Sphenophorus parvulus or commonly known as the bluegrass billbug is part of the weevil family under the order coleoptera. It gets the name billbug because of the long snout and extended thorax. This insect is considered as a turfgrass pest causing destruction primarily to Kentucky bluegrass, but also perennial ryegrass, fine fescues, and tall fescue. Description The bluegrass billbug and the bluegrass weevil are very similar, but there are distinct differences between the two such as the size difference and the antennae occur at the base of the snout rather than the tip. Billbugs become active and cause most of there destruction in summer time between June to August when the are adults, larvae and pupae. The third-instar larvae are about ¼-3/8 inches long and have brown head, white, and legless. Adult billbugs are difficult to locate in turf, but during the spring time, they can be found crossing driveways and sidewalks. They are about 3/8 inch long and are gray to brown to black. Life Cycle …show more content…
The adults overwinter in leaf litter and thatch until spring time when the temperature warm up. The adults become active seeking new areas to lay eggs and can be seen walking across pavement. The females lay white, kidney shaped eggs with in grass stems that are hollowed out. It takes about 7-14 days for the white larvae to hatch from the eggs and proceed to live and feed within the grass stem until its third-instar. During the second instars cycle, the larvae eat their way through the grass stem, breaking themselves out. The larvae go on to complete their third instar cycle in the thatch feeding roots and crowns. The larval stage takes about 5 to 8 weeks to complete before pupation occurs in the soil. The pupae are about 1 to 2 inches long and emerge as adults in about 7-10 days. They continue feeding on grass until they find their new overwintering site before temperatures begin to drop
United States Department of the interior Fish And Wildlife Service, . North American Fauna. 2012.
The boll weevil. It is a common name given to an insect that infests cotton plants. Fully grown, they tend to be “reddish-brown, gray, or almost black in color and are normally less than 0.24 inches long” ("What is a Boll Weevil?"). Its snout originates from its face with two fork like spurs that extend it further out. boll weevils hibernate in grass during the fall and will not reappear until the spring ("What is a Boll Weevil?"). This small beetle looking bug was responsible for shattering southern economies such as Enterprise, Alabama.
Pillbugs, A.K.A. sowbugs, are terrestrial isopods that belong to the Crustacea class. Other crustaceans that pillbugs are related to are lobsters, crabs, shrimp, and crayfish. These small, half inch creatures are classified as Arthropods due to their jointed legs. They have two pairs of antennae, four pairs of mouthparts, and seven main “torso” segments. After molting four or five times, a pillbug has entered adulthood. They first shed their posterior half of the skin, then, about two to three days later, the anterior half of the skin is shed. Pillbugs can be found in moist areas, such as near a broken sprinkler or under a decaying log. This is because the pillbugs, being crustaceans, breathe with gills, and must get their water through the
Hopkins, in the east Kootenay region of British Columbia. I. Life cycle, brood development and flight periods. The Canadian Entomologist 94: 531- 538
The life cycle starts as larva or caterpillar. First, the monarch lays the eggs on the milkweed plants. Next, the egg hatch into a caterpillar. The caterpillar then eats the milkweed plants until they are large enough to pupate (Emmel, 1999). Then, the caterpillar attaches a pad of silk to a stem of a milkweed plant so it can hang while it transform into a butterfly. Next, the caterpillar sheds it larval skin to reveal the chrysalis inside (Emmel, 1999). After it shed its skin, the pupa hardens and the chrysalis earns it name by glowing in the sun. As the pupa stage comes to an end, the butterfly can be seen through its pupa shell. The monarch emerges by splitting the pupa along the length of it proboscis (Emmel, 1999). First the legs emerge. Then the fluid fill body pumps its fluid into the veins of the wings while the body shrinks to normal size. Finally, the butterfly hangs from the pupa about two hours while the wings dry (Emmel, 1999).
