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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Ambush Bugs Mating and Feeding on Eight Spotted Forrester

sharing a conjugal assassination
Wed, May 6, 2009 at 12:27 AM
Hi WTB?!!
First let me say that I love your site! I use it all the time to find out what kind of critters I come across in my random days. AWESOME! While this is not a request for identification, I thought I’d share a nifty story about my first encounter with an 8-Spotted Forrester Moth. This was the only way to share the photos.
In March of 08 it was really windy as per usual, but I was bound and determined to take pictures of bugs. I was very excited to find a very colorful “butterfly” on one of the trees lining my driveway. Those trees are great as they have LOTS of flowers in the springtime and attract many bees and fluttery things for me to enjoy and photo. Well this little beauty seemed to be stuck somehow and didn’t/couldn’t fly away like they normally do when I get so close. Being one to take advantage of a situation I snipped the tip of the branch and brought it inside so I could get a better, calmer view.

Ambush Bugs eat Eight Spotted Forrester

Ambush Bugs eat Eight Spotted Forrester

Imagine my surprise when I followed the tongue of my “butterfly” down through the flowers into the mighty grip of a little female assassin! WOW! It was VERRRY windy that day so she must have been holding on insanely tight! Being as the (later identified) moth was already caught and most of the damage done I decided to let the macabre show play out and see what kinds of pictures I could get. Well they’re not quite the quality I was hoping for, but they’re clear enough to tell a story and get a point across. In the first diptych you can see her hanging on to the tongue (left) while he takes the lion’s share (right). In the second image was the “adults only” portion of the show where she was allowed to get hers while he *ahem* “got his”. The excitement of that capture was apparently great enough that he just couldn’t wait. And because they are so difficult to see amid the flowers the third image shows him strutting his stuff across the edge of a leaf as victor and stud.
Hope you enjoyed as much as I did. Creepy though it was, it was still way neat-o to see! the assassins were put back outside afterward to continue doing what they do. Unfortunately 1 moth was harmed in the process of making these photos, but that’s how nature rolls!
Mary in Magnolia, Texas
South-East Texas

Ambush Bugs eat Eight Spotted Forrester

Ambush Bugs eat Eight Spotted Forrester

Dear Mary,
Thanks so much for your graphic photos and riveting first hand, eye witness account of this mating and food chain marvel. We only have one slight correction. The amorous hungry couple are Assassin Bugs, but they are in the Ambush Bug subfamily Phymatinae . It was not until we searched BugGuide that we became aware of the taxonomic change as Phymatidae was once a distinct family. Thanks for providing this wonderful cross-tagged submission.

Ambush Bug

Ambush Bug

Posted 06 May 2009 § Ambush Bugs § Moths ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Mating Mourning Cloaks

Brown Butterflies Mating in Flagstaff, AZ
Wed, Apr 29, 2009 at 3:50 PM
Hello, today, April 29, 2009, I noticed 2 brown butterflies mating on the side-railing of my porch. At first, I thought the wood was peeling and went closer to pull it off, but realized that they were butterflies in the throes of passion :) They remained very still, but intermittently would flap their wings. I watched them for about 30 minutes and took several pictures and video. Although I attempted to identify what type they were by searching on the internet, there are far too many species for a non-etymologist like myself to even narrow it down. Bugman, please help me to identify these unknown butterfly lovers!
Beatrix G.
Flagstaff, Arizona

mating Mourning Cloaks

mating Mourning Cloaks

Hi Beatrix,
We love Mourning Cloak Butterflies, or Camberwell Beauties as they are called in England. The Mourning Cloak, which hibernates in the winter, is a harbinger of spring in many parts of the world. It is often the first butterfly seen when it begins to warm and the days are sunny. We are thrilled to have your image of a mating couple.

Posted 30 April 2009 § Brush Footed Butterflies ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Crane Flies: Mating Swarm Interrupted!!!

