Funky Orange Caterpillar
Location: Sydney, Australia
January 26, 2012 6:19 am
Hi bugman,
We found this little guy roving around our back deck, celebrating Australia day in style. It was a slightly brighter orange colour than the photo shows. Just wondering what it might be? Obviously some kind of hornworm but I couldn’t see any entries already on your site depicting something that looked the same.
Signature: Many thanks, Bridget.
Hornworm: Theretra latreillii
Hi Bridget,
We quickly identified your caterpillar as a Hornworm in the family Sphingidae, but we had to expend some effort to properly identify it. There are many possibilities of Sphingidae on the Butterfly House website, and the thumbnails are often so small that we need to visit the individual pages. At first we thought we had identified your caterpillar as Hippontion celerio, but the Butterfly House images show a much more delicate caudal horn. A much better match is Theretra latreillii on Butterfly House, which states: “Normally the eyespot is hidden by a fold in the skin of the first abdominal segment, and the spot is only displayed when the animal is disturbed. Indeed when the skin is folded, the head and prothorax look like the upper jaw, and the first set of legs like the lower jaw, of some much larger beast, which may deter predators.” The Brisbane Insect website identifies the adult as the Pale Brown Hawk Moth.
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Spitfire Grub?
Location: Canberra
January 25, 2012 9:54 pm
Woud you please identify this bug, found in a dwarf snow gum on 26 January 2012 at 1100.
Signature: Bill Reid
White Stemmed Gum Moth Caterpillar
Hi Bill,
After some searching, we determined that your caterpillar is a member of the family Anthelidae. According to the Encyclopedia of Life: “a small family of moths restricted to Australia, New Guinea and the adjacent Aru archipelago. At present the family comprises 74 species in 8 genera described from Australia (Edwards and Fairey 1996) and 20 species from new Guinea in one endemic genus and one genus shared with Australia. However, numerous distinct species have already been identified as undescribed in museum collections such as the Australian National Insect Collection (ANIC).” Some taxonomists consider them to be closely related to the Lappet Moths and Tent Caterpillars. We eventually identified your caterpillar as Chelepteryx collesi, the White Stemmed Gum Moth on the Butterfly House website where we learned that “This Caterpillar is a great hazard to people climbing Gum trees. Scattered over its skin are tufts of long stiff reddish hairs, which are strong enough to penetrate human skin. When they do, they are very painful, and difficult to remove because they are barbed and brittle.” Another bit of information from Butterfly House is: “It is also one of the largest Caterpillars in Australia, growing in length to about 12 cms. Some trees where they may be found most years in Leichhardt are known by local school-children as ‘sausage trees’ because the Caterpillars look from the ground like sausages growing in the trees.”
Hi Daniel
Thank you so much for this information. I have many friends here and overseas that are interested.
A great service that you provide.
Best wishes
Bill Reid
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Giant Water Bug
Location: Queensland, Australia
January 26, 2012 12:50 am
Hi guys,
Hope you like these shots of a giant water bug that was hanging around banging into a shiny piece of stainless steel in my carport. They will often mistake a reflective surface for water and attempt to drop into it.
The bug played dead when I got close to it and it allowed me to turn it over for a shot of its piercing mouthparts. It was determined not to give itself away until I picked it up and took it over to some long grass. When I dropped it on the grass it quickly righted itself and flew away.
Signature: aussietrev
Water Scorpion
Hi Trevor,
The very flattened body and extremely long, posterior breathing tube indicates that this is a Water Scorpion, and not a closely related Giant Water Bug. Interestingly, we found a photos of a Water Scorpion from Australia submitted by you in 2008 in our archive. We decided to do a bit more research and we found the AusEmade website that has a photo of an Australian Water Scorpion from Simpsons Gap that is identified as Laccotrephes tristis and contains this information: “One of the interesting looking insects found swimming in the pools is the Water Scorpion, whose other common name is Toe-biter. These strange looking creatures are carnivores, feeding on other aquatic organisms that they can capture including tadpoles, small frogs and small fish. They swim with the tip of their long needle like tail breaking the water surface, acting as a breathing siphon. With their large pincer-like forelegs used for seizing their prey, Water Scorpions can inflict a nasty nip, although they are also known to play dead when disturbed. Once they have grasped their prey, they inject a venom that liquefy the prey from the inside, which enables the Water Scorpion to suck out the prey’s body fluid.” The Identification and Ecology of Australian Freshwater Invertebrates website also has some good information. The Atlas of Living Australiahas a distribution map.
Water Scorpion
If you look closely at your close-up photos, you can see tiny red spots which we suspect are Mites. Several sources indicate a common name of Toe-Biter which is shared with the North American Giant Water Bugs.
Water Scorpion
Bug Art
Location: São Paulo, Brazil
January 26, 2012 7:35 am
Here is my last creation. I let it hangin’ on my bed. Isn’t it adorable?
Signature: Cesar Crash
Cockroach Sculpture by Cesar Crash
Hi Cesar,
Thanks for reminding us that you have submitted other insect sculptures. We will need to search the archive and categorize them as Bug Art. Does this Cockroach Sculpture scare away the real roaches which we are guessing are much smaller than this in Brazil?
It have only scared humans till now! Thank God I have no problems with cockroaches at home. The only ones that appear are those burrowing crusty ones. And some wild roaches that have no fear for humans.
Perhaps it will attract a giant Ampulex compressa!
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Beatle of some sort?
Location: San Antonio, Tx
January 23, 2012 7:55 pm
I sell wood for fireplaces, bbqs, etc. Recently I split some mesquite to let dry out and there are a million of these guys everywhere. I just leave them be not knowing what they are. They seem harmless. They run extremely slow and sometimes will just sit still when I move the wood pile around like they are trying to blend in. just wondering what they could be as I have a 2 yr old curious little boy and don’t want him harmed in anyway if they are dangerous.
Signature: Thank you for your input, Mike
Mesquite Borers
Hi Mike,
You have Mesquite Borers, Placosternus difficilis, a native species that BugGuide reports from Arizona and Texas. Mesquite Borers are Longhorned Borer Beetles in the family Cerambycidae. The larvae are wood borers. You should advise your customers to keep their firewood outside until they are ready to use it or they might find their homes invaded during an emergence of the adults from the wood. Often warm indoor temperatures trigger an emergence in the home. Since this is a native species, transporting the firewood shouldn’t be a problem, but with many invasive, exotic borer insects showing up in North America, people are warned about transporting firewood as this helps to spread an invasion..
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Bed Bug or Carpet Beetle?
Location: Northest/MD
January 24, 2012 6:48 pm
Hi, I live in MD and started finding these little bugs in my carpet (never on my bed) in September. This is the lot I’ve collected since then, and never more than one at a time. I do have itching/biting symptoms mainly at night but sometimes during the day at work, but have not found any bugs, feces, or blood stains on any part of my bed or surrounding furniture, after checking for months now. Nor have I had any of the classic skin symptoms/reactions aside from the itching. So, I’d like to know exactly what I’m dealing with here. Appreciate any direction you can provide!
Signature: Cant Sleep Tight
Carpet Beetle and Larvae
Dear Cant Sleep Tight,
Try to get some rest. You do have Carpet Beetles and not Bed Bugs. While Carpet Beetles are considered household pests that will do damage to organic materials, they do not bite. The second individual from the left in your photo is an adult Carpet Beetle and the others are Larvae.
Bug found in apartment.
Location: Toronto, Ontario
January 24, 2012 4:44 pm
My girlfriend and I moved in to our apartment in east york ontario 3 months ago. Immediately we started noticing ants and after about 2 months started noticing few of these little guys. To me it looks like a weevil but I’d like to be sure. Also, do they bite?
Signature: Thanks, Toothbrush
Weevil
dear Toothbrush,
This is a Weevil and they do not bite. They do infest stored grain products. Try checking the rice in the pantry and we frequently get responses that they have infested stored bird seed.
January 25, 2012
Daniel, the WTB? Bugman, makes quilts in his spare time, and though this is occasionally mentioned on the website, there is no photo-documentation of it. Today, we created a new Bug Art category, and it seemed like a good time to post a few photos of bug inspired quilts. Back in 2002 when the website was originally designed, the childlike font used as the logo was created from a photograph of the embroidered title of a large quilted picnic blanket of the same name. Daniel and Lisa Anne were relaxing on that quilt when the photographer from Sunset Magazine dropped by the offices back in 2007.
WTB? Staff on What's That Bug picnic blanket
Alas, there are no good digital images of that quilt, so when time allows, we will make sure there is a new photo taken. Meanwhile, Daniel completed another quilt called World Wide Web several years ago, and we present that photo for your artistic critique.
World Wide Web quilt by Daniel Marlos
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¶ Posted 25 January 2012 § Bug Art ‡ ° 
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