unknown cool-looking bug
Location: Malaysia
March 26, 2011 1:07 pm
I chanced upon this bug at around ten at night. The manner in which it was flying initially reminded me of a firefly, which was laidback and unhurried. It was, however, bigger than a firefly. I’d say that it was in the range of 6 to 7 centimetres, or approximately 3 inches, in length. I would love to know what it’s called, so please help! 
Signature: earthquakeduck
Metallic Wood Borer
Dear earthquakeduck,
This is a Metallic Wood Boring Beetle in the family Buprestidae, and they are commonly called Jewel Beetles because of their coloration and markings. We will try to identify your species. We did a bit more searching and we believe your beetle may be Chrysochroa bouqueti based on the Buprestidae of Indo-Malaysia, Indochina and Philippines website.
Oxythyrea?
Location: Israel, Hadera area
March 27, 2011 5:48 am
I spotted this cluster of beetles on a flower. They seem to be very common in the area, they were all over the place. I did a little research and found that this is probably a beetle of the Genus Oxythyrea.
Is this correct?
Thank you
Signature: Gal
White Spotted Rose Beetle
Hi Gal,
Thanks so much for supplying your photo of what we agree is Chafer in the genus Oxythyrea. A photo of a White Spotted Rose Beetle, Oxythyrea funesta, on the Things Biological website matches nicely and the site indicates: “Its distribution includes Italy, France, Malta, Morocco, Asia Minor and parts of the Middle East. It is not a particularly important species economically, though they can significantly impact grape vines and flowering wheat.” The Scarabs of the Levant website indicates four species in the genus Oxythyrea that all look like good matches:
Oxythyrea abigail Reiche and Saulcy, 1856
Oxythyrea cinctella Schaum, 1841 (Cetonia)
Oxythyrea noemi Reiche and Saulcy, 1856
Oxythyrea albopicta Motschulsky, 1845 (Cetonia).
We believe an expert might need to examine your specimens to correctly identify the species.
Tampa Bay Florida swamp bugs
Location: http://www.stpete.org/boyd/
March 26, 2011 3:18 pm
Hello you wonderful people.
I am hoping you might help with this. They and many others of their kind were mostly in pairs, attached and motionless to the underside of some mangrove or perhaps myrtle bush leaves at Boyd Hill Nature Preserve, St Petersburg, FL 33707 (or close to that zip). I asked one of the guides who said, Hmmm, I don’t know.
Perhaps you could help me and I’ll help them?
Signature: margo rose
Sawfly Larvae
Dear Margo Rose,
We are relatively certain that these are the Larvae of Sawflies, but beyond that, we have not had any luck finding a species name. Sawflies are related to Wasps and Bees, and the larvae of many species resemble caterpillars. Some species of Sawflies have larvae that gregariously feed in great numbers, often defoliating trees. You may have better luck than we have had by browsing through the images on BugGuide. Knowing the host plant for certain should help narrow the search.
What’s those bugs on top of the springtails?
Location: Tonasket, WA, or… MY BACKYARD! HAHAHAH
March 25, 2011 9:39 pm
I know, it’s annoying when the location is ”My backyard/car/house”, yet it makes me laugh every time I see it. And I wasn’t embarrassed enough to change the picture title once I figured out they were springtails. I hope the legs, segments and antenna come thru for you. I’m thinking babies floating on a raft of adults! They definately move and squirm, and they didn’t appear to be eating the purple ones. It’s been in the mid 40’s/day and high 20’s/low 30’s at night. They are in a wanna-be-bird bath somebody tried to make, really just a 1/2 gallon or so of water. Lots of leaves in the bottom. Please crop and blow up whichever one is best for you, because I know you can do it better! Thank you for all the delight, education and beauty your dedication gives to all of us!
Signature: Cathy
Springtails
Hi Cathy,
We are happy to hear that our sometime ornery responses to people have amused you. We agree that you have discovered a mass of Springtails, but trying to identify Springtails beyond the class Collembola is a challenge for us. We believe your specimens are probably in the order Poduromorpha based on photos posted to BugGuide, though BugGuide does not have any photographs that illustrate the light and dark individuals that your photograph clearly represents. Our best guess is that these are all the same species of Springtail in the famly Hypogastruridae (see BugGuide), but that the freshly molted individuals are lighter in color. Perhaps one of our readers will be able to add to that explanation or dispute it.
