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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Unnecessary Carnage and Fanmail

Thank you
October 3, 2009
I just submitted a question for you, and forgot to tell you how much myself and my boys enjoy your site. I have two boys, 8 & 3, who are fascinated by bugs. While I am not squeamish of bugs, and don’t believe in unnecessary carnage, I am not an expert or even a student of insects.
I also homeschool my boys. Your site, and bugguide.net have helped me immensely in identifying various specimens that they find. Both sites have also helped me turn their curiousity into a teaching moment. Your unecessary carnage comments have helped me make the same points to them, (it isn’t just momma’s opinion anymore) and my oldest has gained an understanding of each creature having a place in the cycle of life.
Thank you for your labors!!
The Koelbls of Noth Alabama

Posted 03 October 2009 § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Fanmail: Starting an Insect Collection

Hi. I’ve been browsing this site for a while, but this is my first post.
I teach a group of four-year-olds, and among the many, many things I find myself repeating daily is “Let it be! Insects are helpers!” with respect to whatever critter my kids have discovered, whether indoors or on the playground (of course, when something is discovered inside the classroom, we find a way to get it outside).
The children, of course, are fascinated by insects, and, while insects’ identities could be taught through photographs and books, to teach the children to appreciate and respect animals and their purposes is best reinforced in practice. That is, to tell a child that a spider is beneficial and to smash it in front of him is counterproductive.
Unnecessary carnage and a lost moment for education. Terrible shame.
However, because of the age of the children I teach and their tendency toward kinesthetic learning, we do have an insect collection in the room. I want to teach respect, not hypocrisy, so the insects pinned to the board were all found dead. When a child finds an empty exoskeleton or a fallen butterfly on the playground, we pin it to the board and talk about what it is and how it might have come to its current state. Then, of course, comes the “Insects help us” talk.
I try to balance respect for a child’s preferred method of study with respect for the insects themselves. This is why we have only pre-deceased findings in our collection, imperfect though they may be when they are found.
To rely on photographs alone is a difficult way to keep kids interested. They need to experience more than an image can allow. An insect, living or dead, that is in front of the children makes it relevant to them and gives them more patience to listen while we talk about that insect.
Occasionally, however, my philosophies are put to the test, as was the case the day I found an adult, female black widow spider scooting across the playground. I had to get her off the playground and far, far away from my class. There was a considerable amount of panicking on my part, but no one was harmed, and the children learned that, even though we shouldn’t hurt any minding its own business, there are some creatures that, when discovered, need to be reported to mom and dad.
shellyc

Hi shellyc,
Though your letter arrived as a comment on a previous posting regarding the merits of starting an insect collection, we felt it needed to stand alone as well and post to our homepage.  Thanks for your valuable perspective on this point.

Posted 27 September 2009 § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Corsair Assassin Bug: Unnecessary Carnage

Beetle (?) Identification
September 13, 2009
A few days ago, I noticed one of these flying around the living room, and at first thought it was a yellow jacket. Yesterday, there were two, and today I’ve killed 3!
I’ve about worn myself out looking at bug sites and image searches, and thought you might be able to help. I’m not sure if its the recent rain, or the long drought proceeding it that has brought them inside.
Looking around, I thought they looked a bit like soldier beetles, but with opposite colorings. They are about an inch long, and seem to be attracted to the lights.
The bug in the pictures has been squished, but hopefully the markings are enough!
Thanks!
Sarah
Texas Gulf Coast

Corsair Assassin Bug Carnage

Corsair Assassin Bug Carnage

Dear Sarah,
Though they are not aggressive, if they are carelessly handled, Assassin Bugs in the genus Rasahus, known as Corsair Assassin Bugs, can bite painfully. Despite this fact, we still feel that these beneficial predators need not be killed unnecessarily, leading us to classify your letter as Unnecessary Carnage. Based on images posted to BugGuide, we believe your individual is Rasahus biguttatus.

Posted 13 September 2009 § Assassin Bugs ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Lacewing Carnage: Smashed for entering home

Blue bug with translucent wings
September 6, 2009
I was laying in bed with the TV on at night and my cats kept indicating there was a bug (they usually meow a certain way). I looked at the ceiling and could see the shadow of some sort of flying bug. I turned the light on and the bug was not there. I looked hard for it and couldn’t find it. I turned the light and a minute later the cats were freaking out again. I looked up and there was the shadow. I turned the light on again and I could not see it. So I stood on the bed and looked closer at where the shadow at been. There was a small flying bug, about an inch long and maybe 2 inches or width, with almost translucent blue/green wings. I killed it immediately but it was odd b/c I’ve never seen anything like that.
Marti
SW Missouri (Ozark, MO)

Lacewing smashed for no reason

Lacewing smashed for no reason

Dear Marti,
This Lacewing is a harmless, beneficial predator and it did not deserve to be smashed for entering your home.