In a stump, flies, mates. What is it?
Mon, Apr 27, 2009 at 4:25 PM
My wife and I have a really decayed stump that we are planing on removing and planting a garden over. So I decided to kick it a bit to see how easy it would be to remove. It crumbled very easily (as does the ground around it where the roots have rotted) but a bunch of these bugs flew out. Well, they hovered because they were busy mating, ends stuck together and flew awkwardly around.
The bugs themselves are dark brown with light yellowish markings. The karings are kinda stripey down the abdomen and a blotch on either side of the thorax. The head looks tiny and curled under the round thorax. I caught a mating pair, one has what looks like a stinger, but I think I know what it really is *winks*. They are about an inch long, with thin long smoke colored wings.
Brian
Tacoma, WA

Crane Flies

Crane Flies

Dear Brian,
What a wonderful account of the mating activity of these Crane Flies. We believe they are Ctenophora vittata – Ctenophora angustipennis as evidenced by the images posted to BugGuide. The “stinger” is actually the ovipositor, and it is the female that is in possession of it. We are going to contact Chen Young at the Crane Flies of Pennsylvania website to see if he can elaborate on the mating activity you witnessed. Our guess is that these adults are newly emerged. Adult Crane Flies don’t feed, so they don’t live long anyways. The larvae, sometimes called Leatherjackets, eat decaying organic material, and perhaps they were in the stump as larvae.  We are also going to tag your images Bug Love despite the mating activity being observed and not documented.

Crane Flies

Crane Flies

Posted 28 April 2009 § Crane Fly ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Mating Moths: probably One-Spotted Variants

Furry Mating Moths
Mon, Apr 27, 2009 at 6:57 AM
Found these two almost furry looking moths mating on my window this morning. At least I think they’re mating. Since they were on the glass I was able to photograph them from the top and bottom. I apologize for dirty window. It’s pollen season down here.
Resa
Atlanta, GA

Mating Moths

Mating Moths

Hi Resa,
Our best guess on this is a Noctuid Moth, possibly in the genus Zale. We couldn’t find an exact match on either BugGuide or the Moth Photographers Group, and we are hoping one of our readers may have a more exact answer for you. Even if we can’t positively identify your amorous couple, we are thrilled to put their photos on our Bug Love page.

Mating Moths

Mating Moths

Comment: Tue, Apr 28, 2009 at 4:30 PM
How about One-spotted Variant, Hypagyrtis unipunctata?
Artemisia

Thanks so much Artemisia,
Hypagyrtis unipunctata , the One-spotted Variant, as pictured on BugGuide is a much better candidate than our original guess of a moth in the genus Zale.  According to BugGuide: “Size wingspan 20-47 mm  Identification
Adult: note scalloped hindwing; extremely variable sexually, seasonally, and geographically; both sexes yellowish-tan to orangish, mottled with white, brown, and blackish; lines and discal spots on all wings black; forewing has pale subterminal spot near costa; colors in spring specimens contrast more than in summer brood; females usually larger with more deeply-scalloped hindwing; melanics commonly occur but paler spot still visible near forewing apex “  and  “larvae feed on leaves of alder, apple, ash, basswood, birch, cherry, dogwood, elm, fir, hazel, hickory, maple, oak, pine, poplar, rose, serviceberry, willow.”

Posted 28 April 2009 § Moths ‡ Comments (1) ° Also tagged:

Mating Blister Beetles and SPAM Blockers

Unknown beetles mating on wooley sunflower
Mon, Apr 20, 2009 at 5:19 PM
Dear Bugman,
I found these beetles mating? on Wooley Sunflower Eriophyllum lanatum 4/20/09 on my hike of the Stevens Trail in Colfax, CA. Can you help me out with id?
Thanks, Cyndi
Sierra Nevada Foothills in Colfax, California

Blister Beetles Mating

Blister Beetles Mating

Hi Cyndi,
These are Blister Beetles. We believe we found a match on BugGuide to Nemognatha scutellaris which does not have a common name. The three photos posted on BugGuide were taken in early May 2006 in Carrizo Plains National Monument and the beetles were feeding on the pollen of Chaenactis flowers, which like Woolly Sunflower, are in the aster family Asteraceae. According to BugGuide: “Females lay eggs on flowers, larva attach themsleves to bees when they visit flowers and are then carried to bee nests where they eat bee eggs and stored food. “

