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Katydids and Didn’ts
Katydid nymph on a leaf. Katydids are a member of the order Orthoptera (grasshoppers, katydids, crickets, etc.) and the family Tettigoniidae. Orthopteran nymphs, or immatures can be distinguished from...
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Spittlebugs
Spittlebug nymphs on a plant stem. Spittlebugs lay their eggs on plant stems. The young spittlebugs excrete special fluids which they whip into a foamy mass around themselves (in the above image some...
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Ants and Hoppers
Carpenter ants tending hopper nymphs in Argentina. Since we had the spittlebug nymphs earlier this week, I thought I’d take the opportunity to post a picture of some other hopper nymphs. These little...
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Water to Air – Baby Dragonflies
Final instar nymph of an aeshnid dragonfly (College Station, TX). Two years running our first planned field outing for the spring has coincided with one of Texas’s rare dips into below freezing...
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Sprawlers and Climbers – Lifestyles of dragonfly nymphs
An aeshnid dragonfly nymph preys on a libellulid dragonfly nymph. Last week I posted pictures of some dragonfly nymphs, and Jim Johnson of Northwest Dragonflier was kind enough to give me some ID tips...
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Frog Tongues, Vader Masks, and Dragonfly Nymphs
The extended spoon-shaped labium of a libellulid dragonfly nymph. One of my favorite examples of weird insect anatomy are the strange mouthparts of the aquatic nymphs of dragonflies and damselflies. A...
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Hopper Babies – Distinguishing adult and juvenile orthopterans
Katydid nymph on a leaf (Tettigoniidae). I found this impressively large katydid nymph hanging out at a gas station. I thought he provided a particularly clear illustration on the difference between...
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Orange Hoppers
Immature planthoppers hanging out in a fungal growth under a log. I found these brightly colored insects tucked under a log in Arizona, where they appeared to be feeding on a growth of fluffy white...
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