Category Archives: Arthropoda

Arthropods – insects, arachnids, crustaceans, myriapods, & relatives

Palmetto Tortoise Beetle, Hemisphaerota cyanea

Posted on July 21, 2012 by Ted C. MacRae

While most leaf beetles (family Chrysomelidae) are found associated with herbaceous plant species, many members of the subfamily Hispinae—which includes leaf mining beetles and tortoise beetles—are found on the foliage of woody plants. In North America the most distinctive of tortoise … Continue reading →

Posted in Chrysomelidae, Coleoptera | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

One-Shot Wednesday—Proctacanthus fulviventris ovipositing

Posted on July 17, 2012 by Ted C. MacRae

Today I spent the day just south of Florida’s “arm pit” to look for the state’s near-endemic tiger beetle Cicindelidia scabrosa (Scabrous Tiger Beetle). I first found this species last August on a white-sand 2-track through sand pine scrub habitat near Cedar … Continue reading →

Posted in Asilidae, Diptera | Tagged , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Working with Cerceris fumipennis—Part 2

Posted on July 15, 2012 by Ted C. MacRae

During the 6-week period from late May to early July this year, I collected ~400 jewel beetle specimens representing at least 20 species (see Working with Cerceris fumipennis—Part 1). A final accounting of the species represented won’t be done until this winter, but the … Continue reading →

Posted in Buprestidae, Cicindelidae, Coleoptera, Crabronidae, Hymenoptera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Working with Cerceris fumipennis—Part 1

Posted on July 13, 2012 by Ted C. MacRae

For nearly 30 years, jewel beetles (family Buprestidae) have been my primary research interest. While some species in this family have long been regarded as forest and landscape pests, my interest in the group has a more biosystematic focus. A faunal … Continue reading →

Posted in Buprestidae, Coleoptera, Crabronidae, Hymenoptera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 20 Comments

Cicada killer on the fly

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Ted C. MacRae

I don’t normally spend much time trying to photograph insects in flight. To really do it right requires some rather specialized equipment, including very high-speed flash, and a bucketload of patience and skill. John Abbott exemplifies those whose great talent has produced … Continue reading →

Posted in Crabronidae, Hymenoptera | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The importance of background and apparent light size

Posted on July 7, 2012 by Ted C. MacRae

I’m still getting submissions for ID Challenge #19 and don’t quite have the followup post ready yet, so I’ll give it a couple more days. In the meantime, I’d like to re-share the photo below, originally shown a few weeks ago … Continue reading →

Posted in Buprestidae, Coleoptera | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

ID Challenge #19

Posted on July 4, 2012 by Ted C. MacRae

Here is a bit of a different ID Challenge—can you identify the beetles represented in the photo, but more importantly can you deduce what all of these beetles have in common (other than the fact that they belong to the same family)? Obviously … Continue reading →

Posted in Buprestidae, Coleoptera | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 33 Comments

One-Shot Wednesday: two-striped grasshopper nymph

Posted on July 4, 2012 by Ted C. MacRae

As the heat of summer solidifies its chokehold over the middle and southern latitudes of North America, grasshopper nymphs will begin to ramp up their development. I see grasshoppers commonly in my soybean field trials, where their feeding presents more … Continue reading →

Posted in Acrididae, Orthoptera | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments