Aesthetic Arthropoda

Pyrops candelaria

2006-12-25T14:55:00.000-07:00

This specimen is of the Order Hemiptera, Family Fulgoridae. Fulgorids are variously referred to as Lantern Flies, or Lantern Bugs. In Lao, the local name means 'elephant insect.'

Like most Hemipterans, Fulgorids are herbivourous, feeding on plant juices. I want to go more in depth into this in the future, but it is worth mentioning here the relationship between many sap-feeding Hemipterans and ants.

Due to the low-amino acid (building blocks of proteins which are vital for insect development) content of plant sap, sap-feeders (or phloem feeders) must consume large quanitites of the sugar-rich plant phloem in order to obtain sufficient amino acids. As the sheer quantity of this sugar water surpasses energy requirements of the insects, they secrete the excess as honeydew. This honeydew is typically high in sugars and nitrogen. Ants will very often care for phloem feeders, protecting them from predators and even inclement weather in order to harvest this honeydew. The relationship is really very much like humans and dairy cows.

The relationship is more commonly seen between ants and aphids, although it is a quite common association.

This specimen is a member of the species Pyrops candelaria, which is common in Laos and Thailand.

Eumastacidae

2006-12-25T14:38:00.000-07:00

Here is a grasshopper of the Family Eumastacidea (Monkey Grasshoppers). In Laos, it is a fairly common pest of fruit trees. I suspect its range is quite broad, as I have scene specimens from as far away as Russia. This is often quite typical of generalist insect pests. Given the nature of modern agriculture, particularly the wideapread use of a quite limited range of food-plants which are grown all over the world, cosmopolitan pests (pests which are widespread throughout many countries) are very common.

This grasshopper is somewhat of a nuisance, but its colouration is quite beautiful.

Bee Sunning

2006-12-25T14:32:00.000-07:00

Bees and other flying Hymenoptera (an order which includes ants, bees and wasps) must obtain a certain minimum body temperature before their flight muscles are functional. Bees are particularly known for their heat-modifying behaviours. In the hive, this takes the form of fanning (rapidly beating the wings, whilst grasping the substrate (whatever they are standing on)) to cool of the hive, or beating their wings gently to increase their body heat.

Another behaviour (here shown) is sunning, where the insect positions itself such that it may absorb as much heat from the sun as possible. When I found this specimen it was momentarily flightless whilst it awaited an increase in its internal temperature.

Tree Mantid

2006-12-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

Although the picture itself is not as appealing, this is another good example of insect camouflage--in this case for the purpose of stalking prey. Mantids (Order Mantodea) are wonderful predators. All memebers of the species are entomophagous (eat insects- in entomology, this term is used, though its analogue in other disciplines is 'insectivorous'), and find their prey by stalking or ambushing. This specimen is quite small (less than 2 cm long) and was found living on the bark of a tree for which it is clearly well-adapted.

Orthoptera of Straw

2006-12-25T14:12:00.000-07:00

I was so very pleased to find this specimen in our field one day. For some time, I have been interested in insect camouflage, and the variety of forms this takes. This grasshopper (Order Orthoptera, sub-Order Caelifera) was completely hidden from observation until it took flight. This picture was taken from less than 20 cm away and still it is difficult to distinguish it from the rice straw in which it is positioned

Notice the shortened antennae, characteristic of grasshoppers (as compared to the sub-Order Enisfera- the crickets and katydids).

Katydid

2006-12-25T14:01:00.000-07:00

I am hoping to post a few pictures showing some examples of insect camouflage. Here is shown a Katydid (Order Orthoptera- Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids, etc). Within the order Orthoptera, katydids are more closely related to crickets than to grasshoppers (in fact, in Britain katydids are known as bush crickets). Katydids are much like grasshoppers in their appearance and habits, but are easily distinguished by their antennae, which often exceed their body-length (unlike grasshoppers which have relatively short antennae).

I was impressed with the camouflage of this specimen. While some katydids are herbivorous, many are carnivores. I suspect this species is carnivorous, and is camouflaged for the purpose of hiding from prey as much as from its own predators.

In the previous post I mentioned that many insects, especially or the order Orthoptera, produce sound by stridulation (scraping one body-part against another). This is common in katydids, where only the male generally produces sound.

Cicada Ecdysis

2006-12-25T13:42:00.000-07:00

Cicadas (Order Hemiptera- True Bugs) are devided into two families, Tettigarctidae (the members of which are largely extinct) and Cicadidae (to which these specimens belong). Here it is shown emerging from its penultimate instar (life stage). The term used for shedding the previous cuticle is ecdysis. Beside this pictures is a second specimen showing a cast-off cuticle.

Many cicadas undergo life-cycles lasting 3-5 years (though some as long as 17), the immature stages of which are spent underground. Notice how the forelegs are enlarged and adapted for digging, which is characteristic of ground-dwelling insects.

Cicadas are known for the singing, which is amongst the loudest produced by any insect. Interestingly, only the males sing, and do this by means of an organ called a tymbal. Most other 'singing' insects (especially Orthoptera- the grasshoppers, cricketcs, etc) do so by means of scraping one body part against another.

The Ambition of this Blog

2006-12-23T09:01:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends and Relations, and others,

For some time now, I have been impressed with the resplendent beauty of the arthropod fauna. My interest in these organisms goes beyond their beauty and their intricacy, but these attributes do play a part in my enjoyment and, I may even say, wonder.

For some time now I have been taking pictures of arthropods in general, and insects in particular. I have created this site in order to share these pictures, and also to share some thoughts and ideas, and observations. It may be that this site will be of little use to anyone beside myself. It may be that the beauty that I see in these creatures is not shared by many, or indeed any. But yet, there may be some who will enjoy seeing some of the organisms that they may not see in their part of the world.

This blog is not scientific. My current work with these organisms is professional and functional, but I would not say scientific. I would not like to invest the time and resources into this site to make my observations measure up to some scientific standard. You will notice that most of the organisms are not identified to species. Many may not even be identified below their Order. My intention here, as stated in the title, is to present some of the beauties of Arthropods. Along with the pictures I hope to write, if only briefly, some observations regarding the organisms photographed, which I think may add to a greater understanding of their complexity and intricacy.

All this being said, I hope that these pictures may be of some import, or even enjoyment, to someone.

Best regards, Micah