Did you guess the identities of the milkweed insects from last week?  Let’s check.

  1. The yellow-orange insects on the stem are aphids. More specifically, they are the oleander aphid, Aphis nerii.  Hint:  Aphids are the ones with two “tailpipes” or cornicles on the back.

2. The red and black one insect might be hard to tell from this angle, but it is a true bug. A little one with two white dots in the wing is a small milkweed bug, Lygaeus kalmii.

3. This one was tough because the photograph isn’t very close. It is an assassin bug, Zelus renardii. It is probably waiting for a bee or fly to capture.


4. I think everyone recognized the praying mantis. In this case, it is the Mediterranean mantis,  Iris oratoria. (See previous post).


5. This one is tricky. Cirrelda correctly recognized it is a lady beetle.


6.  The pale green oval at the end of the hairlike stalk is the egg of a lacewing. (Life cycle in previous post).


7. The cute striped caterpillar will turn into a monarch butterfly.

At this time of year, the butterfly will probably migrate farther north to lay its eggs on another milkweed plant.

We’re glad it stopped by.