Frasers Hill : 24-28-05-25

Haaniella is a genus of the Phasmatodea family Heteropterygidae from Southeast Asia.

Species of the genus Haaniella reach a body length of 4.5 to 16.5 cm in the female, whose abdomen, especially in the middle, is wider than the rest of the body.

The males, which are 2.5 to 9.8 cm in length, are always smaller and have slimmer abdomen than the females.

In females, as in all members of the subfamily Heteropteryginae, the abdomen ends in a secondary ovipositor, which surrounds the actual ovipositor.

The fore wings (tegmina) of the adult females only just reach the abdomen. They also end at this height in the males of most species.

Some indigenous peoples on Borneo are known to eat the very large eggs of some Haaniella species. These are not only valued for their high protein content, but are also said to help against diarrhea when cooked.

Haaniella erringtoniae, is a species of stick insect known for its distinct morphology, including short wings, spines on the body and legs, and a pronounced secondary ovipositor in females.

It is a typical representative of the subfamily Heteropteryginae. The occasionally used common name Errington's Haaniella refers to the species name. These stick insects also exhibit defensive stridulation and are known for their ability to produce a "hissing" sound with their wings when threatened.

There is a clear difference in size and appearance between the sexes, with females being larger and more robust. Both sexes have many spines on their body and legs. 

Males are slimmer, little patterned to monochrome in gray-brown to greenish in colour and between 65-80mm long. The bright green front edges of the thickened, only 10 millimetres (0.39 in) long front wings, which are here developed as tegmina, are striking.

Females are larger about (85-110mm), reddish-brown or beige in colour with light-colored markings on their femurs or occasionally a light pink piebald. Typical are the light-colored bandages on the femurs and two rows of white dots on the ventral abdomen.

Females have a secondary ovipositor that is beak-shaped, a characteristic of the Heteropterygini group.

Both fore and hind wings are greatly shortened, with the forewings developed as tegmina in the male.

Haaniella erringtoniae is native to Malesia more precisely on the Malay Peninsula and can be cultured on various plants like bramble, raspberry, oak, and beech.

During the day the insects hide in the leafy layer of the forest floor, where they are very well camouflaged due to their color and body shape. When dusk they hit trees and bushes to eat the leaves.

In the event of danger, both sexes are able to produce rustling noises with their wings (stridulation).

In addition, the animals then threaten the attacker with the abdomen raised and the hind legs splayed upwards. When approaching further, the tibae of the hind legs are quickly struck against the femurs, making the spines on them very effective weapons of defense.

During reproduction, the females lay their eggs a few centimeters deep in the ground with the laying stinger. With a length of about 6.5 millimetres (0.26 in) and a width of 5.5 millimetres (0.22 in), these are not even particularly large compared to the eggs of other representatives of this genus.

Females can live up to a year, laying up to 15 eggs per month.

The species was described in 1906 by Josef Redtenbacher as Heteropteryx erringtoniae. He chose the specific epithet in honor of her discoverer Madam Errington.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Familyb: Heteropterygidae

Subfamily : Heteropteryginae

Tribe : Heteropterygini

Genus : Haaniella

Speciesb : H. erringtoniae

Binomial name : Haaniella erringtoniae

(Redtenbacher, 1906)

Synonyms :

Heteropteryx erringtoniae Redtenbacher, 1906

Haaniella muelleri erringtoniae (Redtenbacher, 1906)

 Frasers Hill : 24-28-05-25

Toxodera is the type genus of mantises in the family Toxoderidae, known for their stick mimicry, this species inhabit Southeast Asian rainforests.

Toxodera species are ambush predators restricted to old-growth forests, and are considered to be rare.

Species of the South-East Asian Toxoderini inhabit beneath the forest canopy. Not much is known regarding their ecology. Males however, are often attracted to lights.

The Toxodera beieri, commonly known as the Dragon Mantis, is a species of praying mantis found in Southeast Asia. It's part of the Toxoderidae family, a group of mantises known for their stick-like mimicry and sometimes even being misidentified as stick insects due to their impeccable camouflage.

The Dragon Praying Mantis is named for its striking resemblance to the mythical Chinese dragons. Its unique appearance, with ornate leaf-like appendages and a swaying gait, evokes the image of a dragon camouflaged within its surroundings, their leaf-like patterns also help them blend in with their environment.

Toxodera beieri is a South Asian species, commonly found in highland areas, and is known for its larger size, it's diet consists of smaller insects like moths and butterflies and even reptiles, amphibians and hummingbirds.

Their legs often have similar extensions, their camouflage is truly immaculate making them absolutely inconspicuous in their natural surroundings.

The species in this genus typically have a drab colouration monochromatic with their surrounding leaves and twigs, with the exception of T. integrifolia which has an unmistakable brilliant red colouration with a yellow prothorax presumably allowing it to disguise itself as one of the many peculiar tropical fauna which its shares its habitat with this is furthermore proved the expansions on the legs of this species which resemble flower buds.

While information about their specific ecology is limited, they are generally found in the forest canopy of old-growth forests. They are primarily found in Southeast Asia, including regions like Myanmar, the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, and Borneo.

The female mantis may consume the male's head during mating, though the reason for this behavior is debated. Little is known about their specific ecology in detail, but they are considered rare and may be attracted to lights.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Mantodea

Family : Toxoderidae

Subfamily : Toxoderinae

Tribe : Toxoderini

Genus :Toxodera

Serville, 1837

Species : Toxodera beirei

Roy, 2009

Winsor nature park : 09-12-24

Hymenopodidae is a family of the order Mantodea (mantises), which contains six subfamilies.

Some of the species in this family mimic flowers and are found camouflaged among them; these are called flower mantises. Their coloration is aggressive mimicry, luring prey to approach close enough to be seized and eaten.

Astyliasula phyllopus is a species of giant boxer praying mantis in the family Hymenopodidae. Species of this genus Astyliasula are found in Southeastern Asia.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Mantodea

Family : Hymenopodidae

Genus : Astyliasula

Species : A. phyllopus

Binomial name : Astyliasula phyllopus

(Haan, 1842)

Synonyms :

Hestiasula phyllopus Haan, 1842

OUTR : 06-12-24

Acrididae are the predominant family of grasshoppers comprising some 10,000 of the 11,000 species of the entire suborder Caelifera.

The Acrididae are best known because all locusts (swarming grasshoppers) are of the Acrididae.

The subfamily Oedipodinae is sometimes classified as a distinct family Oedipodidae in the superfamily Acridoidea.

Acrididae grasshoppers are characterized by relatively short and stout antennae (so they may be called "short-horned grasshoppers" and tympana on the side of the first abdominal segment.

A locust is a short-horned type of grasshopper. However, a grasshopper isn’t a type of locust.

Both insects are members of the order Orthoptera. However, grasshoppers belong to the Caelifera suborder while locusts belong to the Acrididae suborder.

Locusts can exist in two behavioral states, which are gregarious and migratory, whereas grasshoppers do not. Grasshoppers belong to 28 distinct families, while locusts only belong to 1 family.

Locusts are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase.

These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstances they become more abundant and change their behaviour and habits, becoming gregarious.

No taxonomic distinction is made between locust and grasshopper species, the basis for the definition is whether a species forms swarms under intermittently suitable conditions, this has evolved independently in multiple lineages, comprising at least 18 genera in 5 different subfamilies.

Locusts have a similar appearance to grasshoppers. The two insects also share the same morphological structure. Nonetheless, as grasshoppers morph into locusts, their wing structure begins to change.

Locusts fly over longer distances compared to grasshoppers and thus need to have longer and stronger wings. They also have smaller bodies compared to grasshoppers. Locusts always swarm, whereas most grasshopper species rarely or never swarm.

These insects typically come in dark-yellow, brown, or green, but their color or color pattern can change when they enter their migratory or swarming phase.

Adult locusts are distinguished from females by the shape of abdomens. In male locusts, the tip of the abdomen is rounded because of the sub-genital plate that conceals reproductive organs.

In females, the tip of the abdomen looks pointed due to the lower and upper jaws of the ovipositor.

Normally, these grasshoppers are innocuous, their numbers are low, and they do not pose a major economic threat to agriculture.

However, under suitable conditions of drought followed by rapid vegetation growth, serotonin in their brains triggers dramatic changes: they start to breed abundantly, becoming gregarious and nomadic (loosely described as migratory) when their populations become dense enough.

They form bands of wingless nymphs that later become swarms of winged adults. Both the bands and the swarms move around, rapidly strip fields, and damage crops.

The adults are powerful fliers, they can travel great distances, consuming most of the green vegetation wherever the swarm settles.

Locusts have formed plagues since prehistory. The ancient Egyptians carved them on their tombs and the insects are mentioned in the Iliad, the Mahabharata, the Bible and Quran.

Swarms have devastated crops and have caused famines and human migrations. More recently, changes in agricultural practices and better surveillance of locust breeding grounds have allowed control measures at an early stage.

Traditional locust control uses insecticides from the ground or air, but newer biological control methods are proving effective.

Swarming behaviour decreased in the 20th century, but despite modern surveillance and control methods swarms can still form, when suitable weather conditions occur and vigilance lapses, plagues can occur.

Locusts are large insects and convenient for research and classroom study of zoology. They are edible by humans. They have been eaten throughout history and are considered a delicacy in many countries.

Locusts the Malayan Wide-headed Grasshopper Pareuthymia fasciata is a species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae.

Pareuthymia fasciata has been found on three sites on the Malaysian Peninsula, two in the very northwest and one in the extreme south in Singapore.

The species lives in trees in tropical moist lowland forest and has only very rarely been seen and collected.

Activities resulting in a decline of surface area, composition or quality of lowland and hill forests form a threat to this species.

Pareuthymia fasciata has been described from Gunung Jerai (formerly Kedah Peak) in the northwestern part of the Malaysian Peninsula (Willemse 1956) and was also found on nearby Penang island (GBIF data portal) and Singapore (GBIF data portal) in the extreme southern tip of the peninsula. In Malaysia the species was most recently recorded in 1960, in Singapore in 2011.

No conservation measures are in place for this species, but it occurs in protected areas. Knowledge about its distribution is scarce and about population size and trends completely lacking.

This species is native to Malaysia (Peninsular Malaysia) and Singapore.

Malayan Wide-headed Grasshopper Pareuthymia fasciata has most recently been assessed for The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2019. Pareuthymia fasciata is listed as Endangered under criteria A3c.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Orthoptera

Suborder : Caelifera

Superfamily : Acridoidea

Subfamily : Catantopinae

Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893

Family : Acrididae

MacLeay, 1819

Genus : Pareuthymia sp.

Species : Pareuthymia fasciata

Willemse, 1955

OUTR : 01-12-24

Systella is an Asian genus of grasshoppers in the family Trigonopterygidae. Species can be found from subcontinental India, through Indo-China and Malesia to New Guinea.

The Trigonopterygidae are an insect family in the Orthoptera: Caelifera found in south and south-east Asia.

Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are amongst what are possibly the most ancient living groups of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago.

Leaf-mimic grasshopper, Systella rafflesii is an Asian genus of grasshoppers in the family Trigonopterygidae.

This Forest Leaf Grasshopper mimics leafs and is well camouflaged to its surrounding. They can also be found in brown colour, mimicking dead leafs.

Sometimes one might spot on a leaf mimic insect and had doubts whether is it a katydid or grasshopper, the quickest difference between them is the antennae.

While grasshoppers have relatively short, thick antennae, katydid’s antennae are often longer than their own body and the shades of Katydids tend to be a bright green color, while grasshoppers are more earthy green.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Orthoptera

Suborder : Caelifera

Informal group : Acridomorpha

Superfamily : Trigonopterygoidea

Family : Trigonopterygidae

Genus : Systella

Westwood, 1841

Species : Systella rafflesii

Synonyms :

Gyrtone Stål, 1875

Sedim forest 22-25-08-24

Phobaeticus is a genus of Asian stick insects comprising over 25 species. The genus includes some of the world's longest insects.

Some species of Phobaeticus were formerly included in the genus Pharnacia instead (e.g. Phobaeticus serratipes was known as Pharnacia serratipes)

Phobaeticus serratipes (formerly known as Pharnacia serratipes) is a species of stick insect that at one time was the longest known insect, with one female specimen recorded as being 55.5 cm (21.9 in) in total length.

This measurement includes the legs fully extended front and rear, and the actual length of the body alone is considerably shorter.

This insect is endemic to Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore and Sumatra. It is a popular species among those who raise insects.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Family : Phasmatidae

Genus : Phobaeticus

Species : P. serratipes

Binomial name Phobaeticus serratipes

(Gray, 1835)

Synonyms

Bacteria acanthopus

Burmeister, 1838

Baculolonga serratipes

(Gray, 1835)

Cladoxerus serratipes

Gray, 1835

Pharnacia serratipes

(Gray, 1835)

Phibalosoma serratipes

(Gray, 1835)

Pharnacia maxima

(Bates, 1865)

Bactridium grande

Rehn, 1920

Pasir Ris Park Mangrove Ground 14-09-24 

Cryptophyllium is a genus of stick insects belonging to the Phylliidae (leaf insects) described in 2021, comprising medium-sized to large species. All species of this genus described before 2021 were originally described in the genus Phyllium. 

Cryptophyllium species are native from Sri Lanka through Nepal, eastern India, eastern China, and large parts of Southeast Asia to Micronesia.

The family Phylliidae (often misspelled Phyllidae) contains the extant true leaf insects or walking leaves, which include some of the most remarkably camouflaged leaf mimics (mimesis) in the entire animal kingdom. They occur from South Asia through Southeast Asia to Australia.

Leaf insects are herbivorous insects that feed on the leaves of tropical plants, they are well camouflaged, taking on the appearance of leaves. They do this so accurately that predators often are not able to distinguish them from real leaves.

In some species, the edge of the leaf insect's body has the appearance of bite marks. To further confuse predators, when the leaf insect walks, it rocks back and forth, mimicking a real leaf being blown by the wind.

Adult females of most leaf insect species are capable of stridulation using their antennae. It is partly interpreted as defensive stridulation, as the insects stridulate when disturbed. However, its primary function is believed to be attracting males. 

Like most stick insects, leaf insects are capable of parthenogenetic reproduction. If males are present, females mate with them - depending on the species - roughly two to four weeks after molting into their adult form. 

Males detect the vibrations produced by stridulating females using their antennae and follow the signals to locate them. During mating, the male deposits a sperm packet (spermatophore) beneath the female's subgenital plate; the packet empties itself there before detaching. 

Females begin laying eggs three to four weeks after their final molt. The eggs - laid at a rate of one to three per week - are either dropped to the ground or flung away via a sudden, jerky movement of the abdomen. Depending on the species, each female lays between 100 and 300 eggs in this manner.

The eggs differ so significantly from one another that they are often used as the sole reliable diagnostic feature for distinguishing between species. 

Various species within the genera Phyllium and Cryptophyllium are known to possess highly effective defensive glands, from which they can spray a milky, caustic defensive secretion - varying in odor - through spiracle-like openings in the pronotum. Males and nymphs in particular, tend to shed their legs (autotomy) to distract predators.

Cryptophyllium is a genus of leaf insects in the tribe Phylliini, described in 2021. Its distribution is probably incomplete, but includes southern China, Sri Lanka, Indo-China, Malesia and western Pacific islands. Several species were previously placed in the genus Phyllium (subgenus Phyllium), which is very similar.

Cryptophyllium chrisangi  is a species of leave insects within the family Phylliidae. Cryptophyllium chrisangi can be found in mangrove swamps characterized by its dense, leafy environment which provides a perfect camouflage for the insect.

Cryptophyllium chrisangi is endemic to Singapore. The diet of Cryptophyllium chrisangi primarily consists of living foliage, specifically the sea hibiscus (Talipariti tiliaceum), which is one of its food plants. This leaf insect is known for its herbivorous nature, feeding on various living plants to sustain its growth and reproduction.

Cryptophyllium chrisangi has been recorded in several locations outside Singapore, including Peninsular Malaysia, southern Thailand, Pulau Weh off northern Sumatra, and Kuching in Sarawak, Borneo. 

Additionally, it has been found in Pulau Weh off northern Sumatra and Kuching in Sarawak, Borneo. This species is part of the broader distribution of the genus Cryptophyllium, which extends from Nepal through Assam and Yunnan in China, to Vietnam, China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Singapore.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Family : Phylliidae

Tribe : Phylliini

Genus : Cryptophyllium

Cumming, Bank, Bresseel, Constant, Le Tirant, Dong, Sonet & Bradler, 2021

Species : Cryptophyllium chrisangi

(Seow-Choen, 2017)

Sedim forest 22-25-08-24

The cicadas are a superfamily, the Cicadoidea, of insects in the order Hemiptera (true bugs). They are in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha along with smaller jumping bugs such as leafhoppers and froghoppers.

The superfamily is divided into two families, the Tettigarctidae, with two species in Australia, and the Cicadidae, with more than 3,000 species described from around the world, many species remain undescribed.

Nearly all of cicada species are annual cicadas with the exception of the few North American periodical cicada species, genus Magicicada, which in a given region emerge en masse every 13 or 17 years.

Cicadas live in temperate to tropical climates, where they are one of the most widely recognized of all insects due to their large size and remarkable (and often inescapable) acoustic talents.

Cicadas have prominent eyes set wide apart, short antennae, and membranous front wings. They have an exceptionally loud song, produced in most species by the rapid buckling and unbuckling of drum like

tymbals.

Only the males of the species make such a loud noise, trying to attract females. The sounds vary a lot from one species to the other and are actually the result of a vibration of the tymbal (special membranes) in the abdomen of the male specimen.

The earliest known fossil Cicadomorpha appeared in the Upper Permian period, extant species occur all around the world in temperate to tropical climates.

They typically live in trees, feeding on watery sap from xylem tissue, and laying their eggs in a slit in the bark. Most cicadas are cryptic. The vast majority of species are active during the day as adults, with some calling at dawn or dusk. Only a rare few species are known to be nocturnal.

Cicadas feed by piercing the surface of plants with their mouth stylets. They then suck up the sap through a tube formed by the concave surfaces of the two stylets.

Cicadas spend most of their life in the soil as a wingless insect. Some cicada species can live under the ground for 17 years. When it is time to leave the ground cicadas climb up the closest tree and transform into their adult form, growing two wings.

The back cracks open into two halves and the fully­ grown cicada appears. Adult cicadas only live for a few days or weeks (depending on the species). They then die shortly after mating.

Female cicadas lay 400 to 600 eggs in as many as 40 to 50 different nests before they die. They are an important prey for birds, reptiles, and smaller mammals.

The annual cicadas are species that emerge every year. Though these cicadas' life cycles can vary from 1 to 9 or more years as underground nymphs, their emergence above ground as adults is not synchronized, so some members of each species appear every year.

Cicadas are large insects made conspicuous by the courtship calls of the males. They are characterized by having three joints in their tarsi, and having small antennae with conical bases and three to six segments, including a seta at the tip.

The Auchenorrhyncha differ from other hemipterans by having a rostrum that arises from the posteroventral part of the head, complex sound-producing membranes, and a mechanism for linking the wings that involves a down-rolled edging on the rear of the fore wing and an upwardly protruding flap on the hind wing.

Cicadas are feeble jumpers, and nymphs lack the ability to jump altogether. Another defining characteristic is the adaptations of the fore limbs of nymphs for underground life.

The relict family Tettigarctidae differs from the Cicadidae in having the prothorax extending as far as the scutellum, and by lacking the tympanal apparatus.

Cicadidae, the true cicadas is one of two families of cicadas, containing almost all living cicada species with more than 3,200 species worldwide.

Huechys is a genus of cicadas in the tribe Cicadettini, with species recorded from Asia and the Americas.

Huechys fusca, commonly known as the black and golden cicada, is a species of Asian cicadas belonging to the tribe Cicadettini. Huechys fusca can reach a length of about 20 millimetres (0.79 in).

They have a distinct greyish black body and wings, with yellow or black eyes, a yellow snout and yellow shoulder patches. The thorax is also an orange or yellow colour. 

When first molted, the wings are temporarily white and will fade to a black. Adults have been observed between June and November, with breeding behaviours such as calling and mating observed in October and November.

The black and golden cicada has a typical Sundaic distribution and has been recorded from Sumatra (type locality), the Malay Peninsula (including Singapore), and Borneo (Moulton, 1923).

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Auchenorrhyncha

Family : Cicadidae

Genus : Huechys

Species : H. fusca

Binomial name : Huechys fusca

(Distant, 1892)

Sedim forest 22-25-08-24

Deroplatys is a genus of mantis in the family Deroplatyidae. They are native to Asia and several share the common name of dead leaf mantis.

Deroplatys lobata, common name Southeast Asian dead leaf mantis or dead leaf mantis, is a species of praying mantis that inhabits Thailand, Java, Borneo, Indonesia, Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula.

Deroplatys lobata live on the ground around dead leaves and bushes in damp areas, tropical forests.

This mantis mimics dead leaves. Females are about 65 to 70mm in length and males are about 45mm in length.

1st instar nymphs are up to 15mm in length and 2nd instar nymphs are about 21mm in length when their abdomens are expanded.

Their coloring ranges from dark gray to light mottled gray, with many specimens exhibiting a slight pinkish 'flush' on the head and thorax. They also possess a broad prothorax that looks ripped and crumpled like a leaf.

Females have a wider shield than males as early as the 4th instar stage. Males have a slender body and a diamond shape shield.

Due to sexual dimorphism typical of mantises, the male is much smaller. Adult females are about 65mm to 70mm in length while adult males are about 45mm in length.

3rd instar nymphs cannot be sexed by counting the segments on the bottom of the abdomen because unlike most praying mantises 8 segments are visible in all of the 3rd instar nymphs and this is also true when they are in the 1st, 2nd instar stage and their leaf shapes look just about the same at those stages.

4th instar nymph and up their leaf shapes look different from each other and get more different from each other with each molt. 6 segments are seen on females while 8 segments are seen on males at the 4th

instar and up.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Mantodea

Family : Deroplatyidae

Genus : Deroplatys

Species : D. lobata

Binomial name : Deroplatys lobata

Guérin-Méneville (1838)

Synonyms :

Deroplatys brunneri (Kirby, 1904)

Sedim forest 22-25-08-24

The Trigonopterygoidea are an insect superfamily in the Orthoptera : Caelifera found in south and south-east Asia.