2
bug
Location: Under dog’s water bowl
March 25, 2011 12:31 pm
What’s this bug & why do they live under my dog’s water bowl? This photo is 400 times magnification. How do I get rid of them?
Signature: Fred
Springtail
Dear Fred,
You have Springtails which are often associated with moist or damp conditions. It is probably moist or damp under your dog’s water bowl. Springtails are benign creatures that feed on mold and mildew spores so they might actually be considered beneficial in the home, or at least they would indicate that there might be a problem with mold or mildew. We do not provide extermination advice.
tiger moth ?
Location: Los Angeles, CA
March 25, 2011 1:11 pm
This moth was hugging a clump of dwarf umbrella plant, probably waiting for the sun to come out after the overnight rain.
Looking at the pictures afterwards I noticed it was hanging from its front legs with the other legs stretched.
I think it’s a tiger moth. I do remember finding a fairly large reddish-brown chrysalis a month ago but didn’t think to take a photo. I wonder if it overwintered in that.
Signature: Laurentiu
Striped Morning Sphinx
Dear Laurentiu,
What a beautiful Striped Morning Sphinx or White Lined Sphinx. We see several each year in Mt Washington, but our north facing garden is still too cold to expect them to be flying. We expect to begin to see Striped Morning Sphinxes at the porch light and resting on the screen door on the first warm and sunny days after the rain ends.
4
What is this?
March 25, 2011
Dear Bugman !
I found this interesting moth last night..
Its colours are quite attractive and rare… thought this might be a good addition to wtb
Thanks and regards….
Ibrahim TMC
India
What's That Moth??? Blue Tiger
Hi Ibrahim,
We don’t know what it is, but we expect that Karl will soon be writing in with an identification. Was it diurnal or nocturnal?
Update: Identified as Blue Tiger in a comment
The Blue Tiger, Dysphania percota, is one of the Geometrid Moths and not a true Tiger Moth. When lttlechkn provided us with a comment and identification link, we found additional verification on the Forestry Images website. There is also a photo of a mounted specimen on AZs Lepidoptera page.
Passalidae with a hip hairdo
Location: Arlington, Texas, heavily wooded area
March 25, 2011 7:23 pm
I used your website to id this as a bess bug, but I’m wondering what the little red bumps are around its horn? Parasites? They didn’t appear to be moving, but it was running about so it was hard to tell.
Signature: Moo
Bess Beetle with Mites
Hi Moo,
We get very excited when we learn that submitters to our site have been able to make a difficult identification using our site. Those are Mites on the Bess Beetle. We are uncertain if they are parasitic or if they are using the Bess Beetle for transportation purposes, an action known as phoresy. If we knew that Bess Beetles flew, we would suspect Phoretic Mites, but it appears the elytra of the Bess Beetle might be fused. This needs research. According to Fossweb Teachers Bess Beetle page: “They all have hard, shell-like forewings, or elytra, from which their name is derived. In Greek, koleos means “sheath,”and ptera means “wing.” This unique structure functions as a tough protector of the beetle’s delicate hind wings and soft abdomen. When the beetle decides to fly, the hind wings unfold and do their job. At rest they tuck themselves back under the hard elytra.“ The site also discusses the Mites thus: “Mites. Eating fungus that grows on decaying wood, providing care for larvae, communicating through sounds—these are all fascinating features of bess beetles. But they have another interesting feature—they have coevolved with at least one kind of mite. Mites are commonly found hitchhiking on the body of the bess beetle. Some of these mites are found only on bess beetles, suggesting a relationship that has evolved along with the organisms. It’s not clear that the beetles benefit from the mite, but because of their exoskeleton, they aren’t harmed in any way. It may be that the mites live on secretions given off by the beetle, or they may just find protection from the beetle while they share the decaying wood. The mites are not known to damage the beetles, don’t bite or harm students, and do not leave the classroom habitat basins. Should mites get on a student’s hand, they are easily brushed off.”
Nice! I’m completely in love with these beetles, so glad to know it wasn’t being eaten or anything.
Thanks
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