No one is immune to praise. and as humans, we are no exceptions. Over the last quarter of a century, we have received thousands of letters thanking us, full of praise.
Here, we have reproduced a few that have really stood out. Thanks to everyone who has showered their love on whatsthatbug.com. You guys have our hearts!
Letter 1 – Couldn’t open the photo
Moth Picture
Hello Bugman,
I have to convey to you how much I absolutely love your website! It is pretty much the coolest site EVER! I happened upon your website when trying to identify a very odd looking bug that my husband brought home for me from the grocery store parking lot the other day. He does that occassionally because I have a serious fascination with insects which people seem to think is strange but I just LOVE them!! Anyway, you site identified the insect as a Mole Cricket which thrilled me to death to just know what the little thing was. I have a picture of a moth I happened upon in yet another grocery store parking lot and I just wanted to be part of your wonderful site so I am sending the picture to you. Is this a species of the Polyphemus Moths that you have pictured on the site? Thanks so much for your time and I will walk around armed with a camera from now on since I now know about you guys!
Thanks,
Michelle in Suwanee, GA
Hi Michelle,
You sent such a wonderful letter, but sadly, we cannot open your photo attachment. Please try to resend it as a jpg attachment and not a bmp. Until we get the image, we are posting your letter on our fanmail page.
Letter 2 – Some interesting local names from Tennessee
we love your website
Dear Bugman,
First let me say I love your site. It has been the most informative that I have found. My son and I looked everywhere trying to identify an insect and we finally found it here, thanks . We also found out alot about insects that we thought we already knew about. For example, the camel cricket is known as the” blister cricket” here in Tennessee, and the saddle back caterpillar is known as the “packsaddle”. They’re just local names I’m sure so it was very interesting to find out their real names. Now I have a question. What ,if anything, does the hickory horned devil turn into? We have them evrywhere here and I’ve always assumed they were just a worm.
Thanks,
Paula
East Tennessee
Hi Paula,
The Hickory Horned Devil turns into the lovely Royal Walnut Moth.
Letter 3 – Helping to Ease Minds
Awesome Site!
Hi there, I wanted to tell you that this is a fabulous site! I found it in a true panic! I woke up in the middle of the night a couple nights ago to use the bathroom. To my suprise, I turned on the light and found a black bug sitting on my register vent. At first I didn’t really think much of it. (I’m not afraid of bugs) Then I took a piece of toilet paper and smushed it. As I was about to throw it away, I decided to open the tissue and look at it. Up close the wings almost made it look like a cockroach. I completely went numb and ran into the bedroom and jumped on the internet! I looked at all your pictures of cockroaches and decided it wasn’t that. Not being 100% sure, I will see if I across another and send a picture in. So since then, every bug I see in the house or outside even, I get on here and look it up. I feel so much better about my “buggy” surroundings now. Thanks for helping freaks like me put our minds at ease.
Sincerely,
Jennifer
MI
Letter 4 – Ewwww
Thank you! Your site is wonderful. My daughter spent the better part of an
hour clicking through the various bug links. Many of them got the wonderful
“Ewwww!” of little kids.
Steve
Letter 5 – Greeting from Kuwait
WEB SITE
Hello WTB!!
I’m sad to say that this E-mail will contain no specimen photo in need of ID. I simply wanted to compliment you on you web site. I am very impressed!! I am currently working as a DoD contractor (Vector Control) in southern Iraq . We are the “Bug men” for our troops deployed in OIF (Operation Iraqi Freedom). I was curious if you might like to have a few specimen photos of some of the creatures “our boys” encounter here in the “sandbox”? Though we deal with everything from Horned Vipers to the occasional herd of camels we spend the majority of our time focusing on local arthropods. If you might have any knowledge of sites similar to your own with information concerning creatures from our “neck of the woods” I would be very interested.
Thanks and Kudos,
Jason McCann
Vector Control Technician
Camp Buehring/Udairi, Kuwait
Hi Jason,
WE have gotten several photos of the infamous Camel Spider, including one that has been making quite a splash in the news along with horrific storiesl. The image was taken with a wide angle lens, so the critters look two feet long. Sorry we can’t help you with any Middle Eastern identification sites, but we will gladly publish any images you send our way.
Letter 6 – nice website
“What’s that Bug” Website Folk –
I enjoyed very much browsing your website. I am interested to know where you are located and what regional insect fauna you are most associated with. I am author of the Exploring California Insects website –
www.bugpeople.org.
Eddie Dunbar, Project Director
“Exploring California Insects”
5209 Congress Avenue
Oakland, CA 94601-5405
“Lake Merritt and Greater Oakland Insects”
a field guide covering 105 local groups
with 100 color images is now available.
Visit the ECI website: www.bugpeople.org
Hi Eddie,
Thank you for the nice letter. I can see downtown Los Angeles from my backyard. I live in the neighborhood of Mt. Washington near one of the entrances to Elyria Canyon. Most of the photos that I take for the site are in my garden or the canyon. What’s That Bug? started as a lark in a photocopied “zine” called American Homebody. When American Homebody went online, the column What’s That Bug? went along for the ride. The column generated so much mail that we purchased the domain name and www.whatsthatbug.com became a spin-off of the original site. Quite frankly, we aren’t associated with any entomological organizations, but we do occasionally get advice from the staff of the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History. One of my greatest interests is to do documentary photos of the life cycles of some local insects and I am thinking of applying for funding to create a pamplet for Elyria Canyon Park with insect photos. I have also been toying with the idea of adapting a book based on our site that could act as a humorous accompaniment to Hogue’s awesome Insects of the Los Angeles Basin.
Letter 7 – Oxford Fan
Hurrah for you guys!
I just wanted to compliment you on your fascinating site! I’m a student in Oxford studying Environmental Biology (my speciality being spiders – recently identified 807 of them for a research project!). I’ve often used your site for information in essays, and i think it’s a brilliant resource for everybody.
You must thoroughly enjoy running it.
Keep up the good work,
Olivia
Thank you so much for the sweet letter Olivia. I am amazed that a prestigious institution like Oxford has benefitted from our humble site. My biggest thrill in the spider identification category was the Red Legged Purse Web Spider. That photo was so beautiful and I was obsessed with identifying it. Have a great day.
Daniel
Letter 8 – High School Entomology Teacher
I am a high school entomology teacher in coastal Georgia. I love your website. I just found it today. If you come across any resources that I could use for my ento. class please do not hesitate to send them to me. my email address is eharris@effingham.k12.ga.us . I have put together a web page for the class at www.effinghamschools.com/sehs/eharris We are trying to come up with material for it. I am sure that I will be sending you things now that I have found your site.
Thanks
Eric Harris
South Effingham High School
Head Volleyball Coach
Assistant Guys Soccer Coach
Letter 9 – Love your site
Well, I was going through my bookmarks on my work computer today and
thought I would check the What’s that Bug site and lucky me, you’re
back! I thought the site had disappeared. I use your site occasionally
to look up insects, and may one day send a photo if I ever get stumped.
I occasionally id insects with my job, and insect id is also a great
hobby, keep up the great work!
Rene Simon,
Placer County Agriculture Department
Thank you for the nice letter Rene
We don’t plan on going anywhere. We have free web hosting and continue to exceed our monthly traffic quota about mid month. Since we do not have advertising, and don’t really want to pay additional money for a labor of love, we do disappear on occasion.
