Burying beetles are often called sexton beetles since they perform duties similar to a sexton or gravedigger. These beetles have an amazing ability to locate fresh carrion from long distances, allowing them to find this valuable food source before competing scavengers do. But rather than consume the departed mouse, vole, shrew or other small vertebrate for themselves, they have other plans.

Bug Bytes

Bug Bytes: Burying Beetles And Mites

Learning to identify different wasp species can be challenging, but it’s not brain surgery. Well…actually, in this case it just might be. We’re talking about giant ichneumon wasps – a genus of only four species in North America. Females range from 3-4 inches in length, including what appears to be a long, massive stinger. While intimidating looking, they’re harmless. This stinger is actually an ovipositor, used for laying eggs.

Bug Bytes: Giant Ichneumon Wasps

If you’re lucky, it might be an annual occurrence in your backyard. For others, it may be a memory from a summer vacation. And for all the romantics out there, it’s the icing on the cake to a picture-perfect summer evening. We’re talking about fireflies. Fireflies, or lightning bugs, are famous for their glowing, flashing rear ends. But the questions are how and why do they have a glimmering derriere?

Bug Bytes: How Fireflies Glow

The more you learn about the insect world, you realize that the act of parasitism – where one species lives off of and feeds upon another species – is surprisingly common. This is especially true among wasps. And while the act of parasitism may seem a bit gory, the details can be incredibly fascinating. In the case of a wasp commonly called the Voodoo wasp, it takes parasitism to an entirely new level by also controlling its victim’s behavior.

Bug Bytes: Voodoo Wasp

The deserts of the southwestern United States are home to some remarkable animals. One kind of creepy crawly often associated with this region is the tarantula. With several species growing to the size of an adult human’s hand, they are certainly impressive. But what’s even more impressive is an aerial predator called the tarantula hawk. While images of a feathered predator with talons might pop to mind, tarantula hawks are actually wasps.

Bug Bytes: Tarantula hawk - Pepsis wasp

It was a cold, snowy New Year’s Day in western Montana. What better way to kick off a new year of meals than making a pot of chili? After purchasing the onions and variety of peppers going into our meal, we began the preparation process. But cutting into what appeared to be an unblemished green pepper, we surprisingly found a little friend staring back at us.

Bug Bytes: The Story Of Pepe

It’s no secret that sloths move slowly. In fact, they move so slow, unique assemblages of insects can actually take advantage of their pace and align their lifecycle with these slow-moving hosts. An interesting example is the relationship between the brown three-toed sloth and a moth aptly called the sloth moth.

Bug Bytes: Sloth Moths

With over 900 different species, there’s a lot of diversity in the tarantula world. They range from the size of your thumbnail to the size of a Frisbee. But at the most basic level, tarantulas can be divided into two different groups – old world and new world.

Bug Bytes: Old World Vs. New World Tarantulas

Liquid gold…honey, that is. Honeybees make honey as a food source to feed the colony, particularly during winter, but exactly how do they make it?

Bug Bytes: How Bees Make Honey

If you spend lots of time in the great outdoors, at one point or another you’ve likely encountered a tick. Certainly not the kind of animal encounter you we’re hoping for. Aside from the unappealing thought of these creepy arachnids burrowing into your skin for a blood meal, in certain parts of the country different tick species can cause significant problems with the transmission of Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever or other diseases. But there’s another species of tick that largely goes unnoticed by humans – the winter tick…also known as the moose tick.

Bug Bytes: Winter Tick And Moose

In Montana, the small soapweed yucca is a plant native to the central and eastern part of the state, east of the Continental Divide. But thanks to its showy, fragrant stalks of beautiful white flowers, it's a popular addition to gardens west of the divide too. But there’s one big difference between yuccas growing within their native range versus the non-native transplants …the plant will only produce its big seedpods in its native range. Is it because of differences in climate, soils, or maybe the amount of rain? It all boils down to the presence of one, very specific insect – the yucca moth – the only insect capable of successfully pollinating the plant.

Bug Bytes: Yucca Moth

You’re in your garden or maybe out for a walk in the woods …and you come across what looks like a fresh loogie someone just spit onto a plant. Gross! Relax. A fellow human likely did not leave behind the white, foamy goop. It’s the telltale sign of a spittlebug.

Bug Bytes: Spittlebugs

With nearly 180,000 species of moths and butterflies in the world, it goes without saying that their larval stage of development – caterpillars – are equally abundant. And of all the different types of caterpillars in the world, inchworms are perhaps the best-known group. Inchworms are species of moths in the family geometridae. Most of us have seen cute little inchworms inching along a branch or dangling from the tree canopy on a strand of silk. Their bodies tend to be green, brown or tan in color, helping these small caterpillars blend into their surroundings. With soft, almost gummy-like bodies, they’re seen as gentle vegetarians that have been the focus of many children’s books and stories. That is, except for the ferocious gang of inchworms found in Hawaii.

Bug Bytes: Carnivorous Caterpillars

You’ve taken a remarkable trip to Central or South America. You saw incredible species of birds and mammals, and of course were “wowed” by the amazing insects you discovered. You return with life-long memories, beautiful photos and some souvenirs. But unfortunately some travelers return with an unexpected stowaway...the human botfly.

Bug Bytes: The Human Botfly

Forged in fire. Whether it’s glass or metal, many artists rely on heat and fire to make their craft. Then it should come as no surprise that a family of incredibly beautiful beetles also has a relationship with fire. Metallic wood-boring beetles are commonly called “jewel beetles” because of their iridescent colors. And the golden buprestid is perhaps one of the shiniest examples. While primarily a bedazzled metallic green color, they also sport blue and purple highlights with a coppery-orange edge to their wing covers. They look more like a piece of insect art.

Bug Bytes: Golden Buprestid

As described by Edward O. Wilson — perhaps the best known American biologist, researcher, naturalist and author — invertebrates are "The Little Things That Run the World." And indeed they do, in so many ways. In terms of numbers — while most invertebrates are pretty small, the sheer number of them is astounding. Together, they have more biomass than any other animal on earth. Learn more about the fascinating creatures that run the world, with Bug Bytes from the Missoula Butterfly House and Insectarium.

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Bug Bytes

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