I promised Ted MacRae at Beetles in the Bush that I'd enter these images of what he thinks might be a leaf-footed bug. I published an image of another one a few days ago, but it was more a silhouette. These will give him and my readers more details.
7 comments:
Yes, very very nice images of a stunning leaf-footed bug. I don't recognize the genus, but I'll do a little digging and see what I can come up with.
regards--ted
isn't he beautiful. what is the difference Beetle vs. bug....I always think of beetle has having a 'shell' but what is what distinguishes this as a beetle?
This isn't a beetle, it's a true bug (all bugs are insects, but not all insects are bugs!). Beetles have their front wings modified into hard covers (called elytra). Bugs have the inner half of the front wing thickened, but it's not a cover and they still use all four wings to fly. They can also be recognized by their sucking mouthparts and the triangular area in the middle of the body.
It really is a beautiful bug!
Ted, many thanks for the info. Very helpful, indeed. I changed the name to bug. Cheers.
Ginger, see Ted's comment. Good catch!
Steven - the species is Acanthocephala latipes (family Coreidae), according to Dr. Harry Brailovsky (Instituto de Biologia, UNAM, Mexico City) - a world expert on the family. Apparently the shape of the hind legs (wide all the way to the feet) and the long 4th antennal segment distinguish this species.
As with most tropical insects, apparently nothing is known about it other than it exists!
regards--ted
I wanted to send you a photo of a 'bug' moth that came to visit us but it wont insert I will email to you....
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