Letter 10 – Fanmail or Hate Mail???
Your Site
Hello Bugman,
I don’t have a question (anymore) but I do have a comment: I HATE BUGS! I HATE your site! Upon researching a scary critter, I came across WTB. I have learned more about bugs in the last two days than I EVER cared to know! I have spent hours upon hours reading, reading, reading and being totally grossed out by the pics! I was up until 3 a.m. perusing your site, and started again first thing upon waking this morning, and I am STILL reading and retching 4 hours later. I can’t quit! I have apparently dredged up a here-to-fore unknown fascination with bugs (much to my disgust – and, um, did I just say “here-to-fore”?)….and my husband will now be asking why his meals aren’t being prepared, or why the laundry isn’t being washed – I haven’t even turned on the TV at all today!! Horror upon horror! I blame you for this terrible addiction! Woe is me…. A new found (creeped out) fan,
Beth
Charlotte, NC
Dear Beth,
What’s That Bug? is a bit like a train wreck that you can’t look away from. We are not certain if you letter is fanmail or hate mail, but it amuses us terribly. Not turning on the TV might not be such a bad thing, but starving your husband cannot be healthy for your marriage. Try whipping up a nice peach cobbler for your husband and he should forgive you.
Letter 11 – Truly Candid Girl wants more Diversity
I love your site…..but you have repeats
Your site is great and all, but there are the same bugs or the same spiders listed on the SAME page. Example: Nursery Web Spider, listed 4 times on spiders11.html I notice you do this a lot on many of your pages. Listing the same bug over and over.
A Truly Candid Girl (unsigned note with name taken from email)
Dear Truly Candid Girl,
We try to be a diverse as possible, but another important aspect of our site is to show current population trends as well as sighting locations. Readers ofen like to know that something seen in Maine might also be found in Georgia. We would strongly advise you not to visit our Luna Moth pages as it might drive you over the edge. We have two whole pages devoted to a single species, though related species from elsewhere in the world are also presented. We often get requests and suggestions on how to improve our site, but your letter leaves us totally baffled.
Update: (06/15/2008) A heartfelt thank-you, and a rebuttal!
Hello again.
First, I’d like to thank you for identifying the female Dobsonfly photo (on 6-12-08) that I sent in. Second, I find myself compelled to comment on the e-mail that ‘Truly Candid Girl’ sent to you on 6-14-08 about “repeats”. I’d like to say that looking at several pics of the same bugs helps me to identify them. One pic cannot possibly show all the different sides, angles, sizes, and colors of a particular bug. I think “repeats” are necessary if you truly want to learn about a bug! And last, I LOVE your site! I have always been the type of girl that highly disliked bugs, and when I would see one, I’d say “Eww, bug!” and squash it if possible. Now, I’m not saying that I’ve fallen in love with bugs, but this site has evoked a curiosity in me. Every time I see a bug that I’m not familiar with, I want to know what it is, and I always come to this site. It’s a much better alternative to swatting, squishing, or running! Thank you so much for helping me to overcome my fear bit-by-bit, and keep up the good work!
Heather P
Update: Truly Candid Girl writes back(06/16/2008)
I just think it should be a little more organized. I know a lot of people come to your site to found out what a bug is and they don’t know the name of it. Also, it’s fine if you have the same species but label the link “Luna Moth” so people know the WHOLE page is just that. When you have the links that is just the general name “spider” “spider 2” “spider 3” and then on those pages have the SAME spider listed on all 3 pages, it’s a little annoying. Put all that species on ONE page. I am just saying, it is easier for your visitors to found out what they are looking for. Just an idea and I think it’s a good one.
Update: Truly Candid Girls starts NAGGING
I really don’t understand why you posted the first email I sent and not the one that I sent explaining what I meant about my idea. I have a good idea. And since I wrote back again to your response, I should think the first one should be removed from the site, or this follow up email should be posted, explaining what I meant.
Ed. Comment: (06/17/2008)
We just cannot bring ourselves to continue a dialog with a Truly Candid Girl. While her first email bugged us, the subsequent naggings and demands are making us angry. Totally reorganizing our website to please one reader is just not feasible. We know we are disorganized, however, our postings do run chronologically, and the word logic is built right in.
Letter 12 – Sharing our World View with a Loyal Reader
Daniel: about the red legged purse spider
Hi Daniel,
I continue to very much enjoy Whats that bug?, even though you don’t hear from me as often. I wanted to say that I write on Wikipedia, (mostly on mollusks) so if there is a problem with the info they are quoting from WTB about the red-legged purse spider, do let me know and I will fix it. Very best wishes to you!
Susan
Hi Susan, We do try to do our research on What’s That Bug? My comment has more to do with the fact that we are supporting our own information with information from Wikipedia, but we noticed that Wikipedia is citing us, meaning that we are citing ourselves. Just an amusing observation. To the best of my knowledge, it is correct. Thanks
Daniel
Oh, I see! Sorry I misunderstood… Always nice to hear from you, Daniel, thanks. You are doing really great with WTB, congratulations. Also you are really getting through to people and changing attitudes slowly but surely.
Susan
hi again Susan,
Our goal is to conquer global warming, and we feel that this needs to begin on a microcosmic level. Awareness of personal space is a good beginning to reducing each person’s carbon footprint on the planet. have a great day.
Letter 13 – We are not in competition with BugGuide. Rather, we have forged something of an Alliance.
love letter to the bugpeople
Hello there, I can’t even tell you how many bugs I’ve identified from your site. I prefer it to bugguide because I learn so much more while I’m searching for what I’m really looking for. I end up seeing some other interesting things and learning about them and soon enough (sometimes) I run into that very insect/arachnid. Thank you, thank you! For instance, this morning I was trying to ID what turned out to be a Giant Ichneumon and I ran across another photo which besides a wasp contained Cerambycid Beetle larva which I had run into last winter and completely misidentified as mud dauber larva. I love your site. Thank you so much. I know you must be swamped, so don’t feel it’s necessary to reply. Thanks again
Marielle
Dear Marielle,
Your letter put us in a very good mood today. We love hearing that our tangled method or archiving has led to identifications of some of your previous encounters, albeit through a circuitous route. We are huge fans of BugGuide and are in awe at the site’s organization, but slobs that we are here at What’s That Bug?, we doubt our own archives will ever be quite as tidy.
Letter 14 – Insect Enthusiast turned Professional Photographer
For the love of bugs.
Greetings!
Your site is one of the most enjoyable places I find myself coming back to over and over again. As a bug lover from the time I could stand on two feet, I have marveled at the incredible shapes, sizes and color variations of nature’s most abundant, yet often maligned creatures, the insects. As an adult, I continue to be awed by new discoveries, and find that your superb website brings an intelligent option to those who might otherwise have simply ignored or eradicated life forms they previously misunderstood. Growing up in New York City, my parents encouraged me to study insect life to a point that I joined a club of young entomologists which met monthly at The American Museum of Natural History, in Manhattan. That was many years ago, though my membership took me on some amazing summer field trips to places like Arizona, Florida, The U.S. Virgin Islands, and even Trinidad, in search of insects and their relatives. To this day I think of how very lucky I was, especially to have had parents like mine, who paid my way to go. After my teen years, which consisted of collecting and mounting insects, as was the method of preserving them to teach others, I began to see the light. That light was the one that was necessary to capture insects on film. With my first camera, a Kodak Instamatic, I began trying to photograph my insect specimens on pins. Soon afterwards, on my first overseas trip, to visit an insect collector pen pal in Czechoslovakia, I purchased a 35mm SLR camera capable of taking macro photos. At age eighteen I began photographing every insect I could find, realizing that this was the way I wanted to remember these incredible creatures I came upon, without ever again doing harm to them. Today, I am a professional photographer, due to my love of insects. I travel throughout upstate New York, where I now reside, giving upwards of 100 slide lectures per year, about all sorts of wildlife that I have accumulated in photographs , over a span of three decades. My programs are illustrated with everything from mice to black bears, but when I include an insect close-up, as I often do, I always stress the importance of these basic building blocks of our natural world. Without the little things, there would not be the bigger things, like us. Once again, thanks for bringing awareness to the masses, of our wonderful world of invertebrates. “Everything you wanted to know about insects, but were afraid to ask”, might be another name for your site, although What’s that bug works great. Dr. Ruth would be impressed! Yours truly,
Gerry Lemmo
Hi Gerry,
What a fabulous letter for us to read so early in the morning. Your success story is wonderful. We are posting your letter to our fanmail page where we put general letters we love that are not accompanied by photos. You sound exactly like the type of person we would love to have on our professional advisory board at the photography department at Los Angeles City College.
Letter 15 – We assist employee at a Nature Preserve
Don’t want to ask, want to say…..
THANK YOU – for your awesome website, and the wealth of info – I work for a Park/Nature Preserve in Frankfort, KY – finding your site has made my job 10x easier – and more fun! Only problem is – I can’t quit scrolling……….Keep up the good work,
Debbie Bramlage
Letter 16 – Pop Culture Alternative Insect Identification Website for the Layman
just a little fan mail, for now
I am the kind of person who, when I find a bug in my house, scours the internet for hours, looking for the animal in question. But the Internet, with regard to bugs, is good at identifying a handful of nasty pests (roaches, bedbugs, ants, etc.), and good at providing giant webs of super-scientific information that are impossible for a layman to navigate. Your site is, therefore, a revelation, and totally a thrill. It is also a public service, for both the human and insect publics. In the past hour, for example, I have gone from thinking I had silverfish to knowing I have house centipedes (and wishing I hadn’t squashed one), and from thinking I might maybe have bedbugs (sort of, though I don’t have a big bite problem, which confused me, but now makes sense) to thinking I probably have carpet beetles. I wish that instead of bringing my yogurt container full of dead bugs – which I keep in the freezer – to the exterminator for inspection, I had taken pictures and sent them to you. I will do this from now on, though I don’t have a good digital camera. In any case, this is one of the best sites I’ve seen on the internet, and I will be a frequent visitor and sometime user from here on out, till the internet stops working (and the bugs keep on keeping on). Many thanks,
Judd
Hi Judd,
Thank you so much for your thoughful letter. We haven’t posted a letter to our fanmail page in over a month. That is strictly for letters about insects generally and without accompanying images. We have always though of ourselves as a pop culture alternative to the heavily scientific insect sites. We have art degrees, and do not have backgrounds in science, but there is a wealth of knowledge available on the internet if one knows how to search effectively.
Letter 17 – Holistic Viewpoint
Fan mail
I have a desk job and one of the highlights of my day as a receptionist is checking out for new bugs on your webpage. I used to have a severe arachnophobia but since learning about spiders and looking at the pictures of them on your webpage I have become tolerant of them. I no longer squash them when they wander near me. As I work in a holistic health care office, often I have patients complain about a supplement “its too big for me to swallow” or “I don’t want to eat kale it’s gross” or even “I hate fish” what frustrates me about these statements is that what is being prescribed is necessary for the body to work in unison with it’s organs and where I am going with this is I notice on your page often people ask, “will it hurt me?” and I am in awe of your patience with these people. Earth needs everyone of these insects, no matter how frightening to function and I find that question so ignorant, instead of being concerned with the dust mites, be concerned with the amount of bees disappearing or the amount of creatures displaced by our need to expand into their homes to build more homes and businesses. Here I am rambling when I just wanted to drop a note to say “I love your webpage!”.
Thanks,
Amanda from Canada
Letter 18 – Bug Love Poster
Bug Love
Hi Guys…Love your site! Showed it to my 17 year old who is thinking about art school for college to show him how an art degree can parlay into anything you want as long as you are passionate about it! He’s 17, but I think he was impressed, but who knows, he is 17!!! I wanted to forward a copy of a poster that my friend Rick and I made featuring bug love based on my photos. We thought up the idea one day at the beach after way too much beer and finally got it together after about 3 years of “talking about it”. So, without a doubt, we will have sunk some hard earned money into this poster with no real desire to make any money, and of course no real chance, but at least we hope to have some fun at it!!! And we are donating a portion of the proceeds (yeah right, like there will be any!) to insect conservation, maybe the Xerces Foundation or NABA or some such entity….I guess once we actually make some money we can figure out where to send it… So I know you guys are incredibly busy starting school etc… (my wife teaches too and September is insane!) but I wanted to see if we could chat about featuring the poster on your website. I really think your viewers might enjoy it and we can make some kind of arrangement so that you get the benefit as well of any sales. But I do want to stress that Rick and I are not really looking to make money on this only to have fun and hopefully not to lose the money we have already put into it! I think the poster is perfect for your website! I’d love to send you a hard copy, or if you want I can send you 25 or so to try out and see what happens, I just need a mailing address. The poster is printed on high quality stock and is 18″ x 24″ . Well, I hope reading this wasnt as painful as some freshman essay on “what I did for my summer”! ps….since you guys are obviously bug freaks, you may have seen some stories about my research with my colleagues at Rutgers and Princeton on strapping tiny radio transmitters on Anax junius and following them in migration…I’m a bug freak too! Anyway, I hope to hear from you, feel free to reach out for me via email…
Dave
Letter 19 – Praise from Georgia in New York!!!!
Thank you
Hello, I have a spider and am so delighted – a teensy Jumping one. I am enjoying him/her even more having discovered your site. I live in NYC (an art person – your “About WTB” photo is fabulous) and your site allows me to live vicariously elsewhere, through people’s insect stories, in places that are not so perversely devoid of nature (roaches, house centipedes and real-estate investors don’t do it for me). I grew up in Oregon, living with/learning about/deeply respecting all forms of nature, including insects, except mosquitos (my father is an acarologist – GW Krantz). So I look at your site every day and it brings me such unadulterated joy (including, needless to say, endless bursts of laughter). One more thing. Tears come to my eyes when I read about people who have come to their senses about their senseless slaughter of harmless/indeed beneficial critters. You are doing a great thing, and through such a beautifully ordinary mode of exchange (I use the word “ordinary” with the utmost respect – just casually talking to people about stuff that is actually important – no hype, no in-your-face, no bs, no Hollywood – wow, a jaded NY’er speaks). Anyway, thank you sincerely from the core of my soul. Evidently-in-parenthetical-remark-mode,
Georgia
Ps. After finishing this note I found my little spider in the toilet. Happily he/she is fine.
Letter 20 – Moths easily located
Awesome!
Hey bugman, just wanted to drop a line saying what an awesome site Whats That Bug is! I found you guys while trying to ID the Wood Nymph moth…funny thing was that the picture I found first of it described it exactly as I had thought of it….bird poop. Anyway, since then I have been using your site to help me ID all kinds of moths, and you haven’t failed me yet. I never realised how awesome moths are, and how varied and beautiful they are. I’m trying to get a good macro lens for my camera, so I can send you some shots of some of the odder ones I find. I was taking some with my digital camera, but they weren’t very good, and in most cases you already had excellent pictures of the same moth. Anyway, just wanted to say thank you for all the work you must do to keep this site as excellent as it is, keep up the great work!
Ryan
Letter 21 – War of the Sexes
thanks & love the site
I came across your site while trying to settle an argument between me and my boyfriend. He said the red velvet ant we saw was a fire ant, I, having lived in an area in southern arkansas, know exactly what a fire ant is and proceded to tell him. He was sure he was right…as all men are…so i of course went to the computer and proved him wrong. Thanks for the help with that..score one for the ladies. While i was here i got tangled up in your wonderfull insect world and stayed for over an hour looking and reading. Great website…keep up the good work. i plan on showing this site to my children who are like me, terrified of insects. Somehow having this knowledge has helped me understand the critters a little more. Thanks again
Carla Knapp
Ozark Mountains, Arkansas
Letter 22 – Home-Schooling Mom is Thankful
Not a ? BUT a Thanks
This is a really nice site. I am a homeschool mom and my children and I are fasinated by creepy crawlies so when we found a mass of Millepeds we wanted to know what for sure they were. After a short search we found your site and imeadiately found the answer to our question. I will be making your site a perminate tool of teaching in our home. I also forwarded your site to many of my homeschool freinds it will be a great benifit to us. AND who knows as curoius as my children are I bet it will not be long before we come up with a bug we can not ID with out your help. A few years ago when we moved to this area (middle of Iowa) I found Morman crickets and not recognizing them took them to freinds at Iowa State University for ID. Eventually finding out that these crickets are not normally found East of Nebraska so that was really fun. We still frequently see them in the fall when there is not drought conditions. In our area we also see large praying manits, walking sticks of serveral kinds and LARGE black millipeds here NONE of which I had encountered growing up in Southern Iowa. Its been fun learning about these bugs. Oh and the huge wolf spiders we grow here DONT entertain us as much but we tolerate them. 🙂 Happy bug hunting and thanks for your incredible site.
Michele Kalsem
A Reader Comments (07/08/2008)
NOT A ?, COMMENT ON OLD POST-grammar hound
Hey Bugman,
Don’t want to waste your time on something non-bug related, but in perusing your old fanmail posts I ran across one that a homeschooling mother sent to you and you posted on 5/2/06. Sorry to say, but I’m afraid that her children would be better off in public school with the egregious amount of spelling errors there are in her email to you. It continues to astound me how many people think their children are better off at home with only their ignorant parents as teachers. Even a public school grammar teacher would be better than learning grammar from her! Your grammar, however, is usually quite excellent!! Thanks again for the great site. And let me know if you ever need any editing work done. Thanks,
Amy in Rockford, IL
Letter 23 – MFA Degrees
Credentials
Hi there.
I have enjoyed your site very much. Here is my problem. I am a grad student in education at East Stroudsburg U. and I would like to cite What’s That Bug as a resource for a project. I can’t seem to find any infomration on who you guys are, and how you know so much about bugs. I’m not asking for names and addresses, obviously, just something I can include in my paper? Please? BTW, the homebody site and knitting site are cool too.
Thanks!
Sue Chew
Hi Sue,
Lisa Anne and Daniel both have Master of Fine Arts degrees from Art Center College of Design. Daniel is the Chairman of Media Arts at Los Angeles City College. Lisa Anne and Daniel both teach Photography at Los Angeles City College. Daniel teaches Design 1 for Film and Advertising at Art Center College of Design. Lisa Anne teaches Photography at University of Southern California. The truth is, the site is an art project.
Letter 24 – A very sweet letter
Finally!!
Finally!!! A website that is easy to navigate and find the answers to all the bug questions our there. I stumbled onto your website when trying to identify a bug that my co-worker asked me to smash (I chose to catch and release). I then found your website through ask.com and, it was a solpugid. Intrigued I started to look through the many pictures and letters on your site and was ecstatic to find a picture of a fire beetle. Aka; clicker bug at my home. I am finally able to show people what I am talking about as they look at me like I am crazy when I try to describe it. Thank you again for this wonderful resource. My children are going to love it (future entomologists I think)
Kim Rios
Hi Kim,
Thanks for your sweet letter. It is not often people find our website easy to navigate.
Letter 25 – Lecture at the Getty: Maria Sibylla Merian
fanmail
Daniel,
Now that I am back in New Hampshire, I am still basking in the memory of my trip to California. On July 18, when I checked your website to research a Fritillary butterfly and send you a picture to confirm it, I saw your announcement that you were giving a lecture on the Maria Sibylla Merian exhibit at the Getty Museum in LA on July 25. What a great coincidence that I was flying to Los Angeles on July 22 to visit my daughter and son-in-law. I was delighted that you answered my email, and told me to introduce myself if I came to the Getty lecture. You know the rest of the story. They brought me to the Getty so we could attend your lecture. Wow!! What an exciting experience! Your “Point of View” lecture was most interesting–telling us about Merian’s life in the 1600’s, and her beautiful watercolors of insects and flowers–as we walked through the exhibit. As you said: “It was beautiful and well worth seeing.” We had never been to the Getty before so I’m so glad to have had the opportunity to see it too. We went back a second time to see more. And, of course, I was lucky enough to meet the “bugman,” and to top it off, you were kind enough to have your photo taken with me.
Your faithful fan, Mary Goode
Hillsborough, NH
Hi Mary,
It was so wonderful meeting you and your family. The Merian lecture was one of my best experiences this summer, and I am thrilled that you enjoyed it. Whenever I am asked how the lecture went, I launch into the account of answering your letter and meeting you. It reinforces our claim that What’s That Bug? is trying to develop a global sense of community. Please continue to write when you have interesting new photos or just for the sake of writing.
Daniel
Letter 26 – What’s That Bug? being used to identify specimens in Maria Sibylla Merian illustrations!!!
unidentified Caterpillars
Dear ladies and gentlemen,
regularly I take a look at your web site. I myself am a biologist from Germany. At the moment I am identifiying caterpillars and moth prints for a reprint of Maria Sibylla Merians book Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium (1705) published by TASCHEN VERLAG Köln (probably 2008/2009). Because there are still a lot of unidentified moths and caterpillars in her images – although a lot of entomologists like in 1982 William Stearn (BM London) or recently (2008) Sandrine Ulenberg, an entomologist from Amsterdam, determined the depictions of insects before – I became engaged in it. With the help of your page whatsthatbug?, I managed to identify some (not all) of the unidentified caterpillars and moth-species in Merians book. Thank you!
