Skip to content
Bugman speaks at Theodore Payne Foundation
Bugman speaks at Theodore Payne Foundation
Bugman speaks at Theodore Payne Foundation
Posted 1 day ago

Make reservations now and support the non-profit Theodore Payne Foundation!!!
Local Lepidoptera: Butterflies and Moths of the L.A. Region with Daniel…

Read More

Bugman speaks at Theodore Payne Foundation
WTB? sponsors National Moth Week event Saturday, 21 July 2012
WTB? sponsors National Moth Week event Saturd…
WTB? sponsors National Moth Week event Saturd…
Posted 9 days ago

Make plans for your own local National Moth Week event!!!
Posted February 1, 2012
What's That Bug? will be working the the…

Read More

WTB? sponsors National Moth Week event Saturd…
Bug of the Month February 2012: Mole Cricket from Slovenia
Bug of the Month February 2012: Mole Cricket…
Bug of the Month February 2012: Mole Cricket…
Posted 10 days ago

creepy crawler unidentified
Location: Horjul, Slovenia, EU
January 31, 2012 8:21 am
Found this thing trying to eat my hardwood floor! The noise…

Read More

Bug of the Month February 2012: Mole Cricket…
What's That Bug? makes High Country News
What’s That Bug? makes High Country News
What’s That Bug? makes High Country News
Posted 90 days ago

November 12, 2011
What's That Bug? is profiled on High Country News.

Rock star status
November 14, 2011 11:22 am
Dear Daniel, Thanks for…

Read More

What’s That Bug? makes High Country News
PreviousNext
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Oil Beetle

metallic blue and black bug
Location: Rhide Island, USA
November 10, 2011 7:58 am
My kids found this in my backyard, in Rhode Island. It was taken with my android phone using it’s macro setting, if you look closely you can see a smaller orangish bug on its back, just behind his head. Could it be a baby or a little helper?
Signature: W Mcquade

oil beetle rhode island 300x225 Oil Beetle

Oil Beetle

Dear w Mcquade,
This is an Oil Beetle, a species of Blister Beetle.  Blister Beetles can exude a compound known as cantharidin that is a blistering agent, so Blister Beetles should not be handled.  We cannot make out the identity of the hitchhiker.  It is not a baby blister Beetle.  It may be a Phoretic Mite, but we have not heard of any Mites that use Blister Beetles for transportation.

Posted 10 November 2011 § Blister Beetles § Mites ‡ Comments (3) °

Tiger Moth from Tanzania

Mahale Mountains Moth
Location: Mahale Mountains National Park, Tanzania
November 10, 2011 9:00 am
Dear Daniel
I took this picture in February, in the morning, in Mahale Mountains National Park- Tanzania. I would love to know what genus (or species) this animal belongs to. This beautiful moth was rather slow moving.
kind regards
Teena
Signature: Teena

saturniid tanzania teena 300x212 Tiger Moth from Tanzania

Unknown Moth from Tanzania

Dear Teena,
We are going to seek some assistance from Bill Oehlke for this identification.  Your moth reminds us of the Royal Walnut Moth or Regal Moth, Citheronia regalis, from North America (see BugGuide), however, to the best of our knowledge, that genus and subfamily are not found in Africa.

HI Daniel thanks very much for trying, I thought maybe it was from the family Ctenuchinae, but that was as far as I could get and then I wasn’t really sure.  If it is possible I would love to know.  Warm regards Teena
Teena Payne
The Infinite Horizon

How large was this moth Teena?

Hi Daniel, I reckon about 2cm-ie wing/head length.  Kind regards Teena

Bill Oehlke provides a correction
November 11, 2011
HI Daniel,
A pretty moth but I do not know what it is. It is not a Saturniidae.
Bill Oehlke

Hi again Teena,
We are going to check with Arctiid expert Julian Donahue next to verify if this is a Tiger Moth as you suspected.  Julian may be exploring some exotic land right now, so his response may be delayed.

Julian Donahue provides some taxonomy
November 14, 2011
Nice moth! Formerly placed in the mostly African family Thyretidae, but this group has recently been considered a part of the subfamily Syntominae of the Arctiidae (or the tribe Syntomini of the subfamily Arctiinae of the family Noctuidae, if you follow the recent extreme lumping of the tiger moths with the “millers”).
The moth appears to belong to the genus Balacra or the genus Metarctia, both of which have several species recorded from Tanzania. Some of those species are relatively recently described, and I do not have at hand any of the pertinent references to key out a specimen (if indeed I had a specimen in hand).
Sorry I couldn’t be any more specific.
Julian

Dear Daniel and Julian… many thanks for your efforts…I wish I had taken more pictures of this animal- especially since it was very compliant! In all the time I was in Mahale this was the only one I ever saw.  kind regards Teena

1

Posted 10 November 2011 § Tiger Moths and Arctiids ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Atlas Moth Caterpillar from China, we believe

What the heck is that?
Location: China
November 9, 2011 6:59 pm
My friend found a ton of these in a tree. WHAT IN THE WORLD?
Signature: -confused

atlas moth cat china 300x221 Atlas Moth Caterpillar from China, we believe

Atlas Moth Caterpillar

Dear -confused,
We believe this is the caterpillar of an Atlas Moth.  If the criterion is wing area, the Atlas Moth is the largest moth in the world.  The Squidoo website has a nice profile on the Atlas Moth

1

Posted 10 November 2011 § Silkworms ‡ Comments (0) °

Can stain from Stink Bugs from Australia be used to dye skin???

Musgraveia sulciventris skin stain
Location: Sydney
November 9, 2011 4:46 pm
Hi, my wife was picking these stink bugs off the citrus and now has orange stained fingers. Even a week later they are strongly stained and nothing she has tried can wash it off. A bit like henna.
Can the dye in the bugs be isolated and used as a skin dye like henna?
Signature: Alexander Rosser

bronze orange bug australia bernoe 266x300 Can stain from Stink Bugs from Australia be used to dye skin???

Large Stink Bug Nymph from Australia

We will try to locate information on the potential for skin dye from the excretion of the Bronze Orange Bug from Australia.

1

Posted 09 November 2011 § Stink Bugs and Shield Bugs ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Seasonal November Occurrance: Wheel Bug found in Cereal Box!!!

Weird Bug in cereal box!
Location: Lynchburg, VA
November 8, 2011 6:32 pm
Just curious what kind of bug this is. It was inside a cereal box that was previously opened but closed back up and the bag of cereal folded down. The pictures were taken by me, Nov 8, 2011. It seemed harmless, but reminded me of a preying mantis in its mannerisms. Strangely aware of its surroundings and moving very slowly.
Signature: R.E.B.

wheel bug reb 300x227 Seasonal November Occurrance: Wheel Bug found in Cereal Box!!!

Wheel Bug

Dear R.E.B.,
We contemplated sending you a quick response this morning, but our lead writer decided it was more important to comb his hair and catch the train to work so as not to be late, hence, we waited until the leisurely evening hours to respond.  This beautiful predator is a Wheel Bug.  You were astute to notice the similarities to a Preying Mantis in the raptorial forelegs of this species of Assassin Bug.  We are a bit dumbfounded as to why an adult Wheel Bug would wander into a box of cereal, but we feel it was a random landing.  Generally, when people find insects in cereal, they are culprits like Indian Meal Moths, Spider Beetles or Larder Beetles.  Wheel Bugs can fly.  Do not let their lethargic movements fool you as they belie the quick grab and piercing bite of a formidable predator.  The name Wheel Bug refers to the signature cog on the thorax which we believe deters predators from swallowing adult Wheel Bugs.  There is a reason we made the Wheel Bug the Bug of the Month for November 2010, and that is because adult Wheel Bugs are a seasonal occurrence.

1

Posted 09 November 2011 § Assassin Bugs ‡ Comments (0) °

Clown Beetle with Phoretic Mites

Beetle with babies
Location: Hudson Valley NY
November 8, 2011 3:49 pm
Found this during the freak October snowstorm. This was during a power outage so I had to light it with a flashlight, otherwise I would have had better pictures.
What is it? Have never seen one before. It was a beautiful glossy black.
Signature: Bugged in NY

clown beetle mites 295x300 Clown Beetle with Phoretic Mites

Clown Beetle with Mites

Dear Bugged in NY,
Your letter probably deserves much more research than we have the time for right now, so we will be brief.  These are not baby beetles.  They are Mites, and we suspect they are phoretic Mites that are using the beetle as a means of transportation to get from one food source to another.  The beetle is a Clown Beetle in the genus Hololepta.  You can view BugGuide for additional information on Clown Beetles.  Earlier this year, we received another image of a Clown Beetle with Phoretic Mitesand the Mites were identified as  “Neolobogynium americana (family Diplogyniidae). Adults are phoretic on Hololepta beetles.”

clown beetle mites 2 300x225 Clown Beetle with Phoretic Mites

Clown Beetle with Phoretic Mites

 

Posted 09 November 2011 § Clown Beetles § Mites ‡ Comments (0) °

Tetrio Sphinx Caterpillars from Brazil

Brazilian bug
Location: Mato Grosso
November 9, 2011 5:24 am
I found this bug on the veranda of my house in Brazil. I live in a town called Chapada dos Guimarães which is supposedly in a transition zone between the Cerrado biome and the Amazon basin biome. On the property there is a patch of gallery forest along a stream and also a patch of former pasture reverting to forest. There is pronounced dry season from June to September. I saw the bug in October after the rains had begun. I was quite surprised when it opened its wings to reveal the gorgeous colors – reminds me a bit of a planthopper Fulgoridae
Could you also identify these large caterpillars that have been browsing recently on a frangipani shrub?
thank you
Signature: Jon Kempsey

tetrio cats brazil jon 300x206 Tetrio Sphinx Caterpillars from Brazil

Tetrio Sphinx Caterpillars

Dear Jon,
These are the caterpillars of the Tetrio Sphinx moth, a species found in Florida as well as much of the American tropics.  They are  feeding on a Plumeria or frangipani, one of the known food plants.  Your other photos did not attach so we cannot comment on the other creature.  In the future, please only include one species per email submission.  If you attempt to resubmit the photos, please use the standard submission form that requests information on location.

Thank you for identifying the caterpillars for me – I have frequently seen the moths in my house. I will re-submit the other photos.
best wishes, Jon

1

Posted 09 November 2011 § Hornworms ‡ Comments (0) °

Bumelia Borer from Nicaragua

What about this one, What is it?
Location: 12° 3’ 45.67” North, 86° 18’ 51.88” West (Nicaragua, Managua, El Crucero)
November 7, 2011 10:32 pm
I saa two of these flying insect crawling on a tree in my front yard.
When I got near to take pictures one of them flew towards me and bagan circling me.
Signature: Sergiortc

bumelia borer nicaragua sergio 300x213 Bumelia Borer from Nicaragua

Bumelia Borer

Hola Sergiortc,
This Longhorned Borer Beetle looks to us like the Bumelia Borer, Plinthocoelium suaveolens, a species found in warmer portions of the United States according to BugGuide.  Insects have no respect for international borders, and the range might be greater than in indicated on BugGuide.  We suspect this is the same species or a closely related species.

1

Related Posts

Posted 09 November 2011 § Longhorn Beetles ‡ Comments (2) °

Page 42 of 1,783« First...102030...4041424344...506070...Last »