From the monthly archives: "May 2006"
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Giant Swallowtail

On · Category: Butterflies and Skippers · Add Comment

polka-dot wasp moth
Hi Bugman,
I found a polka-dot wasp moth caterpillars on my desert rose. Should I be concern? Also, I’ve attached a picture of a swallow tail taken outside my window.
joanna

Hi Joanna,
The caterpillars will eat the leaves and the leaves will grow back. Unless the plant is infested, we would leave the caterpillars. Your Giant Swallowtail is beautiful.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Female Carpenter Bee

On · Category: Carpenter Bee · Add Comment

Bumble Bee
Dear Bugman:
I’m very fond of your site. I love the beautiful photos your readers send in, and I love the way your writing both demystifies and celebrates our insect friends. I took this picture the other day in my garden. I was rather lazily weeding when I heard a very loud buzzing. This fellow (male? female?) was trying to collect from the columbine flowers, without much success since he was so big and heavy, and the flowers are on weak, nodding stems. I’m anthropomorphizing, but I swear the buzzing sounded grumpier and grumpier the more times he flopped off. I followed him (?) around with my camera for about five minutes before he stayed still long enough for me to get this pretty decent shot. I thought you might enjoy it, as well as confirm that this is indeed a bumble bee?
Stephanie Bowker
Des Plaines, IL

Hi Stephanie,
Thank you so much for your sweet letter. There is nothing wrong with a little anthromorphization. Fabre, one of the pioneering insect authors of the 19th Century, was a master of anthromorphization. Your columbines are quite lovely. It is one of our favorite flowers. We thought this was a Bumble Bee, but Eric Eaton set us straight: “the bumble bee is actually a female carpenter bee, Xylocopa virginica.”

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Tiger Beetle Larva

On · Category: Beetles · Add Comment

odd creature
I have found 3 of these little holes in my backyard, within 6 inches of each other. There is a little creature inside each one, but they are very cautious little things! I had to sneak up to get this picture, and it took several tries. They are usually hidden inside but occasionally they come to the top of the hole and just sit there, like this one is doing. They’re very fast and duck back down into their holes if you get too close too fast. I put little twigs into the holes to see what they would do, and each one would push the stick out. One of them pushed the twig out with so much force that it flew a good 6 inches away from the hole! I dug away at one of the holes, and the next morning this little guy had reconstructed his tunnel and re-formed a very neat little hole. I am very curious as to what these are! Wish I had a better picture :-(
Thanks!
Amanda

Hi Amanda,
The larva of the Tiger Beetle is an expert in the ambush. It waits in its hole until prey passes and then it lunges and captures the unwary insect or arthropod.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Nursery Web Spider

On · Category: Spiders · Add Comment

Nursery Web Spiders
Love the site, though I would send these along. I’ve seen the Nursery Web Spiders on the site and they always mention protecting the eggs, but I saw no pictures of this. Here are ones I found in my yard in Leominster, MA.
Enjoy.
Todd Hamilton

Hi Todd,
Thanks for sending your great photos of Pisaurina mira, a Nursery Web Spider.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Virginia Oakworm

On · Category: Giant Silk Moths · Add Comment

Two moths…
Hi!
Great site! My parents and I found a couple of interesting moths. I was hoping you could identify them for us. (Both were seen in Massachusetts…) My moth was about 1.5 – 2 inches long, top to tip. The body was fuzzy and BRIGHT ORANGE. Not very good for hiding in New England woodlands, I’m afraid… (Especially not on the side of a red house!) My parents’ was about twice that size. The body was also fuzzy, but more of a beige… Sorry for the blurry pic, but he was camera-shy… Regards / Met vriendelijke groet / Mit freundlichen Grüssen,
Amanda Ellsworth

Hi Amanda,
Your moth is the Virginia Oakworm, Anisota virginiensis, or a closely related species in the same genus. Your parents photographed a Polyphemus Moth. Both are Giant Silk Moths or Saturnid Moths.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Ceanothus Silk Moth

