# Ground Mantid, Assassin Bug, and Beetles



## Texas Blonde (Jul 10, 2007)

I went out road hunting tonight, but the only critters I found were the bugs that were swarmed under the lights of the gas station.  I did find some cool ones though.

Ground Mantid.  I dont know the species, and would appreciate help identifying it.  I caught it so I could take more pictures in a better setting.  Hopefully Ill have feeding pictures tomorrow.












Assassin Bug.  Again, I dont know the species.












Blister beetle.  You guessed it, I dont know the species.












Another unidentified blister beetle.












Big Black Beetle.  This thing was enormous, when I saw it crossing the road, I thought it was a MM tarantula!


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## Ted (Jul 10, 2007)

I am not sure about the species of mantid..looks not to be a Carolinae..but maybe a Stagmomantis.
maybe additional pics will assist.
I see a large black Tenebrionid..or Darkling Beetle..very stinky.
 The particular species of assassin bug is also hard to spot I.d, but possibly a Zelus, or related subspecies.
Also the Blister beetle [beige one] is a nice find.

cool pics!!..where did you collect?

I just came back from a very fruitful insect collection trip out to the remote west texas desert mountain area[jeff davis county], and ended up with some seriously great finds, including solfugids,many types of assassin bugs, glorious beetles, Woodyi Beetles,[these are the big green/chrome colored ones below] Huge Oculea silk moths, many great Sphinx, cone nose bugs[triatoma], cool primitive scarabs of the flesh eating variety[trox]
and mantidlies..the list goes on..I have to freeze some of them soon after capture for identification and specimen preservation.

i will be post many pics, in another thread..but here's some of the large Sawyer beetes i collected [and  some of the other specimens.]
and a shot of me collecting moths on the mountain side..that's where the solfugids were running around eating my moths.


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## ftorres (Jul 10, 2007)

*Bug ID*

HEllo All,
Texas Blonde, very nice specimens you collected.
The mantis is a Yersiniops sp, most likely a male.
can't help with the others.
regards
FT


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## beetleman (Jul 10, 2007)

wow, awesome bugs as always! luv em all:clap:


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## Texas Blonde (Jul 10, 2007)

I found all these at a gas station in Gardendale, Tx.  It might not show up on a map, but its right outside Odessa.  The only one I collected was the mantid, I dont preserve them, so there was no reason to pick them up.  I would have picked up the assassin bug, but I had no idea what it was until I got a look at the pictures blown up.  When I found it running around, I was barely able to get the shots, it moved so fast.

Ted, I love the Davis Mountains.  Thats a great place to go to find all kinds of critters.  Im moving to Alpine, in Brewster County in December.


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## beetleman (Jul 10, 2007)

Ted said:


> I am not sure about the species of mantid..looks not to be a Carolinae..but maybe a Stagmomantis.
> maybe additional pics will assist.
> I see a large black Tenebrionid..or Darkling Beetle..very stinky.
> The particular species of assassin bug is also hard to spot I.d, but possibly a Zelus, or related subspecies.
> ...


wow! nice collection you have there,i'm more into the predatory beetles myself,calosoma,pasumachus etc. and also the assassin group aswell.


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## myrmecophile (Jul 10, 2007)

Nice trip but I sure hope you didn't collect all those Chrysina on this trip.


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## Ted (Jul 10, 2007)

myrmecophile said:


> Nice trip but I sure hope you didn't collect all those Chrysina on this trip.


thanks!
but..

why do you say* that.*?
they are legal to collect.


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## Ted (Jul 10, 2007)

beetleman said:


> wow! nice collection you have there,i'm more into the predatory beetles myself,calosoma,Pasimachus etc. and also the assassin group aswell.


excellent!
I also enjoy the predatory species..including Cicindela,Calasoma, and Pasimachus..as far assassin bugs..i also have raised many species of them as well..i became infatuated with assassins after getting severely bitten by one, a Black corsair to be precise...it was extremely painful, and took forever to heal.


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## Ted (Jul 10, 2007)

Texas Blonde said:


> I found all these at a gas station in Gardendale, Tx.  It might not show up on a map, but its right outside Odessa.  The only one I collected was the mantid, I dont preserve them, so there was no reason to pick them up.  I would have picked up the assassin bug, but I had no idea what it was until I got a look at the pictures blown up.  When I found it running around, I was barely able to get the shots, it moved so fast.
> 
> Ted, I love the Davis Mountains.  Thats a great place to go to find all kinds of critters.  Im moving to Alpine, in Brewster County in December.


wow!..cool!
I may be buying some property out there in a year or so.
my good friend bought a cabin out there a year or so ago, and it was killer getting to set up a mercury vapor light on the side of a mountain..the Bugs were thick as raindrops..i did collect a few Scolopendre..but no Tarantula..which I thought was odd..hell, i even got two solfugids and some unidentified black scorpions as well.
maybe one day we can connect and go do some serious collecting out there.


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## Canth (Jul 11, 2007)

The scorps were most likely Diplocentrus whitei. I think they're fairly common out there.


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## myrmecophile (Jul 11, 2007)

Yes they are legal to collect but there is no reason to collect so many. There has been a push to get this genus listed and collecting in numbers like this is the reason. Although they may be locally common at times overall they are not common beetles with C. gloriosa being the most common of the genus in the U. S.


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## Ted (Jul 11, 2007)

myrmecophile said:


> Yes they are legal to collect but there is no reason to collect so many. There has been a push to get this genus listed and collecting in numbers like this is the reason. Although they may be locally common at times overall they are not common beetles with C. gloriosa being the most common of the genus in the U. S.


although I disagree,you are certainly welcome to your opinion..and i will leave it at that.


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## Ted (Jul 11, 2007)

Canth said:


> The scorps were most likely Diplocentrus whitei. I think they're fairly common out there.


thanks.I am leaning towards that, untill i can take a closer look.
you are likely correct..a very cool scorp, indeed.


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## Dorcus (Jul 11, 2007)

Wow, that's a lot of C. gloriosa... You have any extras? I've never been to the Southwest so I have yet to add this species to my collection.


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## Ted (Jul 11, 2007)

Dorcus said:


> Wow, that's a lot of C. gloriosa... You have any extras? I've never been to the Southwest so I have yet to add this species to my collection.


will send you a pm about that!


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## myrmecophile (Jul 11, 2007)

No worries, I have to say though it makes me wish I could get out in the field. One thing I would try if the beetles are that common would be trying to rear them. Gloriosa at least has proven to be not too difficult to breed. I agree with the Scorpion Ident.


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## Ted (Jul 12, 2007)

myrmecophile said:


> No worries, I have to say though it makes me wish I could get out in the field. One thing I would try if the beetles are that common would be trying to rear them. Gloriosa at least has proven to be not too difficult to breed. I agree with the Scorpion Ident.


cool..yes, i am anticipating buying some property out there..i have permission to hunt in some seriously remote areas that may never have been properly documented..and plan to breed them and the Woodyi's as well as a few of the other local inverts..so that collecting will be kept to  a minimum..and interested collectors would have plenty of captive bred and quality stock to choose from.
i share my collections with the  museum,  zoo, and several other educational institutions..and provide them with locale data and such..whenever necessary.


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