Posted 07 September 2009 § Neuropterans: Lacewings, Antlions, and Owlflies ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Ensign Wasp squashed out of fear

Black wasp with blue eyes
September 5, 2009
I found this black wasp in our chihuahua’s bed after it had apparently bitten or stung her. It was inside the house and seemed to prefer to crawl rather than fly as I had to chase it out of the bed to catch it. My initial instinct was to grab a paper towel and squish it since I did not want to be stung. My second reaction was to grab the camera. Luckily, it seems to be quite tough and only the abdomen was injured. From tip to tail, it is a little less than one half inch long. It has very tiny wings, about 3/16th of an inch long. I can not tell if it does or doesn’t have a stinger. It has striking deep blue eyes.
Tyson
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA

Ensign Wasp: Unnecessary Carnage

Ensign Wasp: Unnecessary Carnage

Dear Tyson,
This is an Ensign Wasp, probably Evania appendigaster.  There is a photo on BugGuide that shows the same blue eyes.  Since Ensign Wasps parasitize the egg capsules of cockroaches, they are quite effective in the control of what many people would agree is one of the more undesirable household intruders.  We are nearly certain that Ensign Wasps are incapable of stinging.  If one does a bit of math, the single Ensign Wasp that you killed might have prevented hundreds of cockroaches from infesting your house by destroying eggs.  This single Ensign Wasp might then have prevented hundreds times hundreds (or tens of thousands) of Cockroaches in the second generation had the first generation all lived.  Would you like us to do the math for the third generation of Cockroaches that would have been prevented from existing?  Because of fear, all too often people have the inclination to kill and ask questions later, be that regarding the Unnecessary Carnage of arthropods or the irrational invasion of foreign countries.  We hope the next time an Ensign Wasp finds its way into your home, which it most likely did because of the available food source for its progeny, you will allow it to search for prey without intervention.

Posted 06 September 2009 § Parasitic Hymenopterans ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Unnecessary Carnage Champion

Awesome!
September 5, 2009
Hey there!
I just happened to stumble onto your site thru a series of random clicking on the internet. Just wanted to say you guys are awesome for pointing out when people have needlessly killed a bug. Personally, though I am not a huge fan of bugs, I think it is ridiculous to kill one just because it looks “gross” or you don’t want it in your house. I’m sure you can relate to the crazy looks I get when I tell people I don’t kill bugs, I simply put them outside unless they are a threat to my pets. Even then, I have months of guilt afterwards! Sorry to ramble, just nice to see that there are still people out there who also see the idiocy of someone shrieking “kill it, kill it” at the top of their lungs while throwing things at a tiny and often defenseless bug whose only offense was to walk across the living room floor. Thanks for showing people how unreasonable they’re being!
Amy

Posted 05 September 2009 § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Earwig sighting accompanied by maternal hysteria and book bashing!!!

A long bug called a Pricker bug, by the locals, has invaded my propert and even entered my home. I worry for my child’s safety.
August 22, 2009
The bug is long, about 2 inches in length, and very narrow body. It has a curved tail like a scorpion, but no pincher claws in the front like the scorpion. The pincher is on the end of the tail. Looked more like a stinger to me at first. It moves quickly, and when squished with a book, I had to push down HARD to kill it. It freaked me out because I thought it might be a scorpion of some sort, or at least a relative to the scorpion. My neighbor looked at the one I killed (I saved it in a baggy), and he called it a “Pincher” bug. But, I KNOW that’s not the correct name for this bug. He also told me they sting or pinch and it’s VERY painful. I have a child (who is allergic to almost all bugs, and has a severe reaction to even a tick or mosquito bite. A tick bi te swelled her entire face in the eye area and it looked red and puffy for days. People thought I beat my child because her eye was so swelled too.) in my home, and I am afraid she will unknowingly come across one and step on it or something, getting hurt. Are they poisonous? Are they dangerous? What are they?? I live in central Florida. I tend to seem them in the rainy times. They are dark colored, maybe black or dark brown. long and thin, tail curved up on end. Their shells are very strong, it was difficult to break it when I squished it with the book, took a couple times and alot of pressure before I heard the crunch. I hate bugs, and don’t usually go out of my way to kill them, just stay away from them. If I knew what this was, I could figure out how to get them gone from my yard, and when they come in the house. Please help me???? My main concern to find out about these bugs is to protect my daughter. Please help me to figure this out?? I will search for pics, and hopef ully I find one to send with this. If I don’t, I hope you have an image in mind already.
Alexis
Dade City Florida near forest, near residential area.

Adult male (bottom) and female (top) European earwigs, Foricula auricularia Linnaeus Photograph by: Jim Kalisch, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Adult male (bottom) and female (top) European earwigs, Foricula auricularia Linnaeus Photograph by: Jim Kalisch, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Dear Alexis,
Your inquiry has us totally baffled because you attached a photo lifted from the University of Nebraska Department of Entomology that clearly identifies your Pricker Bug as an European Earwig.  Armed with that information, the first website that pops up in an internet search is the Featured Creatures website that had quite detailed information on the European Earwig.  Earwigs are not poisonous, and though the forceps at the tip of the male’s abdomen can cause a slight pinch, your neighbor was exaggerating when he said it is “VERY painful.”  Comparing the pinch of an Earwig to the bite of a Tick or Mosquito, both of which can spread diseases, is irrational.  According to the CDC, a partial list of Tickborne Diseases includes Babesiosis (Babesia Infection), Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever, Lyme Disease, Southern Tick-Associated Rash Illness, and Tick Born Relapsing Fever.  Mosquitoes are an even more serious concern.  According to the AMCA website:  “Mosquitoes cause more human suffering than any other organism — over one million people die from mosquito-borne diseases every year. Not only can mosquitoes carry diseases that afflict humans, they also transmit several diseases and parasites that dogs and horses are very susceptible to.”  The National Center for Infectious Diseases website has the following partial list of Mosquito Borne Diseases:  Eastern Equine Encephalitis, Japanese Encephalitis, La Crosse Encephalitis, St. Louis Encephalitis, West Nile Virus, Western Equine Encephalitis, Dengue Fever and Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever, Malaria, Rift Valley Fever, and Yellow Fever.  Climate Change, Global Warming, and traveling around the world could cause some of these typically tropical diseases to surface in the U.S.  In our opinion, your squishing of an Earwig with a book constitutes Unnecessary Carnage.  You do not need to concern yourself with your daughter’s safety when it comes to Earwigs.

Posted 22 August 2009 § Earwigs ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Giant Vinegaroon: Smashed, Poisoned and Fed to Ants

DISGUSTING bug
August 11, 2009
I found this bug crawling on my porch. It was so disgusting looking that I had to smash it. After I took the photo, I grabbed a can of poison and drenched it then I threw its mangled body in a raging ant colony I disturbed.
Can you please identify it?
buglover101
northeast us

Giant Vinegaroon

Giant Vinegaroon

Dear buglover101,
The facetiousness of your signature is anything but amusing to us. This is a Whipscorpion or Giant Vinegaroon, Mastigoproctus giganteus.  According to BugGuide:  “The vinegaroon is nocturnal and has poor vision. The whiplike tail is used as a sensory organ, as is the first pair of legs, which is not used for walking. Although its tail in unable to sting, this creature can spray an acidic mist from a scent gland at the base of the tail when disturbed. The spray is 85% concentrated acetic acid/vinegar, hence the common name ‘Vinegaroon.’ The heavy pinching mouthparts (modified pedipalps) can also inflict a painful bite. Although very unlikely to attack humans, it can certainly defend itself if provoked.” Sadly, this poor individual didn’t stand a chance against the arsenal you threw at it.  In our opinion, this is a textbook example of what we consider to be Unnecessary Carnage.  We are puzzled by the stated location in your email as the Giant Vinegaroon is a southern Arachnid.

A Reader Comments
Vinegaroon, and my big spider
August 14, 2009
I suspect that “buglover101″ was messing with you, with the description of torturing the vinegaroon and throwing it to enraged ants. Especially since you noted that the vinegaroon is a southern arachnid. Anyway, any chance you could help with the big striped spider I sent you last Sunday? I think the pictures are great (you can really see her brown eyes) but I can’t identify her. Thank you for the wonderful website, even if you don’t get to my spider!
Jessica

Hi Jessica,
The thought had crossed our mind that buglover101 was yanking our chain since this does seem to be a bit of an overreaction, but the photo is still a smashed Giant Vinegaroon.  The smashing alone would warrant Unnecessary Carnage and the postmortem corpse defiling is truly over the top.  It reminds us of the defiling of Hector’s corpse in the Iliad, an act perpetrated to raise the hackles of the Trojans.  Perhaps we are just too gullible, but we tend to believe what people write to us.
Since your letter brought up a relevant point that we wanted to post, we went through hundreds of recent emails to track your name and located your previous unread query.  The spider is a Wolf Spider.

Posted 11 August 2009 § Scorpions, Whipscorpions and Vinegaroons ‡ Comments (1) ° Also tagged:

Solpugid: Dead on the Want Ads

I need help with an identification please…
August 11, 2009
Well, my Mom discovered this guy roaming the floor on the bedroom in Santa Fe, NM. It looks vaguely spiderlike, and she’s concerned that it may be something that bites. The abdomen looks like it’s jointed, which I don’t think is spiderlike, but it does seem to have pincers or something along those lines. What has she got here?
Who the heck is this guy?
Santa Fe, NM

Solpugid: Dead from unknown causes

Solpugid: Dead from unknown causes

This is a Solpugid, a harmless nocturnal predator.  Despite its fierce appearance, the Solpugid has no venom and is no threat to humans or pets, unless your pets are cockroaches or other small creatures.  We hope your mom will seriously consider the benefits of allowing Solpugids to live will afford her in the future.

