A "bird" and other insects
Jul 12, 2020 09:12:48 #
The largest grasshopper in my area is in the ‘bird grasshopper’ group, genus Schistocerca. Members of this genus include species that can become swarming locusts, but our species, known as the spotted bird grasshopper (S. lineata), is not a swarming species. Still, it is pretty big; long-legged, and a graceful flier. It really does look like a locust! They become common in the Magic Field in the late summer. The name lineata refers to the pale stripe down the middle of the back.
Spotted bird grasshopper by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Spotted bird grasshopper by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
What had puzzled me for a time about this grasshopper is that not all of them have the stripe, as is shown in the next picture. This bad girl was perching on me very nicely for pictures, then she decided to bite. Repeatedly. I am wincing a bit while snapping the shutter.
Spotted bird grasshopper by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Spotted bird grasshopper by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Next up is a hangingfly. These strange insects are not craneflies, but are members of a different insect order. Hangingflies dangle from plants and snare flying insects out of the air with their hind legs, and one typically sees them in this pose hanging from the undergrowth in forests. Although I don’t know the specific scientific name of this one, it is safe to say it is in the genus Bittacus since that is the only genus of these insects in my area. There are only 3 genera of hangingflies in the U.S., and one of them is wingless (!) while the other looks nothing like this one.
Hangingfly by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
The wasp in the next picture is an Ichneumon wasp. It looks to me like Exetastes suaveolens, which parasitizes a particular species of caterpillar found on goldenrod. I am pretty sure I have never seen the host caterpillar since I would certainly remember it: https://bugguide.net/node/view/1736451/bgimage
Ichneumon wasp by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
I finish with a close up of a damselfly. This is a posed picture. I don’t remember the species, but maybe a fragile forktail.
Damselfly by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Spotted bird grasshopper by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrSpotted bird grasshopper by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrWhat had puzzled me for a time about this grasshopper is that not all of them have the stripe, as is shown in the next picture. This bad girl was perching on me very nicely for pictures, then she decided to bite. Repeatedly. I am wincing a bit while snapping the shutter.
Spotted bird grasshopper by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrSpotted bird grasshopper by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrNext up is a hangingfly. These strange insects are not craneflies, but are members of a different insect order. Hangingflies dangle from plants and snare flying insects out of the air with their hind legs, and one typically sees them in this pose hanging from the undergrowth in forests. Although I don’t know the specific scientific name of this one, it is safe to say it is in the genus Bittacus since that is the only genus of these insects in my area. There are only 3 genera of hangingflies in the U.S., and one of them is wingless (!) while the other looks nothing like this one.
Hangingfly by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrThe wasp in the next picture is an Ichneumon wasp. It looks to me like Exetastes suaveolens, which parasitizes a particular species of caterpillar found on goldenrod. I am pretty sure I have never seen the host caterpillar since I would certainly remember it: https://bugguide.net/node/view/1736451/bgimage
Ichneumon wasp by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrI finish with a close up of a damselfly. This is a posed picture. I don’t remember the species, but maybe a fragile forktail.
Damselfly by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrJul 12, 2020 09:32:39 #
Jul 12, 2020 10:18:20 #
Jul 12, 2020 10:57:46 #
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Jul 13, 2020 08:25:38 #
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Jul 13, 2020 16:40:24 #
You have such wonderful detail and focus in your shots, well done again.
Jul 13, 2020 20:30:59 #
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