Category: Bug of the Week (Page 54 of 219)

Bug of the Week: All About Assassin Bugs

July 12, 2017 / Roberta / 1 Comment

We have shown photographs of assassin bugs before, but let’s learn more about them.

(Assassin Bug Egg Mass by Jim Kalisch, UNL Entomology)

Assassin bugs start out as eggs like the ones above.

The eggs hatch into colorful nymphs. They are small at first.

Assassin bugs often are found sitting on flowers lying in wait for other insects to visit. If another insect, such as a fly, caterpillar or leafhopper, comes into reach the assassin bug will capture it and feed on it. Assassin bugs are true bugs, which means their mouthparts are straw-like beaks that are usually tucked under their heads.

As it feeds and molts, the nymph becomes larger. This individual is almost an adult. You can tell by the size of the wing pads on the back of the thorax.

This is an adult assassin bug. Look how its color has changed, such as the legs have gone from spotted to solid green. Now its wings are red and cover the back of the abdomen. If you look really close, you may be able to see its beak curving under its head.

Look at those long antennae. That’s one way it senses its food. It also uses its long front legs.

Assassin bugs like these are members of the genus Zelus. They are common throughout North America.

Have you ever seen an assassin bug like this?

Bug of the Week: Metallic Wood Boring Beetle

July 5, 2017 / Roberta / 0 Comments

Our beetle this week isn’t showing off its colors.

This is a metallic wood-boring beetle, family Buprestidae. They are sometimes called jewel beetles because many members of the family are brightly-colored and shiny. If you look closely, you might see the one above has some gold/green on the ridges of its hind wings (elytra) and on its legs, but otherwise it is rather dull.

In comparison, some members of its family look like this:

(Public domain photograph from Wikimedia)

The colors aren’t due to pigments in the exoskeleton, but instead the beetles appear metallic or iridescent because the fine texturing of their outer surface scatters light.

Regardless of their colors, many adult beetles of the family Buprestidae have cylindrical or bullet-shaped bodies.

The larvae are grubs that bore through the wood of trees, hence the name “wood-boring.” Most prefer to eat injured, dead, or dying trees. For that reason, people are likely find them in or around fire wood.

Have you ever found a jewel beetle?

Children want to learn more about beetles? Try the lovely picture book, A Beetle Is Shy by Dianna Hutts Aston and illustrated by the fabulous Sylvia Long.

Age Range: 5 – 8 years
Publisher: Chronicle Books (April 5, 2016)
ISBN-10: 1452127123
ISBN-13: 978-1452127125

Disclosure: This book was provided by my local library. Also, I am an affiliate with Amazon so I can provide you with cover images and links to more information about books and products. As you probably are aware, if you click through the highlighted title link and purchase a product, I will receive a very small commission, at no extra cost to you. Any proceeds help defray the costs of hosting and maintaining this website.

Bug of the Week: Bougainvillea Caterpiller Moth Life Cycle

June 28, 2017 / Roberta / 0 Comments

This empty pupa says it all.

Our little green caterpillar from past posts has revealed his identity. He is a male bougainvillea caterpiller moth, Asciodes gordialis. Although I originally thought he might be a pyralid caterpillar, he turns out to belong to the family Crambidae.

You can tell its a male by the dark tufts mid-way up the antennae and the dense fringe of hairs on the front legs.

You can see the fringe of hairs on the front legs better in this view.

Unfortunately, circumstances weren’t the best for taking good photos.Â For some excellent quality photographs of a male bougainvillea caterpiller moth, see Jim Burns Photos.

Bougainvillea Caterpiller Moth Life Cycle

Let’s recap what we discovered over the last few weeks (with links to past blog posts.)

The caterpillar feeds on and hides in rolled up bougainvillea leaves.

Bougainvilleas are brightly-colored shrubs that flower throughout the summer in Arizona.

The color comes from the red or magenta sepals, which are not flower petals.

The true flowers are these tiny white ones. The caterpillars feed on leaves near the sepal clusters at the tips of the stems.

The caterpillar is green with a bit of mottling on its head capsule.

Looking closer, it was easy to see the breathing tubes or trachea through the the caterpillar’s clear exoskeleton. The dark green line down the back is its heart.