Mating Promethea Moths and resulting Caterpillars
Mating Promethea Moths and resulting Caterpil…
Posted 9 days ago

Promethea ranching
Location: South Illinois
May 16, 2012 9:02 pm
Sent you a picture of a female promethea earlier this spring. She found…

Mating Promethea Moths and resulting Caterpil…
New Things Happening in Entomophagy!!!
New Things Happening in Entomophagy!!!
Posted 17 days ago

Hi Daniel,
This is a sort-of press release: I'd be grateful if you'd feature it on your site.
Thanks,
Dave

As many have noticed,…

New Things Happening in Entomophagy!!!
Red Admirals swarm eastern North America
Red Admirals swarm eastern North America
Posted 22 days ago

Red Admiral population explosion
Location: St. Catharines (near Niagara Falls, Ontario)
May 3, 2012 10:13 am
Hello,
I thought you might be interested to…

Red Admirals swarm eastern North America
Pseudoscorpion
Bug of the Month May 2012: Pseudoscorpion
Posted 26 days ago

8 legs Plus pinchers?
Location: SE PA, 20 miles west of Philadelphia, 15 miles north of Wilm, DE
April 29, 2012 9:34…

Bug of the Month May 2012:  Pseudoscorpion
WTB? sponsors National Moth Week event Saturday, 21 July 2012
WTB? sponsors National Moth Week event Saturd…
Posted 115 days ago

Make plans for your own local National Moth Week event!!!
Posted February 1, 2012
What's That Bug? will be working the the…

WTB? sponsors National Moth Week event Saturd…
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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Geometrid Moth

Subject: Moth dreaming it’s a Butterfly
Location: Costa Mesa
May 25, 2012 3:01 am
Hey Bugman,
I found this little white beauty hanging out on a bush by a steetlight. It looked like a moth, acted like a moth, went for light like a moth and was out at night like a moth. However, it liked to hold its wings like a butterfly – I presume to annoy people who are trying to identify it. It’s stumped me, certainly. I’m pretty sure its a moth and not a butterfly who happens to be a night owl, but nothing looks like it on the website I reference for regional moths.
Signature: butterfly dreaming she’s a moth hobbiest

geometrid costa mesa 300x206 Geometrid Moth

Geometrid Moth

Dear butterfly dreaming she’s a moth hobbiest,
It is a fallacy that all butterflies rest with wings folded over their backs and all moths rest with their wings flat, but it is a generalization that is often true and it is one of the characteristics that is frequently cited so that the average person can distinguish a moth from a butterfly.  Here is a photo of a Mourning Cloak Butterfly resting with wings flat and a Polyphemus Moth resting with its wings folded, both breaking the generalized rule.  Your moth is a Geometrid Moth in the family Geometridae, but we are uncertain of the species.  A quick browse through BugGuide shows how many similar looking species there are in North America.

Bumelia Borer and Anglewing attracted to rotting fruit

Subject: Green and metalic green beetle
Location: Sulphur Oklahoma
May 24, 2012 9:34 pm
I put some ripened fruit out so I could attract some butterflies and I caught a picture of this bug. What am I?
Signature: Sherry Cloud

bumelia borer sherry 300x214 Bumelia Borer and Anglewing attracted to rotting fruit

Bumelia Borer

Hi Sherry.
The first time we saw a photo of a Bumelia Borer,
Plinthocoelium suaveolens, we were astonished at its beauty.  It really is a beautiful beetle.  Did your rotting fruit attract any butterflies?

bumelia borer sherry cloud 300x195 Bumelia Borer and Anglewing attracted to rotting fruit

Bumelia Borer

Thank you.
Yes, I am trying my talents at a little photograpy and it helps to attract the butterflies. Here are a couple. I am waiting for the really colorful one!

Hi again Sherry,
Thanks for sending us some butterfly photos.  We are posting the Anglewing, probably a Comma.  Their wings are actually quite colorful when they are opened.  The undersides help to camouflage the resting butterfly by allowing it to blend in with dried leaves.

anglewing sherry 272x300 Bumelia Borer and Anglewing attracted to rotting fruit

Anglewing is probably a Comma

 

 

Related Posts

What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Huntsman Spider from Peru

Subject: Banded Huntsman Spider
Location: Near Cusco, Peru
May 24, 2012 6:51 am
Buenas Dias, Daniel! This beauty appeared in our kitchen 3 days ago. We see these guys all the time, they also come in solid black. This one is much larger and fatter than the usual, so we believe she is a female, possibly pregnant? We found her mate, maybe, dying on the windowsill. She is a little more coffee colored than this photo shows, but you get the idea. We’ll keep an eye on her for spiderlings. Loving your book, thanks for writing it!
Signature: offthegridinperu

huntsman peru 300x230 Huntsman Spider from Peru

Huntsman Spider

Dear offthegridinperu,
Thanks for sending us your photo of a South American Huntsman Spider.  We have been informed by Eric Eaton that the bite of some South American Huntsman Spiders can be dangerous to humans.  We are happy to hear you are enjoying The Curious World of Bugs

Fishing Spider

Subject: Possible Fishing spider? Please help!
Location: Rome, Maine
May 24, 2012 7:20 am
Dear Bugman, We found this large furry spider hiding under a pillow on our ourdoor bench. He has rather long banded legs that seem to have white on them underneath, but he is mostly black and brown. He is about 2 1/2 inches leg to leg and really fast.
Signature: A bug loving family, in the woods of Maine

fishing spider maine 300x258 Fishing Spider

Fishing Spider

Dear bug loving family,
This is indeed a Fishing Spider and we believe it is most likely
Dolomedes tenebrosus which you will find described on BugGuide.

