. Would love to see one in person.

Wikipedia says:

Halmus chalybeus, commonly known as the steelblue ladybird, is a species of ladybird (the beetle family Coccinellidae). It has an iridescent blue/green coloration and is a predator of other insects.

It was introduced to New Zealand from Australia in 1899 and 1905 to control black scale and blue gum scale (see scale insect) on citrus trees, where it is now common in northern regions. It has also been recorded eating San Jose scale. They are about 3-4 long.

Now remember what happened the last time a species of ladybug was introduced to control something? Hmmmmm? *cough Harmonia axyridis cough*

You just better hope that they're not getting in league with Harmonia axyridis or anything. But since nothing ( apparently ) has happened since 1899-2010 I think we're safe....

Hopefully we are. We have enough problems with H. axyridis we don't need more.

Stupid Cockroaches

Did I tell you lately that we've been having roach problems? Well just now a roach ( a stupid one from what my mom tells me ) was on her dresser in her room and it just sat there and "waited" for her to find something to smash the shit out of it!

But then she did mention that it was raggedy looking.....which got me thinking of course. What if it was an old roach possibly nearing the end of it's life?

And if so do they:

1. Keep their "original" alertness that they had in their "youth"?
2. Or go "loopy" and don't give a shit if you're about to smash them or not?

That's something I want to look into......Although I don't how I'd go about that. I'll try though and see what comes up.

All the roaches that I've encountered either got away or eventually died after putting up a "fight".

And all of these roaches that are in my house are German Cockroaches ( Blatella germanica ).

Expect a follow up of some sort on the nasty S.O.B's sometime soon.

Wild Orchid Wasp Mimic

Damn. This is insane. And I don't think these are wasps in the video I think that they're some sort of bees. I will try and find out what kind.

They're cute though

God Help Us All.....

This is insane. And the ants are scary.......

Anyone know what species of termites the Matabele ants are killing? Wanna look into them.

Elysia Chlorotica

Here's a video of said slug mentioned below.

Enjoy!

Sea Slugs Are Half Plant Half Animal

WHAT?!

It's true!

CLICKY!

Have fun kiddies! ^^

Sexually Dismorphic Treehoppers?!

Pictures don't lie.

Atymna querci Male and female. The female is the green one. Will try to find some info on these. There wasn't any on Bugguide ( where the photo is from ) except the whole male and female thing.

I never knew that there could be sexually dismorphic treehoppers!

Copyright infringement not intended.

Jewel Wasps

I never knew this about them. This is fascinating and I enjoyed this immensely.

Australian Hornet Abispa ephippium

I simply love these things. Just found out about them accidentally ( but I'm glad I did ) while researching Ropalidia wasps which came up in discussion on VL.

I found some rather substantial info on them which ironically was exactly what I was looking for because Wikipedia wasn't much of a help.

It's rather long and I haven't gotten a chance to read the whole thing but I will eventually.....

.....just not now as I have a headache and am tired and need to get to bed. XD

Abispa ephippium goes by alot of names and it's not a hornet but a member of Vespidae: Eumeninae or "Potter Wasps". You'll see when you read it. It is long I tell you but interesting indeed. Makes me happy! =)

So without further ado and delay due to my rambling here: Clicky! There are other species of Abispa mentioned in the article that I'm going to look up along with a parasitic wasps that preys on the poor pretty things.

I'll get back to you on those. And when I have more time ( like tomorrow ) I'll read it properly and tell you what I thought of it.

It's basically a recording of an observation on the species behavior. Very interesting.

Enjoy!

Cockroaches

Cockroaches are filthy nasty creatures that must die.....but this movie is hilarious!



A woman called up a pet store and said, "Send me thirty-thousand cockroaches at once!"

"What in the world do you want with thirty-thousand cockroaches?" asked the astonished clerk.

"Well," replied the woman, "I moving today and my lease say I must leave the premises in exactly the same condition I found it."

Insane Bugs Facts

*The Asian Cyprian honeybee kills its nemesis, the Oriental hornet, by smothering
with other honeybees as a mob, causing the hornet to asphyxiate.

*Sex among African bat bugs is a violent affair. During copulation,
males of the species pierce the abdomens of their mates with their
genitals and ejaculate directly into their blood. (OUCH!)

And you thought houseflies were bad?…

*The Coffin Fly maintains itself for many generations in human bodies
buried in coffins.

