Black bug orange legs
Location: Bisley, Glos
May 16, 2011 12:44 pm
100,000s of these on my chicken shed all over the place have been there for a couple of weeks wandering around not sure what they are doing or where they have come from have got a common xmas tree next to it have they hatched in it? what do I do with them the chickens don’t like them and have stopped laying
Signature: olivia
Aphids and a Mystery
Dear Olivia,
In our haste to respond to as many identification requests as possible so that we can get back to formatting the powerpoint presentation we are giving at the Theodore Payne Foundation in two weeks, we are firing off single word identifications. We continued to read your letter as we hit send and we halted at the comment you made about the chickens having stopped laying. Since Daniel had a bad experience with chickens last year and he plans to get three more hens in mid June, your comment seemed to warrant further exploration. These are Aphids, and the presence of the conifer tree nearby might indicate that they are Giant Conifer Aphids in the genus Cinara, but your photos are not that sharp and accurate species identification might not be possible. It is intriguing to us that chickens, which are known to love insects, are shunning these Aphids. We don’t have an answer, but perhaps one of our readers will be able to provide insight. We wonder if the appearance of the Aphids might be related to the egg laying moratorium. Again, we don’t know, so we pose this as a Mystery. We are also going to feature your posting in our banner of changing features in the hope of getting you an answer. If you supply a comment to the posting, then you will be notified if there is an additional comment in the distant future as we delete answered emails and we do not maintain contact information.
Is this a horse Fly?
Location: Roxboro, NC
May 16, 2011 2:09 pm
This bug was flittering with some northern cloudywing butterflys. they were chasing it away from the flowers. I thought it was a small butterfly but looking at the pictures later I decided it might be a Hoarse Fly but can’t find one with the bright yellow eyes. I live in Northern North Carolina. It was sighted on May 16 in the morning in my rural flower garden near a stream, woods and a meadow.
Signature: Thanks, J Armacost
Golden Backed Snipe Fly
Dear J,
This is a Golden Backed Snipe Fly, Chrysopilus thoracicus, and each spring, we receive several new images for our archive. According to BugGuide: “Adults are alleged to be predatory on other insects, but they may feed little (observations by BugGuide members).” Additionally, bugGuide indicates that the details of the life cycle are unknown.
What is it?
Location: Portland, OR
May 17, 2011 3:21 am
A friend found this in a bag of potatoes at work. What the hell is it?
Signature: Vincent B. Dastardly
House Centipede Carnage
Dear Vincent B. Dastardly,
This is a harmless, beneficial House Centipede and now it is dead. House Centipedes will help to keep the home free of Cockroaches and other undesirable creatures by feeding upon them at night. They are shy, elusive creatures that can run quite quickly on those sixteen pairs of legs.
Moth found in central Pa
Location: trout run pennsylvania cascade township
May 17, 2011 3:21 am
what is this thing. I have seen it 2 times both at night. It is dead now on the 2nd night.it has a big white body. I’m in a wooded area in north central Pennsylvania.
Signature: Ann Smith
Luna Moth
Dear Ann,
Each year we track the northward emergence of the Luna Moths, and your Pennsylvania encounter is the most northern sighting we have received thus far this year.
thank you dan. I watched this moth all night it was raining most of the Night and I honestly thought it was dying. It didn’t die .I went to see it around 6 am it was shaking alot .I checked on it all night and then at 6:15 am it was gone. If anyone gets a chance to see this luna moth they are very pretty in color. awesome sighting.
May 16, 2011
During the time we have been on the internet beginning in the late 1990s, we have made several virtual friends who contribute liberally to What’s That Bug? and on occasion we have the opportunity to meet face to face. This past weekend, the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County hosted the 25th Annual Bug Fair, and we spent Sunday afternoon with the 1000s who showed up. Eric Eaton was signing The Kaufman Guide to Insects of North America which he coauthored, and it was very nice to talk to him. Eric has been correcting our misidentifications for many many years. David Gracer came in dead last in the insect cooking contest, and he was awarded the Stink Bug Skillet for his efforts. David always writes to inform us when one of the submissions to our site is edible. We also met author Jessica Speart who was promoting her new book Winged Obsession: The Pursuit of the World’s Most Notorious Butterfly Smuggler.
Bug Fair
orange bug id?
Location: Dallas, TX
May 16, 2011 11:08 am
I found this orange and black bug on my squash plants this morning. I’m in Dallas, Texas. Can you identify it?
Thanks,
Misty
Signature: Misty
Squash Vine Borer
Hi Misty,
Though it looks like a wasp, the Squash Vine Borer, Melittia cucurbitae, is actually a moth.
Well, that will teach me for hesitating to kill an insect that looks interesting. It was quite pretty, but it’s gonna die if I see it again. Thanks very much!!!! 
Misty
My strange bug
Subject: My strange bug
Location: MElbourne, Australia
May 16, 2011 5:04 am
This strange bug was on my leg the other day, i thought it was a baby snake.. any ideas?
Signature: i dont understand this question?
Land Planarian
Dear idutq,
This is a Land Planarian, and after looking at Ask.Com, we believe it is the Blue Planarian, Caenoplana coerulea. According to the dedicated Ask.com page on the species, it is also called the Blue Garden Flatworm and “This flatworm’s native range is eastern Australia and New Zealand. This species has however been accidentally introduced to the USA, including California, Florida, Georgia, Texas, South Carolina and Iowa.”
3
Red Headed Centipede ?
Location: Possum Kingdom Lake, Texas. Eastern Shore
May 15, 2011 10:06 pm
Hi Guys ~
I Love Your Site ! Ive used it several times to identify friend or foe… and You are always my first stop for instant answers.
I was working at Possum Kingdom Lake in Texas… 2 hours west of Dallas the first of May 2011. I found this guy upside down and already deceased on the back porch… At first I though it was a Rattlesnake Rattle… because He was upside down… After reading Your site.. I do believe this is a Red Headed Centipede.. slightly discolored because he was in the Sun for probably weeks before I found him….
From My Ring finger to My Wrist is 4 and 3/4 inches…
I Hope You enjoy these Photos, and I Hope I’m right ~ Giant redheaded centipede, Order: Scolopendromorpha, Family: Scolopendridae, Genus and species: Scolopendra heros Girard. ……………… ONE MEAN BUG !!!!
Thanks for all You Do !
Signature: Bart
Ok… He is really 5 inches long.. cause His “stingers” go past my
wrist ~ I didn’t count his antennae
Dead Red Headed Centipede
Hi Bart,
Thanks for the compliment. We agree 100% with your identification of the Red Headed Centipede. Since they grow to nearly double the size of the individual you found, they are quite impressive and formidable creatures.
Red Headed Centipede found dead
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