Insects of Richmond

 I've recently been finding ants a lot. I've been finding some remarkable species, such as Brachyponera chinensis. I've also encountered one that is rather bizarre. The species is Pheidole dentata.  Here it is:  P. dentata, major P. dentata, minor I've only ever seen one colony of these ants. They were at my school under a hollowed out log. There was a large number of workers (minors) and approx. the same number of soldiers (majors). These are cool ants, especially because of the way they use their heads: the majors heads fit together like puzzle pieces. When many heads are in an entrance, nothing can pass.  The ants, despite their weird looks, are passive and reluctant to attack humans. I've only had one bite me during the whole time monitoring their nest. They also seem to be pretty OK with other insects and ants near their colony. I've found millipedes on the main mound, a leaf beetle ( Chrysolina bankii ) and even a hibernating Lasius claviger queen . There...

 As winter comes and the temperature drops to the 30's here in Richmond, there is still invertebrate life  to be seen. Among these are springtails, centipedes, millipedes, and ants. I've been collecting lots of ants recently, because I've mostly just been finding colones wherever I look.   The species I wanted to highlight in this post (I'll probably do multiple today) is Brachyponera chinensis . It is the first Ponerine ant I've ever seen.  Brachyponera chinensis, lateral Brachyponera chinensis, dorsal   Throughout its rather expansive range, B. chinensis is going to be the largest Ponerine in the area. I've seen the species in Chesterfield, where I go to school. The above specimen was collected at my school (8706 Quaker Lane, Bon Air, Chesterfield, VA). This ant is rather small, measuring in at 3 - 4 mm.  I've found this species under sizeable logs. I'm aiming to get some photos of the habitat, and will upload them later.  They live in large col...

The most fascinating family of wasps, in my opinion, is Pompilidae; that is, the spider wasps. As Eric R. Eaton put it in the Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America, " Spider wasps (family Pompilidae) are solitary, high-strung hunters".  In this post, I would like to focus on one genus: Poecilopompilus. This is one of the prettier genera, and P. interruptus mimics paper wasps.  Poecilopompilus interruptus (Interrupted Spider Wasp): pigsonthewing, Wikimedia Commons Poecilopompilus algidus (Frigid Spider Wasp): Xsanka, Wikimedia Commons Poecilopompilus are one of the larger genera of spider wasps in the eastern United States. They are, as the pictures above make evident, variable between species. The adult females, much like any other spider wasp, hunt large wolf spiders. They will dig a burrow after prey capture. During nest excavation, they cache the prey nearby, and it is then at risk of being parasitized. The wasps attempt to combat this by checking on the prey oft...

 I realize I haven't done any posts on Orthoptera (Grasshoppers, crickets, katydids) yet. Well, Yesterday I found a nice one. It is a Neoconocephalus triops, also known as a Broad-tipped Conehead. The creature:   Found this creature on a walkway, one without many food items, and a lot of pesticides. It has somehow made it, and I'm keeping it as a pet. I've Provided it with a large mesh container, some bread (for food) and some paper towels for catching droppings. The individual is a female, as shown by the prescence of an ovipositor. Note to reader: You do NOT  want to get bit by one of these. See those jaws? Those things closed on my skin once. 

 As I write more posts for this blog, I'm not going to have images that I took for some of them. I don't actually have a portable camera, so I can't take wild pics. If I use someone else's photo, photo credit will be listed, and permission asked. If it is a stock photo, the website (and the user) will be credited.  Onward. The insect I wanted to highlight today is a species of spider wasp (I study these, so there'll be more posts in the future). The species is common here in Richmond, VA. The scientific name is Auplopus architectus. This spider wasp does not have a common name, so it will be referred to as " A. architectus " for the remainder of the post. The wasp:  These wasps are among the smallest spider wasps in VA, and some of the most beautiful. They mainly hunt smaller orb weavers, and small wolf spiders. The nests are made in cavities, holes, pipes, etc. The female wasps gather up balls of mud, and form them into nests. These nests occur in cavitie...

Of all the places to look for insects, under debris (logs, boards) is the best.  Under them, many creatures shelter for the day. Then, they come out at night. One of the more common families of insects to do this are the Carabids, or ground beetles. Today I wanted to highlight this spectacular family, and in particular one species that seems to be really common here in Richmond. Here it is: This is, I believe, Pterostichus atratus*. Almost every board and log I flip yields some of these, and I'm always getting bit, letting them crawl on me, or watching them eat. Mostly,  I find them in open areas, and under sizable logs. I generally won't find them in the open, but when I flip logs, *voila*, one goes scurrying away. I'm almost never getting a good look at what these guys eat, because it's always so mutilated. My guess is they're either eating slugs or worms (anywhere I find these, there are LARGE populations of LARGE worms/slugs).  Specifically, places I've foun...