*A female Bot Fly lays her eggs on the proboscis of a mosquito (the
piercing mouthpart of the mosquito); when the mosquito bites a human,
the bot fly larvae emerge from their eggs and crawl under the human's
skin through the mosquito bite or by boring into the flesh. UGHHH!

*Petroleum Flies feed on other flies that get trapped in pools of crude
petroleum in California.

More coming! These are from the Yahoo! group BugFacts.

A Joke

A farmer was milking his cow. He was just starting to get a good rhythm going
when a bug flew into the barn and started circling his head. Suddenly, the bug
flew into the cow's ear.

The farmer didn't think much about it, until the bug squirted out into his bucket. It went in one ear and out the udder.

*Shakes head* Like I didn't see that one coming.

Enjoy though.

Yum....Bugs.....

.......wait WHAT?!

Who'd want to eat bugs?! Yuck! Well apparently people do. Ever heard of Mopane worms? Witchety Grubs? Yeah well people eat those and many more.

Has the world gone mad? Nah, at least not the whole world....XD

BugFacts says:

"WAITER, THERE'S A FLY IN MY SOUP!"

Entomophagy - The eating of insects. There are over 1,400-recorded species of
edible insects.

Most ants and ant larvae are edible and tasty (according to Entomophagy
enthusiasts). Black ants can be eaten raw, whereas fire ants are not considered
to be edible. The formic acid, which gives ants a vinegar flavor, mostly
disappears when they are boiled. In Thailand, ant juice is sometimes substituted
when recipes call for lemon.

Larger ants can be squeezed onto your fresh wild salad. Both the adults and larvae of cicadas, Japanese beetles, June bugs and floor beetles are edible.


Sounds gross right? Yeah well I remember watching some program on TV ( think it was a cooking show ) and these people ate ants in a salad or something. Don't really remember too much.....

.....which is probably good for my sanity. XD So anyway how's your stomach feeling? >:) You should be thankful that I don't have any videos of people eating these things......yet. What's also edible you ask? Well I'm glad you did:

Butterfly pupae
Caterpillars
Cockroaches
Grasshoppers
Tarantulas......

I'll stop now but all of these are indeed edible......at least certain species are. The first three are mentioned in video that I have somewhere in this house.

The last 2 were in a magazine. I will try and find proof of this elsewhere as I'm pretty sure that the magazine is long gone. But the guy that ate them is crazy.

But if course if you're on a stranded deserted island you have no choice, apparently grasshoppers are full of protein.....

......isn't that great kids? Yeah I didn't think so but would I lie to you? Google it.

Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Well as you may have noticed I didn't post alot last year and the year before that. That's due to LIFE getting in the way and being as they say a bitch. Last year I was without the internet for months so I couldn't post here.

This year I'm hoping and praying will be different and that I'll get to post lots. I'll definitely try my hardest. I'm also hoping that this year will be a much better one for me then last year.

Last year was crap. Too many things had happened. And sadly most of them weren't good.

So I'm hoping that this year will make up for that awful shitty year. And I hope that all of you have a good one too and that all your dreams come true this year.

Bring on 2010 and the bugs that come with it. ^_~

Bug Of The Month Blue Ladybugs

Yes these are real. You get 2 different species today. Enjoy

Metallic Blue Ladybug - Curinus coeruleus

Identification:

Blue with two orange markings on the pronotum (hard shell between wings and head).

Range:

Native to the Caribbean but widely introduced for biological control. Apparently imported to Florida from Mexico in the 1950s.

Food:

Normally scale insects (order Homoptera, suborder Coccoidea), but also will feed on aphids and the Asian Citrus Psyllid (Diaphorina citri)

Remarks:

One of only two blue lady beetles in the U.S

Thalasa montezumae

Not much on this one. They feed on scale insects. I'll definitely keep looking. Thalassa montezumae is the one on the top.

Aren't they pretty? Info and photos from Bugguide. Copyright infringement not intended.

Locust Are Kinda Scary.....

......but fascinating too.

Enjoy!

Silk thread hunting trap - Sir David Attenborough's Life in the Undergrowth - BBC wildlife

This is amazing!

Enjoy!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Wishing everyone a good one!

Love you all!

The 5 Most Horrifying Bugs in the World

Clicky!

I thought this was hilarious! They should do something like "The 5 Most Horrifying Arachnids in the World" because they're some pretty bad ass arachnids out there.