Sometimes described as leaf grasshoppers. American species in the Xyronotidae have also been called razor-backed bush-hoppers.

Trigonopteryx is a genus of Asian grasshoppers typical of the family Trigonopterygidae.

The dead leaf grasshopper Trigonopteryx hopei, is known for its ability to mimic dead leaves, enabling it to effectively blend into its natural habitat, particularly in lowland primary rainforests  from the eyes of its predators against the background of the forest floor. 

Its appearence in mimicking the intricate pattern of veins of the leaf is so accurate that one might miss it while walking pass.

Trigonopteryx hopei is endemic to Southeast Asia. It is found in various regions including Malaya, Thailand, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Celebes, and the Philippines, indicating its widespread distribution across these areas. 

The scientific name of this species was first validly published in 1841 by Westwood.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Orthoptera

Suborder : Caelifera

Informal group : Acridomorpha

Superfamily : Trigonopterygoidea

Family : Trigonopterygidae

Genus : Trigonopteryx

Charpentier, 1841

Species : Trigonopteryx hopei

Westwood, 1841

Sedim forest : 22-25-08-24

The family Fulgoridae is a large group of hemipteran insects, especially abundant and diverse in the tropics, containing over 125 genera worldwide.

They are mostly of moderate to large size, many with a superficial resemblance to Lepidoptera due to their brilliant and varied coloration.

Various genera and species (especially the genera Fulgora and Pyrops) are sometimes referred to as lanternflies or lanthorn flies, but neither do their heads emit light, nor are they even distantly related to flies.

The head of some species is produced into a hollow process, resembling a snout, which is sometimes inflated and nearly as large as the body of the insect, sometimes elongated, narrow and apically upturned.

Pyrops is a genus of planthoppers that occur primarily in southeast Asia, containing about 70 species.

They are fairly large insects, with much of the length due to an elongated, upcurving, snout-like projection of the head. The wings are generally brightly patterned in contrasting colors, and they are popular among collectors.

Like many other plant-sap sucking insects, Pyrops species exude honeydew. This honeydew is sometimes gathered by other animals in trophobiotic associations.

Pyrops whiteheadi and P. intricatus are known to be attended by Dorylaea spp. cockroaches in Southeast Asia. Pyrops whiteheadi has also been seen tended by a gecko, Gehyra mutilata.

Pyrops oculatus is a species of Lanternflies. Adult feeds on food source of Plant sap from specific tree species, including mangifera, dimocarpus longan, and nephelium lappaceum. Larva Food Source are Sap from host plants, primarily from trees.

Life Cycle of Pyrops oculatus, freshly laid eggs of pyrops oculatus are often spherical or elongated and exhibit colors that blend with the environment. They are immobile and develop embryo inside until hatching.

The nymphs of pyrops oculatus resemble adults but lack fully developed wings and reproductive structures. They molt several times, increasing in size and gradually gaining adult-like features with each stage.

Adult Emerging from the last nymphal stage, the adult pyrops oculatus displays fully developed wings and functional reproductive organs. Their bodies are distinctly structured for mating and dispersal, with size and coloration reflecting maturity.

The Interesting Facts about Pyrops oculatus is that it communicates using flashes of light from its abdomen, a behavior not associated with typical predation or mating rituals seen in other species.

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Auchenorrhyncha

Infraorder : Fulgoromorpha

Superfamily : Fulgoroidea

Family : Fulgoridae

Subfamily : Aphaeninae

Tribe : Pyropsini

Genus : Pyrops

Spinola, 1839

Species : Pyrops oculatus

Sedim forest : 22-25-08-24

Heteropterygini is the only tribe within the subfamily of the Heteropteryginae (family Heteropterygidae order Phasmatodea).

With 19 representatives described, this subfamily includes the fewest species of the three subfamilies, but includes the largest and most striking species of the family.

The representatives of the Heteropterygini are usually relatively large and heavy. Males become 2.5 to 13 cm long, females reach body lengths between 4.5 and 17 cm, with the larger species being clearly in the majority.

Only the females of Haaniella parva, Haaniella kerincia and Haaniella scabra remain smaller than 8.5 cm. The males of these species are at least 2.5 to 4.0 cm and a maximum of 3.7 to 5.7 cm long,

The representatives of the Heteropterygini are usually relatively large and heavy. Males become 2.5 to 13 cm long, females reach body lengths between 4.5 and 17 cm, with the larger species being clearly in the majority.

Only the females of Haaniella parva, Haaniella kerincia and Haaniella scabra remain smaller than 8.5 cm. The males of these species are at least 2.5 to 4.0 cm and a maximum of 3.7 to 5.7 cm long.

The 14 to 17 cm long females of the Heteropteryx dilatata are not only the heaviest phasmids with 30 to 70 g, but are among the heaviest insects at all.

A characteristic of this tribe are the wings that are transformed into stridulation organs in females of all species. The short forewings, here developed as tegmina, cover the equally short hind wings and are primarily used to generate sound (defense stridulation).

The wings of the males are also shortened in most species and converted into stridulation organs too.

The defensive stridulation is supplemented by the lifting of the abdomen and the clapping of the thorny hind legs.

When perceiving tactile stimuli the tibiae are struck like a jackknife against the femura, which aims to pinch the opponent.

In adult females, the abdomen is widened towards the middle and significantly increased due to the large numbers of eggs produced. Their abdomen ends in a pointed secondary ovipositorthat surrounds the actual ovipositor. This is ventral formed from the eighth abdominal sternite, which is named subgenital plate or also called operculum.

Dorsal (anatomy)ly the ovipositor consists of the eleventh tergum called the supraanal plate or Epiproct. The smaller males have a central abdomen area that is round in cross-section, which is the thinnest here in contrast to the females. The thickened end of the abdomen is formed ventrally by the subgenital plate and dorsally by the eighth, ninth and tenth tergum, latter known as anal segment.

The body is covered with numerous, often pointed spines, but also tubercles. Their arrangement is typical for the subfamily. Their characteristics are very different and so species-specific that they are used to identify and delimit species.

Heteropteryginae, act like a crown and are therefore called coronals (Corona Latin for wreath or crown).

The ones above the base of the antennae are called supraantenals, those on the occiput are called supraoccipital.

Spines on the pro-, meso- and metanotum are referred to as pronotals, mesonatals and metanotals, respectively. Spines on the meso- and metapleura are generally referred to as laterals and the individual spines above their coxae are referred to as supracoxals.

The distribution area of the Heteropteryginae extends from the south of Vietnam over the Thailand part of the Malay Peninsula and includes Borneo, Sumatra and Java the Greater Sunda Islands except Sulawesi.

Of the Lesser Sunda Islands only Bali is inhabited. The eastern limit of distribution thus corresponds to the southern course of the Huxley Line, without including Palawan in the north.

The adult females usually lay their relatively large eggs individually, several centimeters deep in the ground using the ovipositor. The eggs, between 6 and 12 mm long and 4.5 to 7 mm wide, are considered to be the heaviest insect eggs.

Their shape is typically egg-shaped with either a blunt or a pointed lower pole. It looks similar with the lid (operculum). It is circular and can be raised flat or slightly pointed in the middle.

The micropyle is located between the two lower arms of a four-armed micropylar plate. These four arms are aligned in an x-shape, whereby the lower arms are usually shorter and lie next to each other at a larger angle or even in a line. In some species the arms are extended at the ends, in others around the point of intersection.

Depending on the species, it takes 6 to 12 months until the nymphs hatching. It takes usually a similar period of time until they are adult. In addition to species with an average life expectancy, there are species that reach an age that is astonishing for phasmids at up to five years.

Heteropteryx is a monotypic genus of stick insects containing Heteropteryx dilatata as the only described species and gives its name to the family of the Heteropterygidae.

Their only species may be known as jungle nymph, Malaysian stick insect, Malaysian wood nymph, Malayan jungle nymph, or Malayan wood nymph and because of their size it is commonly kept in zoological institutions and private terrariums of insect lovers. It originates from the Malay Archipelago and is nocturnal.

The females are much larger and wider than the males, reaching 14 centimetres (5.5 in) to 17 centimetres (6.7 in) in length and 30 to 65 g in weight, making them among the heaviest phasmids and extant insects.

In addition to the typically lime green-colored females, there are also yellow and even more rarely red-brown females. Their two pairs of wings are both shortened.

At rest, the green forewings, formed as tegmina, cover the somewhat shorter, strikingly pink-colored membranous hind wings, here formed as alae, however they are incapable of flight.

The head, body and legs are thorny. The flattened body is provided with a number of spines, in particular along the body edges including the abdomen and the legs and especially along the hind legs.

At the end of the abdomen there is a secondary ovipositor for laying the eggs in the ground. It surrounds the actual ovipositor and is ventral formed from the eighth sternite, here named subgenital plate or operculum and dorsally from the eleventh tergum, which is referred to here as the supraanal plate or epiproct.

The much smaller males are slender and only about 9 centimetres (3.5 in) to 13 centimetres (5.1 in) long. They have spines all over their body and legs like the females, and are usually a mottled brown colour.

The hind wings cover the entire abdomen. The narrow, but only slightly shorter forewings are designed as tegmina to and have a light front edge, which gives the animals with closed wings the typical lateral stripes over the mesonotum and half of the abdomen. The fully developed hind wings are reddish and marked with a brown net pattern.

Heteropteryx dilatata comes from the Malay Archipelago. There it was found on the Malay Peninsula, in Thailand, Singapore, as well as on Sumatra and in Sarawak on Borneo. It is unclear whether the animals documented on Madagascar belong to an indigenous population.

Both sexes are capable of defensive stridulation when there is danger. The colored rear wings are jerked open again and again.

In addition, the animals then threaten, similar to the representatives of the closely related genus Haaniella, with raised abdomen and the attacker stretched, splayed hind legs.

Upon contact, the legs snap together as a scissor-like weapon. When touched, the tibiae of the hind legs are then quickly struck against the femura, which creates an effective defense through its spines, in particular those on the tibiae.

It is a common misconception that Heteropteryx dilatata holds the record for the largest egg laid by an insect with the eggs sometimes described as being 1.3 centimetres (0.51 in) in length. The heaviest eggs are 250 to 300 mg laid by the closely related Haaniella echinata.

Heteropteryx dilatata is the only described representative of the genus Heteropteryx established

by George Robert Gray in 1835 and was described in 1798 by John Parkinson as Phasma dilatatum.

Generally this species is quiet during the day and active during the night. When threatened it will display a defense mechanism that can actually hurt you, therefore it is not suitable for children.

When the female feels threatened, she will stand on her four front legs while keeping her hind legs and abdomen up in the air. If you touch it she will fiercely snap her hind legs together, which have very large spines on them.

When you trap your hand or finger between these thorned legs, it can draw blood. The adult females will use their mini-wings to make a loud rustling noise when showing their defense behavior. All this display is meant to scare away predators.

This species eats blackberry, raspberry, rose and ivy leaves. The difference between males and females is easy to see from an early nymphal stage.

The females are beige / brown in color while the males are dark brown with beige segments in a regular pattern. A few molts before they mature, the female change from being beige to being bright green. She will stay like this all her life, while the male will never become green.

When the male matures he will have long wings, the female will have only small wings that cannot be used to fly.

The eggs of Heteropteryx dilatata are oval dark grey balls which are deposited in the ground.

This species is considered one of the most beautiful species of stick insect, since the female is so large and so beautifully brightly colored and it also had the effect from ultra violet. This species lives and the longest of all stick insect species that are kept as pets, when cared for properly. They can live up to 2 years.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Family : Heteropterygidae

Subfamily : Heteropteryginae

Tribe : Heteropterygini

Genus : Heteropteryx

Gray, G.R., 1835

Species : H. dilatata

Binomial name : Heteropteryx dilatata

(Parkinson 1798)

T7

The Clitumninae are a sub-family of stick insects in the family Phasmatidae found in Asia (a record for Phobaeticus from Brasil was probably erroneous).

The type genus Clitumnus is now considered a synonym of Ramulus.

Ramulus is an Asian genus of stick insects in the family Phasmatidae and tribe Clitumnini.

Great Thin Stick Insect (Ramulus nematodes) the males are thinner and more fragile than the females. The body length is about 10 cm long. Their legs are black and in most cultures their body is blue, there is also a red colour variation of the males as well.

The females are green of brown, with two 'ears' on their head. Without the legs they are about 15 cm long.

R.nematodes are wingless stick insects. Male are very thin, especially the legs, and grow to about 10 cm. Thus they are also bigger than the R. nematodeswith red males. It had a beautifully coloured when adult. The body is blue, while the legs are brown and short feelers – about 3 cm long

As for Females they can grow quite big (14 – 16,5 cm), thus they are bigger than the R. nematodes variation with red males. On their head are two big, brown lobe-like expansions, short feelers, only 1 – 1,5 cm long, colour ranges from brown to green.

It has very flat eggs, brown in colour - about 6 x 2 mm, incubate them at room temperatures (18°C to 25°C) on a damp substrate - e.g. sand. Incubation time is around 4 months

The Great Thin Stick Insect (Ramulus nematodes) feeds on oak, nymphs as well as adults will feed easily on bramble, (raspberry, rose)

By day this insects are quiet, and they stretch their front legs so that they look more like a branch and it start to walk around when night falls. This species have to handle with care, they are so thin and can throw their legs of very easily.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Family : Phasmatidae

Subfamily : Clitumninae

Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893

Tribe : Clitumnini

Genus : Ramulus

Species : Ramulus nematodes

Saussure, 1862

Synonyms :

Clitumnus Stål, 1875

Dagys Günther, 1935

Dubreuilia Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1907

Paraclitumnus Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893

The Erianthinae are a subfamily of Asian grasshoppers in the family Chorotypidae and based on the type genus Erianthus. There are currently 12 genera and more than 40 described species recorded from southern China, Japan, Indo-China and Malesia.

Erianthus is a genus of grasshoppers restricted to Southeast Asia. They occur in Japan, northeast India, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, South China including Hong Kong, and extend east to Sumatra.

In the past some neotropical species were also included in the genus. They have narrow ranges and species are identifiable only by their characteristics of male and female genitalia.

The genus was erected in 1875 by Swedish entomologist Carl Stål in his Observations Orthopterologiques. Erianthus is the family Chorotypidae and is the largest genus in the subfamily Erianthinae by number of species. The type species is Mastax guttata (now Erianthus guttatus).

These grasshoppers have a head that rises above the level of the thorax and short antennae. Some species have reduced wings, others have wings that widen towards the tips and still others have a flattened leaf-like shape. They lack abdominal tympani (hearing organs).

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Order : Orthoptera

Suborder : Caelifera

Family : Chorotypidae

Subfamily : Erianthinae

Genus : Erianthus

Stål, 1875

Type species : Erianthus guttatus

Westwood, 1841

The Tipulomorpha are an infraorder of Nematocera, containing the crane flies, a very large group, and allied families.

A crane fly is any member of the dipteran superfamily Tipuloidea, which contains the living families Cylindrotomidae, Limoniidae, Pediciidae and Tipulidae, as well as several extinct families.

"Winter crane flies", members of the family Trichoceridae, are sufficiently different from the typical crane flies of Tipuloidea to be excluded from the superfamily Tipuloidea, and are placed as their sister group within Tipulomorpha.

In colloquial speech, crane flies are known as mosquito hawks or "skeeter-eaters", though they do not actually prey on adult mosquitos or other insects.

They are also sometimes called "daddy longlegs", a name which is also used for arachnids of the family Pholcidae and the order Opiliones.

The larvae of crane flies are known commonly as leatherjackets.

Crane flies first appeared during the Middle Triassic, around 245 million years ago, making them one of the oldest known groups of flies and are found worldwide.

Though individual species usually have limited ranges. They are most diverse in the tropics but are also common in northern latitudes and high elevations.

An adult crane fly, resembling an oversized male mosquito, typically has a slender body and long, stilt-like legs that are deciduous, easily coming off the body.

Like other insects, their wings are marked with wing interference patterns which vary among species, thus are useful for species identification.

They occur in moist, temperate environments such as vegetation near lakes and streams. They generally do not feed, but some species consume nectar, pollen and or water.

The wingspan is generally about 1.0 to 6.5 cm (1⁄2 to 2+1⁄2 in), though some species of Holorusia can reach

​11 cm (4+1⁄4 in).

The antennae have up to 19 segments and It is also characterized by a V-shaped suture or groove on the back of the thorax (mesonotum) and by its wing venation. The rostrum is long and in some species as long as the head and thorax together.

Larvae occur in various habitats including marshes, springs, decaying wood, moist soil, leaf litter, fungi, vertebrate nests and vegetation. They usually feed on decaying plant matter and microbes associated with this, but some species instead feed on living plants, fungi or other invertebrates.

Crane fly larvae (leatherjackets) have been observed in many habitat types on dry land and in water including

marine, brackish, and fresh water.

Larvae are cylindrical in shape, but taper toward the front end, and the head capsule is often retracted into the thorax.

The abdomen may be smooth, lined with hairs, or studded with projections or welt-like spots. Projections may occur around the spiracles. Larvae may eat algae, microflora, and living or decomposing plant matter, including wood. Some are predatory.

Larvae can be important in the soil ecosystem, because they process organic material and increase microbial activity.

Adult crane fly and larvae are also valuable prey items for many animals, including insects, spiders, fish, amphibians, birds, and mammals.

Adults have a lifespan of 10 to 15 days. The adult female usually contains mature eggs as she emerges from her pupa, and often mates immediately if a male is available.

Males also search for females by walking or flying. Copulation takes a few minutes to hours and may be accomplished in flight.

The female immediately oviposits, usually in wet soil or mats of algae. Some lay eggs on the surface of a water body or in dry soils, and some reportedly simply drop them in flight. Most crane fly eggs are black in color. They often have a filament, which may help anchor the egg in wet or aquatic environments.

Adult crane flies may be used for transport by aquatic species of the mite family Ascidae. This is known as phoresis.

Some members of the tipulid genus Tipula, such as the European crane fly, Tipula paludosa and the marsh crane fly T. oleracea are agricultural pests in Europe.

The larvae of these species live in the top layers of soil where they feed on the roots, root hairs, crown, and sometimes the leaves of crops, stunting their growth or killing the plants.

They are pests on a variety of commodities. Since the late 1900s, T. paludosa and T. oleracea have become invasive in the United States. The larvae have been observed on many crops, including vegetables, fruits, cereals, pasture, lawn grasses, and ornamental plants.

​

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Diptera

Infraorder : Tipulomorpha

Superfamily : Tipuloidea

Latreille, 1802

Superfamilies and families : 

Tipuloidea (typical crane flies)

Cylindrotomidae

Pediciidae

Limoniidae

Tipulidae

Trichoceroidea (winter crane flies)

Trichoceridae

The Phasmatidae are a family of the stick insects (order Phasmatodea). They belong to the superfamily Anareolatae of suborder Verophasmatodea.

The Phasmatodea (also known as Phasmida or Phasmatoptera) are an order of insects whose members are variously known as stick insects, stick-bugs, walkingsticks, stick animals, or bug sticks.

The genus Orestes combines relatively small and elongated Phasmatodea species from Southeast and East Asia.

The representatives of this genus are rather small with 3.2 to 4.5 centimetres (1.3 to 1.8 in) in the males and 3.8 to 5.5 centimetres (1.5 to 2.2 in) in females.

Both sexes are always wingless and colored in different shades of beige to brown and often show high-contrast drawings with white areas, especially in younger females and female nymphs.

Males are more of a single color in different shades of brown. The thorax is cylindrical or approximately cylindrical, unlike that of representatives of the genus Pylaemenes, whose meso and metanotum is flattened or slightly roof-shaped, with a clearly raised central and two lateral longitudinal keels.

The mesonotum of the Orestes females is slightly widened to the rear and there are often two lateral longitudinal rows of tubercles. The legs and especially the femura of the forelegs often have clear edges.

The abdomen of adult, egg-laying females is clearly enlarged towards the middle. On the fourth and fifth segment there is a clear elevation and on the ninth there is a centrally seated, rearward-facing ridge.

The last segment, called anal segment, unlike in Pylaemenes, is not strongly triangularly tapered backwards and notched at the end.

As is typical for the Dataminae, they do not have an ovipositor to lay eggs. There are three rows of appendages on the head. These can merge to form a towering structure, which is typical of the species, such as in Orestes guangxiensis or Orestes bachmaensis.

In other species they are reduced to the size of tubercles, which means that the head can be very flat, such as in Orestes mouhotii or Orestes draegeri. In the males, these structures are always formed as distinct areas formed into spines, spikes or, as in Orestes mouhotii and Orestes draegeri, into semicircular, ear-like structures (auricles).

Their legs are shaped like those of the females. On the thorax there may be smaller bumps or several, sometimes long, spines on the metathorax as in Orestes botot or on the meso- and metathorax as in Orestes diabolicus are located. Overall, they appear in the habitus significantly smaller and slimmer than the females.

In contrast to Pylaemenes males, their ninth abdominal tergite is not widened backwards.

The relatively large distribution area extends from Southeast to East Asia and extends from the Andamans, over Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula, Borneo and Singapore to Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and South China including Hong Kong to the south of Japan. Males are sometimes rare or not known and some of the species are at least regional parthenogenetic.

The nocturnal animals hide during the day in the leafy layer of the ground or behind bark and it will pretend to be dead when discovered.

Orestes draegeri is a species of stick insects in the subfamily Dataminae and tribe Datamini.

Orestes draegeri is a very slender and elongated species with relatively short legs. It is very similar to Orestes mouhotii, from which it differs in its relatively shorter legs.

Males are approximately 40.0 to 41.2 millimetres (1.57 to 1.62 in) long. In front of and behind the eyes there are mostly pairs of more or less distinct structures that are species-specific (see also acanthotaxy of Heteropterygidae).

The three pairs of occipital spines are designed as follows : The anterior supra-antennals are recognizable spinose and slightly pointed outwards. The pairs of anterior and posterior supra-occipitals behind it are smaller. The vertex is significantly enlarged, blunt and laterally compressed with the anterior coronals, which creates conspicuous, ear-like horns (auricles).

