What kind of beetle is this?
Location: Shenandoah Valley Virginia
June 27, 2011 6:40 pm
I found this beetle on a screen window at my house and I can’t figure out what it is. It’s about 1 1/2” long. Can you help. Thank you. Jim
Signature: Looking for the bug.
Female Eastern Hercules Beetle
This is a female Eastern Hercules Beetle, Dynastes tityus. Males have prominent horns on their heads.
big bug
Location: little rock california
June 28, 2011 4:04 am
What is this thing looks like a huge beetle with pincher’s of death and hisses like a roach
Signature: idk
California Root Borer
Dear idk,
This beauty is a male California Root Borer, Prionus californicus, and while we agree that he is a huge beetle, females of the species can be almost twice as large. See this BugGuide image for a size comparison between the sexes. What you are calling “pincher’s of death” are the well developed mandibles that can be used for defense, though the primary function is to enable an adult beetle to chew its way out of the wooden chamber where it pupated. Larvae bore into wood, primarily roots, feeding on the wood for several years before maturing. The mandibles can probably snap a small twig and adult California Root Borers should be handled with caution to avoid being pinched. The hissing is called stridulation and it is a sound produced by many beetles upon rubbing together specific body parts.
Fisher Spider?
Location: Adirondacks (NYS), swimming pool
June 27, 2011 7:30 am
Dear Bugman,
I live at the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains in Upstate NY, and have several of these 2-4” leggy, brown spiders floating on my swimming pool. I think I saw one in the office of my house a few weeks ago.
My online research tells me they are Fisher Spiders, and are harmless.
I am attaching several photos. I believe these are females carrying eggs on their abdomens.
Appreciate your input.
Signature: Best wishes, Lori
Wolf Spider and brood walk on water
Hi Lori,
You mistaking this Wolf Spider and her brood for a Fishing Spider is understandable, because they look similar. The behavior of carrying the spiderling brood on the abdomen is a characteristic of Wolf Spiders and not Fishing Spiders. Fishing Spiders are able to walk on water and dive beneath the surface to escape danger as well as to catch prey, however, they are not the only spiders that can walk on water. Wolf Spiders are also able to walk on water because of the way the spider’s weight is distributed over 8 points because of the 8 legs.
Ugh! I am not fond of any arachnids but strongly dislike Wolf Spiders … and sadly, I am in charge of the swimming pool!
Thanks for your note, Daniel ~
All the best,
Lori
Hi again Lori,
We feel we must lobby for the Wolf Spiders. They are harmless, and they exhibit such strong maternal care for their young. Surely they must have some features you can find redeeming.
Gathering of Mourning Cloak ”Cats”
Location: Marsh area, N. Ohio
June 27, 2011 10:16 am
Dear Bugman: I spotted this cluster of Mourning Cloak caterpillars, while on a nature trail in a northern Ohio marsh.
I have never seen so many of these cats gathered all together before. At first I thought they we some kind of tent caterpillar. They were feeding on willow leaves.
I noticed an interesting behavior. While some ”cats” were eating, others kept their heads up and made jerking, bobbing motions with them, all in unison. It was like synchronized head bobbing. Is this some kind of defense or early warning system behavior?
Signature: Chrstine O.
Morning Cloak Caterpillars
Hi Christine,
We love your photograph. Caterpillars that form aggregations by remaining in close proximity to one another while feeding and resting generally derive benefits from the safety in numbers notion. While we cannot comment specifically on the head bobbing you witnessed, your hypothesis is consistent with a defense explanation. Morning Cloak Caterpillars will remain in a communal state until they are ready to pupate, though often the chrysalides are also found in “colonies”, though the metamorphosis generally occurs away from the food plant. It has been our observation that this year we have seen more Mourning Cloak Butterflies in Los Angeles than in any year in recent memory. It seems from the mail that we have received that there may be a spike in the population of Mourning Cloak butterflies and caterpillars this year. Often population advances and declines are cyclical. Perhaps the unseasonal rains in both the Pacific Southwest and in the Mid West this year are responsible for the population surge.
Need help with a large bug
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
June 27, 2011 8:45 am
I have two small kids and this bug is a giant. Never seen anything like it in PA before. (Pittsburgh, PA, 6/26/11, Early Summer)
We have some damage to our trees too, wondering if this guy is the culprit. Any help is appreciated
Signature: Jeff Schroeffel
Broad-Necked Root Borer
Hi Jeff,
We have recently received numerous requests to identify the Broad-Necked Root Borer, Prionus laticollis, the insect in your photograph. We even posted a photo of a female Broad-Necked Root Borer over the weekend. Your individual is also a female also, and we are posting your image because it illustrates the ovipositor, the stingerlike appendage protruding from the rear end of the beetles abdomen. Here is the BugGuide description of the egg laying process: “Eggs are inserted into ground (or under litter) in groups. Larvae tunnel downward to feed on living roots of a variety of trees and shrubs. At first they may feed on bark, but then proceed to hollow out small roots. Pupation occurs in spring, about 10 cm under the ground. Life cycle probably three years.”
Long-legged fly (Condylostylus sipho?)
Location: Naperville, IL
June 26, 2011 7:38 am
Dear Daniel~
I found this long-legged fly on a hydrangea leaf today. Although I am pretty sure it is of the genus Condylostylus, I am less certain of its species. Condylostylus longicornis wings are unmarked, and its legs are blacker. Condylostylus sipho has the wing markings of this specimen, as well as its yellow upper legs, but the body shape is different. So sorry to trouble you again, but I thought this was a really beautiful fly, and I understand they are predators of even smaller insects. Their legs resemble mosquitoes! Thank you very much!
Signature: Dori Eldridge
Long Legged Fly
Hi Dori,
Even though we cannot confirm for certain your exact species, we are thrilled to be able to post these excellent photos of a Long Legged Fly.
Long Legged Fly
Thysania zenobia
Location: Costa-Rica
June 26, 2011 4:43 pm
Thysania zenobia
Signature: Eduardo Lucof
Owl Moth Caterpillar
Hi again Eduardo,
Thanks for sending us these photos of Owl Moth Caterpillars. They are under-represented on our site as a species and these are the first caterpillar images we have received. A photo of the adult moth can be found on the Texas Entomology website. We wish your email contained additional information. Are you raising caterpillars or have you been lucky enough to stumble upon these well camouflaged individuals?
Owl Moth Caterpillar
Ascalapha odorata
Location: Costa-Rica
June 26, 2011 4:47 pm
Ascalapha odorata
Signature: Eduardo Lucof
Black Witch Caterpillar
Dear Eduardo,
Thank you for supplying us with another image of a Black Witch Caterpillar. We are going to assume that the ID is correct. We wish your email contained a bit more information.
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