Jumping Spider enjoying a sunny day

when planting a rose, I saw a little supposedly jumping spider munching some other bug (spider?):

From Bugs

From Bugs

Tiny wasps could curb a massive stink bug invasion

USDA researchers in Delaware are working to find a safe way to dispatch the region's newest pest
By Mary Carole McCauley, The Baltimore Sun

Maryland's newest terrorist life form — the brown marmorated stink bug — may eventually meet its archnemesis in the form of a tiny prizefighter of a wasp from Asia.

The parasitic wasps that are being raised in quarantine in a Delaware laboratory are not glamorous-looking bugs. They are black, stocky and about the size of the comma in this sentence.

But they are uncommonly efficient at hunting down and injecting their offspring into stink bug egg masses. In true horror-movie fashion, the larvae consume the stink bugs from the inside out. When the wasps grow into adults, they chew their way out, procreate — and go on the hunt for more stink bug eggs.

"Tests have shown that these wasps will destroy up to 80 percent of the stink bug population," says Kim Hoelmer, the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture scientist in charge of the project. "They're efficient egg-stinging machines. For something so tiny, it's absolutely amazing the behaviors that are hard-wired into their little brains."

Stink bugs aren't a threat to human health. And if they were merely odoriferous and annoying, chances are that the nation's top bug experts wouldn't be going to so much trouble to locate and develop an insect assassin.

But not only do stink bugs represent an unprecedented threat to U.S. vegetable farms and orchards, they have the potential to drive up food prices just when the nation is struggling to emerge from a recession. Bug experts say that the Asian wasp may be one of their best tools for keeping the stink bug population down to a manageable buzz.

"I've never seen such a serious pest enter the U.S. agricultural system," said Tracy Lesky, research entomologist with the West Virginia-based Appalachian Fruit Research Station, "if only because they attack so many crops."

Populations of stink bugs have been increasing steadily in Maryland for the past five years, and are poised to invade the state in record numbers during the coming growing season.

"I think we're going to have a bumper crop," says Michael Raupp, an entomologist at the University of Maryland. "If 1 in 10 people had stink bugs in 2010, 9 in 10 people will have them in 2011."

Hoelmer and his team have been importing and studying the parasites since 2005.

Because the wasps are not allowed inside the United States except for research purposes, technicians must don biohazard suits before going through a set of five pressurized locked doors inside the Louis A. Stearns Laboratory, where the wasps are housed.

Inside the quarantine rooms, research technician Kathy Tatman stuck a wad of cotton inside a piece of plastic tubing. She inserted the other end of the tube into a petri dish in which live wasps are kept, and inhaled through the cotton until several female bugs were pulled up into the tube. Tatman moved the tube into a second petri dish containing a fresh layer of pale green stink bug eggs, breathed out, and deposited the mama wasps on a nearby leaf.

Once the wasps find the egg mass, she said, they will almost certainly "sting" every one, eventually killing the embryonic stink bugs inside.

Preliminary indications are that wasps are effective, Hoelmer said, and, just as important, won't attack other, more beneficial bugs.

But establishing the necessary scientific proofs takes time. If all goes well, Hoelmer hopes to have authorization to release the Asian wasps into the environment some time in 2013.

For desperate farmers, two years might not be soon enough. So last month, Maryland joined nine other states and submitted a grant proposal for $22 million to the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to explore both long and short-term solutions to the stink bug problem.

Hoelmer's wasps are part of that proposal. So are a group of scientists in Beltsville who think they have identified the stink bug pheromone, or chemical signal, that causes a large amount of the insects to congregate. If researchers can replicate the pheromone, they could potentially trap and kill the bugs before they damage the fruit.

Researchers also are trying to come up with pesticides that will poison stink bugs, repellants that will deter them, fungi that will attack them, and a various other methods.

"We're taking a cafeteria of different approaches," Lesky said.

"We still don't have any proven tools, but we're way ahead of where we were at this time last year. We have all the pieces in place, and we're working to find solutions as quickly as we can."

Right now, stink bugs are causing the most damage to the mid-Atlantic region. But it's only a matter of time before the epidemic reaches the rest of the nation.

Stink bugs are portable, voracious and formidably adaptable, and populations of the insect have been verified in 33 states.