Enjoy.....I hope that I didn't give you nightmares....XD

Weird mating calls of the leopard slug - Life in the Undergrowth - BBC Attenborough

I thought this was beautiful.

What about you?

OMG! Parasitic Woodlice?!

Apparently so I learned about them today in a book called Extreme Nature and they were mentioned. This is what Wikipedia had to say about them:

Cymothoa exigua or the Tongue eating louse is a parasitic crustacean of the family Cymothoidae. It tends to be 3 to 4 cm long. This parasite enters through the gills, and then attaches itself at the base of the spotted rose snapper's (Lutjanus guttatus) tongue.

It then proceeds to extract blood through the claws on its front and less blood reaches the tongue, and eventually the organ atrophies from lack of blood. The parasite then replaces the fish's tongue by attaching its own body to the muscles of the tongue stub. The fish is able to use the parasite just like a normal tongue.

It appears that the parasite does not cause any other damage to the host fish. Once C. exigua replaces the tongue, some feed on the host's blood and many others feed on fish mucus. They do not eat scraps of the fish's food.

This is the only known case of a parasite functionally replacing a host organ. It is currently believed that C. exigua are not harmful to humans unless picked up alive, in which case they can bite.

~Wikipedia

Well if I ever see one I'm not touching it. And it is an Isopod and so are woodlice, so woodlice are isopods and isopods are woodlice etc. :P

Who knew huh? Next thing you know they're gonna be saying they're parasitic millipedes or something.....<_<>_> O_O

Photo and info from Wikipedia

Red Back Spider - Attenborough: Life in the Undergrowth - BBC

I just learned something new today.

Enjoy!

Summons of the Queen ant - Ant Attack - BBC

The males of this species are called Sausage Flies.

Blue Ants?!

The blue ant (Diamma bicolor, also known as the blue-ant or bluebottle) is, despite its name and its appearance, not an ant at all, but rather a species of large solitary parasitic wasp sometimes known as a flower wasp.

It is a native of south and southeast Australia, including the Australia states of Tasmania, New South Wales,Victoria and South Australia. It is the sole member of the subfamily Diamminae, and is both morphologically and behaviorally unusual among members of the family Tiphiidae.

Blue ants have a distinctive metallic blue-green body, with red legs. The female ranges up to 25 mm (1 inch) in length, is wingless and ground-dwelling, and exclusively hunts mole crickets, whereas all other species of tiphiids attack beetle larvae.

The cricket is paralyzed with venom injected by the female's stinger and an egg is laid upon it so the wasp larva has a ready supply of food. The male is smaller, approximately 15 mm (0.5 inches), and has wings. Adults feed on nectar, and pollinate various native Australian flowers.

The sting can cause a severe burning sensation and swelling in humans; in rare cases, it can cause a life threatening reaction (such as anaphylaxis).

Picture and info from Wikipedia

Bee vs. Jumping Spider

Enjoy! Can anyone tell me what kind of jumping spider this is?

Bug Of The Month - Peacock Spider ( Maratus volans )

The Peacock spider or Gliding spider (Maratus volans) is a species of jumping spider. The red, blue and black colored males have flap-like extensions of the abdomen with white hairs that can be folded down.

They are used for display during mating the male raises his abdomen, then expands and raises the flaps so that the abdomen forms a white-fringed, circular field of color. The species, and indeed the whole genus Maratus have been compared to peacocks in this respect.

The third pair of legs is also raised for display, showing a brush of black hairs and white tips. While approaching the female, the male will then vibrate raised legs and tail, and dance from side to side.

~ Wikipedia

I found out about these fascinating things not too long ago and I wanted to find out more about them naturally so here you go.

Apparently they're tiny little things. I would like to see these in person though.

BUSTED!!

Holy shit! WE'RE DOOMED!

Enjoy the vid.

Super Butterfly Vs Mantis

I thought this was cute.

I guess this is what happens when you feed butterflies energy drinks.

Who's Your Daddy?

I thought this was cute.

They can regrow their lost limbs too. I love these things.

Simply Amazing

Sometimes referred to as “land lobsters” or “walking sausages,” the Lord Howe stick insect is considered the rarest insect in the world.

Believed extinct since 1930 after being wiped off its only known native habitat on Lord Howe Island, the enormous insect was rediscovered in 2001 when fewer than 30 individuals were found living underneath a single shrub on the small islet of Ball's Pyramid, the world's tallest and most isolated sea stack.

