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Bug of the Month September 2019: Imperial Moth Caterpillar

On · Category: _Featured, Silkworms Tagged With: · 2 Comments

Subject:  LARGE green caterpillar
Geographic location of the bug:  Middle Georgia
Date: 08/28/2019
Time: 12:33 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  This guy (girl?) showed up on my patio cover (canvas). It’s about 3 inches long and probably an inch around. (BIG joker). Thought maybe Luna Moth. Some one said maybe Imperial Moth. I know Lunas are endangered and I want to do the right thing. Don’t plan on hurting it or anything just curious about what it is.
How you want your letter signed:  Curious in GA

Imperial Moth Caterpillar

Dear Curious in GA,
This is an Imperial Moth Caterpillar.  Many Giant Silkmoth Caterpillars from the family Saturniidae and Hornworms from the family Sphingidae pass unnoticed on vegetation while they are feeding.  Fully grown caterpillars then hunt for a suitable place for pupation  They leave the food plant and at that time they are frequently discovered by observant humans.  When we receive images of pre-pupal Imperial Moth Caterpillars, they have frequently turned brown or orange as metamorphosis nears.  Your green individual might still be feeding

Related posts:

Bug of the Month August 2019: Cecropia Caterpillar Bug of the Month: September 2006 – Hickory Horned Devil: first of the season!!! Bug of the Month March 2014: Polyphemus Moth Cocoon Bug of the Month July 2019: Female Broad-Necked Root Borer
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Bug of the Month August 2019: Cecropia Caterpillar

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Subject:  HI, is this tomato worm?
Geographic location of the bug:  SW Michigan
Date: 08/01/2019
Time: 09:43 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hi is this a good ol tomoato worm or? Thanks so much!
How you want your letter signed:  Jules

Cecropia Caterpillar

Dear Jules,
Your submission was perfectly timed to be selected as our Bug of the Month for August 2019.  We suspect your “tomoato worm” is a Tobacco Hornworm, the caterpillar most commonly associated with tomatoes.  This Cecropia Caterpillar is a member of the Giant Silkmoth family Saturniidae.  It most likely left its food plant to search for a suitable site for pupation.  The adult Cecropia Moth is a gorgeous creature.

Yay, thank you! that was a quick response too.

Related posts:

Bug of the Month: September 2006 – Hickory Horned Devil: first of the season!!! Bug of the Month March 2014: Polyphemus Moth Cocoon Bug of the Month July 2019: Female Broad-Necked Root Borer Nuttall’s Blister Beetle
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Bug of the Month July 2019: Female Broad-Necked Root Borer

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Subject:  beetle
Geographic location of the bug:  bel air md
Date: 06/30/2019
Time: 01:49 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  what is this beetle and what is coming out of its butt?
How you want your letter signed:  Peg

Female Broad-Necked Root Borer

Dear Peg,
In July 2011, we designated the female Broad-Necked Root Borer, Prionus laticollis, as the Bug of the Month, and we believe enough time has elapsed to select your submission as our Bug of the Month for July 2019.  The ovipositor, an organ used for laying eggs, is protruding from the end of her abdomen.  According to iNaturalist:  “The female is larger than the male, with an ovipositor used to deposit eggs. When the female is laying eggs, she “shivers” and eggs are laid through the ovipositor, positioned down into the soil or under litter, usually in groups of threes and twos, but sometimes ones or fours. After the eggs are laid, the female moves her ovipositor up and down to fill the hole she created. When freshly laid, the eggs are pure white, glistening with moisture, but, after a while, they usually change to a deep yellow. Within a few days, the deep yellow eggs turn to a light washed pink. As the larvae develop inside, the eggs turn ivory in color. The eggs are the size of small grains of rice. When the larvae are hatching, they chew through one of the elongated, pointed sides of the egg. The larvae’s heads are adapted for digging into the soil, and they have strong black mandibles for chewing roots.”

wow… how cool! thanks for your response!
Peg

Related posts:

Bug of the Month: October 2007 – Locust Borer Bug of the Month August 2013: Red Milkweed Beetle Bug of the Month August 2016: Ivory Marked Beetle Bug of the Month May 2019: Longhorn: Stenocorus species
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Another Bug of the Month for June, 2019: Katydid from Mexico

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Subject:  North East Mexico Plague
Geographic location of the bug:  Monterrey
Date: 06/07/2019
Time: 12:38 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Worried about our forest, infestation of this insect. What is it what is the impact. Millions of these in our forest.
How you want your letter signed:  Raul

Katydid: Pterophylla beltrani

Dear Raul,
This is a gorgeous Katydid, and with a little searching, we are confident we have identified it as Pterophylla beltrani  thanks to images and maps on iNaturalist.  We located an article entitled Geographic Distribution and Singing Activity of Pterophylla beltrani and P. robertsi (Orthoptera:  Tettigoniidae), Under Field Conditions where it states:  “Pterophylla beltrani, locally known as grilleta or false locust, constitutes an important forest pest in northern Mexico.  Populations of this species began to increase … in 1975.”  Since this is a native, local insect for you, we have a problem thinking of the large numbers you witnessed this year as an infestation.  Rather, we prefer to think about it as a possible indication of climate change.  Some species might not survive a change in climate while others may thrive.  At this point in time, Green New Deal or not, we believe that there has already been an irreversible effect on nature due to the changes, climactic and otherwise, that increasing populations of humans on planet Earth have created.  That stated, no one knows what the future will bring.

Related posts:

Bug of the Month: June 2006 – Male Dobsonfly Mountain Katydid from Australia Bug of the Month September 2015: Odor of Leather Beetle Bush Cricket from Cadiz: Uromenus species
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Bug of the Month June 2019: Mayfly with white eyes

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Subject:  White Eyed Bug
Geographic location of the bug:  Bernville, Pennsylvania
Date: 05/27/2019
Time: 06:27 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  I found this sitting on the door frame of my patio door. I am trying to identify it, and hoping you might be able to help.
How you want your letter signed:  Troy

Mayfly

Dear Troy,
This unusual creature is a Mayfly in the insect order Ephemeroptera.  This BugGuide image and this BugGuide image of individuals in the genus Maccaffertium closely match your specimen.  Mayflies are unusual in the insect world in that their final molt is divided into two phases, the first being called the subimago, and though it is winged, it is not fully mature.  A second molting that usually occurs within a few days produces the mature adult.  We are uncertain why the eyes on your individual and on some of the images posted to BugGuide are white.  Your images are beautiful.  Though it is a few days before the beginning of June, we have decided to post your submission as the Bug of the Month for June 2019.  We hope someone can clarify why the eyes on some Mayflies are white.  Our suspicion is that this is a newly molted individual and that the eyes will eventually darken.

Mayfly

Related posts:

Mayfly Metamorphosis Mystery Mayfly from Singapore Bug of the Month: January 2007 – Potato Bug Mayflies en masse
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Bug of the Month May 2019: Longhorn: Stenocorus species

On · Category: Longhorn Beetles Tagged With: · 2 Comments

Subject:  Some kind of borer beetle?
Geographic location of the bug:  Napa Valley, California
Date: 04/29/2019
Time: 06:04 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman —
Hello! This morning I saw this beetle sipping from a tree. It’s the biggest one I’ve ever seen outside of a zoo, probably about half the size of my index finger. And looks to be pregnant too! Any idea what it could be?
How you want your letter signed:  Christine

Longhorn:  Stenocorus species

Dear Christine,
This is very exciting.
We agree that this appears to be a Longhorned Borer Beetle in the family Cerambycidae, and the size you indicated is quite impressive.  We did not recognize this Beetle, and the width of the abdomen at the base of the elytra is considerably wider than the thorax, and the thorax is unusual in its shape.  On a lark, we decided to search Cerambycidae and Napa Valley and we found Vandykea tuberculata pictured on the Cerambycidae Catalog Search, and it does seem to resemble your individual.  We found a single posting on BugGuide and the common name Serpentine Cypress Long-Horned Beetle and the remark:  “on California’s “Special Animals” List.”  We believe this might be a very rare sighting, and we are seeking assistance from Eric Eaton and Doug Yanega to get their opinions.  We will get back to you on this.  We also have selected this posting to be the Bug of the Month for May 2019, and we really hope our initial research has produced a correct identification so we can research this species more.  If that is a correct identification, according to Nature Serve Explorer:  “Critically Imperiled” and “An extremely rare endemic restricted to serpentine cypresses in the Clear Lake area in Lake County, CA.”

Longhorn:  Stenocorus species

Correction Courtesy of Doug Yanega
Hi. This is a large female Stenocorus, either vestitus or nubifer. They
are difficult to distinguish based on photos.
Peace,
Doug Yanega      Dept. of Entomology       Entomology Research Museum
Univ. of California, Riverside, CA

Ed. Note:  Of the two species, BugGuide has information on Stenocorus vestitus which states:  “hosts: Pinaceae (Pinus, Pseudotsuga, Tsuga); adults on flowers”

Wow, thanks so much! It’s always exciting to see new bugs in the spring and summer.
Christine

Related posts:

Bug of the Month: February 2008 – Longhorned Borer Beetle: Tragidion peninsularum Bug of the Month: October 2007 – Locust Borer Bug of the Month July 2011: Broad-Necked Root Borer Bug of the Month August 2013: Red Milkweed Beetle
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination