From the monthly archives: "September 2019"

Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar

On · Category: brush footed butterfly caterpillars · Add Comment

Subject:  Caterpillar
Geographic location of the bug:  Louisa, Virginia
Date: 09/22/2019
Time: 02:41 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  What caterpillar is this and what plant is it’s host?
How you want your letter signed:  Sharon

Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar

Dear Sharon,
We believe this is a Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar and according to BugGuide:  “Larvae feed on Violets & Pansy (Viola), Flax (Linum), Passion Vine (Passiflora), Damiana (Turnera), Moonseed (Menispermum), Mayapple (Podophyllum), Stonecrop (Sedum), Purslane (Portulaca) and others. Adults are fond of flowers, and especially seem to like Thistles and yellow Composites. They also frequently visit damp ground.”

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Locust Borer

On · Category: Longhorn Beetles · Add Comment

Subject:  Yellowjacket or Cricket?
Geographic location of the bug:  New Jersey
Date: 09/22/2019
Time: 08:48 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  This bug landed on me and later seemed to “fly” away like a grasshopper. It wasn’t behaving like a wasp and it’s head and body shape don’t look wasplike. What is it???
How you want your letter signed:  Libby

Locust Borer

Dear Libby,
This Locust Borer is actually a beetle that is a very effective Yellowjacket mimic.  Locust Borers are often found on Goldenrod.

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Sycamore Assassin Bug Nymph

On · Category: Assassin Bugs · Add Comment

Subject:  Odd Beetle?
Geographic location of the bug:  Western Mass
Date: 09/23/2019
Time: 06:07 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  No one I’ve asked remembers ever seeing a bug like this before, even the horticulturally inclined. Seen on Sept 10th
How you want your letter signed:  Curiouser and curiouser

Immature Sycamore Assassin Bug

Dear Curiouser and curiouser,
This is an immature Sycamore Assassin Bug, a beneficial predator in the garden.

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Green Lynx Spider Lays Egg Sac on Woody Plant

On · Category: Green Lynx Tagged With: , , · Add Comment

Subject:  Green Lynx Spider
Geographic location of the bug:  Mt. Washington, Los Angeles, CA
Date: 09/23/2019
Time: 04:15 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Dear Bugman,
Harvest season is here and I noticed this very swollen Green Lynx Spider on the second generation descendant of a seed that came from a Woodhead bud purchased at Cornerstone Collective about three years ago.  I harvested the plant on Saturday, but on Friday I noticed the Green Lynx Spider was much thinner and she was now guarding an egg sac.  Needless to say, I did not need the buds on half of the bifurcated stem, so I tied an orange tag on the stem that reads “Spider Nursery” and I will let her live out her days guarding her eggs before I harvest the remaining buds so she will have habitat around her.
How you want your letter signed: Constant Gardener

Green Lynx Spider

Dear Constant Gardener,
We always enjoy your submissions, but because of your self sacrificing impulse regarding the survival of your Green Lynx Spider’s brood, we are bequeathing you with the Bug Humanitarian Award.

Green Lynx Spider with Egg Sac

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Common True Katydid

On · Category: Katydids · Add Comment

Subject:  Large green bug on my house in August
Geographic location of the bug:  Wanaque, NJ 07465 USA
Date: 09/22/2019
Time: 09:38 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  I saw this large green bug on the side of my house on a sunny hot afternoon in August. I live in Northern NJ not far from Ramapo State Forest. I have never seen this bug before or since. I would love to know what it is.
How you want your letter signed:  Mark

Common True Katydid

Dear Mark,
This is a male Common True Katydid, one of the music makers of the insect world.  Here is a BugGuide image for comparison.  According to BugGuide, the habitat is:  “Deciduous forests–often heard, but seldom seen, since mostly lives in forest canopy.”

So that’s what a Katydid looks like! Thank you so much!
-Mark W.

Our pleasure.

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Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar

On · Category: brush footed butterfly caterpillars · Add Comment

Subject:  Caterpillar
Geographic location of the bug:  Howard County, MD
Date: 09/19/2019
Time: 09:08 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Please ID this. I found a location where they are everywhere.
How you want your letter signed:  John

Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar

Dear John,
This is a Variegated Fritillary Caterpillar.  Here is a BugGuide image for reference.

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