I certainly hope that they'll be able to make a comeback. Photo and info from Mother Nature Network.

The Forest Bug Pentatoma rufipes

The forest bug (Pentatoma rufipes) is a species of shield bug in the family Pentatomidae It is a common and widespread species found in forests and woodlands worldwide. It is shiny dark brown with red-orange markings on its body and bright orange legs. It is shaped like an escutcheon-type shield, flat, and about 14 mm in length. Its distinguishing characteristic is a pair of plates extending forward from the shoulders at the front of its dorsal thorax.

The forest bug's main food source is any of several species of oak. It is a sap-feeder and uses piercing mouthparts to withdraw the liquid. It can also be found on other species of deciduous trees. The forest bug is also an agricutural and garden pest, as it will not hesitate to feed on fruit and nut trees. Occasionally it will consume other insects.

Adults lay eggs during the summer in the cracks of tree bark, and the larvae hatch the following spring.

~ Wikipedia

Rhaphigaster nebulosa

The bug feeds on various broadleaved woody plants. Occasionally it sucks on dead insects. In late spring the female sticks around 40 eggs in lines or discs on different parts of plants. The young bugs which hatch vary in colour and are flightless. Wing stumps are only recognisable after the third nymph stage. To protect against predators, young bugs have stink glands on their back; in the case of adults, these are to be found on the underside of the thorax. If threatened, a strong-smelling secretion is released. They are not good fliers; their sluggish flight makes loud humming noises.

This species displays diurnal, thermophilic activity. As with most Pentatomidae, it produces only one generation per year. It likes to overwinter on walls covered with ivy. In its search for suitable winter quarters (splits and cracks) it often unwittingly finds its way into houses.

This species produces a plethora of eggs when disturbed in its habitat. Angering or threatening the bug produces an off white colored secretion which can be harmful if swallowed. The chemicals in the secretion allow the eggs to continue to fertilize in any environment, even those which are highly acidic/basic. To prevent these excretions, this bug should not be killed by any means.

~ Wikipedia

This is good to know if I ever go to Europe. See mom? Some bugs shouldn't be killed. XD

Blue Shield Bug Zicrona caerulea

The name of the Blue Bug is very well chosen. For usually it is greenish blue metallic. Like so many other animals with metallic colouring, the colour may vary. In this case it may be greenish, copperlike, blue or lilac. This depends on the reflection of the light. But usually the Blue Bug doesn't show a lot of variation in colouring. The larvae are very different. They are black with patches of red on the abdomen. Adult Blue Bugs are capable of flying, but rarely do so. Reaching a length of 5 to 8mm, this is our smallest Shield Bug. Often it isn't even noticed, because of the size and the reclusive conduct.

The first Blue Bug larvae are usually seen in late spring. Like the adults they suck on insect larvae, as well as on plants. In our garden they hunt for the larvae of Altica oleracea mainly. That is a small, blueish Leaf Beetle that lives on our Primroses in great numbers. The Blue Bug will not visit all gardens, though, for it loves heaths, moors and the edges of forests and is only found nearby such areas.

~ Garden Safari

I think they are beautiful. I never thought that there were blue shield bugs but if they're blue lady bugs then I think that anything is possible.

It's just a matter of finding out about it. Enjoy Photo not mine obviously. Copy right infringement not intended.

The Secret And Slightly Evil Diet Of The Beefly

A little something for Halloween:

Clicky!

I wonder if all species of beefly larvae are like this? I must look into that. Enjoy! It's a PDF so get Adobe Reader or what ever the thing is called to view it if you don't have it.

Who knew something so cute could be so sinister?

Aphid Domination! *Eek!*

No wonder people have so many problems with getting rid of them.

Thank God for ladybugs and parasitic wasps!

Ants Are Amazing

Don't you think?

Parasitic Wasps

Just one problem I have with this.

Yes, this is a black wasp but that's not what kind it is. There are tons of black colored wasps and all of them are called "Black Wasps"?

I don't think so. That's my only problem with it. Other then that I enjoyed it. Now can anyone tell me what kind of wasps these are?

Angel Bees vs. Robber Bees

Must look these up further.

Angel bees huh? Wonder why they call them that.

Assassin Bug vs. Bat

A little something for Halloween. *Evil Laughter*

Hoverflies

BBC got this one wrong. The fly in the video is a type of Bee Fly ( Bombyliidae ).

