Halloween Greetings from a Longtime Contributor: Green Lynx eats Metallic Bee

October 24, 2021

Bug of the Month October 2021: Wheel Bugs Mating

October 1, 2021

Bug of the Month October 2021: Wheel Bug in nature, not in a plastic bag

October 1, 2021

Unknown Thing from China or Malaysia

September 29, 2021

The Bugman is Back: Though it is April Fool’s Day, this is No Joke

April 1, 2021

Mating Red Banded Seed Eating Bugs from Australia

On · Category: Seed Bugs Tagged With: , · 1 Comment

Subject:  This had just appeared in our garden 2 weeks ago
Geographic location of the bug:  Wangaratta, north east Victoria
Date: 10/19/2019
Time: 09:36 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Thank you for your site. This bug appeared about 2 weeks ago and has the number has quickly increased since then.
How you want your letter signed:  Michael

Mating Red Banded Seed Eating Bugs

Dear Michael,
We were having trouble identifying your Seed Bugs from the family Lygaeidae, but we did locate a posting in our archives of a Red Banded Seed Eating Bug, Melanerythrus mactans, from almost ten years ago.  Here is a FlickR image.  According to the Atlas of Living Australia, its range is over most of the continent.

Mating Red Banded Seed Eating Bugs

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Winged Predatory Katydid from South Africa

On · Category: Katydids · Add Comment

Subject:  I’ve seen two.
Geographic location of the bug:  Broederstroom South Africa
Date: 10/20/2019
Time: 12:12 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hello. Seen two different bugs on our farm over the years. They’re big. 20cm long. https://www.instagram.com/p/NwOR6jDkQA/?igshid=psx84ahumm6z

How you want your letter signed:  Graham

Winged Predatory Katydid

Dear Graham,
This is one impressive Katydid.  We quickly located it on Photographs from South Africa where it is identified as a Winged Predatory Katydid, Clonia wahlbergi.  Like the individual in that posting, your individual is a female as evidenced by her sickle-like ovipositor.  It is also pictured on IUCN Redlist.

Morning Daniel
That is great. It’s been bothering me for over 5 years as to what it was.
When I was playing with it we gave it some fruit and it was eating it.
So then it’s omnivorous?
Thank you
Graham

Hi again Graham,
Many predatory Katydids are opportunistic feeders, and they will eat vegetation as well as other creatures.

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Spotted Lanternfly

On · Category: Aphids, Scale Insects, Leafhoppers, and Tree Hoppers Tagged With: · 1 Comment

Subject:  Stumped me!
Geographic location of the bug:  Poconos, PA
Date: 10/21/2019
Time: 07:39 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  I’m the go-to bug identification nerd for friends and family; if I don’t know them outright, I can almost always track them down on What’s That Bug. This one, though, evades me. Any chance you can help out? this is the only photo  they got. Thanks very much.
How you want your letter signed:  Rob W.

Spotted Lanternfly

Dear Rob,
This is an invasive, exotic Spotted Lanternfly, Lycorma delicatula, and according to BugGuide:  “Native to China, India, Japan and Vietnam; invasive in Korea and in our area” and “earliest NA record: PA 2014.”

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Cabbage Emperor Moth from South Africa

On · Category: Giant Silk Moths · Add Comment

Subject:  Beautiful giant moth
Geographic location of the bug:  Pretoria, South Africa
Date: 10/20/2019
Time: 01:49 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hi! I found this beautiful giant moth on my windowsill and was wondering where I can satisfy my curiosity on their lifespan, feeding, etc. Google doesn’t seem to have much? It looked like it was busy dying, which made me kind of sad. I love these creatures, nature really is amazing! How can I get more moths into my garden, and if they feed on the trees (which I don’t mind), does it actually damage the tree?
How you want your letter signed:  Dominique

Cabbage Emperor Moth: Bunaea alcinoe

Dear Dominique,
We believe we have  correctly identified your Giant Silk Moth or Emperor Moth as the Cabbage Emperor Moth Bunaea alcinoe thanks to images posted to African Moths.  There does appear to be some variability in colors and markings.

Thank you so much, I really appreciate your skill and effort. I’ll be looking out for these guys some more in my garden now!
Xx
Hi again Dominique,
We get many more Cabbage Emperor Moth Caterpillar images than we do images of adult moths.  Watch for the Caterpillars on preferred food plants.  According to African Moths:  “LARVAL FOODPLANTS  Celtis africana, Celtis kraussiana, Bauhinia reticulata, Croton, Cussonia spicata, Ekebergia ruepellii, Ekebergia mayeri, Gymnospora senegalensis, Khaya anthotheca, Khaya grandifolia, Harpephyllum caffrum, Terminalia catappa, Maesa lanceolata, Sapium ellipticum, Persea americana, Anthocleista schweinfurthii, Piper umbellatum, Schinus molle, Crossopteryx febrifuga, Dacryodes edulis, Mangifera indica, Acacia auriculiformis, Sarcocephalus latifolius.”  Numerous food plants probably contribute to extensive range, which is according to African Moths:  “Angola, Benin, Burkina Fasso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, DRCongo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.”

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Wolf Spider from Peru

On · Category: Wolf Spiders · 3 Comments

Subject:  Large Spider
Geographic location of the bug:  Calca, Sacred Valley Peru
Date: 10/20/2019
Time: 07:50 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Dear Bugman,
While at a yoga retreat in the Andes, this morning I was on my way to meditation practice and I saw this beauty  right next to my shoes. Please tell me who it is, and if they may also enjoy morning meditation and asana practice.
How you want your letter signed:  Melanie on the Irish Chain

Wolf Spider

Dear Melanie on the Irish Chain,
This sure looks like a harmless Wolf Spider to us.  Wolf Spiders are hunting spiders that do not build a web to trap prey, so they are often found wandering at night in search of prey.  A very similar looking Peruvian Wolf Spider can be found on the blog Spiders in Nature, but you need to scroll down to find it.

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A Pair of Golden Silk Spiders

On · Category: Golden Silk Spiders Tagged With: · 2 Comments

Subject:  Paramours of the arachnid persuasion
Geographic location of the bug:  Columbia, South Carolina, USA
Date: 10/16/2019
Time: 11:32 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hello, Bugman! I wanted to share this photo I took of (what I’m pretty certain are) Golden Silk Orbweavers. This lovely lady and her paramour have made their rather extensive home just outside my bathroom window. Her web is about 4 or 5 feet at its widest, plus the attaching guylines. Her body is about 3″ long and her legs make her even larger. He, on the other hand, barely makes it to 2″ with his legs. Her silk is a gorgeous yellow and looks quite fine in the sun.
How you want your letter signed:  Lissa Sprenne

Pair of Golden Silk Spiders

Dear Lissa,
Thanks so much for submitting your excellent images of a pair of Golden Silk Spiders, Nephila clavipes.  Your images nicely illustrate the beautiful golden color of the web.  The female Golden Silk Spider is approximately 50 times larger than her diminutive mate.

Pair of Golden Silk Spiders

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