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Entomology (Study of Bugs)/Questions
| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
| Flies | 10/4/2009 | Jack DeAngelis |
| Q: Today i seen a fly that i have not seen before. It looked like a fly, but after it was dead,and i ... A: Doris, There are literally thousands of species of flies, from tiny gnats to horse flies, and ... | ||
| Home Pest/ Orange County CA | 10/3/2009 | Jack DeAngelis |
| Q: Laguna Woods; and Aliso Viejo)? It seems to live inside homes or garages on vertical drywalled ... A: Paige, This is called a casemaking clothes moth larva. The larva or caterpillar, your "black worm", ... | ||
| Earthworms | 10/3/2009 | Jessica Mellinger |
| Q: Hello i'm doing a project about earthworms and i was wondering why earthworms is not ... A: That is a great question. It seems like it would be easier for them to self-fertilize, doesn't it? ... | ||
| Red Head Black Body | 10/3/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: I keep getting this black bodied red headed bug on my pillow in my bed. The head of the bed is right ... A: Someone there should be able either to assist in identification, or could forward the specimen(s) to ... | ||
| geometrid moths | 10/3/2009 | Teá Kesting-Handly |
| Q: Please answer these questions about the geometrid moth: Could you give a time line of the normal ... A: Marianne, The normal lifespan of these moths varies greatly. Usually between 21 and 50 days during ... | ||
| Red Head Black Body | 10/3/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: I keep getting this black bodied red headed bug on my pillow in my bed. The head of the bed is right ... A: Could you please take a photo of one and attach the image to a follow-up question? If this is not ... | ||
| help | 10/3/2009 | Jessica Mellinger |
| Q: were can i find names of the bugs i found in my yard? A: A good insect guide for Northern America is the National Audubon Field Guide ... | ||
| caterpillar/chrysalis | 10/2/2009 | Teá Kesting-Handly |
| Q: We recently found a black fuzzy caterpillar. It had kind of yellow suction cup looking little feet, ... A: Robin and Zevon, Not all caterpillars form cocoons/chrysalids from branches. Some bury underground ... | ||
| Praying Mantis Concern | 10/2/2009 | Teá Kesting-Handly |
| Q: Last Sunday, September 27th I found and caught a green Praying Mantis. We are keeping it in a metal ... A: Robin and Zevon, The eating pattern seems normal. It's possible it's very old and is coming to the ... | ||
| Brown Recluse? | 10/2/2009 | Walter Hintz |
| Q: Could you please identify this spider? I also have another picture from what the spider looks like ... A: This has the shape of a recluse. It depends upon the presence of a violin pattern on the upper ... | ||
| Fly foot-rubbing | 10/2/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: I've been noticing that whenever I see a fly when it's not flying, the fly rubs its forelegs ... A: heh, heh..." as it rubs its legs together, this is indeed a part of its normal grooming behavior. ... | ||
| Identify Insect | 10/2/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: I would be indebted to you if you would identify the insect showwn in the attached jpg file, and ... A: it is not an insect at all. nor a pantry pest of any kind; it is a small predator known as a crab ... | ||
| Blue Insects In Algonquin Park | 10/2/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: We recently returned from camping in Algonquin Park (the Kiosk site). The day we arrived our ... A: ' they most likely were woolly aphids (Hemiptera/Sternorrhyncha: Eriosomatidae) - see ... | ||
| Green egg sac | 10/1/2009 | Eric R. Eaton |
| Q: There was two of these on my sons tire swing. I can't find any type of insect on the swing. I opened ... A: Andrew: I'm sorry, your question got lost in the shuffle! If there was silk and eggs inside, then ... | ||
| Sexton Beetle | 10/1/2009 | Eric R. Eaton |
| Q: Do you have a friend in England who is an expert about Sexton Beetles I am working for the BBC and ... A: Mark: A cursory "Google" search doesn't turn up anyone who has worked on British burying beetles ... | ||
| Pet praying mantis | 10/1/2009 | Walter Hintz |
| Q: It is getting colder here in the carolinas, lower 40s last night, I want to do what is right by my ... A: You have a choice to make here. The life span of a mantid in the Carolinas is 10 to 12 months. She ... | ||
| Sesame shaped eggs | 10/1/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: Last week I found the same sesame-shaped insect eggs lined up along the ridge under the hood of the ... A: I am not aware of any household or animal pest species that would lay its eggs in such an array (and ... | ||
| Strange Bug | 10/1/2009 | Jack DeAngelis |
| Q: I am terrified of spiders and insects, all of them. I have this strange bug in my house and I can ... A: Rebekah, This is called a camel-spider (or camel spider) or sunspider. They are not true spiders. ... | ||
| bug identification | 10/1/2009 | Walter Hintz |
| Q: I was wondering if you could identify a type of bug that appeared here and there in my old Vancouver ... A: I am afraid that I cannot help you much without seeing these . I believe there were two different ... | ||
| Follow-up on bald faced hornets. | 10/1/2009 | Teá Kesting-Handly |
| Q: The nest has gotten to an impressive size. With the recent cold weather, there is minimal if any ... A: Michael, The nest can actually fall apart if it gets too cold. Because it is made out of a paper ... | ||
| beetles | 10/1/2009 | Eric R. Eaton |
| Q: Please find attached the photo. This insect is found in my home part of the flooring is made of ... A: Sarestar: I finally noticed that you are writing from India. My expertise on Indian insect fauna ... | ||
| bug bite | 10/1/2009 | Jessica Mellinger |
| Q: my grandson got bit by a bug that had a black body and an orange belly. we looked it up and it ... A: It does sound like you have found a Wheel bug nymph, which is a type of juvenile Assassin bug. Is ... | ||
| cocoons in my cypress tree | 10/1/2009 | Sue Kayton |
| Q: i thought my cypress tree was looking dull, usually its beautiful. i took pictures of these big ... A: These are webworms or tent caterpillars. It's not a cocoon, but a protetive nest for humdreds of ... | ||
| big spider | 9/30/2009 | Nathan Riggs |
| Q: I live in San Diego near the coast. About 11:00pm one night we noticed a huge black spider walking ... A: If it's not hairy, then it might be a trap door spider. Their numbers in a given area vary, ... | ||
| Mystery mouse parasite. | 9/30/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: I had an experience similar to another question on this site but there was no identification. The ... A: This is a mature larva of a rodent bot fly (Cuterebra fontinella; Diptera: Cuterebridae). They ... | ||
| interview | 9/30/2009 | Walter Hintz |
| Q: Im a student at Boise state U and I'm writing an ethnography on Entomologists in my english 102 ... A: The biodiversity of insects and the strange behavior of ants No difficulty Nothing Some ... | ||
| Whats biting me? | 9/30/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: H Ed. I have been getting random bites on my body at night for the past 6 months. My husband and ... A: as it is nearly impossible to determine the cause without actually catching something in the act of ... | ||
| Larvae | 9/30/2009 | Eric R. Eaton |
| Q: In moving a cart in my kitchen this a.m. I retrieved some cat toys and found about 10 of these ... A: Randy: Your description fits the adult (or even larval) stage of many kinds of "stored product ... | ||
| catipillers | 9/30/2009 | Nathan Riggs |
| Q: i work at a school and the kids have found several black or brown fuzzy catipillers. They have some ... A: If a worm crawled out of the cocoon, then you saw a larva of a parasite that attacked the ... | ||
| Worm? | 9/30/2009 | Sue Kayton |
| Q: I live in Nashville NC and have just move in this house. I noticed a hard dirt made nest like "wasp ... A: They sound like wasp larvae, or their prey, and then things on the sides are the insects' legs. ... | ||
| Response: Tiny brown bugs on bathroom floor | 9/30/2009 | Jack DeAngelis |