Other then that enjoy!

Lasius nearticus

Saw about 50,000 today. It was amazing. Tons of queens to be and males like in the photo.

Photo isn't mine. Found it on Google.

Parthenogenetic Spiders?!

Apparently so according to here.

I'm Habibi18 on there. I too will do some Googling.

Body Invaders

OMG! I can't believe this!

Carnivorous Butterflies?!

The Harvester- Feniseca tarquinius

Every schoolchild learns that butterflies lay eggs on plants, the caterpillars feed on the vegetation, grow, form a pupa, and eventually emerge as an adult butterfly which will probably feed on flower nectar, but may instead feed on rotting fruit, sap, or some other organic matter. The Harvester does something different just about every step of the way, breaking all the rules.

Female Harvesters lay their eggs among woolly aphids (Neoprociphilus, Pemphigus, Prociphilus, and Schizoneura). These insects are interesting in their own right. They have both winged and wingless generations, nearly all of which are female, and they usually require at least two different hosts. For instance, the woolly alder aphid (Paraprociphilus tesselatus), a species in which Harvesters are frequently associated with, requires both alders and silver maples, with different generations feeding on each tree.

Harvesters are also members of the Lycaenidae (the plot thickens), but the dietary habits of their larva turn the typical ant/caterpillar alliance on its ear. When Harvester larvea hatch, they eat the woolly aphids – they are the only carnivorous butterfly larvae in North America. Aphid-munching puts Harvesters a bit at odds with the ants, and so the larva will sometimes conceal and protect themselves under a mat they spin from silk and festoon with aphid carcasses.

Recent research has also found that Harvester larvea can produce a chemical camouflage that mimics the species of aphid on which they are feeding.

- Source: Bootstrap Analysis

.....One example is the Harvester butterfly that will lay eggs in woolly aphid masses because the resulting caterpillars will feed on them. The Harvester butterfly (in the butterfly stage) can also pierce woolly aphids and drink their fluids (much like a spider eats its prey). The Harvester butterfly is an exception, however, as most caterpillars and butterflies are strict vegetarians.

- Source: BN & Victoria Butterfly Gardens

DAMN! And the photo isn't mine. Found it when I went to Google them. I found out about them via BN ( BugNation ). Wonderful wonderful forum that I'm a member of.

I never knew there was such a thing. Who knew! First we have blood sucking moths and then carnivorous butterflies! What has this world come to? XD

Butterflies Are Scarier Then You

I thought this was hilarious!

A Joke

This is something one of the members of Arachnoboards had said when we were trying to figure out what kind of roaches were being nasty in a vid someone posted:

Close. Judging by the behavour, I'd say E. prostitutus. Commonly known as the sluts of the insect world, these sleazy creatures will spread their wings for anybody who has a piece of over-ripe banana or crumbled dog chow. Many insects enjoy red lights for heat, but these bugs of ill repute prefer to use them as a sign that they are open for business.

Common names include "Ho Bugs", "Winged skanks" and in higher-class roach colonies, "Entomological Escorts".
Easily identified by their call alone, you will often hear them stridulate "Hey Mister! You want some company?" and "Me love you long time!" Whenever you encounter them, you can be sure that a related species, E. pimpus, is nearby.

LMAO!

Fire Ants!

I remember seeing some a while back........

Brief Explination

I know you're wondering where I went so I'm gonna explain very quickly and then we'll get back to the bugs. I've been having some problems with my computer and I wasn't able to sign in to a few specific sites blogger being one of them so I couldn't update for a while.

But now that's all over thank the Lord and I can update again. I'll also be filling in post for this month as you know most of this year I haven't been able to post due to LIFE and the internet being unavailable to me for months.

But that is also obviously over. So, bring in the BUGS!

Damselfly: A Battle for Paternity - Battle of the Animal Sexes - BBC

I found this sometime ago.

Let me know what you think. I thought it was fascinating as I've seen them do this.

Bug of The MonthAmazonian Leaf Footed Bug - Diactor bilineatus

I had found out about these a while ago. I haven't found any info on them yet but I'll keep looking. I love leaf footed bugs. Making this fellow BOTM ( Bug Of The Month ).

Credit For Photos: What's That Bug? & Brittanica Encyclopedia

No copyright infringement intended.

Originally posted on 09-26-09

Predatory Caterpillars?! O_O

Yes I couldn't believe this myself either but:

A completely new feeding pattern has been found among caterpillars native to Hawaii: certain geometrid larvae (commonly called inchworms) consume no leaves or other plant matter. Instead, they perch inconspicuously along leaf edges and stems to seize insects that touch their posterior body section.

By bending the front of their body backwards in a very rapid strike, the caterpillars opportunistically capture their prey with elongated, spiny legs and 900 larvae and eggs of these moths have been collected from native forests of all the main islands and reared in the laboratory. All are species of Eupithecia, a worldwide group of over 1000 members that had been reported to feed only on plant matter such as flowers, leaves or seeds.

At least 6 of Hawaii's described Eupithecia species are raptorially carnivorous, only 2 are known to feed predominantly on plant material, especially Metrosideros flowers. A diet including protein-rich flower pollen and a defensive behavior of snapping may have preadapted Hawaii's ancestral Eupithecia for a shift to predation.

Severe barriers to dispersal of mantids and other continental insect predators into Hawaii resulted in an environment favoring behavioral and consequent morphological adaptations that produced these singular insects, which can be commonly called the grappling inchworms. Most damage to native biota and habitat is due to imported species or biological pollution, and has caused a serious need for protective management.

Holy crap!
Source: SpringerLink - Journal Archive

Cicada Killers!

I saw one today, along with a Garden Orb Weaver, and some other kind of HUGE wasp, and a bunch of Cabbage whites when I went to Morning Side park.

Cicada killers are a kind of wasp. They mainly use cicadas as their host food for their larvae but I've seen them use katydids and the like.

I think they're beautiful in a fierce predatory kind of way. It was flying around a field I was in. It's obvious what it was looking for. :)

Stratiomys sp.

OMG! It's adorable! According to bugguide it's either S. adelpha or S. discalis I really don't care atm because I'm in love! ♥ So anyway I'll keep my eyes open for more info on either of the species that this little adorable guy might be.

Since bugguide didn't have any info on either possible species perhaps Google could come up with something? Idk we'll see! If they do I'll either edit this post or make another one.

Credit For Photo: David Bree & Bugguide

I'm Still Alive

Yes I haven't forgotten about this blog or about my other 2 that are on here.

I've been without the internet for quite sometime which is responsible for half of the reason I haven't been posting for sometime now. The other is LIFE and the fact that it's wearing me down somewhat. I'm sorry to say that.

Life shouldn't be a bitch but it is. As for when I'll be posting I'm going to fill in for at least some of the months in this year to get rolling again.

And hopefully I'll be back full time later this year? Idk yet we'll see. That's what I'm thinking at least. Any way you'll be seeing post for August 2009 around.

Toodles!

All The Bugs!

Today was the best day of my life so far this month.

This is what happened.

❀ I talked to Moet on AIM YAAAAAAAY!
She had me LOL so hard I couldn't breath! XD
❀ I FINALLY go to go to my beloved Central Park and
*Takes deep breath*
I went to the exact same part of the park that I went when I was in Northside Center. Oh the memories! ♥♥
It hasn't changed. The playground that we always played at is exactly the same. I even saw the same pool that I went to too.

I almost cried.

❀ I saw a thousand dragonflies. Got up close a personal with 2 of them right before I left
❀ Saw said dragonflies LAYING EGGS! I've never seen them do that before I've read about it of course.
❀ Saw BUNCHES of pairs of them flying in tandem.

Other Bugs/Animals That I saw:

❀ 3 Monarchs ( Got really close to one and he/she flew away I had tears in my eyes at the beauty of it )
❀ 2 Bluet Damselflies in tandem.
❀ Saw a guy catch a sunfish and I got to touch it!
❀ A Cabbage White Butterfly
❀ Ducks and Geese and I fed the ducks XD

I know you're thinking "Why would I want to touch a fish?" But I like nature so that's why. :P I also fed some ducks and I saw a fish of some sort jump in the air an snatch something out of the air.....NEVER in all my 5 years of going to Camp Huntington have I seen such a thing. And all I had to do was go to 110th street to do so.

....And I Rise....From The Dead....Once More....

Hello!

Ok I know you're wondering where I was for 2 months.......I was in really huge rough spot and I haven't been getting proper sleep for a very long time. I wanted to let you know that I'm still alive and I haven't forgotten about this blog of mine.

I just haven't been feeling well lately due to everything that's been keeping me busy for the past few months. I've just finished reading all of the recent messages on my Cbox thingy and to answer some of the Q's more "properly" here I go:

Lisa: http://insectsgalore.blogspot.com/2008/05/16-spotted-ladybug-halyzia-16-guttata.html

As for katydids look on bugguide for pictures and info on many species. It's a kind of cricket. They're also known as "bush crickets".

So! I'll get some more things up tomorrow. For now I just wanted to pop in and check on everything. Remember if you don't see on here for a period of time it usually means something's caught up with me and is keeping me busy.

But sooner or later I WILL let you know what's going on.

*Kisses*

European Paper Wasp - Polistes dominula

Saw one of these today at the pool......got to hold it more then once it was amazing. It was a male. I had to save the poor thing from drowning but it was always heading back for the water.

Apparently it liked the water. Also saw these:

♥ Cabbage White
♥ Dragonfly of some sort

Seeing all of them made my day. And I learned something too. No true yellow jacket has orange antennae. And this "yellow jacket" had orange antennae.

Never knew that! Thanks Bugguide!

Blue Admiral - Kaniska canace

One of my favorites.

In Japanese it's "ルリタテハ" - Ruritateha. There are other races of it too. The one in the photo is the Japanese race K. c. no-japonicum.

Wikipedia also has more pics and tons of info. This is for Raito.

Handsome Trig - Phyllopalpus pulchellus

Ironically this was in the latest issue of Ranger Rick and I had to find out more about them. So I Googled them.

Picture from Bugguide. And the info. Enjoy!

Japanese Emperor - Sasakia charonda

OMG!

There's so much on these but I think that this is one of the best sites I've found that has decent info on the butterfly ( no offense Wikipedia but you're not always reliable ).

Has pics too along with some kick ass close ups:

Click here you know you want too

God bless that site. Again this is for Raito. Also the photo is from the results from Googling the beauty. And it's funny how they call them the Japanese Emperor when it has the colors of our flag!

They should rename it! :P

This was posted on August 26 2008. Ignore the date on the post it's a fill in.

Thank you!

Beautiful Marbled Moth - Eublemma purpurina

This very attractive species was first noted in Britain when an individual was trapped at Portland in Dorset, in August 2004.

Subsequent investigation revealed that a number of individuals appeared around the south coast around this time, some predating the initial record, and in fact a hitherto misidentified specimen was unearthed from 2001.

The species has since occurred on a number of occasions, all in the south and south-east of England.

Occurring in mainland Europe, the larvae of this species feed on thistles (Cirsium), and inhabit open, dry grassland.

Picture and info from UK Moths.

Updates

So I bet you're wondering why I've been absent for 2 months? Well it's because I haven't been feeling well and I've been under alot of stress.

But I'm getting help so I'll be posting more now. As you can see I'm filling on all the days that I've missed for the 2 months. I don't if I'll be able to do the entire 2 months but I'll get a considerable amount done on both of them.

Just letting you know that I haven't forgotten about this blog ( I couldn't it's too important to me ) and that I'm still alive. :P

Peace!

Weird Bug - Aphelocheirus aestivalis

I found this on them and some photos. I'm going to look into these some more. I wonder if they're any in the US?

This bug just won my heart!

Bugs

I went to a doctors appointment and I saw these along the way:

♥ stink bug of some sort
♥ 2 yellow jacket wasps
♥ 1 moth

Made my day.

More Bugs

♥ Green Treehopper
♥ Tiger Swallowtail
♥ Woolly Bear Caterpillar ( Halysidota sp. )

Saw these on the way to the clinic

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For Now.

Glassy-winged Sharpshooter - Homalodisca vitripennis

Glassy-winged Sharpshooter - Homalodisca vitripennis

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes:

Homalodisca coagulata

Size:

11-14 mm.

Identification:

Flattened head and "glassy" wing patches.

Range:

Southern US, but introduced elsewhere, including California.

From Bugguide and the picture is from the Wikipedia article.

Yet Another Ant Entry

Solenopsis molesta The 'Thief' Ant:

Appearence:

S. molesta range anywhere from 1/32 (0.5 mm) of an inch to 1/8 (3 mm) of an inch long. They can be yellowish or brownish tones of color. These ants have a two-segmented petiole connecting their abdomen to the thorax.

They have 10 segments in their antennae, which end in large segmented clubs. Thief ants have small stingers on their oblong abdomen, and generally have small eyes. Worker ants have large jaws for carrying food back to the colony.

Distribution:

S. molesta are native to the United States. They can more commonly be found in the central states and the east coast.

Habitat:

The habitat of Solenopsis molesta is infinite, because they can survive just about anywhere. They can live in people’s homes, in the cracks or under the floorboards. They can build nests anywhere, such as under rocks, in any exposed soil, and rotting logs.

If they cannot find any of these things, then they move into another colony. Their nests are generally large for the ants’ size, and have tunnels that lead to another ant colony for a reliable and steady food source.

The rest can be found here. I don't know if there pictures of this species or not but I'll have looksie on Google.

Common Red Ant - Myrmica rubra

This is some of what Wikipedia has about them:

They are very common in Europe, and meadows and gardens. They live on a diet of honeydew excreted by aphids, and, being very aggressive like to eat many types of insect and other invertebrates. They will attack any creature that disturbs their nest, but are not as aggressive as the Red Imported Fire Ant.

They are polygynous, and can have up to one hundred queens per nest. They are also polydomous, with many nest sites per individual colony. These queens will have gathered together after their nuptial flight and will have formed a nest and laid their eggs in it. The queens can live up to fifteen years.

Nuptial flights take place normally in late July to mid- August in Europe. Hundreds of young queens and males take to the air to mate together. Afterwards, the males die and the queens shed their wings to make a new colony. No nuptial flights have been witnessed yet from this species where it is living in North America.

The picture is also from the entry which can be found here.

Jackpot!

Saw all of these in one whole day! Yippee! ^_^

♥ 1 Scarab Beetle Larvae
♥ 10,000 ants and their larvae
♥ 1 plume moth
♥ 1 cabbage white butterfly
♥ 1 firefly
♥ 1 ladybug ( in my house )

Please note that I have no idea how many ants I saw. It just looked there were 10,000.

Cream-bordered Green Pea - Earias clorana

Cream-bordered Green Pea - Earias clorana

Wingspan 16-20 mm.

A small but distinctive species, only likely to be confused with the micro Tortrix viridana, which however rests with a much 'flatter' aspect.

It is scattered locally throughout south-eastern England, with occasional records elsewhere, and inhabits fens, marshes and damp woodland.

Flying mainly in May and June, sometimes there is a second generation in August.

The larvae feed on various willows (Salix), including osier (S. viminalis).

- UK Moths

16-Spotted Ladybug Halyzia 16-guttata

These sort of look like the Cream Spotted Ladybug.

Info:

Latin name: Halyzia 16-guttata

Size: Approximately 5.5mms

Distribution: Found in many parts of the U.K. Increasing in numbers, especially in England.

Months seen: April to October

Food: Mildew

Habitat: Woodland. Frequently found around sycamore trees

Special features: Bright yellow or orange in colour, with a translucent border to the wing casings and pronotum (bit between the head and wing casings). Usually features 16 creamy-white coloured spots, but there can be as few as 14 spots. It has an orange head, and legs, and the eyes are black.

The info and pictures can be found here. Just do a search on them there and you'll find them.

A Little Visitor

Found a silverfish in my bathroom today.

Beautiful Day

Today was beautiful out! I went to the park and came across these jack pots

❤ 3 Cabbage Whites
❤ Tons of winged ants ( Mating season! )
❤ 2 winged Queen Ants
❤ 1 velvet mite
❤ 1 striped jumping spider ( it was black and white and I got to hold it )
❤ 1 hover fly
❤ 1 honey bee
❤ Tons of Robins
❤ 2 Canada Geese and their 2 chicks

The last one really hit me because it was so beautiful to see new life walking around me. I almost cried. Nature is beautiful.

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I'll put something here soon.

Bug Of The Month - Common Wanderer Pareronia valeria

I know the name of the butterfly makes you think of the Monarch because it has the same name ( or almost ) as this one. The only difference is this! Photo from Wikipedia obviously. ;)

But what a read huh? And this one including other species in the genius Pareronia are on my favorite butterflies list now. W00T

Peace Out!

OT: A Little Note

Just wanted to let you guys know that I'm still alive. I'm on a roller coaster atm and that's why I haven't updated this ( or my other 2 blogs on here ) in a good while, because all this crap I've been through has been keeping me busy.

I'm working on filling in missing dates in April and maybe I'll do March as well because there's not that many post for that month.

I hope that all of you are well. I will try and update ASAP.

Peace Out!