I saw a huge caterpillar today - Share your bug pics too!

[Honeycomb]

The sparkling dragonfly is so beautiful! What a photo!
Anyone likes cockroaches?
The Poodle Moth looks pretty cute, but I think it would freak me out if it came flying toward me.

[kaoskat]

The sparkling dragonfly is so beautiful! What a photo!
Anyone likes cockroaches?
The Poodle Moth looks pretty cute, but I think it would freak me out if it came flying toward me.

I like ours.....
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[gemini_pony]

OMG I have roach phobia *flees thread screaming*

[Broken Irishwoman]

This bug I found when I was in Hamm -
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Oh, please tell me the name of this one! I've been calling them "skateboards" ever since I was a kid because I have never been able to identify them.

[Gingerbread]

It is a firebug, Pyrrhocoris apterus

[Marigold]

I like hissing cockroaches, but not the household kinds.  The only insects I really dislike are ticks, mosquitoes, and ants.  Ants I can appreciate and find fascinating, but I just don't find them as visually appealing. 

I also dislike anything that is parasitic to humans. 

My favorite insects mostly are mantids, moths, beetles, and flies.

[emery]

Thanks, Emery!  The plant was literally crawling with them!  Unfortunately, as gorgeous as they were, they ate every leafy morsel they could find. I had to re-home quite a few of them with other people who had swan plants, and my own plant has never really recovered. I'm cringing a bit at the mo, actually, several butterflies have been laying on it, and there are very few leaves on it at all...

I checked out your facebook gallery - awesome! What are the caterpillars eating? Here in NZ they nibble on swan plants (I'm sure there must be other things they can eat, but I'm not sure what).

Monarch caterpillars will only eat Milkweed plants but there are many different varieties and your Swan Plant is a type of Milkweed. The Milkweed that mine eat looks quite different as it has big wide leaves but they are in the same plant family The butterflies tend to only lay 1 or 2 eggs per plant so you must have either had a lot of butterflies come through or one very busy butterfly! I know you can feed them things like watermelon or cucumber rinds when they are almost full grown but they really need Milkweed when they are small.... otherwise they may turn into cannibals! I hope you are able to find more people with Swan plants or even some growing wild that you could transfer them to!

[Galactica]

Oh lord why did I look at this. I hate bugs!!!!!!!

Good question! lol


Monarchs are so cool- the caterpillars are beautiful!

I love that poodle moth- I think I have seen it on the internets before-   I would love one of those- and I have always wanted a Luna moth!  Did you know you can order a chrysalis of one online?  EXCEPT if you live in certain states such as WA

Those are very cool found moths-

I love that fuzzy aphid- he does look like a fairy bug...


I don't like roaches- and will acknowledge that I actually have a bit of an irrational response to them- but am trying to get over it.  I have a friend who works in a lab and tests the temperature of those big ole hissing roaches- and she claims they have personalities- heh

Here is a bug everyone can hate.   Know what it is?  A land leach that I pried off my ankle.  He is actually waving around like a sonar trying to find me again- little bastard.

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[Gingerbread]

I love leeches! I went to Borneo a few years ago, I spent most of my time with bare feet and didn't get leeched once everyone else had leechsocks and Deet and allsorts, and they all got at least three leeches.

[Marigold]

LAND leeches!!??  I did not know there was such a thing.  I actually think leeches are fun and cute (when not clamped onto you).  They are fun to catch and look at.

[Galactica]

I love leeches! I went to Borneo a few years ago, I spent most of my time with bare feet and didn't get leeched once everyone else had leechsocks and Deet and allsorts, and they all got at least three leeches.

Haha- well all you have to do in Thailand or Vietnam is take a little stroll through the brush/grass near to water- they are impossible to avoid.  The creepy thing is that they will go right through the tops of your shoes and through your socks- they also drop from the canopy which is undeniably creepy.

I like bugs fine but not when they are making a lunch of me

[Sandi]

So many great pics!

[Marlin]

ergh!!! Leeches!    Another creepy crawlie I'm glad we don't have in my country (I think?) 

Interesting stuff about the monarchs, Emery! And good to know! I heard they could eat pumpkin when the caterpillars were almost mature, so I tried that when we got really desperate. I'm not sure how good the success rate was, we had so many caterpillars it was hard to tell how many survived in the end - there were a few who didn't.....  To this day I can't believe we had so many.  We didn't seem to have a problem with wasps last year, which might have accounted for the prolific amount we had!

[Broken Irishwoman]

It is a firebug, Pyrrhocoris apterus

Awesome, thanks!

[Gingerbread]

No probs