The other information is: I found an interesting web site in which a huge larviform beetle image is seen, which you didnt identify up to now. I´ll send it. It is not a huge caterpillar but a beetle, which you have documented several times in the past. I hope I could help you. Yours sincerely
Katharina Schmidt-Loske, Bremen
I am sure you know the huge exhibition on “M.S. Merian and her daughters”, now at the Paul Ghetty Museum. Don´t you?
Hi Katharina,
Please let us know the date and page on our website when you provide the larviform beetle identification. I will be doing a lecture in conjunction with the Merian exhibit this month. I am copying Stephanie Schrader, the curator of the show on this email. I eagerly await any information you can provide.
Daniel Marlos
Letter 27 – Comment
(05/09/2008) Job well done! 🙂
Dear Daniel & Lisa Anne,
I’m a freaquent reader of your site since I’ve come accross it some months ago. Even though I’ve never submitted to your website, I find it very interesting and informative. I must admit I was horrified to come accross your Nasty Reader Awards tonight however and had to speak up. To think people still behave this way is absolutely unthinkable. They think nothing of sending such insulting e-mails and have no patience what-so-ever without even knowing who they’re speaking to. Thinking since they don’t know you and will never have to face you, then there’s no consequence or reason to feel any remorse for their rude behavior! It’s embarrassing. So I wanted to let you ladies know how much I appreciate your hard work and devotion to your site and your fans. Even though you have such demandig carreers (which I’m sure take up most of your time to begin with) you still find time for your loyal (and not so loyal) fans. Well done ladies! Keep up the good work!
Val
Thank your for your thoughtful letter Val, but the last we checked, Daniel was still a man. Your theory of face to face confrontation stretches much wider than just the internet. We have long believed that people feel isolated while driving their motor vehicles, and this isolation contributes to road rage. We personally always seek eye contact when attempting to change lanes in a difficult traffic snarl since many drivers tend to ignore a turn signal, but will rarely ignore a face with a pointing finger. Modern day warfare is another excellent example of what can happen when we lose touch of the fact that people are individuals.
Letter 28 – Another Satisfied Reader
Great website! I found a glow worm in my driveway tonight, and only figured out what it was through your page. I had only heard of them in my childhood memories. What a thrill!
D. Scott
Letter 29 – great site!
Thanks! I really enjoyed that … your site was featured in Cool Tricks &
Trinkets Email newsletter today … and although I find bugs creepy, I was
irrationally drawn to check out your site … is that kind of like slowing
down for an accident? Maybe. Anyway, I just wanted you to know that I think
your design is great, your writing excellent, and all around, a great site!
What the Internet is all about!
Thanks!!
Regards,
M.-J. Taylor
Dear M.-J.,
Thanks so much for the glowing compliments. We’re just two college teachers with too much time on our hands and an interest in putting information out into the world. Have a great day.
Daniel & Lisa Anne
Letter 30 – A No Nonsense Letter of Support
Hi Very Nice People Offering an Unbelievable Free Service,
I could just not resist writing the following note to the selfish, unaware morons who feature in your “nastiest person on the Internet” (aka “Nasty Reader Award” section). Thanks for posting their emails so that they cannot remain anonymous and get away with such anti-social behavior.
Kindest regards and gratitude,
Julie
Clueless Ingrates: your post to What’s That Bug (Jen Cifon, jonathanayres, Dawn)
Sat, Nov 8, 2008 at 9:16 AM
I can’t believe that you are such self-centered and apparently pretty stupid people to EXPECT someone who offers you a FREE service (at their own cost, in their own time) to give you what you want, when you want it. Just who handed you your sense of entitlement?
If you had a smidgen of intelligence, you’d be off to some professional entomologist at some high $$, and THEN demand service. Don’t be so stupid and selfish to look a gift horse in the mouth.
It is people like you that are screwing up our society in a big way. You make generous people like the owners of “What’s That Bug?” give up through frustration, and ruin it for everybody else.
You are each a clearly clueless ingrate, acting like the brats that you are, and deserve only the worst in life. Get out of other peoples lives. Idiots
JB
Hi JB,
Thanks so much for your support in the matter of our Nasty Reader Awards. We cannot believe the bile that some people spew because of the anonymity of the internet. We have been chastised by some people for our responses to the Nasty Readers, but we reserve the right to voice our opinion on our own website. Thanks again
Daniel
Letter 31 – Fanmail
May 27, 2009,
Hello-
I just have to tell you that I am in love with your website! I am an Archives Technician at the National Museum of Health and Medicine (http://nmhm.washingtondc.museum/) and during my graduate work at George Washington University I focused a lot of my attention on Integrated Pest Management. I am now the “bug girl” in my museum and I am always looking for new websites to assist me with identificaction. I hope to utilize your site more in the future!
Keep up the outstanding work, my bug-loving friends!
jasmine high
Letter 32 – 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
Letter 33 – 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
Letter 34 – 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.
Letter 35 – 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
Letter 36 – 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.
Letter 37 – Fanmail
August 4, 2009
I usually freak out at any bug (especially silverfish, they CREEP me out), but when I found your website I’m instead curious rather than afraid of many bugs. A few nights ago I killed a wasp-looking bug on my door and I felt so horrible after I killed it that I wanted to look it up and I came across your site. I found out that the “stinger” was probably a ovipository-thingie (sorry, I know very LITTLE about bugs so far).
Another example is that I found a wee bug on my wall that looked like a tick (which I HATE) but instead of killing it I looked it up and found out that it was a grain weevil, so I put it outside. I can’t believe how I was so scared of something harmless like that.
The point is, I have learned a lot from this website, and the entries here have probably saved many future bugs that I happen to encounter. So, thanks 🙂
By the way, I know now the names of my favorite bugs; like the majestic luna moth, or the fairy-like wooly aphids that were in our yard a couple months ago.
Thanks for your GREAT website. 🙂
Chris
Hi Chris,
Thanks for your nice complimentary letter. We are happy to hear that you will be researching which of the insects are beneficial or benign before killing them, but we should probably clarify that some killings may be justified. We do not hesitate to kill grain weevils or pantry beetles we find infesting our stored foods and if you found one grain weevil on your wall, chances are good they are consuming your food or your pet’s food somewhere in the house. We also do not hesitate to squash Woolly Aphids that we find on our apple tree. Though the adult winged aphids might look fairy-like, they can still cause problems in the garden if they get too plentiful. As in the case so often in so many other areas, the key is in moderation and not extreme fanaticism. We are happy that What’s That Bug? is contributing to both your education and your appreciation of the lower beasts.
Letter 38 – Fanmail and Nostalgia
Love the site! Made me feel like a kid again!
September 9, 2009
I just wanted to say what a pleasure it has been to peruse your site this evening…er, morning I guess it is now. I grew up on my grandparents’ truck-farm (purple-hull peas, okra, tomatoes, the whole nine yards) so I was naturally turned toward biology at an early age.
We had neither air-conditioning or cable TV so I spent most of my waking hours outside getting scratched, poisoned, and bitten by anything I could find to study in the woods, in the fields, in the barn, and around the two creeks that cut through the property.
