Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with insect

Identify this bug!

event — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:06:37 -0800

What is this bug? I'm living in a recently-constructed tenth-floor apartment and have been finding these things on my floor. I have never seen a live one -- only dead remnants like this one. It appears to be some kind of centipede. Specifically what species is it, why am I finding them dead all the time, and how can I get rid of them? Thanks!

What were these bugs that we called "bloodsuckers"?

ErWenn — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 13:40:41 -0800

There is this insect/arachnid I remember from my childhood in Las Vegas. It had a body about the size of a raisin, only it was quite flat. They were red with black spots (larger than ladybugs, but flatter), and the kids in the neighborhood called them "bloodsuckers" for some reason. (I have no idea if they bit or not.) I don't remember them flying, but I could be wrong about that. What insects were they? Scientific name or common name is fine, anything I can use to find out more info.

Are spiders crawling on my sleeping face?

Morrigan — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:31:58 -0800

Periodically (maybe a couple or few times a year), I wake up with something on my face that seems like a bug bite. Nothing dramatic; it itches a bit, raises a small welt and then heals. My family called these "spider bites." Is that what they are? My home (mid-Atlantic US) has no obvious evidence of spiders living inside. Do mosquito bites present differently on the face? These are not as itchy as mosquito bites usually are and I haven't noticed it happening more in summer. It doesn't resemble a blemish, either; its center seems to have bite-like qualities and it is often in non-blemish-prone areas like my cheeks. Googling "spider bites" is an unhelpful horror show.

Name That Larvae

crapmatic — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 11:18:59 -0800

Are these mosquito larvae or something else? I found these guys in an inch of standing water in a hot tub that had been closed up over the summer: 1 2 3 4. This is in Oklahoma. The closest match I can find is mosquito larvae but they're kind of big (5/8 to 3/4"), so much so that I thought they were tadpoles when I first saw them. Also I haven't seen them attach theirselves to the water surface like lots of mosquito larvae pics suggest. If they're beneficial I'd like to save them, but if they're mosquitoes, I guess I'll have to make them a reservation at the roach motel.

What the hell are these bugs?

Ignatius J. Reilly — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 07:32:40 -0800

Name that infestation! What the hell are these zombie insects and why do they want access to my home? Relevant facts:
I live in Chicago, and the phenomenon I am writing about is definitely seasonal. All summer long, there has been a low level of a certain kind of bug in my neighborhood (far north side, very close to Lake Michigan but not to the Chicago River or any other body or water): it looks like a cross between a mosquito and a fruit fly, but with a transparent abdomen.

In the last 3 or 4 days, things have gotten out of control. First, these bugs have grown in number by leaps and bounds. There are now probably at least 10 times as many as there were last week. Second, and most alarmingly, they seem to have changed their behavior: on each and every window of our apartment (facing East, West and South) these bugs have actually begun wiggling their way through the screen and inside.

For the first night, we ended up with hundreds of these insects swarming around our light bulbs. We have now closed up the place, and there is a thick layer of dead bugs on the sill between the screen and the window.

I do not have a photo. I can't get one to turn out correctly, because of glare from the windows and all. I should be clear that these are NOT mosquitoes, though they are somewhat similar. They don't bite and they are very stupid/bad at surviving. They just sit there and let you kill them.

Shoe Fly, Don't Bother Me, or Mike Tyson?

thankyoumuchly — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 08:09:07 -0800

Why aren't tiny insects killed by the impact of a swatting hand? Why aren't tiny insects (flies, bees, mosquitos, etc.) killed by the force of the impact of a human hand, (or any other "solid" object...fly swatter, textbook, etc.)? For example, the following does not kill insects:

(hand) Solid Object -> Insect <> Air

I was thinking this may be due to a "cushion" of air surrounding the striking object, but I've also swatted insects directly into the pavement/concrete before and I've never seen one die this way either:

(hand) Soilid Object -> Insect <> Air -> Solid Object (concrete)

Crushing/clapping the insect in between my hands in mid air (or between my shoe and concrete) DOES result in death to the insect, but that seems obvious to me, see the following:

(shoe) Solid Object -> I >n >s e < c < t <- Solid Object (concrete)

. . .

So what gives? Why is this? It seems like most living objects larger than a mouse would not survive any of the above scenarios, but an insect can survive 2 out of the 3? Hell, a human can't even survive all 3 of these sometimes (a Mike Tyson punch to a human head in mid air may end badly). Surely my hand (relatively speaking of course) swats a fly in mid air with more force than does the force of the hand of Mike Tyson punching a person in the head?

What's the reason???

What is causing this and how do we stop it? (kill it. kill it with fire?)

exlotuseater — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 21:07:52 -0800

Help identify possible source or cause of these bites! My SO has been getting some raised / swollen areas on her heel / foot, and one on her pinky finger, beginning four days ago. We believe they are bites, but the source eludes us. She's extremely sensitive to tactile stimuli, so ordinarily she would notice say, a mosquito or similar. At first we suspected the dreaded--shhhh!--bedbug but these bites are occurring during the day, and an exhaustive search (including stripping the bed and laundering everything) turned up nothing.

The bites are extremely itchy at first, swell quickly like a mosquito bite, then recede, except in one case, in which the bite receded somewhat, then blistered, filling with clear liquid (lymph? plasma?).

The size of the bites vary, but they generally range from 5-15 mm in diameter, and the high point of the swelling is perhaps 3 or 4 mm.

Pictures here and here here.

We have an indoor cat, who hasn't been particularly itchy or scratchy--we combed her today, also turned up nothing. If it were fleas, we would see them. Likewise with bedbugs or spiders (but which, under different circumstances, would fit certain diagnostic criteria for bites of this nature).

I vacuumed the other day, and we have regular high-traffic wall-to-wall carpet, which I just crawled over with a high-powered flashlight, literally prying apart the nap to examine. Nothing.

Interestingly, she has gotten several "bites" like this recently, I have been in all the same places, and I have not received a single one. She does not use any skin lotion or any attractant we can identify (no perfume, etc).

She just brushed against the shower curtain five minutes ago, and the one on her pinky "reactivated" and is now itchy again.

We live in a rented condo, have been here for four years, and nothing like this has happened in the past.

We are in upstate New York.

Thing 1 calls it "Umbrella Buggly"

rahnefan — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:16:12 -0800

What is this insect? It's at least two inches long. Or was. It's dead now. It was under my patio parasol. Easy to catch, didn't appear to try to fly.

Ugly from above

Ugly from below

What's this bug I found in my bed?

roomwithaview — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 19:12:03 -0800

BugFilter: Found a bug on my bed. Legs are in the wrong location on the body for it to be a bedbug, so what is it? Photo here. It is a pretty slow little bugger -- I'd say slower than an ant. It measures about 5mm in length. If there are other details I can provide to aid in identification, please ask. Thanks!

Oh, so that's why I've been sweeping up so many leaves lately.

pemberkins — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:16:05 -0800

How do I save my house plants from a sudden pest infestation? One of my house plants has somehow picked up a host of what I suspect are aphids (pictures: 1, 2; correct me if I'm wrong in my ID). They're mostly accumulated on new growth, but the plant is losing both new and old leaves.

I've tried wiping the affected parts down to physically remove the aphids, but I end up knocking off more leaves than I clean, so this doesn't seem like a good long term strategy.

I would spray the whole thing down with a hose, but I don't have a hose (not even a sink sprayer!).

How else can I get rid of these guys? This plant has been with me for a long time, and I feel like a bad parent for letting it get this infested. I'd rather not have to get rid of it.

What is this insect?

Zinger — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 11:07:36 -0800

Insect ID please. What is this and any tips about reducing their number?

What kind of insect stung me?

m_lazarus — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 09:36:38 -0800

InsectBiteFilter. Help! Last Sunday in Phoenix, Arizona I was chilling outside and then some insect stung/bit/injected my neck. It was not a bee/wasp/spider/ant. It was a tannish brown color and I think it had transparent green wings but I can't recall for sure. It was about half an inch long. I tried to just forget about it but each day the sting gets more painful. I just hope there's no brood in my neck. Anyone know what kind of critter this could be? And, yes, I know I should go to the doctor but I wanted some hive-mind reassurance that I'll be fine. Thank you so much! Dang bugs.

The Mystery Insect

Atreides — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 18:50:25 -0800

Insect Identity Crisis: So I took a picture of what I originally thought was a mosquito on a leaf, but upon closer inspection, realized it was something else all together. After searching AskMe and the rest of the internet (I googled, I swear!), I'm at a loss. It'd probably fit on a dime, for idea of scale, and as you can see from the picture above, has a black spot on each wing. Alas, I seek the wisdom of the Mefi One Mind, please help me with your assistance.

Garden bugs

backseatpilot — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 09:34:52 -0800

I have some questions about pest control in the garden, coupled with mysteriously disappearing plants. This is our first year attempting a real live vegetable garden - finally have a small back yard, so we built a raised bed, filled it with dirt, and planted some vegetables. We also set up a composter and put some plant boxes on the apartment balcony.

There are lots of bugs, and I'm unsure which ones are ok to leave alone and which need to be taken care of. The composter has attracted LOTS of (mostly fruit) flies. There's a big swarm of flies every time I open the lid. Is this normal? Do I need to adjust our use of the composter in some way to get rid of them?

I've also noticed ants in the raised bed. I think there's a nest in or around the bed, but I don't see any mounds; I only noticed them when they were busy dismantling a dead earthworm. Are these an issue? They're small and black, and they don't seem to be bothering the plants. Other bugs I've noticed in the dirt are earthworms (I'm assuming these are ok) and some sort of larvae - they all seem to have disappeared over the past couple of weeks since they've probably all metamorphosed and flown off as whatever they were.

Coupled with the bugs, some plants have gone missing. They're all still pretty small, and about three or four have simply disappeared. The MO is the same each time - a small divot where the plant was, and a couple of instances I found the plant, neatly cut at the base of the stem. Any ideas what could be destroying our plants in that way?

What are these desert insects?

metadave — Tue, 19 May 2009 09:25:38 -0800

What are these two (possibly male and female) insects? Here are two pictures of each. These insects are about 4-cm long and are on a Century Plant bloom stem. Anyone have any idea what they are? Thanks for any and all responses.

- Dave

Strange insect/beetle

jjsonp — Sun, 17 May 2009 14:30:36 -0800

What is this bug? See pic here.

This was taken on my screen door in central North Carolina in early May 2009. Bug is probably 2 inches long and 3/4" inch wide at the widest point.

I've seen moths with those faux-eyes before, but never a beetle.

Name that bug!

xsquared-1 — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 15:54:36 -0800

I'm home alone. Except I'm not. Please help me identify my new visitors. Here's the bug in question:
http://flickr.com/gp/xsquared/Q8Hz7P

Saw and killed 1 on Sunday night. Thought it was a fluke. Killed four yesterday. Just killed NINE in my dining room. I'll be calling the exterminator tomorrow. In the meantime, I'd like to know what I'm dealing with.

I'm located in NJ, where we're having unseasonably warm temperatures the last few days (near 90F).

The bugs have wings, but I haven't seen any flying. They are about 1 inch long. Most appear to be dazed and have trouble walking. Some are on their backs. All except one have been found on the 1st floor of my house. The house is about 80 years old. We've lived here 5 years and have never seen them before (but we do have an issue with ladybugs).

My husband thinks they look like they are dying, and there's nothing to worry about. I think they look like they are just waking up from a long winter's nap, and soon they'll be flying around my house.

I'll sleep better knowing what this is.

BumbleBeeFilter

cdmwebs — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 13:39:14 -0800

Why does this bumble bee feel the need to protect my sidewalk from other flying insects? In front of our house, we have a sidewalk skirted to the right by various landscape vegetation we've planted (and to the left some liriope and mulch.

For the past couple of weeks, we've had a bumble bee that hovers back and forth down this short stretch of sidewalk. It's about ten feet long then turns to go up on to the porch and in to the house (the sidewalk, not the bee).

