Yard bugs (SW Pennsylvania)

GregorSamsa

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Took a walkabout on our property this morning, thought I'd share. As spring & summer approach, I will update this thread.

Big red mites that I believe to be a Dinothrombium sp.
uploadfromtaptalk1334508075753.jpg

Margined carrion beetle (Oiceoptoma noveboracense) larvae feeding
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This is exciting for me, because my intent in placing a dead opossum there was to bury it & attract these guys for a colony.... Never got to burying it. But now that they've come, I'm planning on digging & putting a small door over top, to maintain a natural feeding pit. Basically setting up an outdoor colony in the ground ;)

Lovely gal hanging out in a pile of dead bark...
Dolomedes tenebrosus
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GregorSamsa

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Some from last summer/fall...

Cicindela sexguttata
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Arilus cristatus
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Argiope trifasciata
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Agelenopsis sp.
uploadfromtaptalk1334509080439.jpg
 
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GregorSamsa

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Not the best pic, but...
This lady has been living just outside my front door for about a month & I just noticed that she's got an egg sac. There are a couple more of this species hanging out on our deck as well.

uploadfromtaptalk1334901099708.jpg
 

Shrike

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Wow, nice looking Dolomedes! I know Hemiptera when I see it but that's about as specific as one entomology class will get you. Is Arilus cristatus a type of assassin bug? Very cool.
 

GregorSamsa

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Wow, nice looking Dolomedes! I know Hemiptera when I see it but that's about as specific as one entomology class will get you. Is Arilus cristatus a type of assassin bug? Very cool.

Hey, thanks! That's one of two fishing spiders I've found around here since we moved in late last summer. I must say, I love living in the country. I never saw anything exciting in the city!

Yup, that's a "wheeled" assassin bug... They've started showing up more around the area within the last year or so, Id never seen one untill last year- I think it was catfishrod that enlightened me as to what it was.
 

Shrike

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The Cicindella you posted a pic of...are they the small beetles I keep seeing everywhere (mostly in the woods and adjacent to streams, ponds, etc)? They're under an inch long, are extremely fast, and without fail, fly away whenever I try to get a picture of one. Your picture is a dead ringer, but do the ones you see behave that way?

That certainly looks like Arilus cristatus to me.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/454/bgimage

I'm wondering if the nymphs of that species quickly lose that color as they mature? And why the red coloration? Is it aposematic?

Sorry for the barrage of questions!
 

GregorSamsa

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The Cicindella you posted a pic of...are they the small beetles I keep seeing everywhere (mostly in the woods and adjacent to streams, ponds, etc)? They're under an inch long, are extremely fast, and without fail, fly away whenever I try to get a picture of one. Your picture is a dead ringer, but do the ones you see behave that way?

That certainly looks like Arilus cristatus to me.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/454/bgimage

I'm wondering if the nymphs of that species quickly lose that color as they mature? And why the red coloration? Is it aposematic?

Sorry for the barrage of questions!
Sorry I may not have answers for your questions ;)

...I've only seen that Cicindella sp. a couple of times, and yes they were super fast & erratic when I saw them & flew away quickly. They were small, maybe 3/4" long. Our property is surrounded by woods & I saw them near our deck & surrounding gravel after a heavy rain. Sounds to be the same bug you're seeing. Their color is striking, isn't it?

Thanks for the link! I'm confident that it was indeed a wheeled nymph. I also wonder those things about the coloration... I would imagine it must be aposematic... The little guy was pretty small, but definitely showed some attitude when I got close to take a picture. It was threat posturing at my phone like mad! I've never seen a nymph before, I'm curious how fast they grow. We just recently started seeing wheeled assassins in our area, the fact that there are youngins hanging around my deck is exciting for me.
 

Shrike

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Sorry I may not have answers for your questions ;)

...I've only seen that Cicindella sp. a couple of times, and yes they were super fast & erratic when I saw them & flew away quickly. They were small, maybe 3/4" long. Our property is surrounded by woods & I saw them near our deck & surrounding gravel after a heavy rain. Sounds to be the same bug you're seeing. Their color is striking, isn't it?

Thanks for the link! I'm confident that it was indeed a wheeled nymph. I also wonder those things about the coloration... I would imagine it must be aposematic... The little guy was pretty small, but definitely showed some attitude when I got close to take a picture. It was threat posturing at my phone like mad! I've never seen a nymph before, I'm curious how fast they grow. We just recently started seeing wheeled assassins in our area, the fact that there are youngins hanging around my deck is exciting for me.
The color on those beetles is definitely amazing. I just wish they were more inclined to sit still ;)

You should try raising one of those assassin nymphs. The transition from nymph to adult would impressive to see. Just watch those fingers ;) I've heard a bite from Arilus cristatus is pretty painful.
 

GregorSamsa

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The color on those beetles is definitely amazing. I just wish they were more inclined to sit still ;)

You should try raising one of those assassin nymphs. The transition from nymph to adult would impressive to see. Just watch those fingers ;) I've heard a bite from Arilus cristatus is pretty painful.
I thought about that- after I knew what it was. But alas, have seen no more. Ill keep you updated ;) ...Yeah, id rather not get nailed by that proboscis. That's a pretty intense beak.
 

tarcan

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very cool, I need to get down to Pensylvania! That assassin bug with the big "wheel" is amazing!
 

GregorSamsa

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White crab spider (Thomisidae sp.)

(See next post... Forgot to attach... having a hard time adjusting to the iPhone.)
 

DeidraDisaster

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Very cool pics! You are making me want to head out to the woods and see what I can find. I know we have some cool insects hidden in Idaho, somewhere.
 
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