Bumble Bee from Serbia

Subject: European Bumblebee
Location: Belgrade, Serbia
May 23, 2012 3:26 pm
Dear Bugman,
I am trying to distinguish this bee: Is it a white-tailed bumblebee or a buff-tailed bumblebee? I photographed it in my driveway last weekend in Belgrade, Serbia.
Thank you!
Signature: Bill Kralovec

bumblebee serbia bill 300x233 Bumble Bee from Serbia

Bumble Bee from Serbia

Dear Bill,
Thanks for sending in your request.  Bumblebee.org indicates:  “The queens Bombus terrestris and B. lucorum are usually the first to emerge in the spring. B. terrestris queens are the largest bumblebees we have in the UK. It is fairly easy to differentiate between B. terrestris and B. lucorum queens -  the yellow thorax hairs of terrestris are more dull orangey while those of lucorum are more lemony [.]  B. terrestris has a brownish orange tip to her abdomen while B. lucorum’s is white – hence the common names.”  
Bumblebee.org also indicates:  “The workers of both species look like smaller versions of the lucorum queen. See the worker on the left. They are almost impossible to tell apart without dissection. The size range can vary quite a lot, but usually the smaller workers are from the earliest laid eggs. Bombus lucorum workers range from 0.04 – 0.32 g and the queens from 0.46 – 0.70 g; B. terrestris workers range from 0.05 g – 0.40 g.”  Our guess is that this is a queen White-Tailed Bumble Bee.  We are basing that on the information provided on the website we cited.  The early emergence and large size would indicate the bee is a queen.  Though many internet references use a single word Bumblebee, we are following the naming convention used on BugGuide.

Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar

Identification Request: caterpillar?
Location: norman ok
May 23, 2012 9:00 pm
trying to identify this caterpillar from my flower garden in norman oklahoma on May 22. i had 2 of them in close proximity.
Signature: chad

variegated fritillary caterpillar chad 300x175 Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar

Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar

Dear Chad,
This beautifully marked caterpillar is a Variegated Fritillary.  According to BugGuide:  “Larvae feed on Violets & Pansy (Viola, Flax Linum, Passion Vine (Passiflora), Moonseed (Menispermum), Mayapple (Podophyllum), Stonecrop (Sedum), Purslane (Portulaca) and others. Adults are fond of flowers, and especially seem to like Thistles and yellow Composites. They also frequently visit damp ground.”  We suspect you must have violets or pansies in your garden.

Ichneumon from Austria

Subject: Beautiful nightly visitor
Location: Austria
May 23, 2012 5:12 pm
Dear Bugman,
I’ve just been visited by one of the most beautiful insects I have ever seen and wanted to ask you if you could identify my nightly guest?
One strange thing I noticed is it had what seemed like three extra eyes on the top of its head right between the two big eyes, on the base of its antennas.
A pretty exciting sight, I don’t see such exotic looking insects around here very often.
Greetings from Austria,
Michael
Signature: Michael

ichneumon austria michael 300x228 Ichneumon from Austria

Ichneumon

Hi Michael,
We really enjoy getting requests from people who think insects are beautiful that other folks might find repulsive.  This Ichneumon is a parasitic wasp that preys upon other insects and arthropods.  The female lays her eggs within the host by using an ovipositor.  Some wasps have evolved so that the ovipositor has adapted into a stinger and many Ichneumons have very long ovipositors.  A group of North American Ichneumons in the genus
Megarhyssa can have ovipositors as long as five inches in length and they are known as Stump Stabbers since the female uses her ovipositor to lay her eggs in wood that is infested with wood boring insects.

Related Posts

Promethea Caterpillars

Promethea ranching
May 23, 2012
Location:  South Illinois
4th and 5th instar. It is interesting having them staggered out like this. When I raised polyphemuses outside they were usually within a day or three of eachother developmentally. Keeping prometheas indoors I have a 2 week spread between the advanced class and the stragglers. Will be interesting to see if the slow ones will get there in the end.
Bert

promethea4thand5th bert 300x203 Promethea Caterpillars

Promethea Caterpillars: Fourth and Fifth Instars

Hi Bert,
Thank you for continuing to document your previous submissions.  We love seeing the result of the mating Promethea Moths that visited you this spring.


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