Transcript Insects and Spiders in Kansas

Unit II Kansas Arthropods
Information
Introduction to Arthropods
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Insects and spiders belong to a larger Phylum
Arthropoda, which means “jointed leg”.
Insects are characterized by having 6 legs with joints,
and 3 body parts: head, thorax and abdomen. Most
have either one or two sets of wings.
Most insects go through various life stages, where they
change in form and appearance. There are many
variations, but these changes are called
“metamorphosis”.
Very few insects are harmful to humans or crops.
Many insects are very beneficial, especially the ones that
pollinate plants.
Arthropods, cont.
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Spiders are characterized by having 8 legs and 8
eyes. They have two body parts: cephalothorax
and abdomen.
Identification of most insects is very difficult.
Some of the more showy insects, like most of
the ones in this unit, are easy to learn the
species. Learning which Order insects belong in
is the first step to being able to find the species
in field guides.
Monarch
Monarch
Video of Ken Highfill’s class
observing Monarch bunch at Baker
Wetlands, in Lawrence, KS.
Monarch
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and butterflies
Only migratory butterfly that has a migration similar to birds.
When they breed, they lay eggs on milkweed plants, and the
breeding adults live for about one month.
About 4 generations are hatched in a summer, and the ones that
hatch out in August and September are the ones that will fly to
Mexico for the winter, and there they will congregate by the millions,
and live for about 8 months. They are not in a breeding state.
As they fly back north, they breed and die. The next generations
continues going farther north, breeding and dying, until the end of
the summer and the migratory cycle continues.
Monarch Watch tags the monarchs with special stickers and records
the data to keep track of migration. See www.monarchwatch.org
for more information.
Monarch con’t.
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Monarch butterflies are poisonous (not venomous—you
have to eat them to get sick).
Their black and orange colors are a warning to would-be
predators that they are poisonous. If a bird eats one, it
gets sick and throws it up, its heart beats very fast and it
remembers those colors and does not eat it again.
Monarch caterpillars live on the milkweed plants, which
have a cardiac glycoside in the “milk” that is poisonous
to most animals. The caterpillars can eat it and not get
sick, and that is what makes them poisonous to other
predators.
Viceroy
Note this black bar across the
hind wing. The Monarch does
not have this straight line.
Viceroy
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and butterflies
NOT poisonous, but it mimics the monarch
butterfly, which provides it protection from
predators.
Note the hind wing of the viceroy—the black
cross vein forms a line across the hind wing.
The monarch does not have this line.
Hackberry Butterflies
Hackberry Butterflies
Hackberry Butterflies
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and
butterflies.
Caterpillars feed on hackberry leaves.
Butterflies fly from July to September.
Often found in huge clouds around
puddles of water near hackberry trees.
Red Admiral
Red Admiral
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and
butterflies.
Not likely to be confused with any other
butterfly.
Can be found all across the U.S. in nearly
any habitat. Very common.
Question Mark
Question Mark
This is the “question mark”.
Question Mark
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and butterflies.
Belongs to a group of butterflies called Commas
(also called anglewings), and named for the
silvery comma shape on underneath of the hind
wing. This species has a “break” in the shape
that makes it look more like a question mark.
Wide ranging and fairly common in woodland
openings.
Elms and hackberries are among their host
plants.
Buckeye
Buckeye
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and
butterflies.
Common in southern regions but familiar
across the U.S.
Favors open habitats.
Named for large eyespots on the wings.
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and
butterflies.
One of the most familiar eastern
butterflies.
Common in forests, along streams and
gardens.
Called a swallowtail because of the two
“tails” trailing off of the hindwings.
Sulphurs
Sulphurs
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and butterflies.
Sulphurs in are usually some shade of yellow,
orange or white.
There are several species, and they are
challenging to tell apart.
Perch with closed wings.
Often you can see two flying together, around
each other going higher in the air—these are
often males “fighting”.
Fall Webworms
Fall Webworms
Fall Webworms
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and
butterflies.
Makes large webs across host plant
branches in the fall.
Host plants: walnuts, cottonwood, hickory,
mulberry.
Carpenter Ants
Carpenter Ants
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Order: Hymenoptera, the ants, wasps,
and bees.
Lives in hollow trees and tree limbs.
More likely found in woodland than urban
areas.
Honey Bee
Honey Bee
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Order: Hymenoptera, the ants, wasps,
and bees.
Imported from Europe.
Well known as a mild-tempered bee.
This is the bee common to bee keepers.
Grass Spider
Grass Spider
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Order: Araneae, the spiders
Common names are grass spider, wolf
spider and funnel-web weaver.
Makes a flat, dense web with a funnel offcenter.
Webs located on ground or heavy brush.
Typically have two dark bands on
abdomen.
Wheel Bug
Wheel Bug
Stink Glands
Wheel Bug
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Order: Hemiptera, the true bugs
Named for the cog-like wheel on thorax.
Predacious and beneficial
Not aggressive towards people, but the
bite is extremely painful.
Snowberry Clearwing
Snowberry Clearwing
Snowberry Clearwing
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Order: Lepidoptera, the moths and
butterflies.
It is a bumble bee hawk moth that visits
flowers in the daytime.
Named for clear section of wing without
scales.