Update: How annoying is this???
Our time is precious and we never seem to have enough. We cannot answer even a fraction of the email we receive, so we are quite sensitive to SPAM ourselves, however, we would never ever ever think of installing a SPAM blocker that prevented people we write to from responding to us directly. There must be a way that SPAM blocking programs could allow responses from direct communications. We try, in addition to posting our responses, to reply directly to the querant via email, but the response we just received from Cyndi’s computer is a slap in the face. No, we do not have the time to decipher the cryptic letters so that Cyndi can read our response. Here is what we got. Perhaps a few of our readers can tell Cyndi to turn off her SPAM blocker if she wants to hear back from people. “I apologize for this automatic reply to your email. To control spam, I now allow incoming messages only from senders I have approved beforehand.
If you would like to be added to my list of approved senders, please fill out the short request form (see link below). Once I approve you, I will receive your original message in my inbox. You do not need to resend your message. I apologize for this one-time inconvenience.
Click the link below to fill out the request: (address removed)”

Comment: About Earthlink Spam Blocker
Tue, Apr 21, 2009 at 11:33 AM
Aloha Daniel -
As you can see from my return address, I use Earthlink as my email server.
It has the most specific spam blocker I’ve seen. If your address is not in the server level address book, you get that generic note. The note can be adjusted by the user to make it more personal, but some just let that techno speak be sent out.
I have both this address and the Bugman@whatsthatbug in my server address book for your name.
Sorry that it caused you grief… you’re a sensitive kinda guy. Like many on the planet. If I were in your shoes, I would be repsonse shy if I would see an earthlink address in the inbox.
Thanks for all you do – attached a sunset from Feb. Nice reds from the volcanic activity, huh?
Eliza
PS have juvie argiope on my front porch. No boyfriend yet. She’s got a few more mm to grow, I guess. She managed to make it through the roof tear off, gutter install and roof replacement with out being smushed.

Thanks Eliza, I guess I was so annoyed this morning I needed to vent. I kicked earthlink to the curb years ago, but Time Warner isn’t much better.

Thank you very much for that info.
I really appreciate your time and effort.
Make it an Adventurous April!
Cyndi Brinkhurst

Hi Cyndi,
You probably wouldn’t be so gracious to us is you saw our scathing post when we got your SPAM block message.

Daniel:
Oh, and can I ever empathize with spam blockers that keep you from helping someone! If I go to all the trouble of researching an answer and replying to someone, only to have that effort blocked, I get postively livid!! I don’t bother jumping through the hoops in those cases. That person is just SOL….
Eric

Posted 21 April 2009 § Blister Beetles ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Mating Muskmare and her stallion

Maremask Walking Stick
Fri, Apr 17, 2009 at 2:28 PM
Hi Bugman! I love your website without it I would not have been able to figure out what this bug was! I was letting my dog out one night and found this on my patio…I thought it was a stick at first then I looked closer and discovered it was a weird bug…so I immediately came in the house and went to what’s that bug! So I thought I would send it to you! Great pic huh?
Kajun Kate
Louisiana

Two Striped Walkingsticks Mating

Two Striped Walkingsticks Mating

Dear Kajun Kate,
These Two Striped Walking Sticks are also known as Muskmares. Theoretically, only the female would be a Muskmare and her mate should be a Musksire or Muskstallion. Two Striped Walkingsticks, Anisomorpha buprestoides , are able to spray a noxious substance with amazing accuracy into the eyes of any perceived threat.

Posted 17 April 2009 § Walkingsticks ‡ Comments (1) ° Also tagged:

Mating Longwings: probably Small Postman Butterflies

Butterfly Love
Sun, Apr 12, 2009 at 6:29 PM
My wife and I just got back from Wild Animal Park in Escondido, CA where they have the “Butterfly Jungle” exhibit. We got tons of pictures, but I wanted to get this to you as quick as possible. I forgot to take a picture of the butterfly “legend” so I don’t know what kind of butterfly this is. You can see that the male and female have different wing markings. Enjoy!
Bob K – Bug shooter
Wild Animal Park in Escondido, CA

Mating Small Postman Butterflies

Mating Small Postman Butterflies

Hi Bob,
We believe this is Heliconius erato based on images submitted to BugGuide from various butterfly exhibits from around the country.  There are relatively strict guidelines on species selection for butterfly pavilions in order to prevent the introduction of exotic species to new habitats.  We believe that either local species or those that can pose no threat if they accidentally escape are the only acceptable species.  According to Wikipedia, this butterfly is also known as the Red Postman, the Small Postman, the Red Passion Flower Butterfly, or the Crimson-Patched Longwing.  It is native to Central and South America and there are occasional strays to Texas according to BugGuide.  We also located a nice webpage devoted to Heliconius erato that shows numerous color variations.  Since the caterpillars feed on passion flower vine, it is probably an easy species to raise in warmer states where the food plant is an invasive species.