What on earth is this bee doing? He (she?) seems to chase off any other insects from this particular area but hasn't bothered my wife and I or the dogs when we take them out. It also lacks interest in pollen, as it just hovers back and forth, never landing on anything.

Is there a huge nest of bumble bees waiting to attack me one day? Is this a surveillance drone? What is the deal AskMe?

What is this leaf-like insect?

Dreamcast — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 16:31:17 -0800

What is this insect that looks sort of like a leaf? A friend took some photographs of this insect that looks kind of like a leaf, and wants to know what it is. Can anyone identify it?

Photographs here and here.

uh, waiter...

bitteroldman — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:48:34 -0800

There's a live moth living in a package of unopened, spinach. Should I cause a stink with the packing company? I purchased Certified Organic Triple Washed baby spinach and just as I was about to open the sealed package, discovered that there is a live moth crawling around. It can't get out, because the package is sealed, and I guess it has been living off the spinach all this time

The Spinach was packaged in California, and I live in the cold, white North, so it can't be from around these parts this time of year.

Heck, stuff happens, but what really upsets me is that the packaging states that it is triple washed. How the heck did someone miss the moth?

Anyway, I wrote to the company when it happened and still have received no answer three days later. So the bad customer service is making me mad too. Is it worth making a stink about it? If so, who do I stink to?

I'm not looking to make a million dollars suing for emotional trauma (although we were looking forward to a spinach salad that evening), but goddamn, a live moth living and pooping in one's food is pretty darn gross. All I really want is an apology and a commitment to improving their washing processes.

What photographer tortured cockroaches?

miffed — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 23:21:18 -0800

Looking for the name of an artist who did a beautiful / disturbing series of photographs of cockroaches (and/or other insects??) being tortured. My memory is vague, but I think one was crucified, one immolated, etc. I also feel like it was a female artist.

Where to collect plant & animal specimens?

unmake — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 15:23:13 -0800

Where can I - legally - collect plant and insect specimens, in the southwest? One of my classes in Tucson this semester involves creating a plant-press notebook and a pinned-insect collection; every park website, be it state or national, says removal of anything other than garbage and buffelgrass is illegal.

Is there a category of terrain that's not privately owned where I could look for specimens? Or is this the sort of activity where participants generally just ignore the rules and regulations? (This isn't killing hundred year old cacti).

What kind of bug is this?

guptaxpn — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 14:13:08 -0800

What kind of bug is this? (insect, not programming) http://i41.tinypic.com/308bghs.jpg These are all over my house and I want them all dead...

now...

What kind of bug is this?

http://i41.tinypic.com/308bghs.jpg

What are these pink eggs?

peachfuzz — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 13:51:51 -0800

Hey, what lives inside these weird little pink eggs? My sister snapped a picture of these funny little eggs on tree bark down near Gainesville, Florida. She says each egg was about the size of a bb pellet, and they were even a little pinker and pearlier than they are in the photo. My entomology-related google skills have proved worthless, but we really want to know - I was taken aback by how...sort of unexpectedly lovely they are, and am very curious about what made them.

What the BUG?!

roundrock — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:13:35 -0800

The cold weather seems to have caused horrible, alien looking bugs to invade our basement. They are fairly slow moving (unless startled) and look like spiders and grasshoppers mated to produce alien children. They are brown in color, have enormous, Daddy-long-legs type legs (but only six of them), and get pretty far off the ground when they jump. Can anyone tell me exactly what is sneaking up on me when I'm working at my desk at night? I realize that a picture would help, but I freeze up every time I see the suckers (and then my husband throws a shoe at them and we no longer have a good specimen for a photo shoot). I tried a bug identification website, but my freakish office mate was not among any of the 28 results returned. I can't bear to do another search on my own ... I feel like they are crawling all over me when I look through the pictures. So WHAT is this thing?

If it helps, I'm in Virginia (DC area). I've never seen them anywhere outside. Apparently they just live in my basement (but NOT FOR LONG!).