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submitted by /u/rayogilvie [link] [comments] |
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r67rkl/the_smeared_dagger_moth_caterpillar_caterpillars/
Tuesday 30 November 2021
The Smeared Dagger Moth Caterpillar; Caterpillars That Sting
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r67rkl/the_smeared_dagger_moth_caterpillar_caterpillars/
Just posted this on the bedbug sub but looking for any suggestions…. This tiny red bug was found on this fruit fly I killed in our office… is it a bed bug? Tick, mite?? It’s extremely tiny. Much smaller than this very tiny fruit fly… we live in the NW
Question: why do flies slow down after being indoors for a long time?
I’ve noticed that flies trapped in a house or room for days seem to slow down to the point that they barely even fly. Seems like they still get food indoors though.
[link] [comments]
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r61nli/question_why_do_flies_slow_down_after_being/
Tarantula hawks lay their eggs in living tarantulas. Once hatched, larvae feast on the tarantula, avoiding vital organs to keep it alive long enough to feed them into adulthood. The wasp's sting is one of the world's most painful, but they won't bother you unless harassed. Respect our biodiversity!
This is bugs light-year. Does anyone know what species he is? Found as an egg/larva in soil in a box of worms I bought for my chameleon, this is in Slovakia. He hatched and grew to this size within a few weeks. If he can fly then he isn't aware of it because he lives with worms.
Monday 29 November 2021
Question about purchasing insects(from the U.S. to Canada)
Hi, sorry if this isn't allowed or is a little off topic, but I checked for any rules around here and couldn't find anything beyond the standard reddit rules, so I thought I'd give it a shot. TL;DR at the bottom.
I recently got into this hobby, collecting a few things here and there, a shiny beetle, a blue bee. I'm by no means some expert or super into all their names and origins, just mostly the intricate designs and colors.
I found a very cool specimen on a website that I wanted to purchase for a bit of a self Xmas present, though it turns out they don't ship to Canada. I thought about shipping it to a friend and having them ship it to me, though doing a little more digging, learned that that might be illegal and will end up getting my bug seized by the U.S. postal service.
I've dug around, and one place tells me that it's illegal to export insects(dead or alive), whereas another tells me it's fine so long as you have a permit, and another goes further and tells me you only need to declare what you're shipping and don't need a permit.
I really would like to purchase that specimen, though really don't like having to risk a potentially $80 purchase falling into the hands of the U.S. postal service and losing out on my money and bug.
I do know that it isn't illegal to ship a dead insect into Canada, it's just the U.S. export regulations that seem to be the problem. An interesting bit is that the specimen in question is from Africa, and it's being sold out of the U.S...?
TL;DR I want to buy a bug from the U.S. to my residence in Canada, is that illegal and if so will it get seized or returned to sender?
[link] [comments]
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r5fnw7/question_about_purchasing_insectsfrom_the_us_to/
My friend gave me this insect today. In a container because it leaps at your face. Looks like a King Cricket to me, but images I see online of King Crickets don't have wings, but this one seems to have some on the back. Found in Shoalhaven area, NSW, Australia.
What do you think is the coolest beetle?
Help guys! I have an assignment and I have to write about an order order of insects and I chose coleoptera. I need to write about a beetles behaviour, anatomy and anything else that i think is worth mentioning.
Since you guys love beetles, which beetle do you think is the coolest so that I can pick that beetle as my assignment topic? and also why do you think its so cool
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source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r5ad5z/what_do_you_think_is_the_coolest_beetle/
Can anyone help me ID this spider? Found in the house, England. It’s so small it’s honestly like half a centimetre if that. Can’t see anything similar in my book but I could just not be seeing it properly. Pics aren’t great, it’s brown, has pincers and it has a patterned leg. Thanks!
Anatomically accurate bee fly plushie?
MODS I hope this post is okay. Does anyone know where to get a bee fly plushie? Typing "bee fly" or "Bombyliidae" doesn't really bring up anything besides bee plushies. I found a cool housefly one, but that's just a bonus.
[link] [comments]
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r51eoj/anatomically_accurate_bee_fly_plushie/
One of the most fabulous insects of Ontario, Canada: the six spotted tiger beetle (Cincindela sexguttata). As voracious predators, it was a pleasure to find one decapitating an ant!
The Dermacentor Ticks | Catalogue of Organisms
Among the ticks of most concern to humans are species of the genus Dermacentor. This genus of about forty known species is widely distributed in Africa, Eurasia and the Americas. Examples include the meadow tick D. reticulatus in Europe, and the wood tick D. variabilis and Rocky Mountain wood tick D. andersoni in North America. They are parasites of mammals, including both generalist and more host-specific species; records of Dermacentor individuals from reptiles and even carpenter bees (Goddard & Bircham 2010) presumably represent incidental and/or accidental associations. Species of Dermacentor are responsible for the spread of bacteria causing diseases such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever (which, despite sounding like a 1950s dance craze, is presumably not much fun), Q fever and tularemia. The ticks can also be more directly hazardous, as their bites inject a toxin that can cause tick paralysis.
