Blue Wings
Location: Wheeling, West Virginia
May 14, 2011 5:28 pm
I trapped this guy at the end of my driveway after coming home.
I did some research, and it looks like a Devil’s Coach-horse Beetle, but has a blue tint to its wings. When it walked around under the glass, the thorax was lifted in the air, which reminds me of a scorpion. The face looks like an ant, but the rest looks like a giant bee. It was about 1.5 inches long too!
Is it dangerous? Is it common to this area?
Thanks!
Signature: Jerry
Rove Beetle
Hi Jerry,
Your observations that this is similar to the Devil’s Coach Horse are quite astute, because it is in the same family, Staphylinidae, the Rove Beetles. Furthermore, we believe it belongs in the subfamily Staphylininae, the Large Rove Beetles, but we are not certain of the exact species. Platydracus maculosus, which we found on BugGuide, looks quite similar. The blue wings are most likely the result of the reflection of the sky in the membranous hindwings, the true flying wings for beetles which generally have forewings that are hardened and called elytra. Rove Beetles are distinguished by short elytra that generally don’t completely cover the hindwings, revealing much of the abdomen. Perhaps someone with more experience will be able to provide us with the correct species name.
Green bug!!!
Location: Central Florida
May 14, 2011 9:49 am
Have any idea what kind of bug this is? I live in Central Florida and they are only around this time of year. They are too smart…if they get into the house they fly into the walls repeatedly. Ugh! They buzz very loudly for a bug their size. Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Hopefully someone can ID this bug and tell me how to send them away!!
Signature: Help!!!
Horse Fly
Dear Help!!!,
According to BugGuide, this is Chlorotabanus crepuscularis, the only green Horse Fly in North America. BugGuide also indicates: “Females feed on mammalian blood” as well as providing this remark: “As with all the blood-feeding tabanids, the females are responsive to Carbon Dioxide. I caught over 500 females in one night with a trap baited with dry ice in coastal South Carolina. Will also come to lights at night. Regarded as a pest species in Florida.” Though we don’t normally provide extermination advice, we thought we would pass on the information about trapping them with dry ice, a fascinating method. Also, the specimen in the photo is a blood sucking female who can be distinguished from the male by her eyes. The eyes of a male Horse Fly meet at the center of the head while those of the female have a small space between them.
Thank you!! They are a MILLION of them where I live (pretty rural). I have never been bit by one though…luckily. They seem to be attracted to light, too!! I’ll try the dry ice though!! Thanks!
2
What’s this bug?
Location: Boise, ID
May 13, 2011 10:13 pm
Dear Bugman,
We found this critter in the garage that we recently moved into. Any ideas? Thanks!
Signature: Bugged in Boise
Potato Bug
Dear Bugged in Boise,
You will be happy to hear that despite being called a Potato Bug, this creature is no threat to your state’s signature crop. We don’t get many requests for Potato Bug identifications outside of the arid Southwest, though they are not unknown in the northern climes. The Potato Bug is one of our Top 10 identification requests and you can read all about them in our archives.
May 14, 2011
Gentle Readers,
We currently have far too many identification requests for our tiny staff to handle. Though we feel compelled to respond to as many identification requests as possible, the fact is that if we were balled and chained to the computer, we still couldn’t respond to all of your requests. We try to select letters with interesting or compelling subject lines to read first. We encourage you to browse our archives and to use our very thorough search engine in an attempt to self identify the creature of interest. Chances are quite good that the creature you want identified is already on our site. You may also want to check our Top 10 identification requests because a great percentage of unknowns are Potato Bugs, Boxelder Bugs, Dobsonflies or House Centipedes. We have personal commitments today including cleaning the aquariums (we promise a current update this weekend), working in our own garden and we have plans to visit the Bug Fair. We are going to shirk our duties to our readership this morning and we will return to our time sucking computer later. In the meantime, feel free to poke around our site and enjoy our archives.
Update
May 15, 2011
We need to confess that the trip to the Bug Fair was postponed until today due to circumstances beyond our control. At least the garden got some attention yesterday and it is gently raining in Los Angeles this morning, which should make nature happy, though folks with outdoor activity plans may be scowling.
On hyacinth bean vine
Location: Houston, TX
May 14, 2011 10:22 am
It’s May, and almost overnight, these bugs have taken over my hyacinth bean vines. Who are these guys and can you convince me that I should love them?
Thanks!
Signature: Poston
Aphids
Dear Poston,
You (more correctly, your hyacinth bean) have Aphids. Since the female Aphid gives live parthenogenic birth to female clones, Aphids can reproduce in prodigious numbers at an expedited rate. One Aphid seems to become thousands in a rapid period of time. We have no fondness for Aphids which infest plants sucking their nutritious juices and potentially spreading pathogenic viruses to the plants. Since your hyacinth bean is a potential food plant, we do not recommend pesticides, and we personally limit the use of pesticides since they do not discriminate between beneficial and injurious species. A strong jet of water from the hose should knock off the Aphids and they can then become prey to various spiders and other creatures once they have been knocked off the food plant. You can also try to encourage insects like Lacewings and Lady Beetles as they both relish Aphids as food.
WHAT ARE THE POSSIBILITIES THIS BUG IS PARASITIC? OR MAYBE ITS PARASITES PARASITIC?
Location: Urban ”forest” Surrey BC
May 13, 2011 2:31 pm
Dear Mr. Bug man
moved into ground level condo one year ago 3 months ago rash developed. shortly there after began seeing moth like winged guys (once or twice) very late at night in kitchen. Got extermination stuff. dr said the moth and rash were not related and that rash was scabies. Did treatment washed everything in house steamed extra. while doing scabies treatment small slightly transparent creature came out of my eye and then went under my fingernail. Husband dr. and mother think I am crazy. Other strange occurrences. Husband acnologes moths as pests but refuses to believe my story. I have been under stress at work… dr says the mind is very powerful and my stress has triggered these delusions.
Can you give any insight into this?
Heres some specimens i have collected. There are also ”lint” like cases attached to many of our clothes… which everyone also says I am over reacting to…. Ive never had so much lint. also had two budgies recently die…. related? or have I gone mad?
im hoping I have gone mad…
Christina
Signature: An otherwise normal happy slightly exentric housewife
Indian Meal Moth
Dear Christina,
We need to begin our response with a disclaimer. We are not doctors and we have no qualifications to diagnose any health related issues, nor are we entomologists, so any insect identifications we provide are questionable at best. We are artists who have a mission to promote an appreciation of the lower beasts as well as to make people aware of the interconnectivity of all things on our fragile planet and beyond. With that stated, we are convinced that the moth in your photo is an Indian Meal Moth, Plodia interpunctella, and that you have also supplied us with a photo of its larva. You may find information and photos of the Indian Meal Moth on Bugguide and you can also compare your larva to this image of an Indian Meal Moth Larva on BugGuide. According to BugGuide, the Indian Meal Moth: “infests a wide variety of stored food products such as flour, oatmeal, dried fruits, seeds, nuts, powdered milk, biscuits, chocolate, and bird seed“ With that said, it is senseless to try to exterminate your Indian Meal Moth problem with pesticides since they are feeding on your food. The pesticides would need to be applied directly to your food before they would have any effect on the problem. You should thoroughly inspect the food in your pantry and definitely discard anything past the expiration date. Pay close attention to corn meal, oatmeal and any boxed cake mixes or flour products. You should be able to locate the place where the larvae are feeding and dispose of those items. Larvae are the destructive stage and adult moths do not feed on stored foods. It is virtually impossible to rid you home of all insects, but you can take certain precautions to guard your clothing against clothes moths. Sachet was a popular item in days of yore. There are certain herbs that are known to discourage insects from damaging clothing. These dried herbs can be sewn into small silken pouches and hung on hangers with woolens and other organic fibers. The herbs of choice include lavender, sage, rosemary, wormwood and peppermint. Not only will this sachet repel moths, it will also make your clothes smell nice. We do not know what caused your birds to die. If your doctor believes that stress is contributing to your condition, you should follow his advice or perhaps seek a second opinion. There is a condition known as Delusory Parasitosis and here is a link to a journal article called Delusory Parasitosis by Nancy C. Hinkle that originally appeared in American Entomologist, Volume 46, Number 1 in Spring 2000. Stress can cause the mind to trigger delusions, and “Bugs” are an easy target. We hope your condition improves.
Larva of Indian Meal Moth
3
What’s this bug?
Location: Cincinnati, OH
May 13, 2011 3:11 pm
Back on October 24th, we came home and saw this bug laying eggs right by our front door. This week, the eggs hatched. I’m attaching pictures of both.
Signature: maddenmama
Wheel Bug Hatchlings
Dear maddenmama,
We are really impressed that you left this unknown egg mass to hatch. These are beneficial Wheel Bug hatchlings. Wheel Bugs are important predators that will help keep your garden free of many insects that are injurious to plants. The hatchlings will soon disperse. They will also lose their red coloration. The image you provided of the female Wheel Bug depositing her eggs shows the coglike structure on the thorax which is the inspiration for the common name Wheel Bug. They have been referred to as the Stegosaurus Bug by several of our readers. Wheel Bugs are the largest Assassin Bugs in North America. They are not aggressive toward humans or pets, but if they are carelessly handled, they might bite. The bite is painful, but harmless.
Seven Months earlier: Wheel Bug lays eggs
2
Name that bug?
Location: Perth, Western Australia
May 13, 2011 3:50 am
Hi,
We have passed this around our office (staff of over a hundred), and no one has been able to identify.
Please help us!!
Signature: Unknown
Vine Hawkmoth Caterpillar
Dear Unknown,
We quickly identified your caterpillar as Hippotion celerio on the Butterfly House website devoted to the Lepidoptera of Australia. It is commonly called a Gabi Moth or Vine Hawkmoth. The Butterfly House website indicates: “This Caterpillar occurs world-wide. It can occur in several different colour forms: green, brown, red or dark grey. It usually has an eyespot each side of the first and second abdominal segments, those on the first segment being larger. There are variable cryptic stripes and bands along the rest of the body. The Caterpillar has a tailhorn curved slightly backwards which tapers to a point.” This is actually an Old World species and it is not found in North America or South America. According to the Sphingidae of the Western Palaearctic website, it is described as: “A notable migrant in most years from tropical Africa and India to the western Palaearctic region. In warm years, new colonies may even be established in North Africa and Europe, so the delineation between resident and migrant ranges cannot be clearly defined. It is, however, resident in the Canary Islands, and probably also in the Azores and along the Atlantic coast of Morocco. It is certainly resident in many areas of the Levant and the Arabian Peninsula (Pittaway, 1979b), and Egypt (Badr et al., 1985). Extra-limital range. Tropical Africa, Asia and Australia, with occasional records from northern New Zealand.” The caterpillar in your photo is reacting as though it was threatened based on this information on the Sphingidae of the Western Palaearctic website: “As with most larvae exhibiting anterior eye-spots, the head is retracted when the larva is alarmed, expanding the large eye-spots on the first abdominal segment. When feeding, it rarely consumes the whole of a leaf; shoots with quarter- or half-eaten leaves often indicate the presence of a larva. Whereas young larvae may be found beneath a leaf, fully-grown specimens usually rest away from the feeding area, farther down the stem.” This species is known to feed on grape as well as numerous other plants.
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