Entomology

Black insects or bugs can be harmless, or they can be a sign of trouble. This quick and easy guide to black insects can help you tell the difference.

Phantom and western hemlock loopers are geometer moths. Their caterpillars are known as inchworms and are interesting to observe, but they may harm trees.

This guide to white and light-colored butterflies of the US will help you identify and learn more about the butterflies you see around you.

Many insects are heard but not seen. This guide to singing insects takes you behind the music to meet the crickets, grasshoppers and cicadas making all that noise.

Pictures and descriptions of the more common swallowtail butterfly species of the US and Canada

Are the bees and wasps around your home anything to worry about? This guide tells you what you need to know.

This brown caterpillar identification guide is accurate and easy to use. Find out your caterpillar's name, type, what it eats, if it's rare, if it's invasive, if it stings, if it's poisonous, if it can be raised by hand, what it turns into, and more.

The Carboniferous Period is known as the age of giant insects, from hawk-sized griffinflies to human-sized millipedes. Dinosaurs had not yet appeared on Earth and insects were the only animals capable of flight. Oxygen levels were quite high, which likely contributed to their large sizes.

Learn what you need to know about these fascinating insects.

Fireflies are light-producing insects. They are also known as glowworms or lightning bugs and have approximately 2,000 species. Their unique feature is the light organ which is located under the abdomen.

Teachers and students can use this guide to learn more about every state's official insect or butterfly.

This article, written by a teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the amazing rare beetle that is the official state insect of Rhode Island

This article has what students, teachers, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful Sandia hairstreak butterfly, Callophrys mcfarlandi, including its food plants and early forms.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful Karner blue butterfly, Plebejus melissa samuelis, including its food plants and early forms.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful Spicebush swallowtail butterfly (Papilio troilus), including its food plants and early forms.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful Oregon swallowtail butterfly (Papilio machaon oregonia), including its food plants and early forms.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, is for teachers, students, and citizen scientists. It discusses the migration, feeding peculiarities, and lifecycle of the beautiful monarch butterfly.

Have you ever wondered how a beetle flies? After all, these insects come in many varied shapes and sizes, and they look far from being built for effective flight. We usually see these creatures scurrying along the ground or rummaging among the undergrowth where they seem more at home.

This article , written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the state insect of Kentucky, the beautiful viceroy butterfly (Limenitis archippus).

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the amazing European mantis, Connecticut's state insect, including its predatory habits and natural history.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, is for teachers, students, and citizen scientists. It discusses the migration, feeding peculiarities, and lifecycle of the beautiful monarch butterfly.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the Kamehameha butterfly, Vanessa tameamea, including its food plants and early forms.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful zebra swallowtail butterfly (Protographium marcellus), including its food plants and early forms.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the State Insect of Louisiana, the fascinating western (AKA European) honeybee.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the state insect of Arkansas, the beautiful Diana fritillary butterfly (Speyeria diana), including its food plants and early forms.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the State Insect of Arkansas, the fascinating western (AKA European) honey bee.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what you need to know about the State insect of Kansas, the fascinating European honeybee.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, is for teachers, students, and citizen scientists. It discusses the migration, feeding peculiarities, and lifecycle of the beautiful monarch butterfly.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful tiger swallowtail butterfly (Pterourus glaucus), including its food plants and early forms.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the amazing Carolina mantis, including its predatory habits and natural history.

This article, written by a middle school teacher, is for teachers, students, and citizen scientists. It discusses the metamorphosis, diet, and migration of the monarch butterfly, Illinois' state insect.

This article has what Teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the State insect of Georgia, the fascinating western (AKA European) honeybee.

This article has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful vivid dancer damselfly, including its habits and early forms.

This article has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful California dogface butterfly, including its food plants and early forms.

This article has what students, teachers, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful Baltimore checkerspot butterfly, including its food plants and early forms.

This article has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the lightning bug that has been Pennsylvania's state insect since 1974.

This article has what students, teachers, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful green darner dragonfly, including its habits and early forms.

This article has what students, teachers, and citizen scientists need to know about the rare ladybug that has been New York's State insect for more than thirty years.

This article has what students, teachers, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful monarch butterfly, including its food plants and early forms. This is one of Alabama's two state insects.

This article has what students, teachers, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful four-spotted chaser dragonfly, including its habits and early forms.

This article has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful tiger swallowtail butterfly (Pterourus glaucus), including its food plants and early forms.

This article has what teachers, students, and citizen scientists need to know about the beautiful Colorado hairstreak butterfly (Hypaurotis crysalus), including its food plants and early forms.

If you're a pet owner you'll be familiar with these pests. However, its not just our pets that ticks like to feed on.

This article will break down 10 of the most beautiful insects in the world, such as the panda ant, Picasso bug, and orchid mantis.

Arthropods are the largest class of animals on the planet, with more than 80% of all known animal species belong to this class. With over a million species, arthropods inhabit all types of land-based and aquatic ecosystems, including our homes. They are commonly known as insects, bugs, or spiders.

This guide to insects you see in the spring will help you identify the butterflies, bees, and other bugs in your garden, yard, and even in your home.

This article examines the infamous Black Widow Spider. It provides a direct analysis of the spider's behavioral patterns, venom toxicity, and general characteristics.

Wasps may appear threatening to humans, but they are not dangerous, and they are integral to the Great Lakes ecosystem. Michigan's native Yellow Jackets, Paper Wasps, Cicada Killers and Bald-Faced Hornets have recently been joined by exotic Wood Wasps, according to the USDA.

This article explores the 10 deadliest and most dangerous spiders known to exist in the world through an analysis of venom toxicity and fatality rates.

The crypt-keeper wasp is a hyperparasite. It controls another parasitic insect called the crypt gall wasp and tunnels its way through its head to escape from a gall.