I just wanted to say that it was nice to dig around your site and finally find out the true names of some of the “critters” that fascinated my grandfather and myself for so many years. Growing up the way I did led to a deep-seated love of nature and a longing to learn everything I could about it. By the time I was ten this had turned into a full blown obsession with biology….well, marine biology. I loved fish…sorry, bug-people. 🙂
Unfortunately life usually doesn’t work the way we’d like and I chose to give up the studies I had longed for in order to pursue a career I could actually pay bills and support a family with. Believe me, what I wanted to do as a MARBie is friendly to neither family or finances.
But I’ve allowed myself to get off track…so in the interest of limiting how much of your time I waste I’ll try to wrap this up. Long story short: I love your site. It allows me to step back into the days of laying in the grass, getting itchy from God-knows-what, watching bugs do their thing. My life has taken a more…normal turn than I would have ever thought and I’m afraid I have made myself forget most of the science I once loved in the interest of “making it” in everyday life. As hard as I try, however, I can’t seem to completely push out the memories of my first love.
I know now that I will never get that degree in marine biology that I can remember dreaming about before I even knew what it was called, but visiting this wonderful site gives this overweight soon-to-be cop a window into his past and a chance to interact with those of you who are lucky enough to be living the dream.
I salute you, bug people, and I hope you will receive the thanks of this former fish guy for taking time out of your lives to put together this site. I know there are more urgent things out there you could be doing.
I’m sorry this ran so long, despite my best efforts it appears I got into quite a babbling spree. I appreciate it if you’ve stuck with me this long. I just wanted to express how I felt about finding your site. Thank you again for putting it together. 🙂
—Kris
Vidor, TX
ps: I’m currently between jobs thanks to this great economy of ours and an exceedingly long application process at my next place of employment, so since my schedule is open I think I might take tomorrow to go roll around in some poisonous plants and try to take some pictures of some cool bugs. If I get anything good I might just throw them your way.
Letter 39 – Fanmail
Kudos
September 12, 2009
Love your site. Part of what makes the WWW so cool !!
Laughed till I cried at “Joanne Near Chicago’s” response to Jen Cifone’s blurry photo and nasty response to you.
Thank you for putting together something so fun AND edjucashunal!
Gary & DJ
Letter 40 – Fanmail
September 25, 2009
To answer your queston, quote: “Are we experts yet?” Heck yes! I’m a young teen and aspiring entomologist, and I love everything about bugs! And so, you can imagine my wonder and awe when I found a bug ID Page! Keep up the good work!
Steel
Letter 41 – 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.
Letter 42 – Fanmail
Very Entertained.
October 27, 2009
I know you guys get messages and comments all the time saying how wonderful your site is. But, I just wanted to add one more things to your list of comments. Your site is very entertaining to me. I cought myself staying up til 4 in the morning just looking at all of the different kinds of bugs you guys have posted. I know, I’m a nerd. I am just so creeped out yet intrigued by insects. Especially the spiders. I always see an interesting bug and try to stop and look at it but my husband doesn’t seem as entertained by it as me so I have to move along. Now that I have found your site I can look at bugs for hours on end. I also love it because I am a new mommy and every time I see a new bug in the house or around my newborn, I wonder what dangers it is bringing or if it is beneficial. You he lp those worries go away. Thanks and keep up the great work!
Amber suarez
Thanks for your sweet letter Amber. We always like getting new fans. Since we have no plans to disappear from the internet, when your child begins to grow, hopefully you will be able to use us as an educational tool.
How do I become a member?
I’m sure this question has a very obvious answer but how on earth do i become a member to this site? I have looked high n low but only found one place where it says log in but nothing about registering.. Do I have to make a donation to be a member? Thanks again for taking time to reply to my previous babble. 🙂
Amber
Hi Amber,
Our site does not have a membership. Anyone may write in, but alas, we are unable to post every submission we receive. We select letters at random, often based on the subject line of the email. Our services are free to anyone, but again, sending in an identification request is no indication that you will receive a response. Though we do have a donation option, this is entirely voluntary, and donating to the site is never a guarantee that your letter will be posted. Since we are such a small operation, we cannot provide unlimited access. Thanks again for your interest.
Letter 43 – Fanmail
Inspiring Site – just another fanmail
November 5, 2009
I’m still currently trudging my way through your gigantic archive and loving it. I was always a bug lover, but I’ve learned so much and been able to happily identify bugs in my area I’ve seen around (Including the sudden swam of Polkadot Wasp Moths and Oleander Caterpillars). I’ve also pleased to learn that many bugs I was afraid of are perfectly harmless (Mostly various wasp species.). Also while going through your site, I had a nerdy artist sort of epiphany: Insects are like living art. So many have such wonderful color schemes and designs. Even bugs with neutral colors can be incredibly striking. Ever since I’ve been making a collection of photos off your site for color scheme references in my own art. It’s wonderful that there are some very good professional and amateur photographe rs contributing with their photos. Anyway, thanks so much for providing this service and your own educating comments. I look forward to finishing your archives.
Regards,
Casey
Thanks for the sweet email Casey.
Letter 44 – Fanmail from the Natural History Museum
Natural History Museum: Exploratory Conversation?
November 9, 2009
Hi,
I work at the Natural History Museum in Expo Park. I am managing a project through which the museum will create 3 acres of outdoor green space on the north side of our building. We are aiming to create a place for our visitors to engage with local, urban, nature, including (my favourite, and it seems your’s too) insects! I would love to chat with you more about this project and about What’s That Bug.
Lila Higgins
We will contact Lila as soon as we have a spare moment.
Update: December 8, 2009
Yesterday, we had the long awaited telephone chat with Lila at the Natural History Museum. We are very excited to possibly work with the Museum on the outdoor space that is being constructed on the North side of the campus. We made it abundantly clear that we are clumsy amateurs, and not trained science professionals, but that characteristic is exactly what Lila believes the visitors to the Museum and the new outdoor space will find appealing. The area at the Museum will be planted once the existing hardscaping is removed, and it is hoped that the green space will attract fauna (insects included) that thrive in the urban ecosystem of Los Angeles. More and more attention needs to be placed on studying and trying to understand the creatures that live in our proximity, and there is just as much of a probability of discovering a species that is new to science in one’s own backyard as there is by making an expedition to the rain forest. Chances are good that the discovery may not be grand or flashy, but it could have economic significance, be it positive or negative. We are going to request that Lila provide a press release for the new space so that we can inform our readership. We have many faithful local fans, and Los Angeles remains a viable tourist attraction to our readership from around the globe, and we will all be eagerly anticipating the improvements at the Natural History Museum.
Letter 45 – Fanmail from a satisfied reader
Thank You!
I just wanted to thank WTB for identifying a bug I had crawling up my bedroom wall about a month ago. It was a Western Conifer Seed Bug. After I knew what it was, I hopped onto WTB and found tons of useful info on my bug. Since I found him, I’ve kept him in a container (with plenty of airholes), and I’ve named him Axel. All he needs is water during the winter, and in the spring, I plan to release him on some conifer trees next to my house. Ever since finding the WTB page, I’ve been on here for 2-3 hours every day just looking at all the great pics of all the different bugs you have, I have to say that WTB is a truly amazing website and I cannot believe how much info you guys put out there. Thanks WTB, I am no longer a scaredy-cat about bugs! Thanks again for doing such a great job!
Jenn Kendall
West Brookfield, MA
Letter 46 – Fanmail
Thank you and best regards for 2010
Dear Bugman and all at WTB, thank you for the interesting updates over the past years. Wishing everyone the best for the holidays (vested interest to get more interesting updates when everyone is well). Cheers!