On · Category: Giant Silk Moths Tagged With: · Add Comment

Ceanothus Silk Moth
Hello,
Just wanted to share the photo of the beautiful moth we found in my mom’s backyard on Sat. 5/20/06, the neighbor Dick decided to take a picture of it and he gave it to us. Isn’t it pretty.
Andrea Beutler
Santee, CA (San Diego)

Hi Andrea,
Not only is the moth beautiful, the photo is gorgeous. It is just the type of photo that appeals to our aesthetic, and if we do a calendar next year, we would love to use it.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Merchant Grain Beetles or Sawtooth Grain Beetles

On · Category: Pantry Beetles, Grain Weevils, Spider Beetles, Meal Worms and Carpet Beetles Tagged With: · Add Comment

Mastic Beach beetles
I sent you some pictures of the tiny beetles we have last week but it was from an email account I’ve been having problems with. I haven’t seen them posted nor did I get a reply so I’m sending you them again from an email account I know works. I’ve been through all of the beetle and ant pages and nothing posted looks like these creatures. Photos are all of dead bugs, the live ones won’t pose for me: IMGA0981 – several on the handle of a plastic knife; IMGA0989 – best I could do for a closeup of the head area
Thanks for your help.
Jeff
nevermind searching
I found the bug on another site, it’s as follows: Sawtoothed Grain Beetle (Oryzaephilus surinamensis): The Sawtoothed grain beetle is another very common pantry pest. It does not feed on intact whole grains, but feeds on many processed food products such as breakfast food, bran, dried fruits, nuts, sugar, chocolate and macaroni. It is especially fond of oatmeal and birdseed. These flat beetles can even get into sealed boxes and packages of food. Adults are nearly 1/4-inch long, slender, brownish-red and active. Their name comes from the six saw-like teeth on either side of the thorax behind the head. After finding a potential food, the female lays white, shiny eggs that hatch into yellowish-white larvae. There can be as many as seven generations each year, but sawtoothed grain beetles often stop breeding in the winter, unless buildings are heated and moisture is sufficient. Adults are very long lived and remain active in the winter. The habits and traits are a perfect description and I think the source is the food we get for our parrot. Here’s the link to the other site and a copy of the photo. Between my closeup and the description I think I have a match.

Hi Jeff,
Thanks for the information, and sorry we have been slow, but we could literally spend 24 hours a day answering letters, which is impossible. There is another closely related species, the Merchant Grain Beetle, Oryzaephilus mercator, that looks very similar. According to Hogue: “Its distinguishing feature is a small swelling on the head behind the eye which is lacking in O. surinamensis.” Your closeup seems to indicate this swelling. We favor the Merchant Grain Beetle.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Probably Thoas Swallowtail

On · Category: swallowtail caterpillars, swallowtails · Add Comment

Mexican Swallowtail – Giant Swallowtail or Thoas Swallowtail?
hi Bugman!
I wrote a few weeks ago after I found a caterpillar I could not identify. I gave it a habitat and let it do it’s thing. I came home to a beautiful swallowtail yesterday! I originially thought it was an ‘orange dog’ caterpillar — but it wasn’t quite the right colors.

Then I found a Mexican website (I live in Tucson Arizona) and was able to see it was some sort of swallowtail larva. I have attached a photo sequence of caterpillar, to chrysallis, to butterfly.

It’s happily fluttering about my yard now, but I think I got some good pics while it was in my care. This time I sent web-ready versions if you want to post them. I’m having trouble determining if it’s Giant Swallowtail or Thoas Swallowtail. See:
http://www.mariposasmexicanas.com/papilio_heraclides_cresphontes.htm
and http://www.mariposasmexicanas.com/papilio_heraclides_thoas_autocles.htm
I cannot really determine (even by Googling) if the lower wing red markings are classic of either species since my swallowtail has more red going up the lower wing. Either way, it seemed to be a mexican variety (sandy coloring) of the usual dark brown/white orange dog caterpillar. I love your site! You got me hooked and trying to identify this critter! Thanks!
Adrienne

Hi Adrienne,
Thanks for all the photos and research. According to BugGuide: The Giant Swallowtail is “Distinguished from P. thoas by the larger spots forming in the lower left leg of the X on the front wing. ” Your specimen has small spots on the forewings, so we favor Thoas Swallowtail. Here is just one more link with information.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination