A large set of bug pictures
Mar 1, 2020 09:30:22 #
This is a rather long post as I am rather anxious to get closer to some big highlights in the cue of pictures from last summer.
Lets’ start with beetles. In this first picture are a mating pair of the small blister beetles (Nemognatha nemorensis), and then a small Chrysomelid beetle. That species is Pyllobrotica lengi.
Blister beetles by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Leaf beetle by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
The strange object in the net picture is the larva of another Chrysomelid. Larvae in the genus Neochlamisus crawl around in a case made of … well, it's probably poo. I don't want to know. You can sometimes see their legs or head sticking out, but this one was not cooperating.
CaseLarva by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
The tiger beetle shown in the next picture is the most common species in the Magic Field, and it I think it is our smallest local species from that group. They are especially wily, however, and so this was one of the rare occasions where I could get close enough to photograph this species. This is the punctured tiger beetle (Cicindella punctulata).
Punctured tiger beetle by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Next is a nymph of the Carolina grasshopper (Dissosteira carolina). This common but beautiful band-winged 'hopper comes in two color forms. Most are grey , but sometimes they are this color.
Carolina grasshopper nymph by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Some Hemipterans follow. The first is a leaf-footed bug (Acanthocephala terminalis), followed by a nymph of our invasive marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys).
Leaf footed bug by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Marmorated stink bug nymph by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Next are pictures of some adorable leafhopper nymphs. They are pretty abundant on the vines just outside of my back door. Their colors are variable, but I suspect they are all Jikradia olitaria. The second picture is a stacked shot from 7 pictures taken by hand in a staged setting. I definitely want to do more of these next summer.
Leafhopper nymph by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Leafhopper nymph by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Next is a candid shot of our large bee-like robber fly (Laphria sp.). This one reminds me of that most interesting man in the world guy on the T.V. commercials. "I don't always murder insects, but when I do..."
Bee-like robber fly by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Moving on to Hymenoptera. In the Magic field there is a window where the horsemint flowers are in full bloom, and for some reason horsemint is a big magnet for our large solitary wasps. So at a given time one may see several great black wasps and great golden digger wasps foraging through the horsemint. They move quickly, but one can rely on them to visit plants next to each other, and to do a pretty thorough job on each plant. So I have many pictures of those species. The wasp shown in this picture is different story, however. This is our large spider wasp (Anoplius americanus); easily identified from a distance by the reddish markings on the abdomen.
Large spider wasp by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
The big burrowing wolf spiders that are found in the MF must be their prey. I would love to see that battle, although it would also be upsetting since I am fond of the spiders. Anyway, these large spider wasps are exceptionally difficult to photograph. They will visit a horsemint plant, check out a few flowers on it with blazing speed, then fly to another flower about twenty feet away. I have not solved how to photograph them by "honest' means, so here I cheated by catching one in a net and knocking it out with CO2 from several Alka-seltzer tablets. This is an old trick that briefly anesthetizes an active insect. Some insects will recover and spend a good period of time just hanging out while I take pictures. This does not always work, however, and that was the case with this high energy spider wasp. It never immobilized completely, staggered around briefly, and then very quickly zoomed off and that was that. This single decent picture was dumb luck.
Another interesting find one day was this small wasp that had paralyzed a grasshopper, and here she is hauling her relatively enormous prize to a burrow somewhere where she will lay an egg on it. The wasp resembles a gold digger wasp, although they usually go after katydids, and this one was much smaller. I think (am not sure) that it is Tachytes pepticus.
Tachytes pepticus by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Tachytes pepticus by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Finally, here are more pictures of a thread-waisted wasp (Ammophila procera). These sizable wasps prey on caterpillars, and this one was preparing her burrow in the parking lot of the Magic Field. The parking lot there is fairly abuzz with various burrowing wasps, so it will sometimes take a couple hours just to get 10 feet from it.
Thread-waisted wasp by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
From the side one may consider their mandibles to be fairly unremarkable, but then she turns a bit and …
Oh, my!
Thread-waisted wasp by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
The mandibles of female thread-waisted wasps are used like hot dog tongs to carry caterpillars. This equipment is also useful for burrow excavation, as shown in the final pictures. The last picture is very blurry, but it shows a wasp launching from her burrow. If you enlarge and look closely you can see that they use their front legs and those out-sized jaws to haul away dirt.
Lets’ start with beetles. In this first picture are a mating pair of the small blister beetles (Nemognatha nemorensis), and then a small Chrysomelid beetle. That species is Pyllobrotica lengi.
Blister beetles by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrLeaf beetle by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrThe strange object in the net picture is the larva of another Chrysomelid. Larvae in the genus Neochlamisus crawl around in a case made of … well, it's probably poo. I don't want to know. You can sometimes see their legs or head sticking out, but this one was not cooperating.
CaseLarva by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrThe tiger beetle shown in the next picture is the most common species in the Magic Field, and it I think it is our smallest local species from that group. They are especially wily, however, and so this was one of the rare occasions where I could get close enough to photograph this species. This is the punctured tiger beetle (Cicindella punctulata).
Punctured tiger beetle by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrNext is a nymph of the Carolina grasshopper (Dissosteira carolina). This common but beautiful band-winged 'hopper comes in two color forms. Most are grey , but sometimes they are this color.
Carolina grasshopper nymph by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrSome Hemipterans follow. The first is a leaf-footed bug (Acanthocephala terminalis), followed by a nymph of our invasive marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys).
Leaf footed bug by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrMarmorated stink bug nymph by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrNext are pictures of some adorable leafhopper nymphs. They are pretty abundant on the vines just outside of my back door. Their colors are variable, but I suspect they are all Jikradia olitaria. The second picture is a stacked shot from 7 pictures taken by hand in a staged setting. I definitely want to do more of these next summer.
Leafhopper nymph by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrLeafhopper nymph by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrNext is a candid shot of our large bee-like robber fly (Laphria sp.). This one reminds me of that most interesting man in the world guy on the T.V. commercials. "I don't always murder insects, but when I do..."
Bee-like robber fly by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrMoving on to Hymenoptera. In the Magic field there is a window where the horsemint flowers are in full bloom, and for some reason horsemint is a big magnet for our large solitary wasps. So at a given time one may see several great black wasps and great golden digger wasps foraging through the horsemint. They move quickly, but one can rely on them to visit plants next to each other, and to do a pretty thorough job on each plant. So I have many pictures of those species. The wasp shown in this picture is different story, however. This is our large spider wasp (Anoplius americanus); easily identified from a distance by the reddish markings on the abdomen.
Large spider wasp by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrThe big burrowing wolf spiders that are found in the MF must be their prey. I would love to see that battle, although it would also be upsetting since I am fond of the spiders. Anyway, these large spider wasps are exceptionally difficult to photograph. They will visit a horsemint plant, check out a few flowers on it with blazing speed, then fly to another flower about twenty feet away. I have not solved how to photograph them by "honest' means, so here I cheated by catching one in a net and knocking it out with CO2 from several Alka-seltzer tablets. This is an old trick that briefly anesthetizes an active insect. Some insects will recover and spend a good period of time just hanging out while I take pictures. This does not always work, however, and that was the case with this high energy spider wasp. It never immobilized completely, staggered around briefly, and then very quickly zoomed off and that was that. This single decent picture was dumb luck.
Another interesting find one day was this small wasp that had paralyzed a grasshopper, and here she is hauling her relatively enormous prize to a burrow somewhere where she will lay an egg on it. The wasp resembles a gold digger wasp, although they usually go after katydids, and this one was much smaller. I think (am not sure) that it is Tachytes pepticus.
Tachytes pepticus by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrTachytes pepticus by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrFinally, here are more pictures of a thread-waisted wasp (Ammophila procera). These sizable wasps prey on caterpillars, and this one was preparing her burrow in the parking lot of the Magic Field. The parking lot there is fairly abuzz with various burrowing wasps, so it will sometimes take a couple hours just to get 10 feet from it.
Thread-waisted wasp by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrFrom the side one may consider their mandibles to be fairly unremarkable, but then she turns a bit and …
Oh, my!
Thread-waisted wasp by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrThe mandibles of female thread-waisted wasps are used like hot dog tongs to carry caterpillars. This equipment is also useful for burrow excavation, as shown in the final pictures. The last picture is very blurry, but it shows a wasp launching from her burrow. If you enlarge and look closely you can see that they use their front legs and those out-sized jaws to haul away dirt.
Mar 1, 2020 10:03:53 #
Mar 1, 2020 13:40:01 #
Wow........I was going to try to comment on each image but just by thinking about it my fingers started to severely cramp up. So, I was going to comment on the one I favored most...........but my mind seized up trying to decide. So, I'll go with....I"M JEALOUS!!!!!!!! 
Mar 1, 2020 15:27:13 #
Mar 1, 2020 15:52:33 #
It was interesting to see this behaviour of the Thread Waisted Wasp.
Mar 2, 2020 12:34:48 #
Mar 2, 2020 16:49:42 #
Awesome shots. Clarity is superb. Do you mind sharing what equipment was used in these pictures?
Mar 2, 2020 19:39:38 #
Mar 2, 2020 20:04:27 #
Super set, Mark. All well done. The orange hopper nymph is outstanding. Excellent stack. The Tiger Beetle is also an excellent shot. I've chased them around many times trying to get the right shot. They are fast. In closing, I'll just say that the whole set is great. Well done!
Mar 2, 2020 20:23:37 #
boomboom wrote:
Awesome shots. Clarity is superb. Do you mind sharing what equipment was used in these pictures?
I shoot with Canon. Currently using two bodies, either the t5i or 5diii. The macro lens is the Canon 100mm f/2.8L. The higher mag shots are done with the help of a Raynox 150 attachment on the lens. Flash is the Kuangren twin flash with diffusers.
Mar 2, 2020 20:39:00 #
If I can be nosy as well........what your opinion of the Kuangren twin flash?
Mar 2, 2020 23:15:50 #
photosbytw wrote:
If I can be nosy as well........what your opinion of the Kuangren twin flash?
No problem! Talking gear is one of my favorite things.
I very much like it. Of course there are a couple other versions of this out there under different brand names. My guess is that Chinese companies freely pirate off of each other.
Definitely over-priced for its capabilities since it is a fully manual flash that does not communicate data back to the camera, so choosing its power settings is trial, error, and experience. But I've had it for a couple years and used it intensively during the summers. It is probably somewhat stressful on the hot shoe because of its forward lean and with those arms hanging way out in front, but so far I've no problem with it. Tricky to put on diffusers because of the small flash heads it has.
I chose this flash since I prefer dual head designs, and did not want heads that fitted to the lens. That being because I pretty regularly switch out lenses in the field and I did not want to also fuss with the flash heads when I did that.
You can see the dual highlights in the eyes of many subjects in my pictures. I would prefer to not have those.
Mar 3, 2020 18:42:45 #
Excellent group. Well done. Interesting commentary.
Mar 4, 2020 12:41:43 #
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