Posted 13 April 2009 § Brush Footed Butterflies ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Meal Moths Mating

What are these moths?
Sat, Apr 11, 2009 at 8:32 AM
We live in Western Pennsylvania, and seem to have found moths which have eaten some of a wool rug we have in a storage area. We started finding them a couple of weeks ago on our walls and ceilings. I have killed about 6 of them. I did my spring cleaning and found some damage on the edge of a wool rug. I am assuming these are the culprits, but I can’t find these on the web to id them.
Moth
Western Pa

Meal Moths Mating

Meal Moths Mating

Dear Moth,
These are mating Meal Moths and they would be feeding on your stored grain products, not your wool rugs. Generally when we get photos of Pantry Moths, it is the smaller Indian Meal Moth, Plodia interpunctella, but your moths are the Meal Moth, Pyralis farinalis. It has a worldwide distribution. According to our Audubon Guide, the “Caterpillar eats grains, meal, bran, husks, straw, and moist stored hay. … Cleanliness and frequent emptying of storage bins are the best means of controlling this insect. Its caterpillars spin tubular webs amond food, eating from an open end.” We would advise that you check the pantry to see if you have an infestation in the oatmeal or other likely food source.

Posted 11 April 2009 § Pantry Moths, Clothes Moths, Case-Bearers and Meal Moths ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Western Grape Leaf Skeletonizer

iridescent blue flying bug
Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 9:38 PM
I found three of these iridescent blue bugs in my back yard. Two were mating and the other had fallen in a bowl of water. They are iredescent blue with the exception of their neck which is red. For size comparison, it is on my finger in the first image. At first I thought they were wasps, but there was no visible stinger and I didn’t get stung when it landed on my finger.
Adriana
Phoenix, Arizona

Western Grape Leaf Skeletonizer

Western Grape Leaf Skeletonizer

Dear Adriana,
We are sad you didn’t provide a photo of the mating pair of Western Grape Leaf Skeletonizer moths for our Bug Love page. The Western Grape Leaf Skeletonizer, Harrisina metallica, has a species name that refers to the iridescence you describe. This species has brightly colored caterpillars that can defoliate grape vines if present in sufficient quantities. BugGuide refers to this moth by the compound word common name Western Grapeleaf Skeletonizer. Though they are not Wasp Moths, the species does mimic certain wasps, hence your early confusion.

Daniel,
I’m sorry I didn’t get the picture of them mating for your site. This all
explains why they were in my yard AND what those very pretty, very damaging
caterpillars turn into after they are done devouring my grape vines. I
usually pick them off of the vines each year.
I really appreciate you taking the time to answer my question and hope you
enjoy the pictures I did provide.
Adriana

Thanks for the followup confirmation Adriana,
We did enjoy your photos, and your letter and one of the images was posted to our site yesterday.

Update: Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 7:14 PM
Here’s your wish come true.
Adriana

Grape Leaf Skeletonizers Mating

Grape Leaf Skeletonizers Mating

Thanks Adriana,
Our internet connectivity was down, so we were unable to post yesterday.

Grape Leaf Skeletonizers Mating

Grape Leaf Skeletonizers Mating

Posted 10 April 2009 § Moths ‡ Comments (1) ° Also tagged:

Wasp Moth from Morocco

What is this?
Thu, Apr 2, 2009 at 6:54 AM
We have recently seen these unusual (to us anyway!) flying insects and would love to know what they are. We spotted them mating on the grass outside our house one day a few weeks ago (mid march), and then saw quite a few of them flying around for the next couple of weeks. Then in the last few days we have seen their corpses lying around. Unfortunately the picture is not too clear as it was taken with the cellphone camera. The closest thing I have been able to find is a polka dot wasp moth. They have a shiny turquoise abdomen wih 3 distinct shiny orange rings around the middle and one around the top of the abdomen. The wings are black and have creamy coloured spots on them. I would love to know what they are!
Trish
Agadir, Morocco

Mating Unknown Wasp Moths from Morocco

Mating Unknown Wasp Moths from Morocco

Beautiful Bug
Sat, Apr 4, 2009 at 8:20 AM
I spotted this beautiful flying insect around middle of march, and have no idea what it is! I noticed they were mating around this time,and then saw quite a few flying around for the next couple of weeks, then they started dying. I am not a bug person at all, but would love to know what this beautiful creature is. Thanks.
Trish
Agadir, Morocco

Unknown Wasp Moth from Morocco

Unknown Wasp Moth from Morocco

Sun, Apr 5, 2009 at 1:33 AM
Is this a Wasp Moth in Morocco?
Trish
Agadir, Morocco

Unknown Wasp Moth from Morocco

Unknown Wasp Moth from Morocco

Hi Trish,
Thanks for your perseverance in sending us three emails. We are happy your subsequent images are clear and focused. Yes, this is a Wasp Moth. Moths in two different families, Sesiidae and Arctiidae (Tribe Euchromiini) are known as Wasp Moths since they mimic the stinging insects, but are themselves harmless. Your moth is in the tribe Euchromiini and we will check with our friend Julian Donahue, an expert in the Arctiidae, to see if he recognizes the species.

Update: Sun, 05 Apr 2009 21:46:25 -0400
It’s a ctenuchine arctiid in the genus Euchromia, but I’ll have to see if I can get a species name at the Museum tomorrow. Not illustrated in any reference I have at hand.
Julian

Update: Tue, 07 Apr 2009
Daniel,
Are you sure it is from “Morocco”?? I checked some references at the Museum yesterday, and there is nothing in Africa or the western Palearctic that matches it.
There are, however, some species from the Moluccas (Indonesia) that are similar, such as Euchromia walkeri from Ternate (Moluccas), and the widespread E. creusa from northern Australia, Fiji, New Guinea, Moluccas, Celebes, New Hebrides, Solomon Islands, Palau, and elsewhere in the western Pacific.
Furthermore, since it appears to be a female, it doesn’t exactly match any figures I saw (there is often great sexual dimorphism in this group). Send the specimen and I can perhaps come up with a better name.
Julian

Posted 05 April 2009 § Tiger Moths and Arctiids ‡ Comments (1) ° Also tagged:

Mating Dragonflies

Dragonfly Love
Mon, Mar 30, 2009 at 7:23 AM
I was working in my yard yesterday when this pair of dragonflies flew in and stuck around long enough for me to get a camera and take some pictures of them while they were on their “honeymoon” :-) Thought you might like this for your Bug Love page.
Paul
Garland, TX

Dragonflies mating

Dragonflies mating

Hi Paul,
Thanks for sending the mating Dragonfly image. Many Dragonflies mate in this position, with the male grasping the female by her neck with his claspers. We don’t want to even attempt to identify your species since Dragonflies still tend to baffle us after all these years.  Perhaps one of our readers who is more adept at Dragonfly identification can assist in this matter.

Posted 01 April 2009 § Dragonflies and Damselflies ‡ Comments (1) ° Also tagged:

Mating Cecropia Moths

Mating Cecropia Moths
Tue, Mar 24, 2009 at 9:06 AM
Thought this photo would be great for your Bug Love section. Beginning of April last year (2008), I saw these 2 Cecropia Moths on a bush at the school I teach at in Buckholts, Texas (central Texas area). I was amazed first by the size of these moths (as I had never seen any moths of this size), and then that I was seeing 2 of them together (figuratively and literally)! The Cecropia Moth has to be the most beautiful insect I’ve ever seen!
Scott Snyder
Central Texas

Cecropia Moths Mating

Cecropia Moths Mating

Dear Scott,
Though your photo was taken last year, it is just about the right time of year for our southern readers to begin sighting the beautiful Cecropia Moth.

Posted 24 March 2009 § Giant Silk Moths ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

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