Melvin Poon
Letter 47 – Nuclear Bomb Needed to Eliminate Bugs in Yard
Help!
2005
I have these bugs that are invading my home! My husband and I find at LEAST 5 every morning. Eww! They are the “pincher bugs”;. Something else we’ve discovered in our house are these dark brown spiders that love to just hang out on the top of our ceiling. Our newly purchased home in Southern California is crawling with creatures who’ve roamed free in the unattended soil for 50 years. What is the best way to get rid of insects? We have some yellow jackets that fly around along with mosquitoes. In our ground though we have pincher bugs by the thousands and also pill bugs. We are in the process of ripping out plants, trees and shrubbery to replant the entire yard. How do we kill off all the insects!? Any suggestions would be MOST appreciated!
Thank you!
Rebecca
Dear Rebecca,
Nothing short of a nuclear bomb will rid your property of all your dreaded insects, but considering the current political climate, you just might get your wish. In the event that that doesn’t happen, you just might have to learn to live together. We at What’s that Bug? do not advocate getting rid of all insects since we would be out of business.
A Reader Comments
(08/27/2005) Hi Daniel and Lisa Anne!
JAW DROP!!!!!
WOW!!!!!!!!!!
I just had to write you two, your site is the best bug site I have ever seen! Your main page helped me identify a bug that was posted at our forum, and I must admit that some of the pictures submitted to your site are so absolutely beautiful that I had to capture them for my screen saver! In exchange I wish to offer some photos of my own, taken in my yard in Santa Ana California. I have included 10 photos that I took with my digital camera, you may use them as you see fit I would also like to reply to Rebecca from Southern California who wishes to know how to get rid of all of her bugs, if a reply is allowed.
Hi Rebecca!
I live in Southern California too, and I have all the things you described in my yard as well. If they are getting into your house, then you probably have openings around windows and doors that should be attended to. You do not want to kill the bugs in your yard, they provide very necessary functions to keep your yard healthy. Ants are your cleaning crew, they dispose of dead things. Earthworms are what make the earth that your garden grows in, and their castings contain an enzyme that repels white flies. Wasps are your predators, they eat the caterpillars that eat your plants. Caterpillars are your butterflies and moths, and they pollinate your flowers so they bloom again next year. Robber flies are your wasp controllers, they keep wasp populations down. Potato bugs, pill bugs, earwigs and click beetles are your compost engineers, they recycle leaf litter and break
it down so the earthworms can turn it into healthy soil. Possums are your snail controllers. Garden snails are not native and have no other predator than possums here in California. Spiders are your general insect controllers, you should capture and take outside any that wander into your house. There are many other insects that you
will find in your yard as well, but they are all pretty harmless and will avoid you if you just give them time to move out of your way.
Your yard is its own ecosystem, with its own checks and balances. Learn to love your bugs, explore them, research them, discover the benefits they give to you and the beauty of your yard. If you get stung by a wasp or bee, or bitten by a mosquito, simply dissolve a real aspirin in your hand with a few drops of water and apply directly to the site, the pain and itch will be gone within a matter of seconds. If you want to help control your mosquitoes, simply place a container of water under a bush which is easily accessible to
you and leave it there, check it every day, when you see the larvae swimming around just dump the entire container of water on the ground. The larvae will die. Refill the container. Insure that there is no other standing water on your property. Keep an eye out for Black Widows, they are the only bugs in your yard that can actually harm you. Hope this helps 🙂
Sincerely, Cathy 🙂
Thank you Daniel and Lisa, for such a wonderful site! I have it bookmarked and will be back here often!
Letter 48 – Fanmail
Hello!
I just wanted to extend a thanks to all you who make “What’s That Bug” possible. It’s really an excellent site and I often find myself perusing it just to feed my amateur entomolgist’s appetite! I noticed the Nasty Reader’s Section you have and was both amazed by the breath-taking idiocy of some of the readers featured there and amused by your responses.
So thanks again, for all you hard work on an excellent site!
Nate McInnis
Hi Nate,
Thanks for your words of encouragement.
Letter 49 – Fanmail Par Excellance
site comment
March 1, 2010
site comment
just want to say i think the site is awsome. been usin it since i was 5 years old and i am 16 now. i recomend it to everybody.
josh smith
Wow Josh,
This is just about the best fanmail letter we have ever received. You must have been one of our first readers back when we were a brand new presence on the internet.
Letter 50 – Fanmail
April 15, 2010
Great Job!
Wow guys! You have done an awesome job with the site! Can’t belive how much it has grown since you first started, and I asked for my first bug ID! I share this site with people who have kids interested in bugs, so they can learn more, and be less afraid of these critters.
Good job, keep it up!
Kaye
Letter 51 – Fanmail from a Faithful Fan
April 16, 2010
It IS wonderful to see how the site has grown but it’s darn near impossible to get a message through to Dan and Lisa, let alone a photo. But I still love these guys! I know they’re as busy as bees!
Joannne
Now in Romeoville IL, not Darien IL
Hi Joannne,
We see you have added an n to your name since the last time we wrote back to you. We haven’t noticed any mail from you, but we don’t always read names in an effort to be more impartial when reading our mail. Though much more would get answered if we hired staff, we like maintaining a personal touch with our responses.
Dear, dear Joannne,
We will never forget that “hornet’s nest” you stirred up a few years back with your wry comments. As always, we love being a bit edgy and controversial, and even adult in our humor, but we strive to maintain public decorum and we always refrain from posting obscenities and foul language to our humble site, either from our own keyboards or those of the public. Try resending that photo Joanne.
Thanks so much for remembering me, Dan! I have left my partner of 18 years and am now living on my own in Romeoville, IL. It’s for the best so don’t worry!
My best friend lives in Sheridan, IL and whilst staying with her the weekend I left my partner, I found this beautiful garden spider and her husband….sperm donor….whatever. I will send three images on a separate email.
I am looking forward to a summer of new bugs in Sheridan, IL. My friend out there and I have been buddies since 1977 so I know I’m welcome out there any time!
Much love,
Joanne (still 2 “n”s I think I was drinking…)
Letter 52 – Fanmail
note of thanks
May 12, 2010
Thank you for providing this great resource! After moving to Gainesville FL I was overwhelmed and a bit terrified by the variety of ‘bug’ life outside (and sometimes inside). After discovering your site I’ve turned every encounter into an identification game. Even after five years I’m still finding new creatures. Just yesterday my house was covered in Red Shouldered Bugs. Funny little things. Anyway, thank you! I’ve pre-ordered your book on amazon and can’t wait for it to be released.
Jennifer
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for your kind email. We just returned from five days in Ohio and we have 100s of emails, and we are only going to be able to answer and post a few, and your fanmail letter is the first.
Letter 53 – Fanmail
Sent a donation!
May 23, 2010
Dear WTB,
I identified “my bug” of interest,thank to your photos,and descriptions.Also I was looking it up,because I had a bit of insomnia last night,since a loved one is in the hospital ( gonna be fine) but anyway,after fulfilling all my bugelicious curiosity,I am not quite sleepy..MUCH better than a sleeping pill. Thanks!
