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Do you know your plants?
For my Leafminers of North America project, I periodically need help identifying hostplants I find in my travels. You can peruse photos of them at iNaturalist. Thanks!
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Tag Archives: Ichneumonidae
Cocoon Within a Cocoon Within a Cocoon
The diamondback moth (Plutellidae: Plutella xylostella) is a European species that is now found all across North America, the larvae feeding on various plants in the mustard family (Brassicaceae). Apparently it’s considered a pretty serious pest, but I’d take it … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Brassica, Brassica oleracea, Brassicaceae, broccoli, Campopleginae, cocoon, Cryptinae, Diadegma, diamondback moth, Hymenoptera, hyperparasitoid, Ichneumonidae, Isdromas, Isdromas lycaenae, larva, leaf mine, Lepidium, Lepidium virginicum, Lepidoptera, moth, parasitism, parasitoid, peppergrass, Plutella, Plutella xylostella, Plutellidae, pupa
2 Comments
Marsh Marigold Menagerie
In the spring of 2013, I wrote about the four-toed salamander surveys I was conducting at the time, which involved crawling around in swamps all over northwestern Massachusetts. On June 1, the last day of the survey, Julia tagged along, … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Aphidiinae, beetle, Braconidae, Caltha palustris, Chloropidae, Chrysomelidae, Coleoptera, Diptera, Drosophilidae, Elachiptera, Ephedrus, fly, frit fly, fruit fly, ichneumon wasp, Ichneumonidae, larva, leaf beetle, leaf mine, marsh marigold, Megaselia, Megaselia limburgensis, Neurateles, new species, Orthocentrinae, parasitism, parasitoid, Phoridae, Prasocuris, Prasocuris boreella, pupa, Ranunculaceae, Scaptomyza, Scaptomyza pallida, Sciaridae, scuttle fly, Zygoneura, Zygoneura calthella
12 Comments
Life and Death on Mt. Greylock
This past weekend I attended my third Berkshire BioBlitz. At my first one in 2011, I barely left the parking lot at the summit of Mt. Greylock and photographed 166 different species of insects and arachnids. This time, Julia and … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged aphid, Berkshire BioBlitz, BioBlitz, blueberry, chalcid, Diptera, Fagaceae, Figitidae, fly, gall, gall midge, hover fly, ichneumon wasp, Ichneumonidae, larva, Membracidae, oak, ovipositor, parasitism, parasitoid, predation, Quercus, sawfly, Syrphidae, Torymidae, treehopper, Vaccinium, Vaccinium angustifolium, wasp
10 Comments
Another Mystery Solved, Sort Of
At the beginning of this month, I reported having found these tied leaves on smooth aster (Symphyotrichum laeve) plants in my backyard. On May 27, I had put three samples in jars on my desk to see what might emerge. On … Continue reading
Monthly Mystery #7: Clothesline Egg Sacs
On page 43 of Tracks & Sign of Insects, I included a photo of “a mysterious and very common egg sac, almost certainly of a long-jawed orbweaver (Tetragnathidae).” Here is another example, showing the full length of the “clothesline” from which … Continue reading
Spider Parasitoid
I have much too much going on right now to be writing blog posts, but I’m waiting for an oil change at the moment, so let’s see what I can do… On the first night of our road trip we … Continue reading