Distinguishing features of Dermacentor species relative to other ticks include a rectangular base to the capitulum, relatively short, broad palps, well-developed eyes and the presence of festoons (impressed divisions of the posterior margin of the body) (Keirans 2009). Most are ornate—that is, marked on the dorsum with contrasting pale patterns—with the notable exception of the tropical horse tick D. nitens of the Americas (until recently, often treated as forming its own genus Anocentor). The function of such markings is unknown though suggestions include environmental protection, warning predators of distastefulness, or sexual signalling.
The majority of Dermacentor species have a three-host life cycle, dropping off the host between each of the life stages of larva, nymph and adult, and seeking out a new host after moulting. However, at least two New World species, the aforementioned D. nitens and the winter tick D. albipictus (a parasite of deer), are one-host ticks that remain on their original host between instars. In general, Dermacentor species are more resilient to dry climates than many other tick species. Individual species can differ in their climate tolerance, however. In North America, the geographical divide between D. variabilis in the east of the continent and D. andersoni in the west seems to be driven by the need for the latter of drier conditions (Yoder et al. 2007). Older instars also tend to be hardier than younger. Females of the ornate sheep tick D. marginatus, a European species, leave their host after gorging at the beginning of winter and then wait for more amoenable spring conditions before laying their delicate eggs (Dörr & Gothe 2001).
Higher relationships within the genus do not appear to have been extensively studied. A preliminary molecular phylogeny of hard ticks has suggested the possibility of a basal division between Afrotropical, Eurasian and New World lineages (Barker & Murrell 2004). Comparison with related tick genera raises the possibility of an Afrotropical origin for Dermacentor, though the genus has only a relictual presence in that continent now. However, with only a handful of species subjected to broad phylogenetic analysis to date, further testing is demanded. Does the continental divide hold true? Do the one-host species form a single clade within the genus? Inquiring minds wish to know.
REFERENCES
Barker, S. C., & A. Murrell. 2004. Systematics and evolution of ticks with a list of valid genus and species names. Parasitology 129: S15–S36.
Dörr, B., & R. Gothe. 2001. Cold-hardiness of Dermacentor marginatus (Acari: Ixodidae). Experimental and Applied Acarology 25: 151–169.
Goddard, J., & L. Bircham. 2010. Parasitism of the carpenter bee, Xylocopa virginica (L.) (Hymenoptera: Apidae), by larval Dermacentor variabilis (Say) (Acari: Ixodidae). Systematic and Applied Acarology 15: 195–196.
Keirans, J. E. 2009. Order Ixodida. In: Krantz, G. W., & D. E. Walter (eds) A Manual of Acarology 3rd ed. pp. 111–123. Texas Tech University Press.
Yoder, J. A., D. R. Buchan, N. F. Ferrari & J. L. Tank. 2007. Dehydration tolerance of the Rocky Mountain wood tick, Dermacentor andersoni Stiles (Acari: Ixodidae), matches preference for a dry environment. International Journal of Acarology 33 (2): 173–180.
Winter mild or wild? Ask the banded woolly bear, Pyrrharctia isabella
How do woolly bear caterpillars predict winter weather and survive winter’s chill?
The banded woolly bear turns into the pretty Isabella tiger moth.
By virtue of the intimate relationship between weather and insect activity, folklore abounds about the ability of insects to predict meteorological events – when hornets build their nests high, a cold winter is on the way, when ants construct tall mounds, heavy rains are just around the corner, stuff like that. An annual preoccupation for many naturalists is taking a guess at what Old Man Winter has in store for us in the upcoming months. Fact-packed sources like NOAA predict “above normal” temperatures for the mid-Atlantic region and the tried and true Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts a “Season of Shivers” with “positively bone-chilling, below-average temperatures across most of the United States”. Entomologists know the consummate soothsayer of upcoming winter weather is the banded woolly bear caterpillar, the larval stage of the Isabella tiger moth.
Exactly when and where the prognosticative abilities of woolly bears were discovered remains shrouded in mystery. However, Dr. Charles Howard Curran, an assistant curator at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City from 1947 until his retirement in 1960, popularized the forecasting skills of woolly bears. Dr. Curran made annual pilgrimages to nearby Bear Mountain Park each year between 1948 and 1956 to observe woolly bears and gather data on their color patterns. He measured the width of colored hair bands on the body of woolly bear caterpillars to forecast the severity of the upcoming winter. His observations gained notoriety when published in the New York Herald Tribune. He concluded that a wide orange or brown band in the middle of the caterpillar bordered by black bands at head and tail forecast a mild winter. Conversely, wider black segments with a narrow band of brown or orange in between forewarned of a long, severe winter. Several other entomological experts around the country have used various clues garnered from the woolly bears to predict the winter weather. Claims of 70-80% accuracy are not uncommon.
A woolly bear caterpillar bedecked with just a few black segments front and back, and many segments in the middle festooned with orange or brown is thought to be the harbinger of a mild winter. Conversely, a woolly bear with a narrow band of orange or brown sandwiched between large bands of black at head and tail signals a severe winter ahead. Having encountered representatives of both camps recently, perhaps the woolly bears are predicting a relatively mild winter with intermittent periods of severe cold. Clever meteorologists are these woolly bears.
When threatened, the woolly bear caterpillar curls into ball with a phalanx of stout, outward-facing spines which send a strong warning to would-be predators and bug geeks.
I usually think of caterpillars as rather delicate creatures and wonder why woolly bears don’t spend winter in a more durable stage like an egg or pupa, as do many other moths and butterflies. Even in Maryland polar vortices sometimes visit and drop temperatures below zero. A fascinating study by Jack Layne and his colleagues revealed that woolly bear caterpillars survive winter’s cold through a process called supercooling. As temperatures drop in autumn and early winter, woolly bears and many other species of insects produce cryoprotectants, antifreeze-like compounds including glycerol and sorbitol, that prevent the formation of lethal ice crystals in their bodies. This brew of Mother Nature’s antifreeze allows caterpillars to survive even when ambient temperatures dip well below freezing. The ability to shrug off cold enables the partially grown woolly bear caterpillar to overwinter as a larva, and with the return of warm temperatures in spring and arrival of fresh leaves, the caterpillars resume feeding for a while before spinning a cocoon and completing the transformation to an adult moth.
Imagine my delight when on a recent trip to the field, I discovered a banded woolly bear caterpillar with virtually no black bands on its body save for a few dark segments near the head. What with wildly inflating fuel prices and my ancient furnace gulping gallons of fuel oil, the prospect of lower oil bills loomed large. These hopes were thoroughly dashed a week later when I spotted a banded woolly bear with but a few orange colored segments in the middle and wide black bands at head and tail sanctioning the Farmer’s Almanac forecast of severe weather ahead. Has discord so rampant in the world of humans spread to the realm of woolly bears as well? Let’s hope not. Perhaps these seemingly disparate meteorological predictions are reconciled like this: “Woolly bears are predicting a relatively mild winter with intermittent periods of severe cold.” Clever meteorologists are these woolly bears.
Acknowledgements
Bug of the Week thanks Sheri, Finn, and Iggy for inspiring this episode and Karin Burghardt for providing images and identifying featured caterpillars. David Wagner’s remarkable book, “Caterpillars of Eastern North America”, was used to prepare this story, as was the interesting article “Cold Hardiness of the Woolly Bear Caterpillar (Pyrrharctia isabella Lepidoptera: Arctiidae)” by Jack R. Layne, Jr., Christine L. Edgar, and Rebecca E. Medwith.
Sunday 28 November 2021
Spiders with human-paralyzing venom?
I have a pal who was bitten by a spider while walking in a wooded area here in South Africa yesterday, now today his foot is numb. Does anyone know what spider may have caused this? They remember they saw a spider that had two thicker forelegs and didn't see any web nearby. If anyone has a list of potential spiders, I would love to take a look ~ Thanks in advance
[link] [comments]
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r4nc0d/spiders_with_humanparalyzing_venom/
What types of isopods should I get and start breeding
I already have several different types that i breed and sell what do you all think my next isopod should be.i already have these powder blue,common shiny,dwarf white,armadillidium wild type and clown isopods
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source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r4mu1e/what_types_of_isopods_should_i_get_and_start/
This insect (I think, it has 6 legs but hard to tell?) is about 1/4 inch across. It was on my back porch in coastal South Carolina. I've never seen one before. Anybody know what it is?
Spring tail? Found a lot of these in a hermit crab tank. Wondering if they are harmful to them 🤔 suggested to clean out the entire tank and replace substrate?
Going on a woodland walk today
Going on a woodland walk today in England, I would like some suggestions on what I should try looking out for and I will let you guys no if I found any of them.
[link] [comments]
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r42w97/going_on_a_woodland_walk_today/
Saturday 27 November 2021
Small orange egg
I found a small orange, almost perfectly circular egg on the bottom side of a leaf in my home. I am curious if this is characteristic of an aphid egg?
