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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Fanmail concerning Unnecessary Carnage

praise!
July 29, 2009
WTB folks:
Just discovered you, and went right for the ‘Unnecessary carnage’ page. I am an  insect lover, technician for several entomology labs here at Nova Scotia Agricultural College. Great sense of humour and so right about  unnecessary killing. Only critisim would be to get away from narrow column pages..fill up the’ empty margins.
Anna Fitzgerald
NSAC, Truro, Canada

Fanmail

Love This Site!!
July 27, 2009
Just wanted to say thanks for this AWESOME site! Everyday at work I spend all day (between customers of course) looking at and reading about the fascinating bugs on your website! My co-workers try to avoid my desk, complaining that the bug pics give them the heebeejeebees. I admit, I used to be one of them. That was, until my mom introduced me to WTB when she wanted a wasp identified. I have always been curious about creatures (big and small), and you have an endless supply of information to satiate my appetite! Now when I see a bug, instead of smashing it or ignoring it, I just try to figure out what it is! I can’t wait to visit my folks in Ohio next week, and share with them all my newly aqcuired knowledge any time we run across an interesting bug! Thanks for all that you do!
Cassie Shaw
Cleveland MS

Hi Cassie,
Thanks so much for your kind letter of support.

Unknown Thing is Impatiens Seedpod

Weird bright green swirly-curly-backed worm(?)
July 22, 2009
Hi, there, Bugman! Love this site… it’s been quite helpful in the past, but I have been unable to find this on here. I’m in Western PA (Pittsburgh) and found this on my potted Impatients. Last week (mid July) when I was dead-heading them, I didn’t notice it and it pulled back! -Totally freaked me-out! So I pulled it off and took some pics. Unfortunately, the plumbers came right then and I didn’t have the presence of mind to keep the little bugger, just tossed him off the porch. Never seen another since. Any ideas? Are they going to override my plants eventually? Destructive? How do I get rid of them should I see more? Thanks for any help on this!
Theresa Jones
Pittsburgh, PA, USA

thing

seed pod

Hi Theresa,
We haven’t a clue as to what this is.  Readership, help us.

thing

seed pod

Holey Moley!  didn’t think the Bugman could be stumped… At least all my friends who were also clueless won’t feel so stupid. :)
I’ll keep checking in on the site, but if possible, I’d appreciate an email if some info comes to light.  (if that’s not possible, I understand, though)
Thanks again for your efforts!
Best Regards,
Theresa Jones

Karl solves the Mystery
Ripe impatiens seed pods explode rather violently, on their own or when they are touched. The green curly thing is what’s left behind. Regards. K

Thanks Karl,
We aren’t even entomologists, much less botanists, but we were relatively certain this was not animalian.

Um, yeah,
That’s a seedpod from an Impatients plant (oddly enough, where it was found.)  My mother used to have them in a basket on the porch and those pods would pop when the conditions were right, spreading the seeds by a little ol’ spring action.  I always thought they were pretty cool, because when they were ripe you could set them off with a touch, which is probably what startled Ms. Jones.  So in the end… flora not fauna.  The fact that this is the first one she’s seen though, means she is probably really good at keeping up with dead-heading.
Weston Tulloch
Bay City, MI

What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Fanmail

June 15, 2009
Hello. I just wanted to say that I enjoyed your site even though it made me feel itchy. :OP. It’s nice to see teachers spread thier knowledge. Lord knows we need more of that these days.
May

Unknown Immature Green Hemipterans on Cedar

Looks like a green box elder bug
June 10, 2009
I found these green bugs crawling all over one post on my cedar fence and I can not seem to identify them. I don’t believe they’re termites but I’d like to know if anyone can identify them.
Judd
Northern Illinois

Unknown Hemipteran Nymphs

Unknown Hemipteran Nymphs

Dear Judd,
We are continuing to try to catch up on old mail from during our holiday, and when we opened your photo, we became very intrigued.  These are immature Hemipterans, the insect order that includes True Bugs and other sucking insects like Cicadas and Aphids.  We haven’t a clue what your insects are, and we hope our readership will be able to provide an answer.

Unknown Home Invaders

reddish brown bugs with antennas and wings                         Inbox        X

Reply

Marie to bugman
show details Jul 13 (1 day ago)
a form has been submitted on July 13, 2009, via: http://www.whatsthatbug.com/comments-and-questions/ [IP 98.167.236.8]
reddish brown bugs with antennas and wings
Monday, July 13, 2009
My house is infested with these red bug that have wings and antennas. They look like specs. Some you barely see.
They are in the carpet, sofa on my bed sheets. I even found them in my linens closets. I thought they were bed bugs, but read that bed bugs are nocturnal and only feed at night. These bugs are biting all day and night. I can’t see them when they bite me, but can feel them. Then I itch like crazy. It feels like I rolled around in fiberglass. I walk around with spray bottle filled with alcohol to spray on my.
They wake me up at night. I turn the lights in my bedroom and inspect the sheets. Then I see red specks all over my sheets. I remove them with clear packing tape. Then spray my sheets with alcohol. This has been going on for a couple of months now.
I live in a new subdivision in Chandler Arizona. Since the housing market failed, there were no homes on each side of me or in back. Now that the interest rates have gone down, business is picking up for the builder. They have dug a home on each side and back of me – all at the same time.
Our state is known for dust storms and monsoons. I think during a bad dust storm, these bugs may have come in thru the vents of my home. Because now they are blowing in thru the a/c vents. I tested this by placing a white sheet on my bed during the day. I checked the sheet for any bugs. Then when the a/c comes on, I go back into my bedroom and check the sheet again and found alot of tiny red bugs. So whoever is laying the eggs must be living in the attic.
I had the exterminator spray in my home, but they are still biting me.
They are supposed come out on Wednesday and bomb my house and I will have to leave for 5 hours.
I’m now in the process of asking the builder to reimburse with these fees.
I had to throw out sheets, towels, pillows, clothes because they were loaded with these red bugs.
I am sick and tired of this infestation!
Marie
p.s. I will try and upload some pictures to you

Please send photos Marie.  In the meantime, we are putting you on the Worst Bug Story Ever page.

Candystripe Spider from Ireland

Enoplognatha ovata?Not a lot of brightly coloured spiders in Ireland so…                    July 12, 2009
Love love love love the site. I live in a rural area of Ireland and have not come across too many pretty, brightly coloured spiders here so it was a nice surprise to see this girl moving into our bathroom a few days ago. She was making it very difficult for us to get a pic of her so that we could get a closer look and search for an ID. But the other day as I got out of the shower she was out and about without a care in the world. So in a bath towel and up a ladder I took as many pics as I could and only one seemed fit to show to anyone – I stopped after snapping over 20 as it was all becoming a bit ‘Carry on…’ plus I didn’t want to slip and be found and have to explain what I was doing!
After trawling the internet and books I think she is Enoplognatha ovata but not 100% and I have definitley never seen anything like her before.
She seems to be taking up residence along with several other house spiders who share our bathroom and she just stands out so well against the white tiles we can’t help but check to see if she is still there everytime someone goes in.
Keep up the great work – I teach animal care/science students animal behaviour and we spend lots of time discussing evolution and biodiversity so I like to hammer home the importance of ‘creepy crawlies’ so your site is one of the top links I recommend they visit to develop an appreciation for such essential organisms. Cheers!
Anne Rogers, Meath, Ireland
Ballivor, County Meath, Ireland, Europe

Candystripe Spider

Candystripe Spider

Hi Anne,
Thanks for your complimentary letter.  We believe you have properly identified Enoplognatha ovata, and our research turned up the colorful common name Candystripe Spider on the Eurospiders Website.  It is a Cobweb Spider in the family Theridiidae.

A nice piece of fanmail

A Cool Site!
July 11, 2009
I wished to thank you for such an amazing and informative site; this from a non-bug lover who would have to honestly admit to some unnecessary carnage in her lifetime especially a creepy, crawly anything…
butterflies, (caterpillars of course) lady bugs (the only one loved out of the beetle family) and a few others I’ve never murdered, though lets not go into carpenter ants and the wealth of stories there!
Either way, I began to research a funny looking beetle I have come across both last summer and this summer and though I did have a beetle farm (I am an adult) last summer, I could not find one informative answer to what type it was. Having Googled ‘Common Household Canadian Bugs’ early this morning, your site came up and yet I do not see this beetle here either:( No worries I’ll take a photo at some point.
By providing such an incredible site however, you have educated my mind and I won’t be so quick to tissue squish a harmless insect the next time, afterall God created all even if some of what he created isn’t all that pretty! If bugs had a voice, I’m certain they’d agree:)
Lastly I was very much amused in finding your Nasty Reader Award in the uncaterogized section and laughed heartily over a response to someone named Johnathan by a ‘loyal bug fan,’ in the reason his pictures were not sent by e-mail of his bug, was simply because said bug ‘was up his arse.’ The explanation and vivid imagination with which one of your loyal bug fans winged into their response was delightful reading at best. Simply a great way to begin my day.
So again thank you and I have bookmarked your site to begin an adventure into learning while one day I may be able to report that ‘I am now A Reformed Bug Squisher.’

Dear Reformed Squisher,
Thanks for your awesome letter.  We are happy that we amused you.  We have been without a computer for two day and were unable to make any new posts, but our fast new computer is allowing us to expedite the response process.  Though we doubt we will ever be able to respond to all of our mail, at least we will be able to respond to more of it.  Your letter will have a permanent home on our fanmail page.

Fire Colored Beetle

red copper bug with wings feathery antennae
Mon, Jul 6, 2009 at 7:28 PM
This was found on our cedar picnic table on June 30th in our front yard, flowers, woods around, We are about 40 acres from a lake. Stones in driveway. Tall grasses. Plenty of wildflowers, fruit trees, vegetables.
Heather
Northern Wisconsin

Fire Colored Beetle

Fire Colored Beetle

Hi Heather,
You have submitted a photo of a Fire Colored Beetle in the family Pyrochroidae.  We believe it is in the genus Dendroides, probably Dendroides concolor based on an image posted to BugGuide.  The westernmost sighting of this species posted to BugGuide is from Ohio, but that does not necessarily exclude this species as your individual.  A similar looking western species is Dendroides concolor, but BugGuide reports that species from Oregon and Washington, and we feel it is a less likely candidate.  BugGuide has this to say about the family in general:  “Adults are active at night, and may be attracted to lights.  Some species may be attracted to fermenting baits. Male pyrochroid beetles seek out blister beetles, climb onto them and lick off the cantharidin the blister beetles exude. Not only have these beetles developed a resistance to the cantharidin, they use the blistering agent to impress a female of their own species who then mates with them, whereupon most of the cantharidin is transfered to the female in the form of a sperm packet. The eggs the female subsequently lays are coated with cantharidin to protect them from being eaten before they hatch.”  The pectinate antennae indicate that your individual is a male.

Sand Wasp

digging bee/wasp green stripes on back metalic green eyes
Sat, Jul 4, 2009 at 9:55 AM
Was hoping you could indentify these bees. there are at least 30 to 40 that just stared showing up and digging in our flowerbed.
act1guy
madera, CA (central valley)

Sand Wasp

Sand Wasp

Dear act1guy,
This is a Sand Wasp in the genus Bembix.  We look forward to seeing these wasps each summer.  The two places in Los Angeles where we encounter them are in the Los Angeles River near the Glendale Narrows and near Union Station downtown at the freeway underpass when we walk to a film lab.  The Bembix Sand Wasps or Digger Wasps. according to Charles Hogue in his wonderful book Insects of the Los Angeles Basin, are:  “characteristic inhabitants of dry sandy areas such as beach bluffs and mesas, sand dunes and arroyos;  I have seen them working in the long jump pit on the track at the University of Southern California.  They fly low and rapidly over the ground seeking prey and tending their burrow nests.  The nests are shallow tubes running obliquely into the soil;  each contains a single larva, which the female keeps supplied with a diet of fresh flies and other insects.  In practicing this form of continuous provisioning of the larvae, sand wasps differ from spider wasps, mud daubers, and many other digging wasps, which provide only a single cache of food that must last throughout the larva’s development.  Sand wasps are not social insects, as are hornets and yellow jackets; yet, as a result of the tendency of individuals to nest in the same area, a type of colony develops.”  So, Sand Wasps help to eliminate an overabundance of flies which often plague us humans during the hot summer months.

Fanmail

love your site
Thu, Jun 25, 2009 at 10:08 AM
I have used your website many times and really love to save bugs (and other small critters) from uninformed friends (and sometimes strangers) I found a robber fly today and used your website to identify it. My goal is to get some great pictures of the spiders that live on my back porch and send them in. thank you for your easily found information and helping to save bugs everywhere.
Morgan Hart

Fanmail

What’s That Bug?
Sat, Jun 27, 2009 at 6:06 PM
I love your site. I check it every day to for the new wonder of the day. Not only do you give information and ID, but the photos submitted by your other fans are usually fantastic! So much beauty out there. And yet there are people who hate “bugs.” I always refer them to your site and tell them to say they hate the beauty and variety of the insects they see
Mary Thorman


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