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This was very small part of a huge collection of insects( ca.23000 species) which was at La Vanille Reserve des Mascareignes,Mauritius. It was the work of one man,Jacques Siedlecki ,over 30 years.
The Forest Bug, or Red-legged Shieldbug (Pentatoma rufipes) is a large brown shieldbug which has orange legs and slightly hooked projections at the front of the pronotum. The pale spot at the tip of the scutellum varies from orange to cream. At first glance, the Forest Bug appears similar to the other 'spiked' shield bug species; however, the shoulders are square-cut and rounded at the front, and it has black- and cream-chequered flanks.
This species overwinters as young nymphs, which feed mainly on oak. Alder, hazel and other decidous trees are also used, including apple and cherry. Adults are partly predatory, feeding on caterpillars and other insects as well as fruits.
New adults may be found from July onwards, surviving until the late autumn, and eggs are laid in August. Adults can sometimes be found in the early spring, suggesting that a secondary breeding cycle may be possible. Widespread and common across Britain in wooded areas, orchards and gardens.
Assassin bug Sycanus sp
Notice the spike on its back. Wonder if anyone knows the purpose of it. This guy has an exceptionally long proboscis which its uses for hunting and feeding.
size : 20mm
There have been a lot of awesome Micro scale bugs, and I wanted to do one as well. Micro is not a scale I'm familiar or confident with, so I turned to that old saying - "Build what you know"
I wonder how many folks will think this is just a photo of the old Mantis from the thumbnail and pass it on by. ;) Here is a shot of the two of them together.
The genes are the master programmers, and they are programming for their lives. They are judged according to the success of their programs in copying with all the hazards that life throws at their survival machines, and the judge is the ruthless judge of the court of survival - Richard Dawkins, The Selfish Gene.
Two "survival machines" - shield-bugs in this instance - helping their genes propagate through the gene-pool...
This scary looking bug is known as a Wheel Bug. It is in the assassin bug family Reduviidae. They attack and eat other bugs. Though they do not sting, they do bite and their bite is supposed to be quite painful. I didn't know this when I was photographing it and am glad I didn't try to pose it, though I wouldn't be inclined to touch such a scary looking bug. These bugs look like a mini Stegosaurus. OK, they have 6 legs and no tail, but they still remind me of the dinosaur.
The Flickr Lounge-Patterns
The ever diligent Lady Bug is on the hunt for Aphids and it appears she's found some.
The Boxelder Bug (Boisea trivittata) is a "true bug" that feeds on the seeds of maple trees. Like all "true bugs," it has "sucking mouth parts." This one was hanging out on a Spicebush, but there are plenty of maple seeds around for it to get its mouth parts into. You usually see photos of their striking orange-striped black backs, but I went for a bit more of a portrait this time.