Arthropod Collection (page 34)

Ladybird
A waterlogged ladybird on the edge of a leaf, unable to move until droplet dries

Panorpa communis, scorpion fly
A male scorpion fly devouring a dead insect, which they often steal from spiders webs in hedgreows and nettlebeds. Their name comes from the shape of the males tail, which resembles a scorpions

Melolontha melolontha, mating cockchafer beetles
The cockchafer has a black thorax, rusty brown elytra or wing cases, and brown legs. It also has characteristic antennae which fan out

Nematus ribesii, gooseberry sawfly larvae
These caterpillars feed voraciously on gooseberry leaves, red and white currant leaves. They display distinct black spots on their green bodies and can have up to three generations within one year

Honeybee visiting a flower
A working honeybee visiting a flower and collecting pollen

Acrididae, grasshopper
A young grasshopper feeding on a leaf blade. There are eleven native species of grasshopper in Britain, which vary in size from 20 to 30mms

Antheraea sp. Emperor moth caterpillars
Caterpillars of the Emperor moth. Painting by Pieter de Bevere from the Loten Collection dated (1754-57) held at the Natural History Museum, London

Parahelops darwinii, beetle
Beetle collected by Charles Darwin during his stop at Valparaiso, Chile, 1835 on one of his voyages

Staphylinus olens, devils coach horse beetle
A devils coach horse beetle from Europe. This beetle, when alarmed raises its abdomen and opens its jaws

Calliphora vomitoria, bluebottle laying eggs on carrion
Bluebottles or blow flies lay eggs and feed on rotten meat. Upon emerging from the pupa, adult female blowflies are capable of mating and laying eggs in under 5 days

Dytiscus marginalis, the underside of a great diving beetle
Great diving beetles are aquatic insects, and are found in pond and lake habitats. They can grow up to 30mm in length

Limacodidae, nettle caterpillar from Belize
A brightly coloured nettle caterpillar from the family Limacodidae. Specimen photographed in Belize

Stink bug gland
A close-up of the gland located on the thorax of the stink bug, from which they produce a pungent odour to deter enemies

Volucella sp. hover-fly
Photograph of a hover-fly (Volucella sp.) on a flower

Ammophila sp. sand wasp
Page 114 of Megabugs (1995) by Miranda MacQuitty. A sand wasp with her caterpillar prey

Apis sp. honeybee visiting a flower
A honeybee collecting nectar and pollen whilst visiting a garden flower

Adult gall wasp
Gall wasps are dark-coloured tiny insects only a few millimetres long. Most gall wasps form galls which are abnormal growths on a plant or tree which develop as a result of the attack

Psittaculirostris desmarestii, large fig parrot
Plate 35 from Louis-Isidore Duperreys Voyage de la Coquille 1822-1825, Zoologie Atlas, (1826). From drawings made during his voyage to Chile, Peru, Polynesia, Indoneasia

Ixias reinwardti
Photograph of a mounted specimen of the butterfly (Ixias reinwardti)

Ammophila sabulosa, sand wasp and prey
A sand wasp dragging her prey back towards her burrow. They stock their nests with the caterpillars, depositing a paralysed caterpillar in each nest and then seals it with sand

Corixa sp. water boatman
A water boatman has fringed back legs for swimming. This kind feeds on plant material and does not swim upside down

Lithobius sp. centipede
Centipedes are reddish-brown, flattened, elongated arthropods. The first pair of legs on a centipede are modified into poisonous fangs which are located below the mouth

Cynipidae, adult gall wasps
Adult gall wasps inspecting an oak gall in which the parasitic wasps lay their eggs

Raphidia sp. snakefly
Snakeflies are so called because of their ability to raise their long necks above the rest of their body. They grow to approximately 20mms long and feed on small insects such as aphids

Grub of a house long-horn beetle
The grub of a house long-horn beetle boring into and feeding on wood. Infestations of the larvae can cause great damage to household furniture

Melolontha melolontha, mating cockchafers
A pair of mating cockchafer beetles. Note the difference in size between the male and female

Appias nero, orange albatross butterfly
Photograph of a mounted specimen of an orange albatross butterfly collected by Wallace from Sarawak, Borneo

Rhyssa wasp pupa
A pupa transforming into a female rhyssa wasp within burrow inside a piece wood

Morellia simplex, sweat fly
The sweat fly or syrphid fly looks like a very small bee and can be seen hovering around flowers. Specimen for the collections of the Natural History Museum

Formica rufa, wood ants
Wood ants massing outside their nest to absorb heat from the spring sunshine

Bombus sp. bumblebee visiting a flower
A bumblebee visiting an attractive garden flower, collecting nectar and adding pollen to the pollen sac shown here on its hind leg

A female parasitic wasp inspecting an oak apple which she will pierce with her ovipositor to lay her eggs

Anomalocaris canadensis
Reconstruction of a 520 million year old predatory marine species from the Middle Cambrian, Burgess Shale in British Columbia, Canada

Adult gall wasps
Gall wasps are dark-coloured tiny insects only a few millimetres long. Most gall wasps form galls which are abnormal growths on a plant or tree which develop as a result of the attack

A looper caterpillar looking like a twig
A looper caterpillar mimicking a twig for camouflage. The caterpillar is so-called because of the arching movement of its body as it travels

Hypolimnas misippus, diadem butterfly
Photograph of a diadem butterfly (Hypolimnas misippus) collected from the South American and Old World Tropics

Ptinus tectus, spider beetle
Scanning electron microscope image of a spider beetle (x 9). The long antennae, hairy body and waist-like constriction give this beetle the appearance of a spider

Corixa, water boatman
A water boatman has fringed back legs for swimming. This kind feeds on plant material and does not swim upside down

Adalia bipunctata variant, two spot ladybird
A waterlogged two spot ladybird variant, unable to move until water droplets on the elytra dry

Acronicta aceris, sycamore moth caterpillar
The brightly coloured caterpillars of the sycamore moths are found in southern England and feed on the leaves of the sycamore tree, as well as other deciduous trees

Pyrrhosoma nymphula, large red damselfly
A close-up of a large red damselfly perched on a leaf. This species of damselfly is among the first to be seen each Spring

Dytiscus marginalis, great diving beetle
Great diving beetles are aquatic and are found in pond and lake habitats. They can grow up to 30mm in length

Coccinella 7-punctata, ladybird
A familiar seven spot ladybird feeding on an aphid. Ladybirds are a beneficial insect to gardeners as they feed on aphids both as an adult and as larva

Oak apple galls
Galls growing on the tips of two oak twigs

Phaodropus candidus, South American weevil
A South American weevil. Weevils are long-snouted beetles and form the largest family in the animal world

Carabus violaceus, violet ground beetle
A violet ground beetle is the U.Ks largest ground beetle, they are unable to fly, but travel quickly across the ground

Hydrotaea irritans, head fly
The eggs of the head fly are mainly laid on vegetation or faeces with the adults living mainly on sheep. Specimen from the collections of the NHM

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