Brown marmorated stink bugs can walk, and they can fly long distances. They are superb hitchhikers, often traveling unseen inside the door jamb of a car or truck. They can live in wet places and dry. They flourish in hot climates, and in cold ones.

In China, Japan and Korea, stink bugs don't have much of a taste for veggies, but in the United States, the bugs will happily consume everything from soybeans to tomatoes. The insects also seem to enjoy munching on such ornamental shrubs as butterfly bush and dogwoods.

Orchard owner Robert Black knows the bug experts are doing everything they can. He just hopes he can hold on long enough for them to find a solution.

Last season, he found stink bug damage on a third of the Catoctin Mountain Orchard's entire fruit crop, and on fully half of his Pink Lady apples.

Though Black can recoup some of his loss by converting damaged produce to applesauce and juice, these items are much less profitable than whole fruit.

"We need help," Black said. "I had 30 to 35 percent damage last season, and I can't handle 40 to 50 percent. That's what I'm scared about."

He warned that if the problem continues unabated for too long, food prices could rise.

"This is a major problem, not just for fruit growers, but for consumers," he said. "I don't mean to scare people, but eventually, this could start affecting the food supply. People can live without gasoline, but they can't live without food."

U.S. Rep. Roscoe G. Bartlett will hold a town hall meeting for farmers in Emmitsburg on March 18 specifically to discuss the stink bug problem in Maryland.

"Stink bugs have all the features you'd design in a terrorist bug," he said. "They're an invasive species, and they have no native predators. They eat every plant with a thin skin and sugar. They could inflict a plague of biblical proportions."
read the hole article here
autor: mary.mccauley@baltsun.com
Copyright © 2011, The Baltimore Sun

bald faced hornets

In May a (later identified as) bald faced hornet queen started to build a nest under my backdoor-light, soon it grew and the first worker hornets emerged. By Mid-August the nest looked abandoned and when I took it down by end of September, there were a lot of unhatched queens and drones still inside - very sad...

a very good description of the bald facet hornet's life-cycle I found here.

Bald faced hornets are absolutely peaceful companions - I could touch(!) their nest and they didn't mind! And very useful garden-helpers too - the aphid population was about zero...

Praying Mantis

Praying Mantis trying to hide from next day's storm on Aug-25-2010

she was climbing up the house, but didn't make it - too slippery,

after she fell down frequently I picked her up, and put her on the trunc of one of the trees and she happily climbed up there to find a save place to hide,

when you look at her body, it's a lil bit swollen - she's pregnant, and soon will prepare this Ootheca to hide her eggs in.

glow-bug

I have no idea, what this bug might be about - a strange caterpillar perhaps?

any suggestions to identify this bug would be greatly appreciated:

a BIG thank you to Saskia, who identified this caterpillar - it's a Orgyia leucostigma or White-marked tussock caterpillar

From Bugs

From Bugs

and that's how the mature moth looks like, image found here:

red aphids on my tomato plant

From Pawgang's roses and weather-rollercoaster

all at a sudden this strange red bugs were sitting on the screen close to this tomato leave  - not moving much over the few days they emerged from some unknown source - first time ever I saw these little "devil bugs"

From Pawgang's roses and weather-rollercoaster

after torturing google those bugs turned out to be red aphids:

Red Aphids - Organic Gardening Articles

By Patricia Wainwright

The beginning of Spring usually signals warm weather and an urge to spend some time in the garden admiring our plants and their fragrant flowers. This enthusiasm can be dampened, however, if we happen to find colonies of red aphids on our carefully looked after plants. If this is the case, don’t worry, there are quite a few things you can do to save your plants.

Red aphids are small insects that multiply in the spring, with the advent of warmer days. They form colonies at the ends of the greenest and most tender shoots. The reason for this is that they feed on the plant’s sap by introducing their long and thin suckers into the tender parts of the plant. Their constant feeding depletes our plants of energy and they become weak, their leaves curl up, and the flowers can drop. They could also transmit viruses and other diseases from other plants in the area, so it is extremely important to get rid of them as soon as we notice their presence.

Fortunately, it is quite easy to get rid of red aphids, and there are many ways of doing so. Maybe the most natural way of disposing of red aphids is to use a jet of water directly from the hose in order to make them fall off, in which case they will most likely get stuck to the mud under the plant. This method can be very effective, but you must always remember to check every week to see if the aphids have reappeared. If they have, you could always try another method.