Bush Cicada
Bush Cicada
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Order: Homoptera, the aphids, leafhoppers, and
cicadas
Incorrectly referred to as locusts (locusts are
grasshoppers)
Many species, and adults can be ½ inch long to 2 ½
inches long.
Their sounds, especially in July and August, are familiar
to nearly everyone.
Females can cause damage to some trees, as they lay
eggs in the twigs. When the eggs hatch, the nymphs fall
to the ground and develop in the soil. They feed on the
roots of the host plant. When the emerge, they molt
into adults, and their empty skins are common sights for
most people.
Some species occur every year, while the periodical
cicada is also called the 17-year cicada and occurs every
17 years. It last occurred in May, 1998.
Black Widow
Black Widow
Black Widow
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Order: Araneae, the spiders
A relatively shy spider that typically seeks
nesting sites under stones and embankments.
Shiny, black spider up to 3/8 inches in length
with a red spots above and a red hourglass
shape on the underside of their abdomen.
Neurotoxic venom causes severe abdominal
cramps, pain, nausea, sweating, and trembling.
Rarely causes death except in very small
children or the elderly.
Garden Spider
Garden Spider
Garden Spider
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Order: Araneae, the spiders
Several species of the Argiope genus.
Very common in Kansas, especially in late summer and
fall. They die in the fall after reproducing.
Quite large and beautifully marked with black, yellow
and silvery-white.
Webs have a thick, zig-zag line of webbing woven in.
Possibly as a way for birds to see the web and not fly
though it.
It is fun to catch bugs and toss them into the web and
watch the spider attack and wrap them in silk.
Spittlebug
Spittlebug
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Order: Homoptera, the aphids, leafhoppers,
and cicadas
Also called froghoppers or spittle insects.
The nymphal stages (pre-adult) life in masses of
white froth on the leaves or stems of plants
during May and June.
They make this froth by sucking the juices out of
the stem and churning it up into what looks like
spit.
Praying Mantis
Praying Mantis
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Order: Mantodea, the mantises
Medium to large, green or brownish, slender
insects with front legs adapted for catching and
holding prey.
Head moves around on a neck.
They feed on other insects and spiders, although
once in a great while the large ones might catch
a hummingbird.
They are very beneficial insects, harmless to
humans, and should not be destroyed.
Brown Recluse
Brown Recluse
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Order: Araneae, the spiders
Also referred to as the “fiddle-back” or “violin” spider.
One of two Kansas spiders (the other is the very shy and
uncommon black widow) that is dangerous to humans.
It’s venom can impose a very serious injury, although
not deadly. The bite may ulcerate and require removal
of tissue by a doctor.
Common in outbuildings, under boards and boxes, found
in little-used closets, attics and garages, where it is dry
and warm.
Scorpion
Scorpion
Scorpion
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Order: Scorpiones, the scorpions
Lives under stones on sunny hillsides.
Hunts insects at night and stings with their
tail.
Sting is similar to that of a bee.
Dung Beetle
Dung Beetle
Dung Beetle
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Order: Coleoptera, the beetles.
A type of Scarab beetle.
Helps with the decomposition of animal
manure and adds nutrients to the soil.
Consumes large amounts of dung.
Common Skimmer
Common Skimmer
Common Skimmer
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Order: Odonata, the dragonflies and
damselflies.
One of the most common and best known
dragonflies in Kansas.
Found over ponds and meadows.
Green Darner
Green Darner
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Order: Odonata, the dragonflies and
damselflies.
One of the largest dragonflies in Kansas.
Flies low at dusk to catch insects near
ponds.
Eastern Pondhawk
Eastern Pondhawk
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Order: Odonata, the dragonflies and
damselflies.
Lives over quiet waters, likes mats of
duckweed and floating plants.
One of the most ferocious dragonflies:
attacks all kinds of prey including each
other.
Paper Nest Wasp
Paper Nest Wasp
Paper Nest Wasp
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Order: Hymenoptera, the ants, bees,
and wasps.
Valuable insects that eat large number of
caterpillars.
Obscure Bird Grasshopper
Obscure Bird Grasshopper
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Order: Orthoptera, the grasshoppers and
katydids.
Light yellow line down its back.
Hind legs have bright yellow spikes.
Daddylonglegs
Daddylonglegs
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Order: Opiliones, the harvestmen.
Especially common in fall.
Feeds on dead insects and sometimes wet
dog food.
Very easy to identify.
Also called harvestmen.
Harmless—has a lot of venom, but teeth
are too small to penetrate human skin.
Lone Star Tick
Lone-star tick, easily
identified by white
spot on back.
Ticks (various species)
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Order: Acari, the mites and ticks
Family: Ixodidae
Several species of ticks in Kansas:
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Lone star tick, has white spot in center of back
Gulf coast tick, looks similar to Dog tick, with pale
netting mark behind head.
American Dog tick, large tick with U-shape behind
head.
Black-legged tick, the one in Kansas that is often the
transmitter of Lyme Disease. Not a deer tick, but
people call it that because it is similar.
References
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Insects in Kansas, by Kansas Department of
Agriculture, Nov. 2000
Kaufman Focus Guide to Butterflies of North
America, by Jim P. Brock and Kenn Kaufman
Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North
America, by Eric R. Eaton.
Dragonflies through Binoculars, by Sidney W.
Dunkle, 2000