The paired supra-orbitals behind the eyes are recognizable bluntly spinous. Posterior and lateral coronals are recognizable as small pointed tubercles that form a crown with the tip of the postocular carina located behind the eye, a distinct edge and the eyes are relatively small, circular and protruding strongly hemispherical.

The antennae are shorter than the legs and consist of 23 segments. While the structures on the head resemble those of Orestes mouhotii, these are missing in the males of Orestes draegeri distinct conical hump at posterior margin of the mesonotum which is slightly sulcate medially.

The females are approximately 45.7 to 47.1 millimetres (1.80 to 1.85 in) long. Their head is flat and shows only indistinct structures in the form of tubercles.

The tibae of middle legs are compressed laterally at the top and have an indistinct tooth at the end and a clear tooth in the middle.

The fourth tergite of the abdomen is indistinctly widened and almost parallel to the rear. On the back of the ninth tergite there is a clearly elongated, strongly roof-like ridge in the center. In the females of Orestes mouhotii this crest is not roof-like and elongated and not notched at the back.

The species was found by Joachim Bresseel and Jérôme Constant in 2012 in the seasonal tropical forests in the Vietnamese provinces Lâm Đồng and Đồng Nai and in the Dong Nai Biosphere Reserve, which includes Cát Tiên National Park (type locality).

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Superfamily : Bacilloidea

Family : Heteropterygidae

Subfamily : Dataminae

Genus : Orestes

Species : O. draegeri

Binomial name : Orestes draegeri

Bresseel & Constant, 2018

Pulau Ubin : 13-4-24

Cicadidae, the true cicadas, is one of two families of cicadas, containing almost all living cicada species with more than 3,200 species worldwide.

Cicada species are classified by many different factors : Geography, habitat, season, diurnal patterns of reproductive activity and songs (Moore, 1993).

Chremistica is a genus of cicadas from Southeast Asia and Madagascar. Its distribution encompasses India, Sri Lanka, continental South East Asia, Taiwan, Philippines, Malayan Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo and Java, the Lesser Sunda Islands, viz., Lombok, Sumba, Sumbawa and Timor, and Sulawesi, while one group of species is recorded from Madagascar

As with all cicadas, Chremistica umbrosa is hemimetabulous. Hemimetabolism or hemimetaboly, also called partial metamorphosis and paurometabolism, is the mode of development of certain insects that includes three distinct stages : the egg, nymph and the adult stage, or imago.

These groups go through gradual changes; there is no pupal stage. The nymph often has a thin exoskeleton and resembles the adult stage but lacks wings and functional reproductive organs.

Chremistica umbrosa is primarily found in the southern Malay Peninsula, the east coast of Sumatra, Banka Island, and several islands along the southern Straits of Malacca. It has been recorded in Singapore, where it is known to occur in forested regions.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Family : Cicadidae

Genus : Chremistica

Stål, 1870

Species : Chremistica umbrosa

distant 1904

T15 : 24-8-23

Dorylaea is a genus of Blattoidea in the family blattid cockroaches. They are nocturnal.

This beautiful Malaysian zebra-stripe cockroach Dorylaea orini is an addition to the hobbyist. It is a relatively new to described species in the genus Dorylaea.

It was named by Dr. Luis M. Roth of Harvard University in 2002 (Museum of Comparative Zoology type database 35085).

Phylum : Arthropoda

Ubosphylum : Hexapoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Blattodea

Family : Blattidae

Genus : Dorylaea

Speces : Dorylaea orini

L. M. Roth

T15 : 6-8-23

Gryllotalpidae the mole crickets comprise seven genera with about 100 species worldwide. Most species are found in the cosmopolitan genus Gryllotalpa.

The scientific name is 'mole cricket', derived from the Latin 'gryllus' (cricket) and 'talpa' (mole) because of the fine dense fur which covers it and its subterranean habits and because of the mole-like forelegs adapted for digging, a good example of convergent evolution.

Mole crickets use the extraordinarily developed forelegs for digging deep permanent galleries and foraging for plant roots. Some mole crickets are known to collect seeds and store them in larders in circular chambers underground for future use. Some species brood eggs in chambers, and in many species, both sexes stridulate.

The calling songs are often of short duration and very loud. The horn-shaped entrance chamber of the burrow is used differently by different species to increase the male's acoustical output. Most species are herbivorous, but a few are carnivorous. Several cause major damage to crops by feeding on roots, on seedlings, or both.

Mole crickets are members of the insect family Gryllotalpidae in the order Orthoptera (grasshoppers, locusts, and crickets).

Mole crickets are cylindrical bodied, fossorial insects about 3–5 cm (1.2–2.0 in) long as adults, with small eyes and shovel-like fore limbs highly developed for burrowing. They are present in many parts of the world and where they have arrived in new regions, may become agricultural pests.

Mole crickets have three life stages: eggs, nymphs and adults. Most of their lives in these stages are spent underground, but adults have wings and disperse in the breeding season. They vary in their diet: some species are herbivores, mainly feeding on roots, others are omnivores, including worms and grubs in their diet and a few are largely predatory.

Male mole crickets have an exceptionally loud song, they sing from a burrow that opens out into the air in the shape of an exponential horn. The song is an almost pure tone, modulated into chirps. It is used to attract females, either for mating, or for indicating favourable habitats for them to lay their eggs.

In Zambia, mole crickets are thought to bring good fortune, while in Latin America, they are said to predict rain. In Florida, where Neoscapteriscus mole crickets are not native, they are considered pests, and various biological controls have been used.

Mole crickets vary in size and appearance, but most of them are of moderate size for an insect, typically between 3.2 and 3.5 cm (1.3 and 1.4 in) long as adults. They are adapted for underground life and are cylindrical in shape and covered with fine, dense hairs. The head, fore limbs, and prothorax are heavily

sclerotised, but the abdomen is rather soft.

The head bears two threadlike antennae and a pair of beady eyes. The two pairs of wings are folded flat over the abdomen, in most species, the fore wings are short and rounded and the hind wings are membranous and reach or exceed the tip of the abdomen, however in some species the hind wings are reduced in size and the insect is unable to fly.

The fore legs are flattened for digging, but the hind legs are shaped somewhat like the legs of a true cricket, however these limbs are more adapted for pushing soil rather than leaping, which they do rarely and poorly. The nymphs resemble the adults apart from the absence of wings and genitalia, the wing pads become larger after each successive moult.

Adults of most species of mole cricket can fly powerfully, if not with agility, but males do so infrequently. The females typically take wing soon after sunset, and are attracted to areas where males are calling, which they do for about an hour after sunset. This may be to mate, or they may be influenced by the suitability of the habitat for egg-laying, as demonstrated by the number of males present and calling in the vicinity.

Mole crickets live almost entirely below ground, they can dig themselves under ground very rapidly digging tunnels of different kinds for the major functions of life, including feeding, escape from predators, attracting a mate (by singing), mating, and raising of young and can move along existing tunnels at high speed both forwards and backwards.

Males attract mates by constructing specially shaped tunnels in which they sing. Mating takes place in the male's burrow, the male may widen a tunnel to make room for the female to mount, though in some species, mating is tail-to-tail.

Females lay their eggs either in their normal burrows or in specially dug brood chambers, which are sealed when complete in the case of the genus Neoscapteriscus or not sealed in the case of genera Gryllotalpa and Neocurtilla.

Mole crickets vary in their diets, some like the tawny mole cricket are herbivores, others are omnivores, feeding on larvae, worms, roots, and grasses, and others like the southern mole cricket are mainly predacious. They leave their burrows at night to forage for leaves and stems, which they drag underground before consumption, as well as consuming roots underground.

Mole crickets are relatively common, but because they are nocturnal and spend nearly all their lives under ground in extensive tunnel systems, they are rarely seen. They inhabit agricultural fields and grassy areas. They are present in every continent except Antarctica, by 2014, 107 species had been described and more species are likely to be discovered, especially in Asia.

Gryllotalpa mole crickets have sometimes been used as food in West Java and Vietnam. In Thailand, mole crickets (Thai: กระชอน) are valued as food in Isan. They are usually eaten fried along with sticky rice.

In the Philippines, they are served as a delicacy called camaro in the province of Pampanga and are a tourist attraction. They are also served in parts of Northern Luzon.

This species Gryllotalpa nymphicus is a new species of mole cricket found here in Singapore, it is a relatively rare and endemic (so far) and restricted to forests. It is often subterranean and rarely sighted.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Orthoptera

Suborder : Ensifera

Infraorder : Gryllidea

Superfamily : Gryllotalpoidea

Family : Gryllotalpidae

Saussure, 1870

Genus : Gryllotalpa

Species : Gryllotalpa nymphicus Tan

Panesthia is a large genus of burrowing giant cockroach in the subfamily Panesthiinae. It is subsocial and its species are mainly found in Southeast Asia, coastal East Asia, Australasia, and Indo-Malaysia.

Adult wood-feeding cockroach Panesthia angustipennis is a species of Blattodea in the family giant cockroaches. 

They are nocturnal. Cockroaches of the genus Panesthia inhabit decaying wood in self-excavated tunnels (Asahina, 1991).

Distribution : India: Andaman & Nicobar Islands (Andaman Islands, Nicobar Islands), Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Sikkim, Tripura and West Bengal. Elsewhere: Africa; Australia; Burma; Cambodia; China; Indonesia; Malakka; Philippines; Singapore; Thailand; Vietnam and Zanzibar.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Subphylum : Hexapoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Blattodea

Family : Blaberidae

Subfamily : Panesthiinae

Genus : Panesthia

Serville, 1831

Species : Panesthia angustipennis 

Illiger 1801

Synonyms :

Dicellonotus Butler, 1882

Proterodia Costa, 1866

The Phasmatodea (also known as Phasmida, Phasmatoptera or Spectra) are an order of insects whose members are variously known as stick insects, stick-bugs, walking sticks, stick animals, or bug sticks.

They are also occasionally referred to as Devil's darning needles, although this name is shared by both dragonflies and crane flies.

​They can be generally referred to as phasmatodeans, phasmids, or ghost insects, with phasmids in the family Phylliidae called leaf insects, leaf-bugs, walking leaves, or bug leaves.

Asceles is a genus of stick insects in the tribe Necrosciini. Some of the species of Asceles have a distribution in Malaysia and Singapore.

Asceles malaccae (Saussure 1868) also known as Necroscia malaccae (Saussure, 1868)

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Family : Lonchodidae

Tribe : Necrosciini

Genus : Asceles

Species : Asceles malaccae

Sauasure 1868

Blattodea is an order of insects that contains cockroaches and termites.

Formerly, termites were considered a separate order, Isoptera, but genetic and molecular evidence suggests they evolved from within the cockroach lineage, cladistically making them cockroaches as well.

The Blattodea and the mantis (order Mantodea) are now all considered part of the superorder Dictyoptera.

Blattodea includes approximately 4,400 species of cockroach in almost 500 genera, and about 3,000 species of termite in around 300 genera.

Over 4,000 species of cockroaches are found in every corner of the globe with each continent having its own indigenous species.

Most of these are omnivores or detritivores and live in a range of habitats such as among leaf litter, in rotting wood, in thick vegetation, in crevices, in cavities beneath bark, under logs and among debris.

Some are arboreal, some live in caves and some are aquatic. A small number of species have taken to living in close proximity to humans in buildings, have been transported around the world by them, and are regarded as pests.

The genus Morphna includes relatively large and wide cockroaches. It is characterized by the structure of its hind tarsi, matatarsus slightly shorter or about as long as other segments combined with large euplantula along lower margin, tarsal spine few or absent.

The genus Morphna originally included four species from South and South-East Asia (Shelford 1910, p. 6, 7): Epilampra amplipennis Walker, E. plana Brunner von Wattenwyl, E. maculata Brunner von Watenwyl and E. badia Brunner von Wattenwyl (= E. dotata Walker). E. maculata was designated as the type species by Hebard (1930).

The male genitalia of M. dotata were described and illustrated by Anisyutkin & Gorochov (2001).

According to Beccaloni (2007), there are 12 species in the genus Morphna: M. amplipennis (Walker), M. auriculata (Brunner von Wattenwyl), M. badia (Brunner von Wattenwyl), M. clypeata Anisyutkin & Gorochov, M. decolyi (Bolivar), M. dotata (Walker), M. humeralis (Bruijning), M. imperatoria (Stål), M. maculata (Brunner von wattenwyl), M. moloch (Rehn), M. plana (Brunner von Wattenwyl) and M. pustulata (Hanitsch)

Morphna dotata is a species of Blattodea in the family giant cockroaches. They are nocturnal.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Superorder : Dictyoptera

Order : Blattodea

Superfamily : Blaberoidea

Family : Blaberidae

Genus : Morphna

Species : Morphna dotata 

Walker & F. 1869

Blattodea is an order of insects that contains cockroaches and termites. Collectively, Blattodea and the mantis order Mantodea are considered part of the superorder Dictyoptera.

Formerly, termites were considered the separate order Isoptera, but genetic and molecular evidence suggests they evolved from within the cockroach lineage, which renders them cockroaches cladistically; the group of termites were subsumed into Blattodea and they are considered by some to be a divergent group of cockroaches. Blattodea includes approximately 4,400 species of cockroach in almost 500 genera, and about 3,000 species in around 300 genera within the termite clade.

Here are the key differences between termite alates and termites :

Alates are winged reproductives responsible for starting new colonies, while termites are the worker caste that feed on wood. Alates have straight, uniform wings and a thick, straight waist, making them look different from worker termites, which have a pinched waist and two pairs of wings that are not equal in size.

Alates swarm during specific times, often after heavy rain, to mate and establish new colonies. They are typically seen in large numbers and can be mistaken for flying ants.

Termites primarily feed on cellulose, while alates do not cause direct damage to wood but can lead to infestations if they establish new colonies.

Alates emerge from existing colonies to mate and become future kings and queens, while worker termites remain in the nest to feed. These distinctions help in identifying and managing termite infestations effectively. 

Termites are a group of eusocial insects which consume a variety of decaying plant material, generally in the form of wood, leaf litter, and soil humus. They are distinguished by their beaded (moniliform) antennae and the soft-bodied, unpigmented worker caste for which they have been commonly termed "white ants"; however, they are not ants but highly derived cockroaches; they are genetically closer to some cockroach groups than these are to other cockroaches.

About 2,997 extant species are currently described, 2,125 of which are members of the family Termitidae. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blattodea (the cockroaches). Termites were once classified in a separate order from cockroaches, but phylogenetic studies in the 21st century indicate that they evolved from cockroaches, as they are deeply nested within the group (clade), and the sister group to wood-eating cockroaches of the genus Cryptocercus.

Previous estimates suggested the divergence took place during the Jurassic or Triassic. More recent estimates suggest that they have an origin during the Late Jurassic, with later evidence revealing fossils from this time period.

Termite colonies are commonly described as superorganisms due to the collective behaviors of the individuals which form a self-governing entity : the colony itself. Their colonies range in size from a few hundred individuals to enormous societies with several million individuals. Most species are rarely seen, having a cryptic life history where they remain hidden within the galleries and tunnels of their nests for most of their lives.

Similar to ants, along with some bees and wasps of the order Hymenoptera, most termite colonies possess analogous "worker" and "soldier" castes consisting of mostly sterile individuals which are physically and behaviorally distinct from other castes. Unlike ants, most colonies begin from sexually mature individuals known as the "king" and "queen" that together form a lifelong monogamous pair. Also unlike ants, which undergo a complete metamorphosis, termites undergo an incomplete metamorphosis that proceeds through egg, nymph, and adult stages, as with other cockroaches.

Termites' success as a group has led to them colonizing almost every global landmass, with the highest diversity occurring in the tropics where they are estimated to constitute 10% of the animal biomass in some regions, particularly in Africa which has the richest diversity of more than 1000 described species. They are important decomposers of decaying plant matter in the subtropical and tropical regions of the world, and their recycling of wood and plant matter is of considerable ecological importance.

Many species are ecosystem engineers capable of altering many soil properties such as hydrology, decomposition, nutrient cycling, vegetative growth, and consequently surrounding biodiversity through the large mounds constructed by certain species.

Termites have several impacts on humans. They are a delicacy in the diet of some human cultures such as the Makiritare in the Alto Orinoco province of Venezuela, where they are commonly used as a spice. They are also used in traditional medicinal treatments of various diseases and ailments, such as influenza, asthma, bronchitis, and other ailments.

Termite alates are winged reproductive termites that leave their colony to mate and establish new colonies, signaling the presence of a mature termite colony nearby.

Termite alates, also called swarmers, are the winged adult reproductive members of a termite colony. Their primary role is to disperse from the parent colony during a coordinated event known as a nuptial flight or swarm, mate, and start new colonies. Alates are produced only by mature colonies, often taking several years to develop, and are nourished with high-quality food to sustain them during their flight.

Alates are larger than worker termites and have a dark brown or black body with two pairs of wings of equal length that extend beyond the abdomen. Their waist is broad and uniform, and their antennae are straight or beaded, distinguishing them from flying ants, which have a pinched waist and bent antennae. After landing, alates shed their wings, often leaving piles of discarded wings near windows or light sources.

Termite alates typically emerge during spring or early summer, often after rainfall on warm, calm, and humid days. The exact timing varies by species and geographic location. In some regions, like Florida, termites can swarm year-round. Swarming is a natural reproductive behavior and indicates that a colony is mature and potentially causing structural damage nearby.

Termite alates are winged reproductive termites that signal the presence of a mature colony. They are identifiable by their dark bodies, equal-length wings, and broad waist, and they emerge during swarming season to mate and establish new colonies. While harmless individually, their presence is a warning of potential structural damage, making timely inspection and treatment essential.

Alates themselves do not bite, sting, or transmit diseases and pose minimal direct risk to humans or pets. The real concern is the mature colony they represent, which may be actively consuming wood or creating tunnels in structures, leading to significant structural damage if left untreated. Termite alates focus solely on reproduction during their flight, pairing off to become the king and queen of a new colony.

Spotting alates or discarded wings indoors is a strong indicator of a nearby termite infestation. Homeowners should schedule a professional termite inspection promptly to assess the extent of the colony and implement control measures to prevent serious damage. Early detection and intervention are critical to protecting the structural integrity of your property.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Cohort : Polyneoptera

Superorder : Dictyoptera

Order : Blattodea

Infraorder : Isoptera

Brullé, 1832

The Coccidae....coccidae are a family of scale insects belonging to the superfamily Coccoidea.

They are commonly known as soft scales, wax scales or tortoise scales. The females are flat with elongated oval bodies and a smooth integument which may be covered with wax.

In some genera they possess legs but in others, they do not, and the antennae may be shortened or missing. The males may be winged or wingless.

The Sternorrhyncha suborder of the Hemiptera contains the aphids, whiteflies, and scale insects, groups which were traditionally included in the now-obsolete order "Homoptera". "Sternorrhyncha" refers to the rearward position of the mouthparts relative to the head. Distributed worldwide, all members of this group are plant-feeders (phytophagous), and many are major crop and ornamental pests.

Many exhibit modified morphology and/or life cycles, including phenomena such as flightless morphs, parthenogenesis, sexual dimorphism, and eusociality.

Scale insects are small insects of the order Hemiptera, suborder Sternorrhyncha. Of dramatically variable appearance and extreme sexual dimorphism, they comprise the infraorder Coccomorpha which is considered a more convenient grouping than the superfamily Coccoidea due to taxonomic

uncertainties.

Adult females typically have soft bodies and no limbs, and are concealed underneath domed scales, extruding quantities of wax for protection. Some species are hermaphroditic, with a combined ovotestis instead of separate ovaries and testes.

Males, in the species where they occur, have legs and sometimes wings, and resemble small flies. Scale insects are herbivores, piercing plant tissues with their mouthparts and remaining in one place, feeding on sap. The excess fluid they imbibe is secreted as honeydew on which sooty mold tends to grow. The insects often have a mutualistic relationship with ants, which feed on the honeydew and protect them from predators. There are about 8,000 described species.

Scale insects appeared in the Triassic, before their modern food plants, the angiosperms, had evolved; early forms probably fed on gymnosperms. They became widespread and common in the Cretaceous, and are well represented in the fossil record, usually preserved in amber where they are sometimes associated with ants.

Their closest relatives are the jumping plant lice, whiteflies, phylloxera bugs and aphids.

The majority of female scale insects remain in one place as adults, with newly hatched nymphs, known as "crawlers", being the only mobile life stage, apart from the short-lived males. The reproductive strategies of many species include at least some amount of asexual reproduction by parthenogenesis.

Some scale insects are serious commercial pests, notably the cottony cushion scale (Icerya purchasi) on Citrus fruit trees; they are difficult to control as the scale and waxy covering protect them effectively from contact insecticides.

Some species are used for biological control of pest plants such as the prickly pear, Opuntia. Others produce commercially valuable substances including carmine and kermes dyes, and shellac lacquer. The two red colour-names crimson and scarlet both derive from the names of Kermes products in other languages.

Scale insects vary dramatically in appearance, from very small organisms (1–2 mm) that grow beneath wax covers (some shaped like oysters, others like mussel shells), to shiny pearl-like objects (about 5 mm), to animals covered with mealy wax.

Adult females are almost always immobile (apart from mealybugs) and permanently attached to the plant on which they are feeding. They secrete a waxy coating for defence, making them resemble reptilian or fish scales, and giving them their common name.

The key character that sets apart the Coccomorpha from all other Hemiptera is the single segmented tarsus on the legs with only one claw at the tip.

The group is extremely sexually dimorphic; female scale insects, unusually for Hemiptera, retain the immature external morphology even when sexually mature, a condition known as neoteny.

Adult females are pear-shaped, elliptical or circular, with no wings, and usually no constriction separating the head from the body.

Segmentation of the body is indistinct, but may be indicated by the presence of marginal bristles. Legs are absent in the females of some families, and when present vary from single segment stubs to five-segmented limbs.

Female scale insects have no compound eyes, but ocelli (simple eyes) are sometimes present in Margarodidae, Ortheziidae and Phenacoleachiidae. The family Beesoniidae lacks antennae, but other families possess antennae with from one to thirteen segments. The mouthparts are adapted for piercing and sucking.

Adult males in contrast have the typical head, thorax and abdomen of other insect groups, and are so different from females that pairing them as a species is challenging.

They are usually slender insects resembling aphids or small flies. They have antennae with nine or ten segments, compound eyes (Margarodidae and Ortheziidae) or simple eyes (most other families), and legs with five segments. Most species have wings, and in some, alternate generations may be winged or wingless. Adult males do not feed, and die within two or three days of emergence.

In species with winged males, generally only the forewings are fully functional. This is unusual among insects; it most closely resembles the situation in the true flies, the Diptera.

However, the Diptera and Hemiptera are not closely related, and do not closely resemble each other in morphology; for example, the tail filaments of the Coccomorpha do not resemble anything in the morphology of flies.

The hind (metathoracic) wings are reduced, commonly to the point that they can easily be overlooked. In some species the hind wings have hamuli, hooklets, that couple the hind wings to the main wings, as in the Hymenoptera.

The vestigial wings are often reduced to pseudo-halteres, club-like appendages, but these are not homologous with the control organs of Diptera, and it is not clear whether they have any substantial control function.

Hermaphroditism is very rare in insects, but several species of Icerya exhibit an unusual form. The adult possesses an ovotestis, consisting of both female and male reproductive tissue, and sperm is transmitted to the young for their future use. The fact that a new population can be founded by a single individual may have contributed to the success of the cottony cushion scale which has spread around the world.

Female scale insects in more advanced families develop from the egg through a first instar (crawler) stage and a second instar stage before becoming adult.

In more primitive families there is an additional instar stage. Males pass through a first and second instar stage, a pre-pupal and a pupal stage before adulthood (actually a pseudopupa, as only holometabolous insects have a true pupa).

The first instars of most species of scale insects emerge from the egg with functional legs, and are informally called "crawlers". They immediately crawl around in search of a suitable spot to settle down and feed. In some species they delay settling down either until they are starving, or until they have been blown away by wind onto what presumably is another plant, where they may establish a new colony.

There are many variations on such themes, such as scale insects that are associated with species of ants that act as herders and carry the young ones to protected sites to feed. In either case, many such species of crawlers, when they moult, lose the use of their legs if they are female, and stay put for life.

Only the males retain legs, and in some species wings, and use them in seeking females. To do this they usually walk, as their ability to fly is limited, but they may get carried to new locations by the wind.

Scale insects are an ancient group, having originated in the Cretaceous, the period in which angiosperms came to dominance among plants, with only a few groups species found on gymnosperms.

They feed on a wide variety of plants but are unable to survive long away from their hosts. While some specialise on a single plant species (monophagous), and some on a single genus or plant family (oligophagous), others are less specialised and feed on several plant groups (polyphagous).

Most scale insects are herbivores, feeding on phloem sap drawn directly from the plant's vascular system, but a few species feed on fungal mats and fungi, such as some species in the genus Newsteadia in the family Ortheziidae.

Plant sap provides a liquid diet which is rich in sugar and non-essential amino acids. In order to make up for the shortage of essential amino acids, they depend on endosymbiotic proteobacteria.

Scale insects secrete a large quantity of sticky viscid fluid known as "honeydew". This includes sugars, amino acids and minerals, and is attractive to ants as well as acting as a substrate on which sooty mould can grow. The mould can reduce photosynthesis by the leaves and detracts from the appearance of ornamental plants.

The scale's activities can result in stress for the plant, causing reduced growth and giving it a greater susceptibility to plant diseases.

Scale insect in the genus Cryptostigma live inside the nests of neotropical ant species. Many tropical plants need ants to survive which in turn cultivate scale insects thus forming a three-way symbiosis. Some ants and scale insects have a mutualistic relationship; the ants feed on the honeydew and in return protect the scales.

Scale insects have various natural enemies, and research in this field is largely directed at the species that are crop pests. Entomopathogenic fungi can attack suitable scales and completely overgrow them.

An entomopathogenic fungus is a fungus that can act as a parasite of insects and kills or seriously disables them. The identity of the host is not always apparent as many fungi are host-specific, and may destroy all the scales of one species present on a leaf while not affecting another species.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Sternorrhyncha

Infraorder : Coccomorpha

Heslop-Harrison, 1952

Superfamily : Coccoidea

Handlirsch, 1903

Family : Coccidae

Pulchriphyllium is a genus of leaf insects (belonging to the Phasmatodea); it was initially described as a subgenus of Phyllium, which unites medium-sized to large species. These are native to Seychelles, Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh and large parts of Southeast Asia.

Pulchriphyllium bioculatum, or Gray's leaf insect, is a leaf insect of the family Phylliidae native to tropical Asia as well as Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles.

It was first described by George Robert Gray in 1832, which was his first phasmid he discovered.

Leaf insects have extremely flattened, irregularly shaped bodies, wings, and legs. They are usually about 5–10 cm long (2–4 in long). They are called leaf insects because their large, leathery forewings have veins that look similar to the veins on the particular type of leaves they inhabit. Its scientific name bioculatum means "two-eyed" and refers to the two dots located on the abdomen just in this species.

The insect has green, broad body and legs and frequently has spots. Both females and males occur in shades of green, yellow, and orange. Java leaf insects would be greenish or brownish as adults.

Males range from 2.6 to 3.7 inches (66 to 94 mm). The organism's fore wings and camouflage are used for defense.

Females are heavy-bodied and flightless, and each lays about 500 eggs in a lifetime. The abdomen is narrower at the base, and the femur of the fore legs are dilated.

The antennae of the females are very short, while those of the male are longer. Adult females are 1.8–2.7 inches (46–69 mm) in length. The species also has hind wings which are used for flying by males, but are unused by females.

Young Pulchriphyllium bioculatum are about 2 cm (0.79 in) long, dark red in colour and have reflex immobility. The species molts 5–6 times in a lifetime.

They are slow-moving herbivores and rely on their camouflage and fore wings for defense from predators including birds, amphibians and reptiles. The females live from 4 to 7 months and males from 3 weeks to 1 month.

These leaf insects are found mainly in tropical areas and rainforests where adequate quantities of vegetation are available for consumption.

It is widespread in Southeast Asia, in Borneo, China, India, Sri Lanka, Java, Malaysia, Singapore, and Sumatra. It is also found in Madagascar, Mauritius, and the Seychelles.

The preferred temperature for this species is 24–28 °C (75–82 °F), which at night may slightly decrease by 2–3 °C (3.6–5.4 °F). Temperature does not strongly affect the species but will slow development. It is important that the temperature is not reduced below 22 °C (72 °F). Low humidity can cause stress and death.

As a herbivore Pulchriphyllium bioculatum mainly eats mango, guava, Nephelium lappaceum (Rambutan)

and in captivity some accept Quercus (oak) and Rubus (dewberry, raspberry and blackberry) species.

A study was done in Sri Lanka, based on the leaf insect's diet. The specimens mainly fed on guava. Accordingly, the local name for the species in Sri Lanka is pera kolaya (guava leaf). In many places they are colloquially referred to on the basis of what they eat.

The females lay eggs in months. Incubation takes place from 5–7 months at 25 °C (77 °F). Eggs are beige-brown and about 6–7 mm (0.2–0.3 in).

However, many times the eggs laid are not fertilized due to parthenogenesis. This is a form of asexual reproduction found in females, where growth and development of embryos occurs without fertilization by a male.

​Eggs are oval or barrel-shaped, like seeds. Different types of oviposition occur in leaf insects. The eggs of this species are catapulted by a backward movement of the abdomen. In a study the ratio of the distance the egg was thrown and the body length of the insect was compared with some other species, which was 24-36. If the eggs are fertilized, then it takes 3–4 months for incubation, otherwise it takes 6 months for unfertilized eggs. 

Unfertilized eggs hatch out with females only, while fertilized ones may be either male or female. The female lays about 100 eggs at intervals of a few days. The larvae are red at hatching but green within three to seven days. These hatch from eggs laid at a rate of three per day per female.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Family : Phylliidae

Genus : Pulchriphyllium

Species : P. bioculatum

Binomial name : Pulchriphyllium bioculatum

(G. R. Gray, 1832)

Synonyms : 

Phyllium bioculatum G. R. Gray, 1832

Phyllium longicorne Latreille, 1802 (Nomen oblitum)

Polyrhachis is a genus of formicine ants found in the Old World with over 600 species. The genus is yet to be comprehensively resolved and contains many varied species including nest-weavers (e.g. Polyrhachis dives), swimming workers (e.g. Polyrhachis sokolova), soil (e.g. Polyrhachis proxima) and tree-dwellers (e.g. Polyrhachis bicolor).

Workers range in size approx 5-10mm in length. Eyes developed, no ocelli. Antennae have 12-segments. Antennal insertions situated far from posterior margin of clypeus. Mesosoma of most species have spines on one or more of its pronotal, mesonotal or propodeal components. Petiole armed with spines or teeth. First gastral tergite well developed, longer in dorsal view than exposed parts of the following terga together. Opening at gastral apex for release of venom lacking a radial fringe of hairs.

Polyrhachis species include an array of nesting types ranging from terrestrial, soil based nests to arboreal nests. As a result, the nest architectures also vary with some species displaying a high level of complexity to nest building, utilising larval silk to weave nest materials together. Such nest weaving is more commonly associated (and indeed more complex) in ants of the genus Oecophylla.

Polyrhachis do not have a stinger but an acidipore that can spray formic acid. When attacking, this is often sprayed in combination with biting thus making the acid more effective against the subject of the attack.

Polyrhachis that do not possess a metapleural gland seem to utilise the antibiotic properties of their formic acid and when it cannot be used, ants are more likely to succumb to parasite infection Some species are social parasites; Polyrachis lemalidens is a good example.

They live in the Korean Peninsula, China and other parts of northeastern Asia. Their nuptial flight occurs during late September to late November depending on the climate.

After flight queen dealates search for host colonies. Usually Camponotus japonicus is the host but especially in Korea, their main host is Camponotus atrox. Korean antkeepers say that they even take on to Formica japonica and Camponotus quadrinotatus.

Once they find a host colony, they attack small workers hanging out and 'copying' their pheromones. After doing that multiple times to multiple ants, they sneak into the nest and keep 'copying.'

Then whether they hibernate or not, they eventually go to the Host Queen's chamber. Then they become tiny vampires, literally. They take onto the queen, bites its neck subduing it, sucks blood, 'Copy' pheromone. And eventually and literally cuts the neck of the host queen. This process usually lasts for 2–4 days but can last over 2 weeks. After that is pretty much same to other social parasites.

Polyrhachis illaudata is a species of large ant found in Sri Lanka, India extending through Southeast Asia to the Philippines. The colonies have a single queen and nest within wood.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hymenoptera

Family : Formicidae

Subfamily : Formicinae

Genus : Polyrhachis

Species : P. illaudata

Binomial name : Polyrhachis illaudata

Walker, 1859

Scolypopa australis, commonly known as the passionvine hopper, is a species of insect in the Ricaniidae family of planthoppers (Fulgoroidea) that is native to Australia and has been introduced to New Zealand.

Despite its name, they are found not only on passion vines, but on many plant species, including kiwifruit and the lantana.

Brown with partly transparent wings, they are 5–6 mm long as adults and 5 mm as nymphs. As an adult they look somewhat like a moth to the untrained eye, and walk "like a ballerina". The nymphs are wingless and are informally known as fluffy bums.

When sufficiently aroused they will hop off their plant "with a 'snap'". Like all planthoppers they suck plant sap. This leaves a honeydew secretion which bees gather. They are also known to cause honey poisoning.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Auchenorrhyncha

Superfamily : Fulgoroidea

Family : Ricaniidae

Genus : Scolypopa

Species : S. australis

Binomial name : Scolypopa australis

(Walker, 1851)

The family Fulgoridae is a large group of hemipteran insects, especially abundant and diverse in the tropics, containing over 125 genera worldwide.

They are mostly of moderate to large size, many with a superficial resemblance to Lepidoptera due to their brilliant and varied coloration. Various genera and species (especially the genera Fulgora and Pyrops) are sometimes referred to as lanternflies or lanthorn flies, though they do not emit light.

The head of some species is produced into a hollow process (structure), resembling a snout, which is sometimes inflated and nearly as large as the body of the insect, sometimes elongated, narrow and apically upturned. It was believed, mainly on the authority of Maria Sibylla Merian, that this process, the so-called lantern, was luminous at night in the living insect.

​Carl Linnaeus adopted the statement without question and coined a number of specific names, such as laternaria, phosphorea and candelaria to illustrate the supposed fact, and thus propagated the myth.

Metcalf in 1938, as amended in 1947, recognized five subfamilies (Amyclinae, Aphaeninae, Fulgorinae, Phenacinae, and Poiocerinae) and twelve tribes in the Fulgoridae. By 1963 Lallemand had divided the Fulgoridae into eight subfamilies (Amyclinae, Aphaeninae, Enchophorinae, Fulgorinae, Phenacinae, Poiocerinae, Xosopharinae and Zanninae) and eleven tribes. This classification was generally accepted. 

However, in 2008 Julie Urban's molecular analysis in her dissertation showed that a significant revamping of the Fulgoridae subfamilies and tribes would be necessary, as the morphological analysis by itself did not take into account the complexity of the Fulgoridae evolution. Her work was recapitulated in 2009 with Jason Cryan. The Zanninae may not even be in the Fulgoridae.

A planthopper is any insect in the infraorder Fulgoromorpha, in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha, and exceeding 12,500 described species worldwide. The name comes from their remarkable resemblance to leaves and other plants of their environment and that they often "hop" for quick transportation in a similar way to that of grasshoppers.

However, planthoppers generally walk very slowly. Distributed worldwide, all members of this group are plant-feeders, though surprisingly few are considered pests. The infraorder contains only a single superfamily, Fulgoroidea. 

Fulgoroids are most reliably distinguished from the other Auchenorrhyncha by two features; the bifurcate ("Y"-shaped) anal vein in the forewing, and the thickened, three-segmented antennae, with a generally round or egg-shaped second segment (pedicel) that bears a fine filamentous arista.

Planthoppers are laterally flattened and hold their broad wings vertically, in a tent-like fashion, concealing the sides of the body and part of the legs. Nymphs of many fulgoroids produce wax from special glands on the abdominal terga and other parts of the body. These are hydrophobic and help conceal the insects. Adult females of many families also produce wax which may be used to protect eggs.

Fulgoroid nymphs also possess a biological gear mechanism at the base of the hind legs, which keeps the legs in synchrony when the insects jump. The gears, not present in the adults, were known for decades before the recent description of their function.

Planthoppers are often vectors for plant diseases, especially phytoplasmas which live in the phloem of plants and can be transmitted by planthoppers when feeding.

A number of extinct members of Fulgoroidea are known from the fossil record, such as the Lutetian-age Emiliana from the Green River Formation (Eocene) in Colorado.

Both planthopper adults and nymphs feed by sucking sap from plants; in so doing, the nymphs produce copious quantities of honeydew, on which sooty mould often grows. One species considered to be a pest is Haplaxius crudus, which is a vector for lethal yellowing, a palm disease that nearly killed off the Jamaican Tall coconut variety.

As mentioned under Auchenorrhyncha, some authors use the name Archaeorrhyncha as a replacement for the Fulgoromorpha.

Polydictya is a genus of planthoppers in the sub-family Poiocerinae Haupt, 1929. Species are distributed from India, through Indo-China, to Malesia and Singapore

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Infraorder : Fulgoromorpha

Family : Fulgoridae

Tribe : Poiocerini

Genus : Polydictya

Guérin-Méneville, 1844

Species : Polydictya basalis

Hope 1843

Chrysopa is a genus of green lacewings in the neuropteran family Chrysopidae.

Members of this genus and the genus Chrysoperla are common in much of North America, Europe and Asia. They share similar characteristics and some species have been moved from one genus to the other and back again. Their larvae are predatory and feed on aphids and members of this genus have been used in biological pest control.

​Chrysoperla carnea, one of the species of common green lacewing is an insect in the Chrysopidae family. Although the adults feed on nectar, pollen and aphid honeydew, the larvae are active predators and feed on aphids and other small insects. It has been used in the biological control of insect pests on crops.

Chrysoperla carnea was originally considered to be a single species with a holarctic distribution but it has now been shown to be a complex of many cryptic, sibling subspecies. These are indistinguishable from each other morphologically but can be recognised by variations in the vibrational songs the insects use to communicate with each other, which they especially do during courtship.

The green lacewing eggs are oval and secured to the plant by long slender stalks. They are pale green when first laid but become gray later. The larvae are about one millimetre long when they first hatch. They are brown and resemble small alligators, crawling actively around in search of prey.

They have a pair of pincer-like mandibles on their head with which they grasp their prey, sometimes lifting the victim off the leaf surface to prevent its escape. The larvae inject enzymes into the bodies of their victims which digest the internal organs, after which they suck out the liquidated body fluids. The larvae grow to about eight millimetres long before they spin circular cocoons and pupate.

Adult green lacewings are a pale green colour with long, threadlike antennae and glossy, golden, compound eyes. They have a delicate appearance and are from twelve to twenty millimetres long with large, membranous, pale green wings which they fold tent-wise above their abdomens. 

They are weak fliers and have a fluttery form of flight. They are often seen during the evenings and at night when they are attracted by lights. The high green sensitivity of the superposition eyes allows the green lacewings to recognize fresh green leaves that they use to find honey dew produced by aphids, a site for egglaying and a resting place.

The green lacewing adults overwinter buried in leaf litter at the edge of fields or other rough places, emerging when the weather warms up in spring. Each female lacewing lays several hundred small eggs at the rate of two to five per day, choosing concealed spots underneath leaves or on shoots near potential prey. The eggs are normally laid during the hours of darkness.

The larvae hatch in three to six days, eat voraciously and moult three times as they grow. They feed not only on aphids but also on many other types of insects and even prey on larger creatures such as caterpillars. They can consume large numbers of prey and completely destroy aphid colonies. When food is scarce they turn cannibal and eat each other.

After two to three weeks, the mature larvae secrete silk and build round, parchment-like cocoons in concealed positions on plants. From these, the adults emerge ten to fourteen days later. The length of the life cycle (under 4 weeks in summer conditions) is greatly influenced by the temperature and there may be several generations each year under favourable conditions.

Chrysoperla carnea adults eat pollen and honeydew and are not predatory, but the larvae have been recorded as feeding on seventy different prey species in five insect orders. The prey are mostly from the order Hemiptera and are predominantly aphids on low growing vegetation.

On crops, the larvae have been reported as attacking several species of aphids, red spider mites, thrips, whitefly, the eggs of leafhoppers, leaf miners, psyllids, small moths and caterpillars, beetle larvae and the tobacco budworm. They are considered to be important predators of the long-tailed mealybug under glass.

C. carnea occurs naturally in many growing regions of the northern hemisphere. It is considered an important aphid predator in cotton crops in Russia and Egypt, sugar beet in Germany and vineyards in Europe.

It has been found to be effective at controlling the cotton whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, in cotton crops in Pakistan. The presence of the larvae on the foliage was found to inhibit visitation and oviposition by B. tabaci which suggests the larvae may produce a volatile semiochemical which repels the whitefly.

Although the larvae are effective as biological control agents, in open air environments the adult lacewings tend to disperse widely. They may remain in the original release location if they have sources of nectar, pollen or honeydew to feed on in the general vicinity. Commercial supplies of related species, usually eggs, are available from many outlets inNorth America. However, no true C. carnea occurs in North America.

When attempts were made to introduce the species into India, and New Zealand between the 1920s and 1970s, the lacewings failed to become established, perhaps because of the absence of certain yeast symbionts necessary to their development which were absent from their new environments.

​Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Neuroptera

Family : Chrysopidae

Genus : Chrysoperla

Species : C. carnea

Binomial name : Chrysoperla carnea

(Stephens, 1836)

Oxygrylius is a genus of rhinoceros beetles in the family Scarabaeidae. There are at least two described species in Oxygrylius.

These two species of the genus of Oxygrylius are : Oxygrylius peninsularis Casey, 1915 and Oxygrylius ruginasus (LeConte, 1856)

Oxygrylius ruginasus is a species of rhinoceros beetle in the family Scarabaeidae.

The family Scarabaeidae, as currently defined, consists of over 30,000 species of beetles worldwide; they are often called scarabs or scarab beetles.

The classification of this family has undergone significant change in recent years. Several subfamilies have been elevated to family rank (e.g., Pleocomidae, Glaresidae, Glaphyridae, Ochodaeidae, and Geotrupidae), and some reduced to lower ranks.

Scarabs are stout-bodied beetles, many with bright metallic colours, measuring between 1.5 and 160 mm. They have distinctive, clubbed antennae composed of plates called lamellae that can be compressed into a ball or fanned out like leaves to sense odours.

Many species are fossorial, with legs adapted for digging. In some groups males (and sometimes females) have prominent horns on the head and/or pronotum to fight over mates or resources.

The C-shaped larvae, called grubs, are pale yellow or white. Most adult beetles are nocturnal, although the flower chafers (Cetoniinae) and many leaf chafers (Rutelinae) are active during the day. The grubs mostly live underground or under debris, so are not exposed to sunlight.

Many scarabs are scavengers that recycle dung, carrion, or decaying plant material. Others, such as the Japanese beetle, are plant-eaters.

Some of the well-known beetles from the Scarabaeidae are Japanese beetles, dung beetles, June beetles, rose chafers (Australian, European, and North American), rhinoceros beetles, Hercules beetles and Goliath beetles.

Several members of this family have structurally coloured shells which act as left-handed circular polarisers; this was the first-discovered example of circular polarization in nature.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Suborder : Polyphaga

Infraorder : Scarabaeiformia

Superfamily : Scarabaeoidea

Family : Scarabaeidae

Genus : Oxygrylius

Species : O. ruginasus

Binomial name : Oxygrylius ruginasus

(LeConte, 1856)

Synonyms :

Oxygrylius pimalis Casey, 1915

The Phasmatidae are a family of the stick insects (order Phasmatodea) They belong to the superfamily Anareolatae of suborder Verophasmatodea.

Like many of their relatives, the Phasmatidae are capable of regenerating limbs and commonly reproduce by parthenogenesis. Despite their bizarre, even threatening appearance, they are harmless to humans.

The Phasmatidae contain some of the largest insects in existence. The recently discovered Chan's megastick (Phobaeticus chani) of the Clitumninae (sometimes placed in the Phasmatinae) can grow to a total length of over 0.5 m (20 in) it is the longest living insect known.

Following the Phasmid Study Group, nine subfamilies are recognized in the Phasmatidae. Other treatments differ, sometimes recognizing as few as six.

The Lonchodinae were historically often placed in the Diapheromeridae, the other family of the Anareolatae.

The Phasmatinae are often expanded to include the two tribes here separated as the Clitumninae, while the Extatosomatinae may be similarly included in the Tropidoderinae as a tribe.

Necroscia is an Asian genus of stick insects in the family Diapheromeridae and subfamily Necrosciinae. Species have been recorded from South-East Asia.

​

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Infraorder : Anareolatae

Family : Phasmatidae

Roberts, 1944

Family : Diapheromeridae

Subfamily : Necrosciinae

Genus : Necroscia

Serville, 1838

Species : Necroscia affinis

A Breakthrough from Bagworms.

Bagworms are larvae of a kind of Psychidae moth, which are widespread in all zoological environments except for the polar regions and deserts.

Bagworms produce thread composed of silk protein as silkworms and spiders do. Shortly after hatching, bagworms construct cases called “mino” by weaving leaves and twigs together with their silk thread. They stay in and move with these cases until they become adults.

Most bagworms are small, making cases less than 10 mm long. However, there are many large bagworms such as the larvae of Eumeta japonica (case sizes of 30 – 55 mm long) and Eumeta minuscula (case sizes of 20 – 35 mm long), which are widely found in Japan.

Some species of bagworms eat lichen, moss, fungi, and algae, but many large bagworms eat leaves, stems, and tree bark. As they are generally polyphagous, they are often categorized as pests.

The Psychidae (bagworm moths, also simply bagworms or bagmoths) are a family of the Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths).

The bagworm family is fairly small, with about 1,350 species described. Bagworm species are found globally, with some, such as the snailcase bagworm (Apterona helicoidella), in modern times settling continents where they are not native.

Another common name for the Psychidae is "case moths", but this is just as well used for the case-bearers (Coleophoridae). The names refer to the habits of caterpillars of these two families, which build small protective cases in which they can hide.

The bagworms belong to the superfamily Tineoidea, which is a basal lineage of the Ditrysia (as is Gelechioidea, which includes case-bearers). This means that the bagworms and case-bearers are only as closely related to each other as either is to butterflies (Rhopalocera).

Most bagworms are inoffensive to humans and inconspicuous; some are occasional nuisance pests. However, a few species can become more serious pests, and have caused significant damage e.g. to wattle (Acacia mearnsii) in South Africa and orange (Citrus × sinensis) in Florida. If detected early, picking the cases from the trees while in their pupa stage is an effective way to check an infestation; otherwise, insecticides are used.

One bagworm species, the fangalabola (Deborrea malgassa) of Madagascar, is in some places encouraged to breed on wattle trees, because its pupae are collected as a protein-rich food.

The caterpillar larvae of the Psychidae construct cases out of silk and environmental materials such as sand, soil, lichen, or plant materials. These cases are attached to rocks, trees or fences while resting or during their pupa stage, but are otherwise mobile. The larvae of some species eat lichen, while others prefer green leaves.

In many species, the adult females lack wings and are therefore difficult to identify accurately. Case-bearer cases are usually much smaller, flimsier, and consist mainly of silk, while bagworm "bags" resemble caddisfly cases in their outward appearance – a mass of (mainly) plant detritus spun together with silk on the inside.

Bagworm cases range in size from less than 1 cm to 15 cm among some tropical species. Each species makes a case particular to its species, making the case more useful to identify the species than the creature itself. 

Cases among the more primitive species are flat. More specialized species exhibit a greater variety of case size, shape, and composition, usually narrowing on both ends. The attachment substance used to affix the bag to host plant, or structure, can be very strong, and in some case require a great deal of force to remove given the relative size and weight of the actual "bag" structure itself. 

Body markings are rare. Adult females of many bagworm species are larviform, with only vestigial wings, legs, and mouthparts.

In some species, parthenogenesis is known. The adult males of most species are strong fliers with well-developed wings and feathery antennae but survive only long enough to reproduce due to underdeveloped mouthparts that prevent them from feeding. 

Most male bagworm wings have few of the scales characteristic of most moths, instead having a thin covering of hairs.

In the larval stage, bagworms extend their head and thorax from their mobile case to devour the leaves of host plants, often leading to the death of their hosts. Trees infested with bagworms exhibit increasingly damaged foliage as the infestation increases until the leaves are stripped bare.

Some bagworms are specialized in their host plants (monophagous), while others can feed on a variety of plant species (polyphagous). A few species also consume small arthropods (such as the camphor scale Pseudaonidia duplex, a scale insect). One bagworm species was found to eat an orb-web of Plebs sachalinensis (Araneae, Araneidae) entirely.

Since bagworm cases are composed of silk and the materials from their habitat, they are naturally camouflaged from predators. Predators include birds and other insects. Birds often eat the egg-laden bodies of female bagworms after they have died. Since the eggs are very hard-shelled, they can pass through the bird's digestive system unharmed, promoting the spread of the species over wide areas.

A bagworm begins to build its case as soon as it hatches. Once the case is built, only adult males ever leave the case, never to return, when they take flight to find a mate.

Bagworms add material to the front of the case as they grow, excreting waste materials through the opening in the back of the case. When satiated with leaves, a bagworm caterpillar secures its case and pupates.

The adult female, which is wingless, either emerges from the case long enough for breeding or remains in the case while the male extends his abdomen into the female's case to breed.

Females lay their eggs in their case and die. The female evergreen bagworm (Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformis) dies without laying eggs, and the larval bagworm offspring emerge from the parent's body.

Some bagworm species are parthenogenetic, meaning their eggs develop without male fertilization. Each bagworm generation lives just long enough as adults to mate and reproduce in their annual cycle.

Life Cycle of a Bagworm.

Bagworm, like all moths, undergoes complete metamorphosis with four stages.

Egg : In late summer and fall, the female lays up to 1,000 eggs in her case. She then leaves her bag and drops to the ground; the eggs overwinter.

Larva : In late spring, larvae hatch and disperse on silken threads. They immediately begin feeding and constructing their own bags. As they grow, the larvae enlarge their bags by adding more foliage. They stay within the safety of their bags, sticking their heads out to feed and carrying the bags from branch to branch. Frass falls out of the bottom end of the cone-shaped bag through an opening.

Pupa : When the larvae reach maturity in late summer and prepare to pupate, they attach their bags to the underside of a branch. The bag is sealed shut, and the larvae turn to head down inside the bag. The pupal stage lasts four weeks.

Adult : In September, adults emerge from their pupal cases. Males leave their bags to fly in search of mates. Females have no wings, legs, or mouthparts, and remain within their bags.

The bagworm's best defense is its camouflage bag, worn throughout its life cycle. The bag allows otherwise vulnerable larvae to move freely from place to place.

Female moths, though confined to their bags, attract mates by releasing strong sex pheromones. Males leave their bags to find partners when they sense the chemical alert from females.

​

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Lepidoptera

Superfamily : Tineoidea

Family : Psychidae

Boisduval, 1828

Henosepilachna is a genus of beetle in the family Coccinellidae, including several pest species, such as the 28-spotted potato ladybird (which may refer to either Henosepilachna vigintioctomaculata or Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata).

Species in this genus occur through much of Asia and Australasia, and one species, Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata, has been accidentally introduced in other parts of the world (e.g., Brazil and Argentina).

Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata is a species of beetle in the family Coccinellidae. It is commonly known as the 28-spotted potato ladybird or the Hadda beetle. It feeds on the foliage of potatoes and other solanaceous crops.

It was previously called Epilachna vigintioctopunctata and is a cryptic species complex. It is very often confused with a closely related species, Henosepilachna vigintioctomaculata, which occurs in Russia, China, Japan, and Korea, and is given the same "common name".

This species is native to southeastern Asia, primarily India, but has been accidentally introduced to other parts of the world, including Australia and New Zealand. It has also been recorded from Brazil and

Argentina, beginning in 1996.

This species causes damage to agricultural crops primarily in the family Solanaceae, especially potatoes; other crops include pumpkin, turnips, radishes, beans and spinach.

​

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Suborder : Polyphaga

Infraorder : Cucujiformia

Family : Coccinellidae

Genus : Henosepilachna

Species : H. vigintioctopunctata

Binomial name : Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata

Fabricius, 1775

The Dichopterinae are a sub-family of planthoppers, now placed in the Fulgoridae, erected by Leopold Melichar in 1912. The recorded distribution is : South America, Africa, Europe (German fossil species) and Asia through to Borneo.

Dichoptera is a genus of plant-hoppers found in tropical Asia. They were formerly placed in the family

Dictyopharidae.

They have large and stout bodies with long membranous forewings. The head is short and may have a long process. There are 11 species in the genus.

Often found on the bark of Ficus trees, they are tended by ants and sometimes parasitized by Dryinidae.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Infraorder : Fulgoromorpha

Family : Fulgoridae

Subfamily : Dichopterinae

Melichar, 1912

Genus : Dichoptera

Spinola, 1839

Type species : Dichoptera hyalinata

(Fabricius, 1781)

Catharsius is a genus of dung beetles in the tribe Coprini (subfamily Scarabaeinae) in the scarab family.

It contains about 100 species of intermediate to large size (15–50 millimetres or 0.59–1.97 inches), black or brown, living in the tropical areas of the Old World. Tropical Africa contains about 85 species, with the remaining 15 in tropical Asia. Catharsius are typically short and convex scarabs, with horns on head and forebody of males, sometimes also of females.

They mostly live in grasslands and pastures, occasionally in forests, where they eat large mammals’ dung, using it to make pedotrophic nests in which their offspring develop. A few species shifted from coprophagy to necrophagy, and use small vertebrates carcasses as food for both adults and larvae.

Due to their rather large size and occasional abundance, Catharsius species play important roles in the ecology and soil dynamics of tropical areas. They bury vast amounts of dung into the ground, thus improving the quality and texture of the soils. Also, they contribute to “clean” the surface of the ground, hence their name (from the Greek katharsios “purifier”).

Important species are Catharsius molossus (Linnaeus, 1758), one of the most widespread and abundant coprophagous species in tropical Asian regions.

Catharsius molossus is a species of dung beetle of the family Scarabaeidae. Catharsius molossus can reach a length of about 25–35 millimetres (0.98–1.38 in) in the females, about 45 millimetres (1.8 in) in males.

This species is completely black, the body is short and convex, quite hairy on the ventral side and usually with a short conical horn in the centre of the head of the males. Pronotum is densely granulated and elytra are finely striated. It is used in traditional Chinese medicine for detoxification, swelling and constipation.

The Molossus Dung Beetle is widely used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). An extract of C. molossus is often used in the submerged fermentation of a medicinal fungus called "Ling Zhi" (Ganoderma lucidum) also commonly used in TCM to treat various human diseases like gastritis, hepatitis, chronic bronchitis and immunological disorders.

The extract of ethyl acetate extracts from C. molossus is known to help increase the production of bioactive compounds and polysaccharides (or sugars) in the fungus. Additionally, a polypeptide extract from C. molossus can also be used for treatment of Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) or prostate gland enlargement

Anti-diabetes activity of Catharsius molossus glycosaminoglycan was evaluated to reduce glucose, creatinine kinase, triglyceride and free fatty acid levels in db mice.

Interestingly, some nocturnal species of dung beetles that belong to the same family as Catharsius molossus (Scarabaeidae) use the polarized light of the moon to orientate themselves, helping them to move in a straight line.

While studies have only been on the genus Scarabeus, there is no evidence that other nocturnal beetles do not rely on moonlight for navigation too. In light of such news, it is worth considering what effects rapid urbanisation and light pollution can have on the dung beetles. There should also be more research done on dung beetles in Singapore, especially the nocturnal ones like the Molossus Dung Beetle.

Catharsius molossus is commonly known as the Molossus beetle. In Chinese, it is known as 神農蜣螂 (shén nǒng qiāng lǎng). This directly translates to the "God Farmer's Dung beetle", while there is no direct explanation of this name, it could be linked to it's medicinal usage in Traditional Chinese Medicine and how it's tunnelling behaviour aids in soil aeration for farmers.

Catharsius molossus is one of the most widespread and abundant coprophagous species in tropical Asian regions. The Molossus Dung Beetle is found across Southeast Asia in India, southern China, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and most recently, again in Singapore.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Family : Scarabaeidae

Subfamily : Scarabaeinae

Tribe : Coprini

Genus : Catharsius

Species : C. molossus

Binomial name : Catharsius molossus

Linnaeus, 1758

The Gerridae are a family of insects in the order Hemiptera, commonly known as water striders, water skeeters, water scooters, water bugs, pond skaters, water skippers, Jesus bugs, or water skimmers.

While 90% of the Gerridae are freshwater bugs, the oceanic Halobates makes the family quite exceptional among insects. The family Gerridae is physically characterized by having hydrofuge hairpiles, retractable preapical claws, and elongated legs and body.

Hydrofuge hairpiles are small, hydrophobic microhairs. These are tiny hairs with more than one thousand microhairs per mm. The entire body is covered by these hairpiles, providing the water strider resistance to splashes or drops of water. These hairs repel the water, preventing drops from weighing down the body.

Water striders have two antennae with four segments on each. Antennal segments are numbered from closest to the head to farthest. The antennae have short, stiff bristles in segment III. Relative lengths of the antennae segments can help identify unique species within the family Gerridae, but in general, segment I is longer and stockier than the remaining three. The four segments combined are usually no longer than the length of the water strider head.

The thorax of water striders is generally long, narrow, and small in size. It generally ranges from 1.6 mm to 3.6 mm long across the species, with some bodies more cylindrical or rounder than others. The pronotum, or outer layer of the thorax, of the water strider can be either shiny or dull depending on the species, and covered with microhairs to help repel water. The abdomen of a water strider can have several segments and contains both the metasternum and omphalium.

Some water striders have wings present on the dorsal side of their thorax, while other species of Gerridae do not, particularly Halobates.

Consistent with the classification of the Gerridae as true bugs (i.e., suborder Heteroptera), gerrids have mouthparts evolved for piercing and sucking, and distinguish themselves by having the unusual ability to walk on water, making them pleuston (surface-living) animals. 

They are anatomically built to transfer their weight to be able to run on top of the water's surface. As a result, one could likely find water striders present in any pond, river, or lake. Over 1,700 species of gerrids have been described, 10% of them being marine.

Aquarius remigis, known as the common water strider, is a species of aquatic bug. It was formerly known as Gerris remigis, but the subgenus Aquarius was elevated to generic rank in 1990 on the basis of phylogenetic analysis.

Aquarius remigis grows slightly longer than .5 inches, and is dark brown to black in colour. It has a sharp rostrum that it uses to pierce the body of its prey and suck out the insides.

They normally continue to move to avoid being eaten by predators. It has good vision, and can row quickly over the surface of the water. It uses its front legs to seize its prey. During breeding season, this species can communicate with potential mates by sending ripples over on the surface of the water.

Adult females normally lay their eggs on plant stems at the water's edge. This predatory species feeds on mosquito larvae living under the surface, and dead insects on the surface, and other insects that accidentally land on the water.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Heteroptera

Infraorder : Gerromorpha

Superfamily : Gerroidea

Family : Gerridae

Subfamily : Gerrinae

Genus : Aquarius

Species : A. remigis

Binomial name : Aquarius remigis

Say, 1832

Synonyms :

Gerris remigis Say, 1832

Zoraida is a large genus of planthoppers from the family Derbidae, tribe Zoraidini, with more than 100 species. These are widely distributed in the Old World tropics and in some subtropical parts of eastern Asia.

In Africa, they are found mainly in the humid tropics of West Africa like Sierra Leone, the Ivory Coast, the Central African Republic, Nigeria or the Democratic Republic of Congo. However, Zoraida species have been also described from eastern Africa as far north as South Sudan and as far south as parts of South Africa.

In Asia, the largest number of species have been described/reported from Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Sri Lanka, but species are also known as far south as northern Australia and as far north as the southern tip of far-eastern Russia. Like other species of the tribe Zoraidini, Zoraida species have long and narrow forewings and short hind wings. They can be identifies by the forewing venation and the structure of the head.

About one third of the described Zoraida species are found in Africa and around two thirds in Asia. In Asia, Zoraida species have a wide distribution from Sri Lanka and most parts of India in the West, over southern mainland Asia (Myanmar, Malaysia, parts of China) to far-eastern Asia including Korea and southern parts of far-eastern Russia.

The distribution also includes many islands of eastern and south-eastern Asia and parts of the western Pacific like parts of Japan, Taiwan, Palau, the Philippines and Indonesia, with the largest number of species having been described from Indonesia, Taiwan and the Philippines. Further south, the distribution extends to the islands of New Guinea, New Caledonia and to parts of northern Australia.

The species of Zoraida can be distinguished from other genera of the tribe Zoraidini by the venation and the shape of the forewings. The media vein has 5 branches with the first branch being forked. In a few species, the 2 sub branches of the first media branch fork again so that a total of 4 sub branches reach the wing margin. The base of the costal margin is not extended like in the genus Peggia and the hind margin is not undulate like in the genus Losbanosia.

The forewings are typically between 10 and 15 mm long and the body is usually not more than half that length. Like in other groups from the tribe Zoraidini, the species of Zoraida have long and narrow forewings and short hind wings. In the type species Zoraida sinuosa the length of the hind wings is around 40% that of the forewings and some species of Zoraida have been described with much shorter hind wings. Also, the face (frons) is narrow with the ridges on the side typically meeting most of its length. The antennae are long, usually longer than the face. In profile, the head is typically flat and evenly rounded. The forewings may have coloured areas or patterns like a broad dark stripe along the costal margin. The wings are spread out when the insects are at rest. The body is often straw-coloured.

There is little information on the host plants and the biology of the species of Zoraida. The nymphs have been found in decaying tree trunks, where they presumably feed on fungi. The genus Zoraida has been divided into 3 subgenera, Zoraida (Neozoraida), Zoraida (Peggiopsis) and Zoraida (Zoraida).

However, more than one third of all species have not been formally assigned to one of these subgenera. This division into subgenera is based on the forewing venation and the shape of the antennae. In the subgenus Zoraida (Neozoraida), each of the 2 sub branches of the first media branch splits again, resulting in a total of 4 sub branches reaching the wing margin, in contrast to the other 2 subgenera, where the first media branch only branches once, with 2 sub branches reaching the wing margin.

The antennae in the subgenus Zoraida (Peggiopsis) are very flat, while they are more cylindrical in the subgenus Zoraida (Zoraida). Around 120 species have been described in the three subgenera as of 2024.

Around 40% of the described Zoraida species have not yet been formally assigned to a subgenus. Further, the concept of the genus and its subgenera remains not well defined and includes a large range of different forms. Apart from the forms treated as different subgenera, there is for example also a large range in the length of the hind wings in the subgenus Zoraida (Zoraida).

On one side, species have been described where the hind wings are about 50% of the forewing length and on the other side, the hind wings are less than 10% as long as the forewings in some species. Such a wide range is highly unusual for an insect genus in the family Derbidae.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Auchenorrhyncha

Infraorder : Fulgoromorpha

Family : Derbidae

Subfamily : Otiocerinae

Tribe : Zoraidini

Genus : Zoraida

Kirkaldy 1900

Type species : Derbe sinuosa

Boheman, 1838

Synonyms :

Thracia Westwood, 1840

Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families.

The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. They have triangular heads with bulging eyes supported on flexible necks.

Their elongated bodies may or may not have wings, but all Mantodea have forelegs that are greatly enlarged and adapted for catching and gripping prey; their upright posture, while remaining stationary with forearms folded, has led to the common name praying mantis.

Mantises are sometimes confused with stick insects (Phasmatodea), other elongated insects such as grasshoppers (Orthoptera), or other unrelated insects with raptorial forelegs such as mantisflies

(Mantispidae).

Mantises are mostly ambush predators, but a few ground-dwelling species are found actively pursuing their prey. They normally live for about a year. In cooler climates, the adults lay eggs in autumn, then die. The eggs are protected by their hard capsules and hatch in the spring. Females sometimes practice sexual cannibalism, eating their mates after copulation.

Mantises were considered to have supernatural powers by early civilizations, including Ancient Greece, Ancient Egypt, and Assyria. A cultural trope popular in cartoons imagines the female mantis as a femme fatale. Mantises are among the insects most commonly kept as pets.

Mantidae is one of the largest families in the order of praying mantises, based on the type species Mantis religiosa; however, most genera are tropical or subtropical. Historically, this was the only family in the order, and many references still use the term "mantid" to refer to any mantis.

Technically, however, "mantid" refers only to members of the family Mantidae, and not the 14 remaining families of mantises. Some of the most recent classifications have promoted a number of the mantid subfamilies to the rank of family, e.g. Iridopterygidae, Sibyllidae, Tarachodidae, Thespidae, and Toxoderidae, while other classifications have reduced the number of subfamilies without elevating to higher rank.

Statilia maculata, common name Asian jumping mantis or "小蟷螂", ko-kamakiri (Japanese meaning "small mantis") or "좀사마귀", joem-sa-ma-gui (Korean meaning "small mantis"), is a species of mantis native to Asia that can be found in China and Japan and Korea and Sri Lanka . 

Males : 40-80mm in length as adult Females : 45-58mm in length as adult.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Mantodea

Family : Mantidae

Genus : Statilia

Species : S. maculata

Binomial name : Statilia maculata

(Thunberg, 1784)

Pylaemenes is a genus of stick insects in the family Heteropterygidae and subfamily Dataminae. It combines small to medium-sized, often brightly colored Phasmatodea species. Their representatives are found in large parts of Southeast Asia.

The average size of representatives of this genus in the male sex is between 3.5 to 5.0 centimetres (1.4 to 2.0 in) and between 4.0 to 6.0 centimetres (1.6 to 2.4 in) in the females.

All species are always wingless. The basic color of adult animals is usually a light beige or brown, which can be supplemented by almost white, brown or black markings depending on the species and gender.

On the forehead, which becomes narrower towards the top, there are clear elevations that are differently designed depending on the type. The antennae are considerably longer than the femura of forelegs. One to three teeth can be found on the outer edge of the first antenna segment. The body surface is mostly covered with tubercles.

In contrast to the genus Orestes, the Meso- and Metanotum are flattened or slightly roof-shaped, with a clearly raised central keel and two lateral longitudinal keels. The pronotum is significantly shorter than half the mesonotum. Large elevations arranged in pairs can often be found on the front edge of the mesonotum, which in males can also be formed as spines.

The abdomen of the males is slender and, unlike in Orestes, the ninth tergite is strongly widened towards the rear. The abdomen of adult females is severely swollen, especially in the front half.

In contrast to Orestes, the last segment (anal segment) is strongly triangularly tapered towards the rear and notched at the end. Depending on the species, especially in males, pairs of spines can be present in certain places on the thorax and abdomen. As with all Dataminae, the females of the genus Pylaemenes have no ovipositor to lay their eggs.

The distribution area of the genus Pylaemenes includes large parts of Southeast Asia. Their representatives can be found in many areas of the Malay Archipelago and here especially on Borneo. There are also species on the Malay Peninsula, in Thailand and in China.

The nocturnal animals only come out of their hiding places in the leafy layer of the ground or on or behind the bark when it is dark. They are very lazy during the day. When they are discovered they play dead by stretching their hind legs back, the frore and middle legs forward and close to the body. The eggs can be more arched on the dorsal side and often have short hairs.

The micropylar plate has three arms, with one arm pointing towards the lid, while the other two run more or less circularly around the egg. The eggs are usually laid on the ground, clamped in the bark near the ground or attached to plants such as mosses.

Several species of the genus are present in the terrariums of enthusiasts. Pylaemenes mitratus was imported from the Malay Peninsula in 1999 by Francis Seow-Choen. The species received PSG number 212 from the Phasmid Study Group.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class: Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Superfamily : Bacilloidea

Family : Heteropterygidae

Subfamily : Dataminae

Genus : Pylaemenes

Species : P. mitratus

Stål, 1875

Dead leaf mantis is a common name given to various species of praying mantis that mimic dead leaves.

​It is most often used in reference to species within genus Deroplatys because of their popularity as exotic pets. Examples include D. desiccata (giant dead leaf mantis), D. lobata (Southeast Asian dead leaf mantis), and D. philippinica (Philippines dead leaf mantis).

Other species to which the term may apply include Acanthops falcataria (South American dead leaf mantis), A. falcata (South American dead leaf mantis), and Phyllocrania paradoxa (more common known as the ghost mantis).

Deroplatys truncata is a species of praying mantis in the family Deroplatyidae. This "dead leaf mantis" species is native to Southeast Asia.

DEROPLATYS PRAYING MANTIS, the Dead Leaf Mantis, ( Deroplatys ) is a large mantis that is camouflaged as a dead leaf. It looks amazing! They are not very easy to keep and breed, but it is definately possible.

This species of praying mantis is always brown, but the shade of brown may vary between individuals. Their brown color is not solid all over, but it has dark and light spots to mimic a dead leaf. On their back they have a huge shield (prothorax), making it look even more like a dead leaf. This feature can be seen almost all species in the Deroplatys genus.

Praying mantids (more commonly known as mantises) have been beloved and feared by different cultures throughout history. They are agile, strong and specially inconspicuous insects: their great ability to mimic different elements that surrounds them and camouflage both in color and shape with the environment make them beautiful and terrifying insects at the same time for other insects.

The term praying mantis is frequently used to talk about insects that belong to Mantodea order, which has about 2300 described species worldwide nowadays. This name was given them because of the pose their raptorial forelegs adopt when being relaxed: both gathered and close to the body in an angle that resembles arms in a praying pose. On the other hand, the term mantis derives from the ancient Greek term mantis ( prophet or diviner ).

The first fossil remains of Mantodea insects date from more than 135Ma (Baissa, Siberia). They would be closely related to termites (Isoptera order) and cockroaches (Blattodea order) according to the great similarities found on their female reproductive systems, and less closely related to grasshoppers and crickets. They are usually confused with stick insects and especially with mantidflies or mantispids, which have raptorial forelegs like mantids.

Having an elongated body and a pair of raptorial forelegs responds to a predatory style of life: mantids remain immobile and in silence waiting their preys over different vegetable element of their environment (such as leafs, flowers, etc...), it is because of that that some species of mantids have evolved in color and shape to resemble or mimic elements of their environment, which allows them to be unnoticed to preys and potential predators.

Mantids are generalist carnivorous, so they feed on a great variety of insects that they stalk and hunt at high speeds. Sometimes, it has also been observed a cannibalism behavior among specimens of the same species (or even different species).

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Mantodea

Family : Deroplatyidae

Genus : Deroplatys

Species : D. truncata

Binomial name : Deroplatys truncata

(Guerin-Meneville, 1843)

Glowworm or glow-worm is the common name for various groups of insect larvae and adult larviform females that glow through bioluminescence.

They include the European common glow-worm and other members of the Lampyridae, but bioluminescence also occurs in the families Elateridae, Phengodidae, and Rhagophthalmidae among beetles; as well as members of the genera Arachnocampa, Keroplatus, and Orfelia among keroplatid fungus gnats.

Four families of beetles are bioluminescent. The wingless larviform females and larvae of these bioluminescent species are usually known as "glowworms".

Winged males may or may not also exhibit bioluminescence. Their light may be emitted as flashes or as a constant glow, and usually range in color from green, yellow, to orange.

The families are closely related, and are all members of the beetle superfamily, Elateroidea. Phylogenetic analyses have indicated that bioluminescence may have a single evolutionary origin among the families Lampyridae, Phengodidae, and Gymnophthalmidae; but is likely to have arisen independently among Elateridae.

Family Elateridae – The click beetles. Of the estimated 10,000 species classified under this family, around 200 species from tropical regions of the Americas and some Melanesian islands are bioluminescent. All of them are members of the subfamily Pyrophorinae, except for one species, Campyloxenus pyrothorax, which belongs to subfamily Campyloxeninae, and Balgus schnusei, in Thylacosterninae.

Family Lampyridae – True fireflies. Contains around 2,000 species found throughout the world. Some "glow worms" are in this family.

Family Phengodidae – Usually known as glowworm beetles. Contains around 230 species endemic to the New World. This family also includes railroad worms, which are unique among all terrestrial bioluminescent organisms in producing red light.

Family Rhagophthalmidae – Contains around 30 species found in Asia. The validity of this family has not been fully resolved. Rhagophthalmidae was formerly considered to be a subfamily under Phengodidae before being treated as a distinct family. Some authors who now believe that it should be classified under Lampyridae.

The Rhagophthalmidae are a family of beetles within the superfamily Elateroidea. Members of this beetle family have bioluminescent organs on the larvae, and sometimes adults, and are closely related to the Phengodidae (glowworm beetles), though historically they have been often treated as a subfamily of Lampyridae, or as related to that family.

Some recent evidence suggested that they were the sister group to the Phengodidae, and somewhat distantly related to Lampyridae, whose sister taxon was Cantharidae, but more reliable genome-based phylogenetics placed (Rhagophthalmidae + Phengodidae) as the sister group to the Lampyridae.

Whatever their relationships may be, Rhagophthalmidae are distributed in the Old World, and little is known of their biology. Females are usually wingless and look like larvae, but have an adult beetle's eyes, antennae and legs; in the genus Diplocladon, they resemble larvae even more, with small light organs on all trunk segments. Larvae and females live in soil and litter and are predaceous; males may be attracted to lights at night.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Suborder : Polyphaga

Infraorder : Elateriformia

Superfamily : Elateroidea

Family : Rhagophthalmidae

Olivier, 1907

Synonyms :

Rhagophthalminae 

Spittlebugs feed on plant sap and then excrete bubbly foam to create a protective fortress around themselves. Later, they emerge as adult froghoppers.

The froghoppers, or the superfamily Cercopoidea, are a group of hemipteran insects in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha. Adults are capable of jumping many times their height and length, giving the group their common name, but they are best known for their plant-sucking nymphs which encase themselves in foam in springtime.

The nymphs, called spittlebugs, make the foam, although it isn’t actually spittle. The bugs create the mass of bubbles by emitting air from their abdomen into their copious and watery urine, mixed with some sticky fluid to aid in bubble formation.

Spittlebug nymphs, these families are best known for the nymphal stage, which produces a cover of foamed-up plant sap visually resembling saliva; the nymphs are therefore commonly known as spittlebugs and their foam as cuckoo spit, frog spit, or snake spit.

This characteristic spittle production is associated with the unusual trait of xylem feeding. Whereas most insects that feed on sap feed on the nutrient-rich fluid from the phloem, Cercopidae utilize the much more dilute sap flowing upward from the roots via the xylem. 

The large amount of excess water that must be excreted and the evolution of special breathing tubes allow the young spittlebug nymphs to grow in the relatively protective environment of the spittle. Normally an animal shouldn't be able to survive on a diet so low in nutrients, but the insects' digestive system have two symbiotic bacteria that provides them with the essential amino acids.

The foam serves a number of purposes. It hides the nymph from the view of predators and parasites, and it insulates against heat and cold, thus providing thermal control and also moisture control; without the foam, the insect would quickly dry up.

The nymphs pierce plants and suck sap causing very little damage, much of the filtered fluids go into the production of the foam, which has an acrid taste, deterring predators. A few species are serious agricultural pests.

A small family in the group, the Machaerotidae, known as the tube spittlebugs, is an outlier among the Cercopoidea because the nymphs live in calcareous tubes rather than producing foam as in the other families.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Auchenorrhyncha

Superfamily : Cercopoidea

Leach, 1815 

Hoverflies, also called flower flies or syrphid flies, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while the larvae (maggots) eat a wide range of foods. 

In some species, the larvae are saprotrophs, eating decaying plant and animal matter in the soil or in ponds and streams. In other species, the larvae are insectivores and prey on aphids, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects.

Aphids alone cause tens of millions of dollars of damage to crops worldwide every year; because of this, aphid-eating hoverflies are recognized as important natural enemies of pests, and potential agents for use in biological control. Some adult syrphid flies are important pollinators.

About 6,000 species in 200 genera have been described. Hoverflies are common throughout the world and can be found on all continents except Antarctica. Hoverflies are harmless to most other animals, despite their mimicry of stinging wasps and bees, a mimicry which serves to ward off predators.

The size of hoverflies varies depending on the species. Some, such as members of the genus Baccha, are small, elongated, and slender, while others, such as members of Criorhina, are large, hairy, and yellow and black. As members of the Diptera, all hoverflies have a single functional pair of wings (the hind wings are reduced to balancing organs). 

Many species are brightly colored, with spots, stripes, and bands of yellow or brown covering their bodies. Due to this coloring, they are often mistaken for wasps or bees; they exhibit Batesian mimicry. Despite this, hoverflies are harmless to humans.

With a few exceptions, hoverflies are distinguished from other flies by having a spurious vein, located parallel to their fourth longitudinal wing vein. Adults feed mainly on nectar and pollen. Many species also hover around flowers, lending to their common name.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Diptera

Section : Aschiza

Superfamily : Syrphoidea

Family : Syrphidae

Latreille, 1802

Callirhipis is a genus of beetles in the family Callirhipidae. It was described by Pierre André Latreille in 1829.

​Callirhipidae is a family of cedar beetles in the order Coleoptera. There are ten genera in Callirhipidae.

Beetles are a group of insects that form the order Coleoptera, in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects.

The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 species, is the largest of all orders, constituting almost 40% of described insects and 25% of all known animal life-forms; new species are discovered frequently. The largest of all families, the Curculionidae (weevils), with some 83,000 member species, belongs to this order.

Found in almost every habitat except the sea and the polar regions, they interact with their ecosystems in several ways, beetles often feed on plants and fungi, break down animal and plant debris, and eat other invertebrates. Some species are serious agricultural pests, such as the Colorado potato beetle, while others such as Coccinellidae (ladybirds or ladybugs) eat aphids, scale insects, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects that damage crops.

Beetles typically have a particularly hard exoskeleton including the elytra, though some such as the rove beetles have very short elytra while blister beetles have softer elytra.

The general anatomy of a beetle is quite uniform and typical of insects, although there are several examples of novelty, such as adaptations in water beetles which trap air bubbles under the elytra for use while diving.

Beetles are endopterygotes, which means that they undergo complete metamorphosis, with a series of conspicuous and relatively abrupt changes in body structure between hatching and becoming adult after a relatively immobile pupal stage.

Some, such as stag beetles, have a marked sexual dimorphism, the males possessing enormously enlarged mandibles which they use to fight other males.

Many beetles are aposematic, with bright colours and patterns warning of their toxicity, while others are harmless Batesian mimics of such insects. Many beetles, including those that live in sandy places, have effective camouflage.

Beetles are prominent in human culture, from the sacred scarabs of ancient Egypt to beetlewing art and use as pets or fighting insects for entertainment and gambling. Many beetle groups are brightly and attractively coloured making them objects of collection and decorative displays.

Over 300 species are used as food, mostly as larvae; species widely consumed include mealworms and rhinoceros beetle larvae. However, the major impact of beetles on human life is as agricultural, forestry, and horticultural pests. 

Serious pests include the boll weevil of cotton, the Colorado potato beetle, the coconut hispine beetle, and the mountain pine beetle. Most beetles, however, do not cause economic damage and many, such as the lady beetles and dung beetles are beneficial by helping to control insect pests.

Beetles are found in nearly all habitats, including freshwater and coastal habitats, wherever vegetative foliage is found, from trees and their bark to flowers, leaves, and underground near roots - even inside plants in galls, in every plant tissue, including dead or decaying ones. Tropical forest canopies have a large and diverse fauna of beetles, including Carabidae, Chrysomelidae and Scarabaeidae.

Beetles are generally characterized by a particularly hard exoskeleton and hard forewings (elytra) not usable for flying. Almost all beetles have mandibles that move in a horizontal plane. The mouthparts are rarely suctorial, though they are sometimes reduced; the maxillae always bear palps.

The antennae usually have 11 or fewer segments, except in some groups like the Cerambycidae (longhorn beetles) and the Rhipiceridae (cicada parasite beetles). The coxae of the legs are usually located recessed within a coxal cavity. The genitalic structures are telescoped into the last abdominal segment in all extant beetles.

Beetle larvae can often be confused with those of other endopterygote groups. The beetle's exoskeleton is made up of numerous plates, called sclerites, separated by thin sutures. This design provides armored defenses while maintaining flexibility.

The general anatomy of a beetle is quite uniform, although specific organs and appendages vary greatly in appearance and function between the many families in the order. Like all insects, beetles' bodies are divided into three sections: the head, the thorax, and the abdomen.

Because there are so many species, identification is quite difficult, and relies on attributes including the shape of the antennae, the tarsal formulae and shapes of these small segments on the legs, the mouthparts, and the ventral plates (sterna, pleura, coxae). In many species accurate identification can only be made by examination of the unique male genitalic structures.

Beetle antennae are primarily organs of sensory perception and can detect motion, odour and chemical substances, but may also be used to physically feel a beetle's environment. Beetle families may use antennae in different ways.

For example, when moving quickly, tiger beetles may not be able to see very well and instead hold their antennae rigidly in front of them in order to avoid obstacles.

Certain Cerambycidae use antennae to balance, and blister beetles may use them for grasping. Some aquatic beetle species may use antennae for gathering air and passing it under the body whilst submerged. Equally, some families use antennae during mating, and a few species use them for defence.

Beetles antennae vary greatly in form, sometimes between the sexes, but are often similar within any given family. Antennae may be clubbed, threadlike, angled, shaped like a string of beads, comb-like (either on one side or both, bipectinate), or toothed.

Callirhipis formosana is a species of beetle in the genus Callirhipis. It is found in Taiwan. In males, the pronotum and elytra are brown to black in color, and the hairlike projections of the antennae are about 24 times the length of each antennomere. 

Male beetles range from 15 to 18 mm in length and have wavy paremeres. The antennae of female are somewhat shorter, with the hairlike projections similar in length to its respective antennomere.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Suborder : Polyphaga

Infraorder : Elateriformia

Superfamily : Byrrhoidea

Family : Callirhipidae

Emden, 1924

Genus : Callirhipis

Latreille in Cuvier, 1829

Species : C. formosana 

Binomial name : Callirhipis formosana

Pic, 1912

The longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae), also known as long-horned or longicorns, are a large family of beetles, with over 26,000 species described, slightly more than half from the Eastern Hemisphere.

Most species are characterized by extremely long antennae, which are often as long as or longer than the beetle's body. In various members of the family, however, the antennae are quite short (e.g., Neandra brunnea) and such species can be difficult to distinguish from related beetle families such as the Chrysomelidae.

The scientific name of this beetle family goes back to a figure from Greek mythology: after an argument with nymphs, the shepherd Cerambus was transformed into a large beetle with horns.

Other than the antennal length, the most consistently distinctive feature of the family is that the antennal sockets are located on low tubercles on the face; other beetles with long antennae lack these tubercles, and cerambycids with short antennae still possess them.

They otherwise vary greatly in size, shape, sculpture, and coloration. A number of species mimic ants, bees, and wasps, though a majority of species are cryptically colored. The titan beetle (Titanus giganteus) from northeastern South America is often considered the largest insect (though not the heaviest, and not the longest including legs), with a maximum known body length of just over 16.7 cm (6.6 in).

All known longhorn beetle larvae feed on plant tissue such as stems, trunks, or roots of both herbaceous and woody plants, often in injured or weak trees. A few species are serious pests. The larvae, called roundheaded borers, bore into wood, where they can cause extensive damage to either living trees or untreated lumber (or, occasionally, to wood in buildings; the old-house borer, Hylotrupes bajulus, is a particular problem indoors).

As with many large families, different authorities have tended to recognize many different subfamilies, or sometimes split subfamilies off as separate families entirely (e.g., Disteniidae, Oxypeltidae, and Vesperidae) and there is thus some instability and controversy regarding the constituency of the Cerambycidae.

There are few truly defining features for the group as a whole, at least as adults, as there are occasional species or species groups which may lack any given feature; the family and its closest relatives, therefore, constitute a taxonomically difficult group, and relationships of the various lineages are still poorly understood.

The oldest member of the family is Cerambycinus from the Late Jurassic Solnhofen Limestone of Germany, with other Mesozoic fossils including Cretoprionus and Sinopraecipuus from the Aptian aged Yixian Formation of China, and Qitianniu from the early Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) aged Burmese amber, belonging to the subfamily Subfamily Prioninae, Tribe Meroscelisini.

Epepeotes is a genus of flat-faced longhorns beetle belonging to the family Cerambycidae, subfamily Lamiinae.

Epepeotes luscus is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1787. It is known from Malaysia, Singapore, China, Indonesia, Cambodia, Myanmar, the Nicobar and Solomon Islands, Laos, Thailand, India, and Vietnam. It feeds on Mangifera indica.

Epepeotes luscus is a species of longhorn beetle known for its adaptability to various habitats, primarily found in tropical forests across Southeast Asia. The adults are often active during warm months and may be attracted to lights at night, feeding on bark, leaves, or sap.

Its larvae are xylophagous feeding primary on wood, and they typically bore into the trunks and branches of host plant Mangifera indica which is an evergreen species of flowering plant in the family Anacardiaceae.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Suborder : Polyphaga

Infraorder : Cucujiformia

Family : Cerambycidae

Genus : Epepeotes

Species : E. luscus

Binomial name : Epepeotes luscus

Fabricius, 1787

Synonyms : 

Epepeotes alorensis Breuning, 1960

Lamia lusca Fabricius, 1787

Chrysodema is a genus of beetles in the family Buprestidae.

Buprestidae is a family of beetles known as jewel beetles or metallic wood-boring beetles because of their glossy iridescent colors. Larvae of this family are known as flatheaded borers.

The family is among the largest of the beetles, with some 15,500 species known in 775 genera. In addition, almost 100 fossil species have been described.

The larger and more spectacularly colored jewel beetles are highly prized by insect collectors. The elytra of some Buprestidae species have been traditionally used in beetlewing jewellery and decoration in certain countries in Asia, like India, Thailand and Japan.

Jewel beetle classification is not yet robustly established, although there appear to be five or six main lineages, which may be considered subfamilies, possibly with one or two being raised to families in their own right.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Superfamily : Buprestoidea

Family : ​Buprestidae

Subfamily : Chrysochroinae

Tribe : Chrysochroini

Genus : ​Chrysodema

​Species : Chrysodema pyrostictica

Suborder : Polyphaga

Infraorder : Elateriformia

Family : Buprestidae

Leach, 1815 

The Archaeognatha are an order of apterygotes, known by various common names such as jumping bristletails.

Among extant insect taxa they are some of the most evolutionarily primitive; they appeared in the Middle Devonian period at about the same time as the arachnids.

Specimens that closely resemble extant species have been found as both body and trace fossils (the latter including body imprints and trackways) in strata from the remainder of the Paleozoic Era and more recent periods. For historical reasons an alternative name for the order is Microcoryphia.

Until the late 20th century the suborders Zygentoma and Archaeognatha comprised the order Thysanura; both orders possess three-pronged tails comprising two lateral cerci and a medial epiproct or appendix dorsalis.

Of the three organs, the appendix dorsalis is considerably longer than the two cerci; in this the Archaeognatha differ from the Zygentoma, in which the three organs are subequal in length.

In the late 20th century, it was recognized that the order Thysanura was paraphyletic, thus the two suborders were each raised to the status of an independent monophyletic order, with Archaeognatha sister taxon to the Dicondylia, including the Zygentoma.

The order Archaeognatha is cosmopolitan; it includes roughly 500 species in two families. No species is currently evaluated as being at conservation risk.

Archaeognatha are small insects with elongated bodies and backs that are arched, especially over the thorax. They have three long tail-like structures, of which the lateral two are cerci, while the medial filament, which is longest, is an epiproct. 

The antennae are flexible. The two large compound eyes meet at the top of the head, and there are three ocelli. The mouthparts are partly retractable, with simple chewing mandibles and long maxillary palps.

Archaeognatha differ from Zygentoma in various ways, such as their relatively small head, their bodies being compressed laterally (from side to side) instead of flattened dorsiventrally, and in their being able to use their tails to spring up to 30 cm (12 in) into the air if disturbed. 

They also are unique among insects in possessing small, articulated "styli" on the hind (and sometimes middle) coxae and on sternites 2 to 9, which some authorities consider to be vestigial appendages. They have paired eversible membranous vesicles through which they absorb water.

Further unusual features are that the abdominal sternites are each composed of three sclerites, and they cement themselves to the substrate before molting.

As in the Zygentoma, the body is covered with readily detached scales, that make the animals difficult to grip and also may protect the exoskeleton from abrasion. The thin exoskeleton offers little protection against dehydration. The animals accordingly must remain in moist air, such as in cool, damp situations under stones or bark.

The name Archaeognatha is derived from Greek, (archaios) meaning ancient and (gnathos) meaning "jaw". This refers to the articulation of the mandibles, which have a single phylogenetically primitive condyle each, where all more derived insects have two.

An alternative name, Microcoryphia, comes from the Greek (mikros), meaning "small", and (koryphē), which in context means "head".

Archaeognatha occur in a wide range of habitats. While most species live in moist soil, others have adapted to chaparral, and even sandy deserts. They feed primarily on algae, but also lichens, mosses, or decaying organic detritus.

During courtship, the males spin a thread from the abdomen, attach one end to the substrate, and string packages of sperm (spermatophores) along it. After a series of courtship dances, the female picks up the spermatophores and places them on her ovipositor. She then lays a batch of around 30 eggs in a suitable crevice. 

The young resemble the adults, and take up to two years to reach sexual maturity, depending on the species and conditions such as temperature and available food.

Unlike most insects, the adults continue to moult after reaching adulthood, and typically mate once at each instar. Archaeognaths may have a total lifespan of up to four years, longer than most larger insects.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Subclass : Monocondylia

Haeckel, 1866

Order : Archaeognatha

Börner, 1904 

The Lycidae are a family in the beetle order Coleoptera, members of which are commonly called net-winged beetles. These beetles are cosmopolitan, being found in Nearctic, Palearctic, Neotropical, Afrotropical, Oriental, and Australian ecoregions.

Beetles of this family are elongated and usually found on flowers or stems. Adult males are about 10–15 mm in length, while females are a bit larger. The adults of some species are nectarivores, while some may have short adult lives during which they may not feed at all.

The head is triangular and the antennae are long, thick, and serrated. Most of them are brick-red in colour. They are protected from predators by being toxic. The predaceous larvae grow under bark or in leaf litter.

Dictyoptera aurora, known generally as the golden net-wing or red net-winged beetle is a species of net-winged beetle in the family Lycidae and can grow as long as 11 mm.

The larva feeds on decaying wood. The adult feeds on nectar, pollen, and small insects. This species can be found in decaying logs, under bark of decaying tree trunks, and also on flowers. It is named after Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn, referring to the brilliant color of this beetle.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insect

Order : Coleoptera

Family : Lycidae

Genus : Dictyoptera

Species : D. aurora

Binomial name : Dictyoptera aurora

Herbst, 1784

Flatidae are a family of fulgoroid planthoppers. They are cosmopolitan in distribution and are distinguished from others in the superfamily by a combination of characters.

Like all other planthoppers, they suck phloem sap of plants. Some species are known to communicate with vibrations through the plant stems. Communication may be with mates, or with ants that tend the nymphs, protecting them and gathering honeydew secretions.

Adults of some species have brightly coloured forewings which are tougher and known as tegmina unlike the membranous hindwings which are used for flight.

Although a few can be identified by their coloration, most species requires dissection and examination under a microscope with access to literature on already described species. There are two subfamilies within the family Flatidae.

In the subfamily Flatinae, the body of adults is flattened laterally and the tegmina are tent-like.

In the subfamiy Flatoidinae, the body is not laterally compressed and the tegmina are not as tent-like and sometimes held horizontally. The wing venation is distinctive in that the veins in the anal region are nodose, and the costal area has numerous cross veins.

The antennae are small and the first segment is collar-like and small. The second segment is longer and ends in a bulge and a flagellum arises from it. They have two ocelli. Nymphs have a tail of waxy filaments.

The flatinae are a subfamily of planthoppers, erected by Maximilian Spinola in 1839. Genera have been recorded from all continents except Antarctica, especially in tropical and subtropical regions.

Colobesthes falcata the "Maliau Planthopper"subfamily flatinae refers to a common green planthopper is a species of Planthopper from the family of Flatidae.

C. falcata the "maliau planthopper " specifically refers to a species found in the Maliau Basin, characterized by its distinctive wave-like patterns on its wings and a white dot.

Maliau Basin (Malay: Lembangan Maliau) or also Maliau Basin Conservation Area, is a region in Tongod District of Sabah, Malaysia, which represents a geological catchment surrounding the Maliau River located around the centre of Sabah in the Sandakan Division, it was designated as a conservation area by the Sabah Foundation (Yayasan Sabah) in 1981.

Later in 1997 the Sabah State Assembly gazetted the Basin as a Protection Forest Reserve (Class I) with a total area of 588 square kilometres. The region also features Mount Lotung (1667 metres), Maliau Falls, and Lake Linumunsut. Efforts are underway to nominate the area as a World Heritage Site.

​

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Auchenorrhyncha

Infraorder : Fulgoromorpha

Superfamily : Fulgoroidea

Family : Flatidae

Subfamily : Flatinae

Spinola, 1839

Tribe : Lawanini

Genus : Colobesthes

Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Species : Colobesthes falcata

Reduvius is a large genus of reduviids or assassin bugs. The masked hunter, Reduvius personatus, is a well-known example of this genus. They are the largest predatory insects and one of the largest clades of predatory animals. They are found in many terrestrial ecosystems and microhabitats, ranging from mammal burrows in the desert to logs in rainforests.

Reduvius personatus or the masked hunter is an insect belonging to the assassin bug (Reduviidae) family. The name is because its nymphs camouflage themselves with dust. 

The masked hunter is a predator of small arthropods, including woodlice, lacewings, earwigs, bed bugs and termites. Masked hunters do not feed on human blood, but can bite humans in self-defense when mishandled. The bite can be extremely painful, but masked hunters do not carry Chagas disease.

Adult masked hunters are uniformly dark brown to black in color and vary in length from 17–22 mm. They have an elongated head that includes a short, three-segmented beak, as well as long, slender antennae. Their abdomen is wide, extending in the middle beyond the wings to reveal the lateral margins of their abdominal segments. 

Nymphs of this species resemble the adult form and are naturally dark-colored, but often appear grey or light-colored due to a camouflage layer of debris covering them. Nymphs exude a sticky substance that covers their entire body, including the antennae and all six legs, which causes dust, lint, and other small particles to adhere to the surface of their body.

The masked hunter has a Holarctic distribution. It is native to Europe, but was accidentally transported to North America and is now common in the Central and Eastern United States. It can be also found in South Africa and Eastern Canada. It has also been found in high desert regions of the North West United States.

Masked hunters, like other Hemiptera, undergo incomplete metamorphosis. Early stages of the lifecycle look like small adults and are called nymphs. Normally, one generation of masked hunter bugs occurs per year. Adults are common during midsummer, but can also be found in the winter.

Nymphs of R. personatus use their hind legs and a tarsal fan to construct a camouflaging layer of substrate on their bodies. Two layers are formed, an inner layer of fine particles and an outer layer of coarser particles. 

The formation of these two layers may be the reason for the presence of long and short trichomes on the nymphs. Nymphs may use the serrated setae present on their abdomens to assist in loosening substrate for use in camouflage. The camouflage may assist the nymph in avoiding detection by both predators and prey. 

They hunt bed bugs at night, as well as other prey. Both the nymphs and adults are predatory, feeding on various arthropods by piercing their bodies with sucking mouthparts.

Masked hunters prefer dry habitats and are usually only found in small numbers when they infest houses.

Masked hunters deliver a bite comparable to a bee's sting when handled or trapped. The bite can cause swelling that lasts for about a week. Because they feed on a wide variety of arthropods, they sometimes are found in homes with bed bug infestations. They can generally be controlled by dealing with the bed bug infestation.

Reduvius personatus (masked hunter) diet primarily consists of : termites, earwigs, lacewings, pill bugs and swallow bugs. Overall, the masked hunter is a predatory insect that plays an important role in controlling pest populations in various environments.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Family : Reduviidae

Genus : Reduvius

Species : R. personatus

Binomial name : Reduvius personatus

Linnaeus, 1758

The Micropezidae are a moderate-sized family of acalyptrate muscoid flies in the insect order Diptera, comprising about 500 species in about 50 genera and five subfamilies worldwide, (except New Zealand and Macquarie Island). They are most diverse in tropical and subtropical habitats, especially in the Neotropical Region.

Insects in this family are commonly called stilt-legged flies, after their characteristically long legs. The fore legs are markedly smaller than the other pairs. Mostly, they are long-bodied, often black flies, usually with infuscated (darkened) wings. Wings are reduced in the genera Calycopteryx and entirely absent in the ant-like Badisis ambulans.

Mimegralla albimana is a species of stilt-legged flies. It belongs to the family Micropezidae and is characterized by its long legs and slender body. This species is commonly found in tropical and subtropical regions, often associated with decaying organic matter.

Mimegralla albimana is primarily distributed across the Indomalayan region, including India, Southeast Asia, and Indonesia, where the genus exhibits its highest diversity.

The first confirmed record of the genus in India occurred in the Sunderban Biosphere Reserve in 2015, with specimens of M. albimana collected during surveys. The distribution extends eastward into Oceania, encompassing Papua New Guinea, various Pacific islands, and Australia.

In Australia, at least five species are recorded, including M. australica, with occurrences mainly in eastern Queensland and northern New South Wales. The genus's spread may be facilitated by human-mediated agricultural trade, as certain species have been intercepted or established beyond their native ranges.

Mimegralla species primarily inhabit tropical and subtropical forests and plantations, where they are associated with understory vegetation and moist soils that support decaying organic matter. These environments provide the humid, shaded conditions essential for their life stages, with adults often observed in areas of moderate disturbance such as agricultural fields.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Diptera

Section : Schizophora

Subsection : Acalyptratae

Superfamily : Nerioidea

Family : Micropezidae

Loew, 1861

Genus : Mimegralla

Species : Mimegralla albimana

A planthopper is any insect in the infraorder Fulgoromorpha, in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha, and exceeding 12,500 described species worldwide.

The name comes from their remarkable resemblance to leaves and other plants of their environment and from the fact that they often "hop" for quick transportation in a similar way to that of grasshoppers.

However, planthoppers generally walk very slowly. Distributed worldwide, all members of this group are plant-feeders, though surprisingly few are considered pests. 

The infraorder contains only a single superfamily, Fulgoroidea. Fulgoroids are most reliably distinguished from the other Auchenorrhyncha by two features; the bifurcate ("Y"-shaped) anal vein in the forewing, and the thickened, three-segmented antennae, with a generally round or egg-shaped second segment (pedicel) that bears a fine filamentous arista.

Planthoppers are laterally flattened and hold their broad wings vertically, in a tent-like fashion, concealing the sides of the body and part of the legs. Nymphs of many fulgoroids produce wax from special glands on the abdominal terga and other parts of the body. These are hydrophobic and help conceal the insects. Adult females of many families also produce wax which may be used to protect eggs.

Fulgoroid nymphs also possess a biological gear mechanism at the base of the hind legs, which keeps the legs in synchrony when the insects jump. The gears, not present in the adults, were known for decades before the recent description of their function.

Planthoppers are often vectors for plant diseases, especially phytoplasmas which live in the phloem of plants and can be transmitted by planthoppers when feeding.

A number of extinct members of Fulgoroidea are known from the fossil record, such as the Lutetian-age Emiliana from the Green River Formation (Eocene) in Colorado.

Both planthopper adults and nymphs feed by sucking sap from plants; in so doing, the nymphs produce copious quantities of honeydew, on which sooty mould often grows. One species considered to be a pest is Haplaxius crudus, which is a vector for lethal yellowing, a palm disease that nearly killed off the Jamaican Tall coconut variety.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Auchenorrhyncha

Infraorder : Fulgoromorpha

Evans, 1946

Insects in the family Tettigoniidae are commonly called katydids or bush crickets. Crickets are orthopteran insects which are related to bush crickets and, more distantly, to grasshoppers. 

In older literature, such as Imms,"crickets" were placed at the family level (i.e. Gryllidae), but contemporary authorities including Otte now place them in the superfamily Grylloidea. 

The word has been used in combination to describe more distantly related taxa in the suborder Ensifera, such as king crickets and mole crickets.

Crickets have mainly cylindrically shaped bodies, round heads, and long antennae. Behind the head is a smooth, robust pronotum. The abdomen ends in a pair of long cerci; females have a long, cylindrical ovipositor.

Diagnostic features include legs with 3-segmented tarsi; as with many Orthoptera, the hind legs have enlarged femora, providing power for jumping. The front wings are adapted as tough, leathery elytra, and some crickets chirp by rubbing parts of these together. The hind wings are membranous and folded when not in use for flight; many species, however, are flightless. The largest members of the family are the bull crickets, Brachytrupes, which are up to 5 cm (2 in) long.

Crickets are distributed all around the world except at latitudes 55° or higher, with the greatest diversity being in the tropics. They occur in varied habitats from grassland, bushes, and forests to marshes, beaches, and caves. 

Crickets are mainly nocturnal, and are best known for the loud, persistent, chirping song of males trying to attract females, although some species are mute. The singing species have good hearing, via the tympana on the tibiae of the front legs.

They have previously been known as "long-horned grasshoppers". More than 6,400 species are known. 

Part of the suborder Ensifera, the Tettigoniidae are the only extant (living) family in the superfamily Tettigonioidea.

Many katydids exhibit mimicry and camouflage, commonly with shapes and colors similar to leaves.

Conocephalinae, meaning "conical head", is an Orthopteran subfamily in the family Tettigoniidae.

This cone-headed katydid from the Conocephalinae subfamily has a fierce appearance with its colourful green brown spotty body and black face, but in reality, it spends most of its days hiding inside hollow branches.

Nahlaksia bidadari is a cricket, specifically a katydid species. It is characterized by its ochre or brown coloration with irregular patterns and is found in Singapore.

This species is named after the Bidadari Cemetery where it was initially discovered but it is more commonly found in the Bukit Timah and Central Catchment nature reserves.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Orthoptera

Suborder : Ensifera

Infraorder : Tettigoniidea

Genus : Nahlaksia

Species : N.bidadari

Residency Status : Native

Taxonomic Identification : MK Tan

Psocoptera are an order of insects that are commonly know as booklice, barklice or barkflies. They first appeared in the Permian period, 295–248 million years ago.

There are more than 5,500 species in 41 families in three suborders. Many of these species have only been described in recent years.

They range in size from 1–10 millimetres (0.04–0.4 in) in length.

The species known as booklice received their common name because they are commonly found amongst old books—they feed upon the paste used in binding.

The barklice are found on trees, barklice are not related to true lice, and they are not parasitic. Many species inhabit tree trunks where winged adults and nymphs can be found together, feeding on algae, lichen, fungi and dead plant tissues. Some species spin a blanket of web around the tree trunk under which they hide.

No member of this order is currently considered endangered; in fact, in 2007, Atlantopsocus adustus, a species native to Madeira and the Canary Islands, was found to have colonized the mild Cornish coast of southwest England.

In the 2000s, morphological and molecular evidence has shown that the parasitic lice (Phthiraptera) evolved from within the psocopteran suborder Troctomorpha. In modern systematics, Psocoptera and Phthiraptera are therefore treated together in the order Psocodea.

Psocids are small, scavenging insects with a relatively generalized body plan. They feed primarily on fungi, algae, lichen, and organic detritus in nature but are also known to feed on starch-based household items like grains, wallpaper glue and book bindings.

They have chewing mandibles, and the central lobe of the maxilla is modified into a slender rod. This rod is used to brace the insect while it scrapes up detritus with its mandibles. They also have a swollen forehead, large compound eyes, and three ocelli. Their bodies are soft with a segmented abdomen. Some species can spin silk from glands in their mouth. They may festoon large sections of trunk and branches in dense swathes of silk.

Some psocids have small ovipositors that are up to 1.5 times as long as the hindwings, and all four wings have a relatively simple venation pattern, with few cross-veins. The wings, if present, are held tent-like over the body. The legs are slender and adapted for jumping, rather than gripping, as in the true lice. The abdomen has nine segments, and no cerci.

There is often considerable variation in the appearance of individuals within the same species. Many have no wings or ovipositors, and may have a different shape to the thorax.

Other, more subtle, variations are also known, such as changes to the development of the setae. The significance of such changes is uncertain, but their function appears to be different from similar variations in, for example, aphids. Like aphids, however, many psocids are parthenogenic, and the presence of males may even vary between different races of the same species.

Psocids lay their eggs in minute crevices or on foliage, although a few species are known to be viviparous. 

The young are born as miniature, wingless versions of the adult. These nymphs typically molt six times before reaching full adulthood. The total lifespan of a psocid is rarely more than a few months.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Superorder : Psocodea

Order : Psocoptera

​Genus : Clematoscenea

Species : Clematoscenea sp.

Insects in the family Tettigoniidae are commonly called katydids (in Australia, South Africa, Canada, and the United States), or bush crickets. They have previously been known as "long-horned grasshoppers".

More than 6,400 species are known. Part of the suborder Ensifera, the Tettigoniidae are the only extant (living) family in the superfamily Tettigonioidea.

They are primarily nocturnal in habit with strident mating calls. Many katydids exhibit mimicry and camouflage, commonly with shapes and colors similar to leaves.

Tettigoniids range in size from as small as 5 mm (0.20 in) to as large as 130 mm (5.1 in). The smaller species typically live in drier or more stressful habitats which may lead to their small size. The small size is associated with greater agility, faster development, and lower nutritional needs.

​Tettigoniids are tree-living insects that are most commonly heard at night during summer and early fall. Tettigoniids may be distinguished from the grasshopper by the length of their filamentous antennae, which may exceed their own body length, while grasshoppers' antennae are always relatively short and thickened.

The lifespan of a katydid is about a year, with full adulthood usually developing very late. Females most typically lay their eggs at the end of summer beneath the soil or in plant stem holes. The eggs are typically oval and laid in rows on the host plant. 

The way their ovipositor is formed relates to its function where it lays eggs. It consists of up to three pairs of appendages formed to transmit the egg, to make a place for it, and place it properly.

Tettigoniids have either sickle-shaped ovipositors which typically lay eggs in dead or living plant matter, or uniform long ovipositors which lay eggs in grass stems. When tettigoniids hatch, the nymphs often look like smaller versions of the adults, but in some species, the nymphs look nothing at all like the adult and rather mimic other species such as spiders and assassin bugs, or flowers, to prevent predation. The nymphs remain in a mimic state only until they are large enough to escape predation. Once they complete their last molt, they are then prepared to mate.

Tettigoniids are found on every continent except Antarctica. The vast majority of katydid species live in the tropical regions of the world. For example, the Amazon basin rain forest is home to over 2000 species of katydids. However, katydids are found in the cool, dry temperate regions, as well, with about 255 species in North America.

The Tettigoniidae are a large family and have been divided into a number of subfamilies.

The diet of most tettigoniids includes leaves, flowers, bark, and seeds, but many species are exclusively predatory, feeding on other insects, snails, or even small vertebrates such as snakes and lizards. Some are also considered pests by commercial crop growers and are sprayed to limit growth, but population densities are usually low, so a large economic impact is rare.

Large tettigoniids can inflict a painful bite or pinch if handled, but seldom break the skin.

Some species of bush crickets are consumed by people, such as the nsenene (Ruspolia baileyi) in Uganda and neighbouring areas.

The males of tettigoniids have sound-producing organs located on the hind angles of their front wings. In some species, females are also capable of stridulation.

Females chirp in response to the shrill of the males. The males use this sound for courtship, which occurs late in the summer. The sound is produced by rubbing two parts of their bodies together, called stridulation. One is the file or comb that has tough ridges; the other is the plectrum is used to produce the vibration. 

For tettigoniids, the fore wings are used to sing. Tettigoniids produce continuous songs known as trills. The size of the insect, the spacing of the ridges, and the width of the scraper all influence what sound is made.

Many katydids stridulate at a tempo which is governed by ambient temperature, so that the number of chirps in a defined period of time can produce a fairly accurate temperature reading. For American katydids, the formula is generally given as the number of chirps in 15 seconds plus 37 to give the temperature in degrees Fahrenheit.

True Katydids are relatives of grasshoppers and crickets. They grow over two inches long and are leaf-green in color.

Katydids have oval-shaped wings with lots of veins. They resemble leaves.

Katydids spend most of their time at the tops of trees where most of the leaves are. Usually katydids are heard, but not seen.

Unlike grasshoppers and crickets, both male and female katydids make sounds. They rub their forewings (front wings) together to "sing" to each other. Katydid hear each other with ears on their front legs. Breeding season is in late Summer and early Fall. Females will lay eggs on stems.

True Katydids eat leaves of most deciduous (lose leaves in Fall) trees and shrubs, especially oaks.

Katydids can fly short distances when threatened, but they prefer to walk and climb. When they do fly, it is more of a downward flutter. If a katydid lands on the ground, it will walk to the nearest tree and climb.

Predators of True Katydids include birds, bats, spiders, frogs, snakes, and other insect-eaters.

Chondroderella borneensis is a katydid species belongs to the family Tettigoniidae, commonly known as bush crickets or katydids.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Orthoptera

Suborder : Ensifera

Infraorder : Tettigoniidea

Superfamily : Tettigonioidea

Krauss, 1902

Family : Tettigoniidae

Krauss, 1902

Genus : Chondroderella

Species : Chondroderella borneensis

Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1895

T15

Giant cockroaches, or blaberids (family Blaberidae) are the second-largest cockroach family by number of species. Mostly distributed in warmer climates worldwide, this family is based on the American genus Blaberus, but much of the diversity is also found in Africa and Asia.

Laxta granicollis, other names include Trilobite cockroaches, ‘bark cockroaches’, ‘woodroaches’ and ‘flat cockroaches’ is a species of Blaberidae that occurs in Australia. The female of this species lacks wings while the male is winged.

Trilobite cockroaches are usually dark brown, flat, oval shaped roaches that appear to have armour, and they sit close to the ground and are not usually fast movers. Trilobite cockroaches are from the family Blaberidae, the family of giant cockroaches. Trilobite cockroaches range from a size of 1 to 2.5 centimetres (0.4 to 1 inches) in length. ‘Trilobite cockroaches’ are named after ‘trilobites’ due to the females looking like the extinct, unrelated, aquatic species. There are approximately 15 species of trilobite cockroaches, all of which are native to Australia except two that can be found in Papua New Guinea.