Posted 11 August 2009 § Solpugids and Camel Spiders ‡ Comments (3) ° Also tagged:

Ensign Wasp escapes becoming Unnecessary Carnage

The UNKILLABLE bug
August 11, 2009
This bug started to appear a few weeks ago, I found the first one on the living room and quickly squashed it. A couple of days later there was another one and killed it too. About a week later AGAIN the same bug (maybe) came back, I even started to think that it was the exactly the same bug I killed before.
Yesterday I killed this bug again and left it in the living room with a Pringles cap on top of it, the insect was moving and it was trapped.
A few minutes later I checked it again and it was gone, it disappeared as my son claims.
I found it again flying like nothing, I believe this bug can seriously take a beating.
I took this picture with a zoom lens because the ceiling is about 20 feet high.
So if you can help me identify this, I dont know if it is dangerous or not, I have killed one with my bare hands.
Thanks.
P.S. Please don’t make my email public.
Father of Two
McAllen, TEXAS

Ensign Wasp
Ensign Wasp

Dear Father of Two,
You do not want to kill Ensign Wasps.  They will not sting you and they are beneficial since they parasitize the eggs of cockroaches.  Allowing the Ensign Wasps to live will reduce the Cockroaches in your area.  Though the wasp in your image is alive, we want to tag your letter as Unnecessary Carnage because it nearly met with a squashing end like its predecessors.  We do not publicize email addresses, but submitting a letter to our website is done with the understanding that we post content to our site.

Posted 11 August 2009 § Parasitic Hymenopterans ‡ Comments (2) ° Also tagged:

Unnecessary Carnage: Sharing the Title

Butterfly Gardens in Costa Rica asking if we may adopt the term unnecessary carnage
August 11, 2009
Myself and the volunteers at the Monteverde Butterfly Gardens were looking over your site the other day (we use it for IDs that people ask us for), and came across the Unnecessary Carnage page and were so happy and impressed! We laughed so hard that we all ended up in tears, peoples over dramatic response to calling out their (is there any better way to put it? We don’t think so) Unnecessary Carnage was hysterical. Taking people on educational bug tours all day long means that we all inevitably end up hearing tales of harmless arthropods meeting gruesome ends. We have all tried to come up with equally offensive retorts to these horrid tales of violence, however we feel that that your term really hits the nail into the Dobson fly. Therefore we entomologist and bug loving volunteers her e at the butterfly gardens ask we if may officially adopt the term Unnecessary Carnage and use it in our educational programming.
We are Very thankful for your hard work. We want you know that down here in Costa Rica you have a group of people who will be using your term as an act of solidarity for all those of us who flight to protect bugs every day of our lives!
Muchas gracias!
Bryna Belisle
Manager,
Monteverde butterfly gardens Costa Rica

Dear Bryna,
By all mean, use the term Unnecessary Carnage as a means to educate the public.  We are honored that entomologists in Costa Rica think the term is appropriate.

Posted 11 August 2009 § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

Cicada Killer: Dead from Unknown Causes

What’s this bug??
August 10, 2009
Hi,
I’m wondering what kind of bug this is. My parents have them burrowing in the sand/dirt on between the sections of their cement driveway. This is the first they’ve seen these bugs and we’re all very curious to what it is. The look like a huge wasp. Unfortunately the bug in this picture is dead, we have a family member that is deathly allergic to wasps.
The photo was taken on August 9th. Sorry the second picture is blurred, but its to show size comparison next to a quarter.
Just Curious
North-Central Illinois

Cicada Killer: dead because of perceived threat

Cicada Killer: dead because of perceived threat

Dear Just Curious,
This is a Cicada Killer.  The wasp in your photo appears to be a female, and only the females of the species will sting.  Males have no stinger but are the more aggressive sex, as they defend territory.  We have never received a substantiated report of anyone being stung by a female Cicada Killer as they are not an aggressive wasp.  Most solitary wasps are very reluctant to sting.  The female Cicada Killer saves her stings for paralyzing Cicadas which she drags to her underground burrow to provide food for her young.  We consider this an example of Unnecessary Carnage and we hope our response has educated you as to the nonthreatening nature of Cicada Killers.  We hope this will prevent any further Unnecessary Carnage.

Posted 10 August 2009 § CIcada Killer Wasps ‡ Comments (0) ° Also tagged:

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