When insect photography goes bad

The beautiful tachinid fly Trichopoda pennipes, cooked medium-rare a la torchiere

 Trichopoda pennipes is a parasitic fly that attacks true bugs, and is the particular dipteran responsible for 'death by maggot'.  In addition to devouring leaf-footed bugs from the inside, this Halloween-colored insect also attacks stink bugs, and has been used as a biological control agent for some species in Europe.  For some time now I've been wanting to get a picture of these 'feather-legged flies' laying eggs on stink bugs, and so was delighted to catch a mating pair this afternoon.

Unfortunately, Trichopoda like many insects exhibits a behavior that entomologists call "positive phototaxis."  This is the same behavior that draws a moth to a flame, or as it were, a pair of flies to a 300-watt halogen floor lamp.  As soon as I opened the container both flies spiraled upward with Icarus-like disregard, achieving results comparable to the myth.  Alas, rather than the oviposition action shot I had hoped for, we are left with this photo of another upside-down insect.

Her mate, I am afraid, fared even worse and could not be salvaged at all.  Consequently, it smells of charbroiled death in here, and I am inspired to retire for the evening.

You are what you eat: the Small-eyed sphinx

Paonias myops blends in on Prunus serotina

The small eyed-sphinx, Paonias myops, is a moth in the family Sphingidae.  Many of the sphinx moths are specialists, and can only feed on a very limited range of host plant lineages.  This one feeds on black cherry Prunus serotina.  One of the advantages of specialization on a host is that insects can adapt cryptic coloration and behaviors that match the plant on which they are found.  This one has brown spots that appear to mimic the spots found on late-season cherry leaves.  It may be just enough camouflage to keep a hungry bird from noticing the caterpillar.

The small eyed sphinx is so named because of small eye-spot on it's hind wing (not visible in the photo below).

Two small-eyed sphinx moths on black cherry, shortly after leaving their underground cocoons

Stink bugs are CUTE!

Edessa florida nymphs just after hatching

The talented Alex Wild at myrmecos.net posted what he suspects is the cutest wasp ever.  That may be so, but I think that these first instar Edessa florida stink bug nymphs are face-meltingly adorable.  What do you think, is the wasp cuter?

E. florida is one of our native pentatomids; not the introduced brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys) that invades homes and destroys crops.  Some researchers think that stink bugs acquire an important first meal by feeding on fluid in their eggs or the glue that attaches the eggs to a leaf.  I have not seen any research to support this hypothesis, but it would be an interesting explanation for why they stick around after hatching.  Either way, I think the stink bug huddle may give them an unfair advantage in the cuteness department.

First monarch sighting of 2012

A 2010 monarch lays an egg on milkweed

 While the Journey North webpage indicates that my old friend Danaus plexippus has been in Delaware for some weeks, I saw my first female this past week.  The migratory female that I saw was drab colored and ragged, which suggests to me that it may have traveled quite far this Spring.

  Some of the common milkweed that we planted 2 years ago is just barely starting to poke through the soil, but it's a ready target for ovipositing females.  We may have the only Asclepias in the neighborhood, and a female kept circling back and searching for an open spot to place an egg.  The tip of the milkweed ramet below already had 7 pinhead-sized eggs on it!  Monarchs have high mortality in the early caterpillar stages, and milkweed grows quickly from its underground rhizomes, so there should be plenty of food for everyone when they hatch.

Monarchs are good at finding their Asclepias host plant, even when it is barely poking above the ground.

Hawaiian Sphinx

Hyles calida - The Hawaiian Sphinx

Kiri and I traveled to the big island of Hawai'i and attended the International Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds.  It could be said that Hawaii is the poster-child for biological invasions, with plants and animals from all over the world threatening the island's unique native species.  I was happy when Kiri pointed out this native caterpillar as we hiked along the trail.  The body segment at the rear-end of a caterpillar is called the 'anal plate.'  I haven't seen another species with the anal plate so pointed, it's a pretty cool feature.  It seems I'm making quite the hobby of photographing caterpillar bums.

Promethea Moth

Our happiest caterpillar - rear view