[link] [comments]
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r3uac6/small_orange_egg/
Hey guys I found these little dudes in my house near a big of bird seeds and wanted to know if anyone would be able to identify them. They have 6 legs and kinda have a beetle like structure. Thank you and have a rad day 🤙🤙🤙
Saw a few of these Caterpillars in my garage, I’m located in Mesa, AZ. I didn’t want to touch them and disturb them. Anyone know what kind they are?
Mating pair of jagged ambush bugs (Phymata spp.) taking down some badass prey (Vespula spp.)! Ambush bugs will commonly work together while mating to take down larger prey items. Ontario, Canada.
![Sweat Bee in a Sourgrass Flower [OC]](https://preview.redd.it/9kwbmoah35281.jpg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=0a0686070c7b6205930e80963e72671cc788ba67 "Sweat Bee in a Sourgrass Flower [OC]")
"Close-up of a Bison bull rolling in the dust in the prairie" in State of Montana, United States of America. Photographer: Ryan Hagerty, United States Fish and Wildlife Service
Friday 26 November 2021
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submitted by /u/urgentbog [link] [comments] |
source https://www.reddit.com/r/Entomology/comments/r36sem/_/
![Double larvae: California oak moth caterpillar (Phryganidia californica) on an oak gall. Spotted near Santa Barbara, California [oc]](https://preview.redd.it/13ifzpsun2281.jpg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=d01fcecc9895cf2d25013c93322b9582e9e52952 "Double larvae: California oak moth caterpillar (Phryganidia californica) on an oak gall. Spotted near Santa Barbara, California [oc]")
would anyone know what insect this is. I think I count 8 legs with white around the fangs. Found in mid north coast of NSW, Australia thanks in advance
Shadow of the Palaeoniscoids | Catalogue of Organisms
Depending how you cut it, the ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii) are arguably the most diverse group of vertebrates in the modern fauna. They are the dominant vertebrates in all aquatic environments, they encompass an enormous array of species, and they have evolved a bewildering assemblage of morphologies. But despite their current pre-eminence, the early evolution of actinopterygians remains rather understudied. The earliest actinopterygians appear in the fossil record in the Late Silurian/Early Devonian but, until fairly recently, the majority of Palaeozoic ray-finned fishes have often been lumped into a catch-all holding tank, the 'Palaeonisciformes'. This was a vague assemblage of fishes united by plesiomorphic features such as ganoid scales (heavy, bony scales with an outer layer of enamel, also found in modern gars and sturgeons), a single dorsal fin and a heterocercal tail (with the upper arm of the tail fin longer than the lower). The key genus of the group, the Permian Palaeoniscum, had a fusiform (or torpedo-shaped) body; at first glance, it would not have looked dissimilar to a modern herring. However, it lacked the mobile jaw structure of modern teleost fishes, with the maxilla and preopercular bones being fixed together. As such, it would have lacked the modern fish's capacity for suction feeding (Lauder 1980). Prey capture by Palaeoniscum would have been a simple smash-and-grab affair. Palaeoniscoid fishes remained a component of both marine and freshwater faunas until the end of the Cretaceous before being entirely supplanted by modern teleost radiations such as the ostariophysans and percomorphs.
The core concept of 'Palaeonisciformes' has united fishes with a fusiform body shape like Palaeoniscum; depending on the author, more divergent contemporary fishes such as the deep-body platysomoids might be combined in the same order or treated separately. By modern standards, former 'Palaeonisciformes' probably combine stem-actinopterygians, stem-chondrosteans, stem-holosteans and possibly even stem-teleosts. As such, the term Palaeonisciformes has tended to fall out of favour, though the less formal 'palaeoniscoid' remains a useful descriptor. Nevertheless, the exact phylogenetic position of many palaeoniscoid taxa remains unestablished. Part of this is due to a lack of observable detail: though those heavy ganoid scales preserve well, they effectively cover up internal skeletal features. Many palaeoniscoids are preserved as compression fossils, effectively not much more than intriguing silhouettes. However, part of the problem is simple neglect. Palaeoniscoids are not rare fossils; in some formations, they may be the dominant part of the fauna by a large margin. They certainly deserve a closer look.
REFERENCE
Lauder, G. V., Jr. 1980. Evolution of the feeding mechanism in primitive actinopterygian fishes: a functional anatomical analysis of Polypterus, Lepisosteus, and Amia. Journal of Morphology 163: 283–317.
We’re a community of insect keepers seeking to provide proper husbandry tips for all types of insects and other inverts!!! We offer a marketplace section, experienced keepers, a photography section, and an active and growing community. Join today! With holiday giveaways!
Was lucky enough to come across this freshly emerged female Green darner, Anax junius, earlier this summer. So fresh it almost looked like a plastic toy!
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