macro – Page 39 – A Thousand Acres of Silphiums

From the Garden – The Planthoppers and Leafhoppers

Planthoppers and Leafhoppers are groups of insects collectively found within the insect Order Hemiptera. Both groups have piercing and sucking mouth parts and feed primarily on plant saps and tissues. These groups are highly diverse. I have been able to capture a few of these fascinating creatures with the camera in the backyard, but these are generally the more common species. The insect pictured above is known as a Spittlebug – named for the behavior of encasing themselves as nymphs in a spittle-like mucous for protection.

I’ve said before that there is no such thing as an original idea in fantasy or sci fi. I’ve found that almost every creature or effect you can find to celebrate in these films or books has been taken (consciously or not) from nature, most often from invertebrates or the deep sea.

This ultra-tiny guy posted above is a planthopper nymph. Often members of this group will have long, colorful waxy lengths of fibers extruding from their tail ends that are used for multiple purposes, including predator avoidance.

Many folks who have spent any time in the backyard have surely seen the Candy-striped Leafhoppers, one of the most abundant species in this group. Gorgeously colored and quick to disappear, the two pictured above are busy making more.

I look forward to sharing more photos of members of these groups in the near future.

OZB
email: handsomeozarkbillyboy@gmail.com

More From the Garden – Long-legged Flies

Backyard Gardens, macro, wildlife

At nearly 1300 described species in North America alone, the Long-legged Flies (Dolichopodidae) are ubiquitous, under-studies and totally unappreciated. Little is known about most of this group’s life histories and habits, especially as larvae. These guys are under appreciated because few know or applaud their function as key predators in backyard and agricultural habitats. Both larval and adult forms of dolichipodids eat a wide variety of pest insects, including other flies, mites, aphids, scale insects and beetles.

Dolichos (long) Podis (foot) — Dolichos (long)
Podis (foot)

I have discerned three Long-legged species in the backyard and have been able to photograph the two pictured in this post. The most well known and common have the multi-colored, metallic luster of the insect in the first photograph, while the other is more earth-toned and with a pair of dark spots on its wings.

Many species in this family are known for elaborate mating dances, equipped with colored flags on their front legs that they use to seduce and entice potential mates. Sexual selection is even at work on the insects. No one escapes…

OZB
email: handsomeozarkbillyboy@gmail.com

Those Sexy Syrphids

Backyard Gardens, macro, wildlife

Time Flies Like an Arrow... Hover Flies Like a Flower — Time Flies Like an Arrow…
Hover Flies Like a Flower

Anyone who has spent any amount of time studying flowers in the backyard garden has at some point noticed Syrphid flies. Known as hover flies, flower flies, bee flies and other names, this group is most well known for mimicking bees and wasps (Batesian mimicry). This small guy was captured feeding on my Ohio Spiderwort this spring.

This is quite the important group of insects. The Syrphids are major pollinators for numerous flowering plants, potentially as important as native bees in this service. Larvae in this group may feed on rotting vegetation and many species will feed on aphids and other plant pests. The rather large bee fly pictured above was found feeding on a Common Milkweed in the backyard.

Eating and making baby Syrphids… If it isn’t already on a T-shirt, it should be. I often find these guys doing the Diptera 12-step in my backyard. If we did that, we’d be thrown in jail!

Thanks for stopping by…

OZB
email: handsomeozarkbillyboy@gmail.com

Snowberry Clearwing Moth

Backyard Gardens, bill duncan, macro, wildlife

The Snowberry Clearwing is a member of the Sphinx Moths (AKA Hawk Moths). Its name comes from the fact that one of this species important larval foods is the Snowberry plant. Sphinx moths are important pollinators and are often mistakenly identified as Hummingbirds or Bumble Bees due to their size and their habits of visiting flowers. Most Sphinx Moths are active nocturnally or at dawn and dusk, but the Snowberry Clearwing is diurnal. One Missouri favorite, the Missouri Evening Primrose of glade habitats, shares an obligate pollination mutualism with a species of Hawk Moth, meaning that no other animal can provide pollination services for this plant. This is a photography project someday in the future!

The caterpillars of these moths are known as “hornworms”, and they are just as fascinating as the adults. Included in this group is the Tobacco Hornworm, which is a notorious pest on tomato plants. A useful natural controller of hornworms are the parasitoid braconid wasps that lay their eggs on the developing moth and whose larvae then eat the caterpillar from the inside out.

Next time you are in the garden, take a closer look at that bumblebee or hummingbird. It might not be what you assume it to be!

Thanks for visiting…

OZB
email: handsomeozarkbillyboy@gmail.com

The Soldier

Backyard Gardens, macro, wildlife

Most soldier beetles are true opportunists when it comes to tucker. While not being the most efficient pollinators, these beetles can be found around almost any flowers from mid to late summer where they feed on nectar, pollen and small insects like aphids and ants. This one was photographed on my common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca).

Thanks for stopping by.

OZB
email: handsomeozarkbillyboy@gmail.com

From the Backyard – Tiny Tim

Backyard Gardens, macro, wildlife

I named this guy “Tiny Tim” due to the fact that he lost one of his main jumping legs long before his final instar. Poor fellow.

OZB
email: handsomeozarkbillyboy@gmail.com

“Damsel” by Name Only…

Backyard Gardens, macro

I imagine the conversation may have went something like this…

Aphid (with a cockney accent, of course): “Oh, hello, who are you then?”
Damsel: “Name’s Damsel…”
“Oh, that’s a lovely name. My name is Aphid.”
“No, I think I’ll call you ‘Sugar Bag.’ “
“Sugar Bag? Now that doesn’t sound Aghhh!…”

😉

I caught a glimpse of this guy early one morning patrolling around the surfaces of my rosinweed and decided to watch. I didn’t wait long to observe the hunt. This bug is definitely in the family Nabidae, and I am going to call this one the common damsel bug, Nabis americoferus, due to it matching a few photos and the fact that this is considered to be the one of the most common hemipterans in the United States.

I have read that these guys overwinter as adults and have a wide selection in the prey they choose. It seems that if it is smaller than they are, or close in size at least, they will poke it and suck out their hemolymph. Like I said, “damsel” in name only…

Thanks for visiting!

OZB

email: handsomeozarkbillyboy@gmail.com

Death of a Pollinator

Backyard Gardens, macro, wildlife

I had been watching this exquisitely camouflaged spider on this Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) all week. This evening I noticed it had grabbed itself some tucker and grabbed the camera. In these two photos (not the same bee) check out the pollinium (pollen sacs) that are attached to the honeybee’s legs. This is quite the interesting pollination system that milkweed use. As an insect is having a meal on the nectar the flowers provide, the pollinium attaches itself to the leg of the visitor and is removed from the donor flower. Upon removal, the pollen sack is turned perpendicular to the receptor sight, known as the “stigmatic slit” – thus avoiding self-pollination. A few minutes or so later, as the insect is visiting other flowers, the translator arms begin to dry and that flat sack of pollen now orients itself to be able to fit in this slit – thus pollinating another flower. Often, these pollinium can attach to themselves, forming long, branched chains, which may increase the chances for successful pollination.

Obviously the honeybee is not the natural pollinator of milkweed, but this exotic insect is now the primary pollinator of A. syriaca and several other milkweed species. Scientists are unsure which native species were primarily responsible for this service prior to the introduction of the honeybee, or why they are not found in more abundance currently. With the current plight of both the honeybee and the monarch butterfly, it would be a wise thing to plant as many milkweed as we can in neighborhoods and in reconstructions of prairie habitats. So far my milkweed are looking good and I hope to collect plenty of seed this year (aphids really limited flower and seed production the last two years). So, if you are interested in planting some milkweed, let me know.

OZB

email: handsomeozarkbillyboy@gmail.com

Winter Stonefly

macro, wildlife

While looking to photograph pollinators of Ozark Witch Hazel, Steve and I came across this Winter Stonefly, which is definitely not a pollinator. This photograph was taken on February 7th near Silver Mines Recreation Area.

Winter Stonefly - Taeniopteryx burksi — Winter Stonefly – Taeniopteryx burksi

Bugs in the Backyard – Locust Borer

macro, wildlife

This Locust Borer (Family Cerambycidae) was photographed this fall feeding on Tall Goldenrod (Solidago altissima) that grow in my wildflower patches in our yard.

The Locust Borer’s preferred larval host plant, the black locust tree, is now widespread across North America and Europe, but was originally found in the Appalachian and Ozark regions.

It is unclear whether the color and pattern of this long-horned beetle serves to mimic the aposematic coloration of the well-known yellow jacket wasps (Batesian mimicry), or for crypsis – allowing for camouflage in the goldenrod, where they are often found.