Trilobite cockroaches can be found in wooded areas, forests and gardens, and are often found underneath objects such as leaves, bark and wood or rotting vegetation. The scientific name of trilobite cockroaches is ‘Laxta’, or ‘Laxta Walker’, the genus named after the British entomologist Francis Walker, who worked for the British Museum in the 1800s.

Trilobite cockroaches live in little groups that communicate via smell and their diet typically consists of fibres from wood. Trilobite cockroach female adults do not have wings, while males do; therefore the wings significantly change the appearance of the two genders.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Blattodea

Family : Blaberidae

Genus : Laxta

Species : L. granicollis

Binomial name : Laxta granicollis

(Saussure, 1862)

Apis dorsata, the giant honey bee, is a honey bee of South and Southeast Asia, found mainly in forested areas such as the Terai of Nepal. They are typically around 17–20 mm (0.7–0.8 in) long.

Nests are mainly built in exposed places far off the ground, like on tree limbs, under cliff overhangs, and sometimes on buildings. These social bees are known for their aggressive defense strategies and vicious behavior when disturbed. Though not domesticating it, indigenous peoples have traditionally used this species as a source of honey and beeswax, a practice known as honey hunting.

Apis dorsata differs from the other bees in its genus in terms of nest design. Each colony consists of a single vertical comb made of workers’ wax suspended from above, and the comb is typically covered by a dense mass of bees in several layers. The nests vary in size, reaching up to 1 meter. Each cell within the comb is hexagonal in shape.

Apis dorsata store their honey in an upper corner of the nest. The same size and type of cells are used to rear larvae. Nests are constructed in the open and in elevated locations, such as on urban buildings or tall trees. These bees rarely build nests on old or weak buildings for safety concerns. Apis dorsata can form dense aggregations at one nesting site, sometimes with up to 200 colonies in one tree.

Each colony can have up to 100,000 bees and is separated by only a few centimeters from the other colonies in an aggregation. Some colonies also exhibit patterns of nest recognition, in which they return to the same nesting sites post migration.

Apis dorsata is found from the Indian subcontinent to Southeast Asia. The greatest populations of Apis dorsata are found in China, Indonesia, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. They mostly reside in tall trees in dense forests, but also build nests on urban buildings. These bees are tropical and in most places, they migrate seasonally. Individual colonies migrate between nesting sites during the transition from the rainy to dry seasons and occupy each nesting site for about 3–4 months at a time. 

Some recent evidence indicates these bees return to the same nest site, though most, if not all, of the original workers might be replaced in the process because workers usually live for less than two months. 

Furthermore, these bees build small combs that serve as temporary nests during their long migrations. There are two methods of reproductive swarming in which Apis dorsata initiates new colonies, which usually occurs in October or November.

The most common occurs when a queen flies away from the original nest slowly and a swarm of workers follows her. This new cluster of bees can be temporary, or they can permanently move to a new nesting site. The distance these bees travel is unknown, but some have been observed to travel about 500 meters away from the original nest. 

The second, more rare method is referred to as “budding.” In budding, a group of workers leave the natal nest to form a new colony at a nesting site about 1 meter away from the original.

A non-reproductive method of colony initiation is absconding. Absconding refers to when an entire colony moves to a new location. As a colony is formed, multiple curtains, essentially layers, of bees are formed around the developing nest. Colony initiation is related to the migratory patterns of these bees.

As a colony is initiated, the migration depends on foraging resources and predation risks. These bees travel to different sites depending on the blooming season of flowers. There are about 100,000 members in each colony and each colony resides in one nesting site for about 3–4 months at a time. Colonies tend to decline when resources, such as food, honey, and pollen, are depleted. Colonies decline during the rainy and summer seasons because of the instability of foraging sources due to climate change.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Hymenoptera

Family : Apidae

Genus : Apis

Subgenus : Megapis

Species : A. dorsata

Binomial name : Apis dorsata

Fabricius, 1793

The stick insect resembles the twigs among which it lives, providing it with one of the most efficient natural camouflages on Earth. Leaf insect comprise the Phasmatodea order, of which there are approximately 3,000 species.

The Phasmatodea (also known as Phasmida, Phasmatoptera or Spectra) are an order of insects whose members are variously known as stick insects, stick-bugs, walking sticks, or bug sticks. They are generally referred to as phasmatodeans, phasmids, or ghost insects.

Phasmids in the family Phylliidae are called leaf insects, leaf-bugs, walking leaves, or bug leaves. The group's name is derived from the Ancient Greek φάσμα phasma, meaning an apparition or phantom, referring to their resemblance to vegetation while in fact being animals.

Phasmids generally mimic their surroundings in color, normally green or brown, although some species are brilliantly colored and others conspicuously striped.

Stick insect species, often called walking sticks, range in size from the tiny, half-inch-long Timema cristinae of North America, to the formidable 13-inch-long Phobaeticus kirbyi of Borneo. This giant measures over 21 inches with its legs outstretched, making it one of the world’s longest insects. Females are normally larger than males.

Many stick insects have wings, some spectacularly beautiful, while others resemble little more than a stump. A number of species have spines and tubercles on their bodies.

Found predominantly in the tropics and subtropics, although several species live in temperate regions stick insects thrive in forests and grasslands, where they feed on leaves. Mainly nocturnal creatures, they spend much of their day motionless, hidden under plants.

Many stick insects feign death to thwart predators, and some will shed the occasional limb to escape an enemy’s grasp. Others swipe at predators with their spine-covered legs, while one species Anisomorpha buprestoides from North American emits a putrid-smelling fluid.

Their natural camouflage makes them difficult for predators to detect; still, many species have one of several secondary lines of defence in the form of startle displays, spines or toxic secretions. Stick insects from the genera Phryganistria, Ctenomorpha, and Phobaeticus includes the world's longest insects.

Members of the order are found on all continents except Antarctica, but they are most abundant in the tropics and subtropics. They are herbivorous, with many species living unobtrusively in the tree canopy.

They have an incomplete metamorphosis life cycle with three stages: egg, nymph and adult. Many phasmids are parthenogenic, and do not require fertilized eggs for female offspring to be produced. In hotter climates, they may breed all year round; in more temperate regions, the females lay eggs in the autumn before dying, and the new generation hatches in the spring. Some species have wings and can disperse by flying, while others are more restricted.

Necrosciinae is a subfamily of the stick insect family Lonchodidae, based on the type genus Necroscia; its greatest diversity in South-East Asia.

The subfamilies Necrosciinae and Lonchodinae, formerly part of Diapheromeridae, were determined to make up a separate family and were transferred to the re-established family Lonchodidae in 2018.

Necroscia punctata is an Asian genus of stick insects in the family Diapheromeridae and subfamily Necrosciinae. Species have been recorded from South-East Asia.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Phasmatodea

Family : Lonchodidae

Subfamily : Necrosciinae

Genus : Necroscia

Species : N. punctata

Gray 1835

Cicindela, is a genus of generally brightly colored and metallic tiger beetles, often with some sort of patterning of ivory or cream-colored markings. They are most abundant and diverse in habitats very often near bodies of water with sandy or occasionally clay soils; they can be found along rivers, sea and lake shores, sand dunes, around dry lakebeds, on clay banks, or woodland paths.

The genus Cicindela is (in its broadest historical sense) the largest genus of tiger beetles, and they occur worldwide. The status of the genus is constantly in a state of flux, as various authorities on different continents have vastly different opinions about which (if any) of the dozens of subgenera traditionally recognized within the genus are deserving of being accorded status as independent genera. Moreover, this is one of the few insect taxa in which the rank of subspecies has traditionally been used repeatedly, and essentially no two classifications consistently treat the various members of the genus as to which are species and which are subspecies.

Cicindela aurulenta, common name blue-spotted or golden-spotted tiger beetle, is a beetle of the family Cicindelidae. Cicindela aurulenta reaches about 15–18 millimetres (0.59–0.71 in) in length. C. aurulenta have polychromatic and iridescent external appearance. This species has blue-green elytra, with six large yellowish-white or bluish spots and two smaller spots on the shoulders.

The medial large spot is somewhat more crescent-shaped compared to the anterior and posterior spots. Its elytra appears reddish-orange along the base and margins. When viewed dorsally, head and thorax are blue-green, with appearances of red-orange under certain light conditions due to its iridescent colouration. It has two prominent compound eyes and large, predominantly black mandibles with yellowish-white marking at its base. It has a labrum that's ivory-white with black base and margins. Its antennae is filiform. Its scape, pedicel, and first two flagellum are blue-green; while the remaining flagellum are dull black. It has pale colored hairs on the abdomen and legs.

C. aurulenta can be found in a wide range of sandy habitats, including river bars, forest trails, and sand dunes near shorelines and mangroves. This species is currently placed in the genus Cicindela and in the subgenus Cosmodela Rivalier, 1961. This species has several subspecies, with varying and overlapping geographical ranges between one another.

C. aurulenta is widespread throughout the Indo-Malaya region. This species is distributed across Nepal, Bhutan, India, China, and Southeast Asia. It ranges as far south as the islands of Borneo, Sumatra, and the Lesser Sundas, such as Bali. Several subspecies variations co-occur within these regions.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Suborder : Adephaga

Family : Cicindelidae

Genus : Cicindela

Species : C. aurulenta

Binomial name : Cicindela aurulenta

Fabricius, 1801

Aulacophora is a genus of beetles in the family Chrysomelidae, commonly known as pumpkin beetles; some species are pests of agricultural crops.

Beetles in this genus feed on members of the family Cucurbitaceae including cucumbers, pumpkins, melons, watermelons, gourds and squashes.

The genus was named by the French entomologist and expert on beetles, Pierre François Marie Auguste Dejean. The name, from Ancient Greek, signifies "furrow-bearer"' from aulax, "furrow".

Beetles in this genus are oval insects up to about 8 mm (0.3 in) long and can be recognised by their presence on the host plant.

Beetles in this genus feed on members of the family Cucurbitaceae including cucumbers, pumpkins, melons, watermelons, gourds and squashes.

The eggs, which are yellow, are laid in batches of up to five in the soil at the base of cucurbit plants. They hatch after eight to fifteen days and the larvae feed on the roots or tunnel into them, feeding for eighteen to thirty-five days and passing through four instar stages. 

They are creamy white at first but have turned yellowish-orange by the time they pupate in chambers in the ground. The adult beetles emerge after from four to fourteen days. They are strong fliers and disperse to other plants. The adult beetles may live for up to ten months and each female can lay in the order of five hundred eggs, so there can be several overlapping generations of beetles.

Adult pumpkin beetles feed on the foliage and flowers of the host plants; seedlings may be destroyed by heavy attacks and young plants may be severely affected. Several beetles may cluster on a single leaf, leaving other leaves untouched. The beetles feed between the veins, often cutting and removing circular discs which they then eat. The larvae tunnel into the roots, which become swollen, discoloured and distorted, and the plant may die.

Pumpkin beetles are found in Africa, Asia and Australasia. Some of the more important pest species are A. foveicollis from Africa, Europe and Asia, A. similis from southern and southeastern Asia, A. coffeae from Malaysia, A. flavomarginata from Malaysia and Indonesia, A. femoralis from Myanmar and Vietnam, A. lewisii from Malaysia and Vietnam, and A. frontalis from Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Class : Insecta

Order : Coleoptera

Family : Chrysomelidae

Genus : Aulacophora

Species : femoralis

Subfamily : Galerucinae

Dejean, 1835

Ricanula is a genus of true bugs belonging to the family Ricaniidae.

Ricanula stigmatica is a small and common fulgoroidea planthopper from the family Ricaniidae.

It is moth-like in appearance, with green and brown coloration. This species can be found in Southeast Asia.

A planthopper is any insect in the infraorder Fulgoromorpha in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha and exceeding 12,500 described species worldwide.

The name comes from their remarkable resemblance to leaves and other plants of their environment and from the fact that they often "hop" for quick transportation in a similar way to that of grasshoppers. However, planthoppers generally walk very slowly so as not to attract attention. Distributed worldwide, all members of this group are plant-feeders, though surprisingly few are considered pests.

​The infraorder contains only a single superfamily, Fulgoroidea. Fulgoroids are most reliably distinguished from the other Auchenorrhyncha by two features; the bifurcate ("Y"-shaped) anal vein in the forewing, and the thickened, three-segmented antennae, with a generally round or egg-shaped second segment (pedicel) that bears a fine filamentous arista.

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Infraorder : Fulgoromorpha

Family : Ricaniidae

Genus : Ricanula

Species : R. stigmatica

Binomial name : Ricanula stigmatica

Stål, 1869

Ricaniidae is a family of planthopper insects, containing over 400 species worldwide. The highest diversity is in tropical Africa and Asia and in Australia, with a few species occurring in the Palearctic and Neotropical realms. It is one of the smaller families in the planthopper superfamily Fulgoroidea.

Ricania taeniata is a species of planthopper belonging to the family Ricaniidae, which is known for its unique characteristics and ecological role.

This species is one of the smaller families in the planthopper superfamily Fulgoroidea, with over 400 species worldwide, particularly in tropical regions.

Ricaniidae insects play a crucial role in the ecosystem as they serve as pollinators while feeding on plant sap. Ricaniidae are recognized for their morphological features, including expanded, membranous, and triangular tegmina.

The species Ricania taeniata is known for its clear, vein-patterned wings and can cause significant damage to various agricultural crops due to its sap-sucking behavior.

Ricania taeniata is a pest to plants. It poses risks to plants by using piercing mouthparts to extract fluids from leaves and fruits, leading to withering and reduced fruit quality, which can diminish plant vitality. 

The presence of Ricania taeniata can cause significant damage to a wide range of agricultural crops, making it a notable pest to be aware of.

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Order : Hemiptera

Suborder : Auchenorrhyncha

Infraorder : Fulgoromorpha

Family : Ricaniidae

Subfamily : Ricaniinae

Genus : Ricania

Germar, 1818

Species : Ricania taeniata

Stål, 1870

Chrysomya is an Old World blow fly genus of the family Calliphoridae. The genus Chrysomya contains a number of species including Chrysomya rufifacies and Chrysomya megacephala. The term “Old World blow fly” is a derivative of both the associated family, Calliphoridae (blow flies), and the belief that the genus Chrysomya originated in Asia and migrated to North America only relatively recently.

Chrysomya’s primary importance to the field of medico-criminal forensic entomology is due to the genus’ reliable life cycle, allowing investigators to accurately develop a postmortem interval. Chrysomya adults are typically metallic colored with thick setae on the meron and plumose arista.

Chrysomya megacephala, more commonly known as the oriental latrine fly, is a member of the family Calliphoridae (blowflies). It is a warm-weather fly with a greenish-blue metallic box-like body. The fly infests corpses soon after death, making it important to forensic science. This fly is implicated in some public health issues; it can cause accidental myiasis, and also infects fish and livestock.

Chrysomya megacephala's eggs are "oval with one flat face and another convex". Adult flies reflect a metallic blue-green color on their thorax and abdomen and have yellow gena, or cheeks. Larvae vary in size according to instar and are shaped more thickly towards the rear. C. megacephala have large red eyes, those of males being close together, and those of females farther apart. The cercus of the male is longer than that of the female.

The developmental stages of C. megacephala include egg, larva and pupa. A female fly may lay as many as 200 to 300 eggs, often in human feces, meat or fish. Larval stages include first, second and third instals or growth periods. The eggs take approximately one day to develop, while the larvae take 5.4 days and the pupae 5.3 days. Population numbers as well as body size are greatly influenced by temperature. 

The adult lifespan of the fly is approximately seven days. The development of C. megacephala is linked to the length of time spent feeding in the larval stage, as well as to temperature; the lower the temperature, the more slowly the larvae develop. In laboratory studies conducted at 27 °C., eggs hatch in 18 hours; the first molt occurs in 30 hours; the second molt in 72 hours; pupation after 144 hours; and the adult emerges after approximately 234 hours. These intervals vary depending on geographical location; other environmental factors also can determine how long flies will stay in the larval stage. Males tend to emerge two or three hours ahead of the females.

The reproduction and survival rates of C. megacephala are closely related to developmental factors, including the amount of available food, and competition from larvae of other species, such as C. rufifacies. In the presence of competing larvae, those of C. megacephala spend less time feeding, leading to early pupation, smaller adults, and early reproduction. C. rufifacies is known to cannibalize maggot masses and is thus a huge competitor.

Chrysomya albiceps is also known to prey on C. megacephala during the larval stage when they must compete for the same food source. Beetles are also known to prey on C. megacephala. C. megacephala is not predaceous in the adult or larval form, preferring to feed on necrophagous material of any kind, such as fish, cows and humans.

Importance in forensic science :

C. megacephala is considered important to forensic science because it is one of the first flies to show up on a corpse, and so the time of death can easily be determined when Chrysomya megacephala larvae are found on a body. 

In many forensic entomology cases either C. rufifacies or Chrysomya megacephala are found on the decaying corpse; mitochondrial DNA is the main method used to determine which subfamily is present. The species' wide geographical distribution and high fecundity also make it useful in forensic cases; C. megacephala is among the most common blowflies found.

Larval dispersion patterns of C. megacephala also make it forensically important. Knowing that, to pupate, larvae move away from the food source to find a safe place to metamorphose, forensic entomologists can accurately calculate a post mortem interval. 

Knowledge of larval competition is also useful in forensic studies, because it could affect the estimate of the time of death. If only C. rufifacies is found on a body, it is not accurate to use only this species to calculate a time of colonization. The colonization of C. megacephala prior to C. rufifacies must be taken into account.

Larval-state poisoning detection :

In any part of the world that uses organophosphates, C. megacephala could prove to be beneficial. Organophosphate compounds are used in agriculture and are highly toxic. Organophosphate poisoning often causes death, and in many cases, by evaluating the body tissue and fluids, the toxin can be identified as the source of the poisoning. However, it is somewhat difficult to evaluate the body tissue in a body that is exceedingly decomposed. Nevertheless, a medical examiner in Hawaii worked on a case in which poisoning by malathion, an organophosphate insecticide, was thought to be the cause of death. 

The victim’s stomach contents and body fat were examined and found to have contained malathion. The fly larvae of Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies were also present at the scene on the body and were tested for malathion. Both of these species did contain malathion, but there had been no previous record of organophosphates in their larvae. Studying larvae from decomposed remains may provide an effective method of determining the presence of these toxins in a body that is extremely decayed.

C. megacephala use in other research has a beneficial and practical value apart from being significant in forensic investigations; this blowfly is the source of pollination for mangos in the Australian region.

C. megacephala causes myiasis in humans and animals. This causes losses in cattle and fish industries all over the world. Studies are being done on C. megacephala to determine its role as a vector for diarrhea-causing bacteria such as E. coli.

Public health importance and management control, C. megacephala are known to be the source of accidental (secondary) myiasis in humans, where the flies do not pierce the skin but invade an open wound.

The first record of human miasis caused by C. megacephala and C. rufifacies was in Thailand, where a 53-year-old man had a tumor lesion where the larvae accumulated. Most recorded miasis cases, however, do not involve the fly.

C. megacephala is a carrier of pathogens, such as bacteria, protozoan cysts, and helminth eggs, to human food, because it lays its eggs on human feces, and will land on human food soon after.

The flies also cause a huge economic problem in Asia, Africa, and the Pacific. In these areas sun-drying is the major method of preserving fish, as ice is typically unaffordable. However, blowfly larvae tend to infect these sun-dried fish when the weather is warm and humid. 

In an experiment, 95% of the infecting flies were found to be C. megacephala. The flies can be controlled by using an odor that the flies are attracted to trap them. Insecticides are also used, although this results in the development of resistance.

Class : Insecta

Order : Diptera

Family : Calliphoridae

Genus : Chrysomya

Species : C. megacephala

Binomial name : Chrysomya megacephala

(Fabricius, 1794)

Chestnut nature 2020

The Braconidae are a family of parasitoid wasps. After the closely related Ichneumonidae, braconids make up the second-largest family in the order Hymenoptera, with about 17,000 recognized species and many thousands more undescribed.

The Braconidae are currently divided into about 47 subfamilies and over 1000 genera.

Braconid wasps play a huge role in maintaining ecological balance. These tiny parasitoid wasps are nature’s pest controllers, targeting caterpillars, beetle larvae, and aphids. While their name often causes confusion with more aggressive social wasps like hornets or yellowjackets, braconids are completely harmless to humans. Instead of stinging people, they focus on laying eggs inside or on other insects. This fascinating behavior makes them one of the most important natural allies in agriculture and gardening.

The difference between social wasps and braconids wasps. Social wasps live in colonies while braconids are solitary parasitoids. This means each female works independently, using her ovipositor (egg-laying tube) to insert eggs into host insects. The larvae develop inside or on the host, eventually consuming it. While this may sound gruesome, it is an essential part of controlling pest populations naturally.

Braconid wasps are tiny and slender, its size range from a few millimeters up approx max 15 mm in length. Their colors varies from black and brown to reddish, sometimes with lighter markings. Due to their small size, they often go unnoticed until gardeners spot their white cocoons on caterpillars like tomato hornworms.

Females often have long ovipositors, an organ that largely varies interspecifically. This variation is closely related to the host species upon which the wasp deposits its egg. Species that parasitize microlepidopterans, for instance, have longer ovipositors, presumably to reach the caterpillar through layers of plant tissue. Some wasps also have long ovipositors to bypass caterpillar defense mechanisms such as spines or hairs, or to reach deeply-burrowed Coleoptera larvae in tree trunks.

​

Braconids are often seen hovering around plants and flying off quickly across leaves as they search for hosts. Unlike bees or social wasps, braconids are not interested in human activity and are completely non-aggressive.

Zombrus is a genus within the Braconidae family of wasps. Specifically, Zombrus bicolor is classified within the subfamily Doryctinae of the Braconidae family, which includes many species of parasitoid wasps.

The Braconidae family is a large group of parasitoid wasps, making Zombrus a valid classification within this order. 

Phylum : Arthropoda

Clade : Pancrustacea

Class : Insecta

Order : Hymenoptera

Superfamily : Ichneumonoidea

Family : Braconidae

Latreille, 1829

Genus : Zombrus

Species : Zombrus sp