| Q: This was written by someone else a month ago. They wrote: Hello, we have been experiencing very tiny ... A: Emily, This image does look like a silverfish. Silverfish are common pests in homes where they feed ... | ||
| beetles | 9/30/2009 | Eric R. Eaton |
| Q: Please find attached the photo. This insect is found in my home part of the flooring is made of ... A: There are many, many species of silken fungus beetles, and I'm pretty sure not all of them have been ... | ||
| bug | 9/30/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: ok, I didn't get a picture because I was too involved with helping it get off the deck and back to ... A: try placing it in a container of some kind until you can take a photo of it. Without an image, I can ... | ||
| Araneus.....? | 9/30/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: I live in Northern Minnesota, USA. This spider fascinated me all summer. Any help on its identity ... A: After viewing it, I now believe that your spider more likely is Araneus gemmoides, sometimes known ... | ||
| Tiny White Bug ID | 9/30/2009 | Eric R. Eaton |
| Q: We live in Northern NJ. While cleaning the wood stove for use this season, I noticed some small ... A: Jessica: I think you are probably describing "springtails" in the order Collembola. Contrary to ... | ||
| Wasp killing mating bees | 9/29/2009 | Teá Kesting-Handly |
| Q: I live in Birmingham, England and saw two Honey Bees Mating but strangely there was a normal sized ... A: Calvin, I'm not sure what to tell you as to what was happening. Honey Bees, like most other bees, ... | ||
| Mud structure | 9/29/2009 | Jack DeAngelis |
| Q: Found a mud structure in my garage that is completely enclosed and is square shaped. It is slightly ... A: Ed, I think this is probably a mud dauber nest. Moths and butterflies don't make these sorts of ... | ||
| Araneus.....? | 9/29/2009 | Ed Saugstad |
| Q: I live in Northern Minnesota, USA. This spider fascinated me all summer. Any help on its identity ... A: I believe that it is most likely Araneus saevus - see http://tinyurl.com/yclzuex for an image. ... | ||
| cattipillar | 9/29/2009 | Teá Kesting-Handly |
| Q: Do you know what this is? It's at least three inches long and has been feasting on my green bell ... A: Ann, That's a Tobacco Hornworm (Manduca Sexta). They will eat your peppers, tomatoes, and other ... | ||
| Bugs in Budapest | 9/29/2009 | Nathan Riggs |
| Q: I have attached 3 links to the photos which I'd like to ask for identification. All photos were ... A: Ok...thanks for sending the pictures! The red and black insect is a species of bug related to ... | ||
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Entomology (Study of Bugs)
Answers by Expert:
Ed Saugstad
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
Will accept most questions in general entomology, including those related to medical entomology, taxonomy, ecology, arthropod surveillance, and pest management. If you are requesting a 'mystery bug' identification, PLEASE either attach an image to your question, or post an image on a web page (such as Flickr) so that I can look at it, as verbal descriptions frequently are insufficient for a definitive identification.
Experience
21 years in the U.S. Army as a medical entomologist; duties varied from surveillance of pest populations (including mosquitoes, cockroaches, ticks, and stored products pests) to conducting research on mosquito-virus ecological relationships and mosquito faunal studies. Ten years as a civilian analyst for the Department of Defense, primarily on distribution of vector-borne diseases worldwide. Limited experience on surveillance of agricultural insects in North Dakota and Indiana.
Organizations
Entomological Society of America, West Virginia Entomological Society, Society for Vector Ecology, National Speleological Society, West Virginia Association for Cave Studies.
Publications
American Journal of Public Health, Contributions of the American Entomological Institute, Japanese Journal of Sanitary Zoology, Journal of Economic Entomology, Mosquito News, and Mosquito Systematics.
Education/Credentials
B.S. in entomology from North Dakota State University in 1963, M.S. in entomology from Purdue University in 1967.
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