#6secondinsects

What's 3 times better than 1 louse on a holiday? That's right, 3 lice on a holiday! To celebrate the most American dish of American Thanksgiving, I present 3 chewing lice found on each of the participating fowl.

Cuclotogaster heterographus - Feather louse collected off a Domestic Chicken

Anaticola crassicornis - Feather louse collected off a common Mallard Duck (and which strangely kind of looks like a duck...)

Menacanthus stramineus - Louse collected off a Domestic Turkey (but can also be found on Domestic Chickens)

Leptinotarsa decemlineata, the Colorado Potato Beetle, is one of those insects which no one really likes seeing, especially if you grow potatoes or tomatoes! Native to the US, this species took a liking to potatoes when they were introduced to the Southwest USA and spread like crazy, despite our best efforts. The Colorado Potato Beetle is infamous for its ability to develop resistances to pesticides, making its control all the more difficult.

One of the largest insects in North America, Lethocerus americanus is an aquatic predator that feeds on pretty much anything it can catch, including fish and tadpoles! Also known as the Toe Biter, it doesn't normally bother humans, unless you should happen to step on one in the pond.

Sometimes flies don't necessarily look like flies. Take for example Braula coeca, the Honey Bee Louse Fly, which has lost its wings to live on honey bees. These flies are kleptoparasites of honey bees as adults, which means that rather than drinking the bee's hemolymph (insect blood), they steal food directly from the bee's mouth! Braula coeca maggots feed on honey & pollen from the hive, but these flies are not thought to cause any economic damage or health issues for bees. 

Mantidflies are some of the coolest insects out there. Spider egg parasites as larvae, deadly predators as adults, the mantidfly has it all. Mix in some mimicry and convergent evolution and you've got yourself one crazy insect.

To celebrate National Moth Week, here's the Fall Cankerworm Moth - Alsophila pometaria - (and one of its known parasitoids, the tachinid fly Blondelia eufitchiae).