Insect of the week (November 11, 2024)
Our insect of the week for November 11, 2024 is the wasp Pelecinus polyturator. [HYMENOPTERA: Pelicinide]. This species was described by Dru Drury (a British entomologist) in 1773. Yes, just a bit before we decided enough was enough with the taxation without...
Insect of the week (October 14, 2024)
Insect of the week (October 14, 2024) is the northern mole cricket – Neocurtilla hexadactyla (Perty, 1832). This native Orthopteran species is placed in the family Gryllotalpidae. The specimen in this photograph was collected by our former member, Gordon Adams,...
Insect of the week (October 7, 2024)
Insect of the week (October 7, 2024) is Cotesia congregata. These are the wasp parasites that Na’im brought along with the caterpillar to our entomology pot luck on September 28. This wasp species is a member of the Hymenopteran family Bracondiae. It was...
Insect of the week (September 30, 2024)
As summer draws to a close (the vernal equinox wasn’t that long ago, was it), I thought it appropriate to focus on another butterfly. This time, Euptoieta claudia, the variegated fritillary. This species was described by Cramer in 1775. It is known from...
Insect of the week (September 23, 2024)
We return to the beetles again this week and focus on the family Brentidae. Specifically, the beetle Arrhenodes minutus. Common name is oak timberworm. Larvae often tunnel in oak and elm trees and this species can be a pest. This insect is a known vector of the...
Insect of the week (September 16, 2024)
This week, we turn our attention to the insect order Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths). Our featured insect is Zerene cesonia, the dogface sulphur butterfly. It is classified in the family Pieridae. This butterfly is often found along roadsides. Adults...
Insect of the week (September 9, 2024)
Yet another beetle this week. We now examine the family Cerambycidae. Tetraopes tetrophthalmus is our featured insect. It is commonly called the red milkweed beetle and is often found on milkweed plants. If you know a smattering of Greek, you know both the...
Insect of the week (September 2, 2024)
Continuing with our beetle theme (they are exceedingly diverse with nearly 400,000 described species), we focus on Melanactes piceus. This species was described by de Geer in 1774. That is the same year he described our previous insect of the week (yes, same...
Insect of the week (August 26, 2024)
We return to the beetles this week (order Coleoptera) and focus on the goldenrod soldier beetle, Chauliognathus pensylvanicus. No, that is not a typo – the spelling of that area with 1 “n” was common when this species was described by de Geer in...
Peoria approximella (a moth named in New York for Peoria, IL). Photo of Michigan specimen courtesy Jim Vargo (used with permission).