To drastically reduce the number of red aphids in your plants, you should prune the tips of the branches, where aphids gather. Of course, this is not possible if your plants are in bloom, but if not, this is a quick way of getting rid of great numbers of aphids naturally. Another organic and natural way of controlling red aphids is to introduce into our garden the species of insects that feed on red aphids. The most beloved of these insects is sure to be the ladybug, but there are others, like the lacewing fly and the praying mantis. These beneficial insects can eat large quantities of aphids, assuring our plants’ survival by keeping aphids under control.

If this solution does not appeal to you, you can try making mixes with a variety of ingredients that are sure to keep them at bay. A possible option is to mix alcohol and water, and add to it about five crushed cloves of garlic. Soapy water will also do the trick. Spray any of these on your plants once a week and you will have no more problems with red aphids.

If none of the previous suggestions work, you can always resort to pesticides. Try to use a systemic pesticide to control aphids, so that you do not kill beneficial insects as well. Be careful not to use systemic pesticides on plants or fruits that you will later want to eat. Follow these suggestions and your problems with red aphids will be solved for good.

Author Patricia Wainwright Resource: Get all the facts about pest and disease and organic gardening at GreenThumbArticles.com!
Article Source: Red Aphids
Article From: Organic Gardening Articles

Eastern Tent Bugs

From Pawgang's roses and weather-rollercoaster

I discovered these on Sunday last - that's what Wiki tells about them:

Eastern tent caterpillar

"""The Eastern tent caterpillar (Malacosoma americanum) is a univoltine, social species that forms communal nest in the branches of trees. It is sometimes confused with the gypsy moth, or the fall webworm and may be erroneously referred to as a bagworm which is the common name applied to unrelated caterpillars in the family Psychidae. The moths oviposit almost exclusively on trees in the plant family Rosaceae, particularly cherries (Prunus) and apple (Malus). The caterpillars are hairy with areas of blue, white, black and orange. The blue and white colors are structural colors created by the selective filtering of light by microtubules that arise on the cuticle.

In terms of complexity of interactions, the Tent Caterpillar stands near the pinnacle of caterpillar sociality. The adult moth lays her eggs in a single batch in late spring or early summer. The egg masses contain on average 200-300 eggs. Embryogenesis proceeds rapidly and within three weeks fully formed caterpillars can be found within the eggs. But the small caterpillars lie quiescent until the following spring, chewing their way through the shells of their eggs just as the buds of the host tree begin to expand.

The newly hatched caterpillars initiate the construction of a silk tent soon after emerging. They typically aggregate at the tent site for the whole of their larval life, expanding the tent each day to accommodate their increasing size. Under field conditions, the caterpillars feed three times each day, just before dawn, at mid-afternoon, and in the evening after sunset. During each bout of feeding the caterpillars emerge from the tent, add silk to the structure, move to distant feeding sites en masse, feed, then return immediately to the tent where they rest until the next activity period. The exception to this pattern occurs in the last instar when the caterpillars feed only at night. The caterpillars lay down pheromone trails to guide their movements between the tent and feeding sites. The insect has six larval instars. When fully grown, the caterpillars disperse and constructcocoons in protected places. The adults (imago) emerge about two weeks later. They are rather strictly nocturnal, they start flying after nightfall, and possibly stop some hours before dawn already (Fullard & Napoleone 2001). Mating and oviposition typically occur on the same day as the moths emerge from their cocoons; the females die soon thereafter.

The tent of the eastern tent caterpillar is among the largest built by any tent caterpillar. The tents are constructed in the crotch of the host tree and are typically oriented so that the broadest face of the structure faces the southeast, taking advantage of the morning sun. The caterpillars typically add silk to the structure at the onset of each of their daily activity periods. Silk is added directly to the surface of the tent as the caterpillars walk back and forth over the structure. The silk is laid down under slight tension and it eventually contracts, causing the newly spun layer of silk to separate from the previously spun layer. The tent thus consists of discrete layers separated by gaps within which the caterpillars rest. The tent has openings that allow the caterpillars to enter and exit the structure. Openings are formed where branches jut from the structure but are most common at the apex of the tent.

Light has a great effect on the caterpillars while they are spinning and they always spin the majority of their silk on the most illuminated face of the tent. Indeed, if under experimental conditions the dominant light source is directed at the tent from below, the caterpillars will build their tent upside down. Caterpillars continue to expand their tent until they enter the last phase of their larval life. The sixth-instar caterpillar conserves its silk for cocoon construction and adds nothing to the tent. The tents are multifunctional. They facilitate basking, offer some protection from enemies, provide for secure purchase, and act as a staging site from which the caterpillars launch en masse forays to distant feeding sites. The elevated humidity inside the tent may facilitate molting.

Eastern tent caterpillars are among the earliest of caterpillars to appear in the spring. Because the early spring weather is often cold, the caterpillars rely on the heat of the sun to elevate their body temperatures to levels that allow them to digest their food. Studies show that below 15 °C (59 °F) the caterpillars are unable to process the food in their guts. Early instars of the tent caterpillar are black and their bodies readily absorb the rays of the sun. When basking, the caterpillars typically pack together tightly, reducing heat loss due to convective currents. The long setae that occur on the caterpillars also serve to stem convective heat loss. The caterpillars may aggregate on the surface of the tent or within the structure. The tents act as miniature glass houses, trapping the heat of the morning sun and allowing the caterpillars to warm more quickly than they would if they remained outside the tent. Studies have shown that basking, aggregated caterpillars can achieve temperature excesses (Tbody-Tambient) of as much as 44 °C. Indeed, the caterpillars can easily overheat and they must take evasive action when they become too hot.

Because of its layered structure, the tent is thermally heterogeneous and the caterpillars can adjust their temperature by moving from layer to layer. The caterpillars may also aggregate on the outside of the shaded side of the tent and hang from the tips of their abdomens to enhance convective heat loss and cooling.

As shown for some other caterpillars, eastern tent caterpillars are capable of generating a small amount of metabolic heat while they digest their meals. When recently fed caterpillars pack tightly together, the temperature of the caterpillars in the interior of the mass may be several degrees Celsius above ambient temperature even in the absence of a radiant heat source. It is unclear whether this small heat gain has a significant effect on the rate of caterpillar growth.

Tent caterpillars, like many other species of social caterpillars, vigorously thrash the anterior part of their bodies when they detect predators and parasitoids. Such bouts of thrashing, which may be initiated by a single caterpillar, radiate rapidly though the colony and may result in group displays involving dozens of caterpillars. Such displays create a moving target for tachinid flies, wasps and other small parasitoids that lay their eggs on or in the body of the caterpillar. They also clearly deter stink bugs and other timid predators. Groups of caterpillars resting on the surface of the tent constitute aposematic displays. Few birds other than the cuckoo find the hairy caterpillars palatable. The leaves of the cherry tree are cyanogenic and the caterpillars regurgitate cyanide ladened juices when disturbed.

Tent caterpillars secrete silk from a spinneret wherever they go and frequently used pathways soon bear conspicuous silk trails. As the caterpillars move about the tree, they largely confine their movements to these trails. Curiously, it is not the silk that they follow but a trail pheromone secreted from the posterior tip of their abdomen. Caterpillars deposit exploratory trails by dragging the tip of their abdomen as they move over the tree in search of food. Caterpillars that find food and feed overmark the exploratory trails they follow back to the tent, creating recruitment trails. Recruitment trails are much more attractive to the caterpillars than exploratory trails and they serve to lead hungry caterpillars directly to the newest food finds. It is possible for a single successful forager to recruit the entire colony to its food find.

The exact identity of the trail pheromone of the eastern tent caterpillar has not yet been determined but the chemical 5ß-cholestane-3-one has been shown to be fully competitive with the authentic trail pheromone. Caterpillars readily follow trails of this chemical, even abandoning their own trails in favor of artificial trails prepared with the compound.

The eastern tent caterpillar is of some importance as a plant pest since it may defoliate ornamental trees. Defoliated trees, however, rarely suffer significant damage and typically refoliate within several weeks. More seriously, the caterpillar has been implicated in Mare Reproductive Loss Syndrome (MRLS), but the exact mechanism by which the caterpillar triggers abortion in horses has yet to be determined. Many different theories have been proposed, but many scientists now believe that the hairs of the caterpillar act as tubes that, once puncturing the digestive tract, allow bacteria to escape into the uterus."""

source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_tent_caterpillar