Some sort of moth?
January 20, 2010
Hi Bugpeople! I’ve been an avid reader of your site for the past year or so and I’ve been meaning to submit this photo for some time.
It looks like some sort of moth, but I’ve never seen one with a mandible that size. This was taken in the early summer of 2005 in Southwestern Connecticut. It was on the pavement outside of a well-lit strip mall around 9 or 10 PM. I’m sorry that I don’t have anything in the photos for scale, but from the tip of the mandible to the other end was about 6 inches. It was very slow-moving and did not scurry or seem alarmed at the presence of several people crowding around it. What’s that bug?
Thanks and keep up the great work!
Alexis K.
Norwalk, CT
Dobsonfly
Hi Alexis,
We are happy to hear you are a fan of our website. This stunning creature is a male Dobsonfly. The mandibles indicate that it is a male. Though they are rather frightening in appearance, they are harmless, but the much more modest appearing mandibles of the female are capable of producing a painful pinch if she is carelessly handled. This sexual dimorphism indicates that the mandibles of the male have developed as either an aid in mating, or as a competition between males for sexual prowess, but despite the frequency of Dobsonfly submissions to our site, we have yet to see a photograph of either the actual mating act, or the male using his mandibles in any manner. Adult Dobsonflies are short lived and do not feed, living only to mate and produce a new generation.
Grasshopper with white head and yellow legs
January 19, 2010
I found this grasshopper in a marsh on the boardwalk about 30 miles west of Chicago. He stayed there for about a minute and then jumped off into the weeds. Any ideas? He’s one of the most beautiful grasshoppers I’ve ever seen.
Sam
Wheaton, IL 60187
Meadow Katydid
Hi Sam,
We are late for an appointment right now, and haven’t the time to research this request, though we do have time to post it. Hopefully, one of our readers will be able to assist. We have also requested assistance from Eric Eaton. Your letter did not indicate when the sighting was made, and since there is currently snow in Chicago, we doubt if it was spotted this week.
Sorry; I think it was in July or August if that helps.
Correction courtesy of Eric Eaton
Daniel:
The “grasshopper” is a male meadow katydid in the genus Orchelimum, possibly the black-legged meadow katydid, Orchelimum nigripes, but difficult to be certain. One needs to see a close-up of the tail end to get a species ID.
Eric
Yellow and Orange coloured Bee
January 19, 2010
Hi bugman!
My name is Kyunghwa and I found a cool looking bug today at school. I was walking down the road on UBC campus and found the bug on the street. He was crawling around but didn’t really move much (he had wings but didn’t fly) so I picked him up and put him in my cup and brought him home. (now he’s back to the nature since I didn’t know what kind of food I could provide him. I had him for about 5 hours with me.) I named him “Boong Boong”. I just want to know what kind of bug my Boong Boong was so I can remember him correctly. Thank you!
usual way.
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
Bumble Bee
Dear Kyunghwa,
This is one of the Bumblebees in the subgenus Pyrobombus which is recognized on BugGuide. They are sometimes called Red Tailed Bumble Bees, but that name generally refers to the Eurasian species Bombus lapidarius. Some possible species might be Bombus bifarius, Bombus huntii, and Bombus melanopygus, all of which are found in your area.
Bumble Bee
Does my house have crabs?
January 19, 2010
Please tell me what this thing is….does my house have a case of the crabs? The bug is in my home year round and is mostly found on the walls in my den. The picture has 1 as big as I’ve ever seen them. They are present in the summer and in the winter.
Mr. Madcow
Maine
Pseudoscorpion
Dear Mr. Madcow,
This is a Pseudoscorpion, a harmless predator that will help rid your home of unwanted insect visitors.
Blood Sucking Bug. Assassin? Bed Bug?
January 19, 2010
I have been trying to find out everything I could about bloodsucking bugs ever since I found one on top of my sheets last night. I had received multiple bug bites on my stomach and wrists (see photo for stomach bites) the night before last but couldn’t figure out what was going on. I found the culprit: a bug was feeding on me. It is no more than a 1/4″ long and was walking slowly across the sheet. It definitely was not a flea as I could pick it up easily. I smooshed its back, trying to kill it. and a lot of blood (my blood) came out in the process.
Flea
It’s antennae was moving for several minutes before I decided to flush it down the toilet. I’m scared. I am not sure if my dog brought it into the house with him (he does not sleep on the bed though). Or if this is a sign of an infestation to come. I went through a cleaning frenzy today but could not find any more of them. Am I safe? What’s this bug?
Scared this might be a bed bug?
Seattle, WA
Flea
Dear Scared,
This does appear to be a Bed Bug. While we do not give extermination advice, we strongly counsel you to seek professional help.
Flea Bites
Thank you for answering my question. I am still hopeful that it ISN’T a bedbug though. From all the other photos I’ve seen of them, they have more of a flat, rounded body shape than my bug–which had more of a diamond-like body before I squished it. Anyway, I haven’t been able to find any more of them, or the tell-tale signs of bedbugs on the sheets or elsewhere. I know that they’re never alone so I will keep looking.
Thanks for having such an informative website.
Not Scared Anymore
Correction thanks to Eric Eaton
Daniel:
The “bed bug” is actually a FLEA! Probably a cat flea, the most overwhelmingly common species to afflict both cats AND dogs…..
Eric
Wasp Mimic Moth from BVI
January 18, 2010
This moth was photographed in the early evening, 6:20 local time on Dec. 22 with a 400 mm telephoto lens.
Donald Gudehus
Necker Island, British Virgin Islands
Spotted Oleander Caterpillar Moth
Hi Donald,
This Spotted Oleander Caterpillar Moth, Empyreuma affinis, is a common Caribbean species that was recently introduced to Florida.
Bugs coming from firewood?
January 17, 2010
I’m finding these bugs in our house and they seem to be coming from our firewood. We do keep some wood in the house for use and have a couple of racks outside our house.
Bill
Eastern Pennsylvania
Longhorned Borer Beetle
Hi Bill,
Our eyes are crossed from clicking through all the pages of BugGuide’s Cerambycidae section to no avail. We had hoped to identify the species, but the best we can do is the family Cerambycidae, the Longhorned Borer Beetles. We will see if Eric Eaton can provide a species identification. Firewood brought indoors often causes dormant wood boring insects to emerge due to the warmth indoors.
Longhorned Borer Beetle
Eric Eaton provides an identification
Hi, Daniel:
The actual beetle specimens are longhorned woodborers, Phymatoes varius in all likelihood. There are no images of this species on Bugguide currently, so we would welcome the person to submit them there. We also have some top-notch cerambycid experts who could confirm or correct my own ID.
Eric
Hi Daniel & Eric,
I’d be happy to post the images, however I don’t know how. If you would like to post them, feel free to do so. Is there any problem with finding these insects in our home? I wanted to make sure they weren’t termites, which may be a problem.
Thanks for your help,
Bill
The adult insects are not interested in wood as that is the larval food. Borers do not infest milled lumber, though there is occasionally a possibility of the larvae surviving the milling process and then emerging from furniture or structural beams many years later. That is a rare occurrence.
Is this a new creature?
January 17, 2010
From 8/15/09 just before sunset. This is Ocean Beach on Fire Island in New York state. It looks like a bee crossed with a shrimp.
Marc MIllman
Ocean Beach. NY
Snowberry Clearwing Moth
Hi Marc,
It appears as though many folks are spending the winter months trying to get identifications for some of the insects in their summer photographs. This is a Snowberry Clearwing Moth or Bumblebee Moth, Hemaris diffinis, and you may read up on it on Bill Oehlke’s excellent website.
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