OH,and my critter was a snake bug! Our little vineyard welcomes them!
Leslie in Penn Valley,Ca 95946
Hi Leslie,
We are happy the site was helpful and that things are well with your ailing relative. Thanks for your kind donation.
Letter 54 – Fanmail
Love the new format!
July 6, 2010
I love the new format!!! I was not a fan of the last changes that were made, but the new changes are fantastic! Great Job!
inlovewithbugs
Letter 55 – Fanmail: WTB? benefits youngster with Autism
fanmail from a thankful sister
July 6, 2010
Dear Bugman,
I wanted to express how your site and the work you do has affected my life in such a personal way. My little brother, Brian, was diagnosed with autism when he was very young. He’s had a lot of trouble learning to use language and doesn’t really engage with other people. I’m his sister and around him all the time, and he used to hardly ever connect with me. About a year ago, though, I started researching because of my own interest in insects, and I started bringing bugs I caught into the house in small cages during the day to watch them. Brian was aware of them right away and kept asking me what different bugs I caught were, and he got really frustrated when I didn’t know. When I stumbled across your site one night, I was so happy it was easy to use to try to identify bugs, had so many resources, and, of course, let me send in pictures if I couldn’t figure one out for myself. Since then, Brian and I have been able to catch bugs together and find out what they are. He l oves it. He’s talked to me more in the past year than he has in his whole life. He sometimes tells his teacher about bugs he finds and takes worms off the sidewalk to put them in the grass (his first sign of empathy, I think). These are h-u-g-e steps for him. Even his psychologist is blown away by the changes he’s experienced recently.
I wanted to express my gratitude for the work you do and how important it is for me and my family.
Jenny
the picture is Brian at a butterfly habitat near our home
Dear Jenny,
This might be the only time in the entire time we have been posting letters that we are totally without words of comment. Your letter made our day.
Letter 56 – Fanmail
Very pleased with the website!
July 19, 2010 9:17 pm
Thank you so much! I’m so pleased with your website, it’s opened my eyes to many things I didn’t know about certain insects which I was often surprised by, but now realise are benificial and/or harmless. I just recently got into studying bugs in what little spare time I have between writing electronic music and working. This website has helped me very much in identifying insects I have never seen before in my area (lots of interesting new insects popping up in Ontario lately that I cannot describe). If I happen to snap some photos of insects that baffle me (some husks and sheddings I have found in the northern parts of Ontario that I have never encountered before especially) I will let you know first hand and hopefully the team here can help us figure out what’s with the crazy and interesting new species I have never encountered before!
Thank you so much again,
yours, Cody J.
Thanks so much for your kind letter Cody.
Letter 57 – Fanmail
Your wonderful website assists in Blister Beetle “bite” in Arizona
July 25, 2010 1:42 am
Hi Folks,
Love your website and just registered. As soon as I can find my darned Visa, I will be sending along a donation; I truly appreciate your labor of love and use your site frequently. Tonight, I was “bitten” by a Blister Beetle, which I identified due to your website. Of course, I wasn’t bitten; Mr. Beetle was in my shirt (I had just taken it off the clothesline) and laid down on it…CRUNCH! Then, burning and swelling. I washed the area with soap, took a Benedryl, applied a cold compress over Neosporin on my back. There was no itching, but certainly a burning feeling, and I became very worried. The bug (crushed) was still identifiable with the help from your site. Then I googled Arizona Blister Beetle and found from other sites I was not “bitten”. The substance in the joints of the bug had caused a chemical reaction on skin that can result in blistering and just the reactions I experienced. I also found I had already done all the right things. But I wouldn’t have known where to
begin identification without your website. A big thanks, watch for my grateful donation!
elliemay
Dear elliemay,
Thanks for letting us know that we have been helpful. We hope you recover quickly from your encounter with the Blister Beetle.
Letter 58 – Fanmail
Thank you!
August 3, 2010 10:23 pm
I’ve been faithfully reading every new entry on WTB, and I can’t help but feel happy knowing that you’ve created an avenue for the public’s questions about the little six-legged creatures they find. You have a wonderful way of encouraging the acceptance and enjoyment of the arthropod world, and I wish you best of luck on any future endeavors.
Thanks again!
Megan Hussey
Hi Megan,
Your email really cheered us up.
Letter 59 – Fanmail
“Pre-order The Curious World of Bugs”
August 4, 2010
I pre Ordered my copy on Amazon today! I can’t wait to get it.
I am actually really excited to get an early copy in my hot little hands. Thanks for your enthusiasm.
Daniel
I work for a pest control company and I am making the owners buy a copy for our front lobby too. We help people keep destructive pests out of their homes, but we also teach people about beneficial insects and integrated pest management. We are all excited to get the book! My personal copy will be shared with my 7 year old daughter who shares my fascination with all creatures great and small.
Letter 60 – Fabulous Fanmail
I’m scary stalker obsessed with your site
August 14, 2010 4:18 pm
Realy, I can’t stop. I work outdoors at a zoo in Texas, and I see bugs- LOTS of bugs- every day. And I admit, I am now a reformed Destroyer of Creepy Crawlies. Ever since stumbling on this site, I now study the bug instead of squashing it. It’s good for the bug, good for the environment, and honestly that Cheeto’s crunch always gave me the willies. Any time a bug would get near me, which happens daily, I would flail and run and bat at it- trying to get away. Then it would feel my angry shoe wrath- But now I want to get closer to see if I recognize it from your site. Thank Goodness I now know the Robber fly. Those little boogers were scary until I found out more about them. I’m also learning the differences between all the wasps out here, and the wasp look-a-likes. A giant cicada-killer is who led me to this site originally. Well, it didn’t phsycially lead me here- that would be weird, but after I saw that fatty flying around I was convinced in B-movie mutated giant
wasps trying to take over the world and HAD to find out what was going on. Now I’m learning all about the insects and spiders. A real testament to your site is when I DIDN’T freak out after walking head first into a spider’s web. I thought I got most of the sticky stuff off me, but a guest at the zoo was walking towards me, pointing and screaming. I’m thinking “Crud! There’s a lion behind me, isn’t there?” Nope. Giant mammoth spider stuck in my hair. I’ll admit I did a little squealing and dancing, and he was yo-yo’ed a bit from my hand with his sticky string. But I didn’t squash him. I looked him up. He was a big ol’ grey garden orb weaver. I admit, I’d like him a lot better if he wasn’t in my hair, but I’m loving finding these bugs and looking them up on your site, and recognizing the bugs out here. There’s one gigantic flying white and black spotty beetle out here, that one day I will get a picture of to send you. I’m dying to find out what that bohemoth is.
Anyway, my point is, thanks so much for the site. I’m having so mu
ch fun with it, and it’s been so useful. Your site realy does convert avid smooshers into “live and let bee” people. (bee… get it?) Also, it’s the one site I can look up at work and not have to hover the mouse over the “x” button in case the boss walks up! (I’m not a pervert or anything. I just really like sites where idiots hurt themselves). Keep up the good work!
Reformed Bug Squisher
Dear Reformed Bug Squisher,
Your letter is awesome. It is one of the best fanmail letters we have ever received. We want to stop posting for the evening just so your letter will stay at the top of our homepage for a spell. Try looking up Cottonwood Borer to see if that is your black and white beetle.