The meadow vole, also know as the meadow mouse or the field mouse, has the largest population of any American species in the genus Microtus, appearing throughout Canada, Mexico, and in the northern and eastern regions of the United States. The size and color of the meadow vole adjusts depending on its location. It usually exists in grasslands, favors humid zones, but are equally likely to be found in forests. Microtus pennsylvanicus is sympatric with a diversity of small mammals over its extensive geographic assortment. Hawks, owls and some snakes are predators of Meadow voles. Moreover, they can have ecto- and endo-parasites, such as trematodes, cestodes, nematodes, acanthocephalans, anoplura, siphonaptera, diptera, and acarina. These parasites cause protozoan, bacterial, and viral infections. Microtus pennsylvanicus eats the most
After performing four experiments, we found that our results did show a trend in sowbug behavior in response to the varying intensities of light. The number of sowbugs in the covered side of the arena rose each time we did the experiment leaving the fully lit side almost empty every time. During the first third of the experiment in terms of obersation time, the sowbugs appeared to move back and forth between the lit and dark side evenly before ultimately deciding to migrate to the dark
Outline the physical similarities between the (Blaptica dubia) cockroach and the cricket. Explain previous studies on physical stress in the cricket and in different species of cockroaches. Briefly discuss how the metabolic rate between the two species has been found to be very similar.
In the movie Beetlejuice, the theme is that the afterlife is not really the end for us all; we live on a multiple level world between life and death, and need to respect the dead. The theme is idealistic and not applicable in real life to all people. Throughout the movie, Burton reveals his take on the living and life after death and the delicate interaction between the two. The character Otho, played by Glenn Shadix is key to Burton’s interpretation and scrutiny of the afterlife. Throughout the film Otho makes comments about the dead and even goes as far to steal The Handbook for the Recently Deceased. Otho comments on those who commit suicide and how they become civil servant s in the afterlife. Barbra and Adam Maitland, played by Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin are used as guides for the audience into the process of the afterlife and give a unique Ghost’s perspective on the process.
...s. They start out as an egg, quickly hatching into a larva. They soon after spin a cocoon around themselves. The larva will then change into a pupa. They now have eyes, wings, and legs.
The Grasshoppers have antennae that are almost always shorter than the body (sometime filamentous), and short ovipositors. These species that make easily heard noise usually do so by rubbing the hind femurs against the forewings or abdomen (stridulation), or by snapping the wing sin flight. Tympana, if present, are on the sides of the first abdominal segment. The hind femora are typically long and strong fitted for leaping. Generally they are winged, but hind winds are membranous while front wings (tegmina) are coriaceous and not fit for flight. Females are normally larger than males, with short ovipositors.
When the colony becomes well established, the queen begins to lay some eggs that develop into queens and males. It takes a few years before a colony becomes large enough to send out winged males and young queens to start new colonies. The cycle will now begin all over again. Nests come in all shapes and sizes. One tropical species built a nest that extended forty feet below the surface of the ground.
Fleas are very small insects. They are all flightless and do not have eyes, although two ocelli may be present. Their antennaes are short and their mouthparts are adapted for piercing and sucking. The female flea lays a few eggs daily that total up to 300 to 400 in its lifetime. The eggs are laid usually on animals and most drop off where they spend most of their time. Bedding, floor crevices, carpeting, along baseboards and areas near their favorite sleeping and napping sites are especially likely places where eggs will be found. These eggs hatch into larvae, which are baby fleas. The larvae spin a cocoon and, depending on environmental conditions, emerge as adults in as few as five days. The adult fleas then mate after a blood meal and then lay eggs. The life cycle is then repeated--until control measures break the cycle. The total life cycle can last from 25 days to several months. The bodies of both adults and young fleas have many backward pointing hairs and powerful leg muscles. Fleas can jump 80 times their own height and 150 times their body length. Fleas have many mites and parasites and can have up to 150 living in them at one time.
The first stage is the egg. This stage is where the adult female fly will lay eggs. Adult female flies will fly and lay eggs wherever a suitable place to breed with their cognition. Adult Females produce hundreds of small eggs and are usually included in most organic material such as compost and trash. Fly lay eggs individually and usually will be in a small group . The number of eggs produced is dependent on the size of the female flies. A female fly can lay up to 500 eggs in several groups and each group has a 75-150 eggs. The maturity of the eggs are in the next three to four days. Egg white flies flying egg is about 1.2 mm long. Normally, the e...
Females lay up to two-three white eggs per clutch in an year inside a tree cavity. Female macaw incubates the eggs for about 5 weeks, and the chicks start flying from the nest, about 90 days after hatching, they preen each other and their offspring for hours, cleaning bugs from their feathers. Their offspring leave their parents about an year later. Juveniles reach sexual maturity at 5 years of age.