Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Ladybug Lavae.
If it turns into a Bug with 14 spots or less; it's a good one: if more . . . then squash 'em!!!

Cheers IanK

So close Ian..... Still a beneficial bug, but I'm researching an article for the up n coming BYAP magazine on lacewings and I've been totally immersed in them today, and I reckon it might be a lace wing larvae...

I have learn't as much about bugs and crawly's as I have about aquaponics on this site, really coool

Makes one wonder if BW is taking pics with a microscope.
Wouldn't worry about the pollination. They are doing their job just fine. 'Course, you could always line them up for questioning.

yea didn't really look like a lady bug nymph to me so hopefully a lacewing

It's the bug from Star Trek II The Wrath of Khan, don't let it near your ears!

I've been busy doing the same.

identifying bugs is really tricky. Do you have any good web sites you can recommend?

I've been using http://anic.ento.csiro.au/insectfamilies/ to try to put together a blog post on predators that I'm seeing in my system, but my entomologist friend is proving harder to track down than I thought she would be.

I was hoping my beastie was the kid version of an alderfly. If it is, then I may have been successful in identifying my first bug from its bits!

This is what I think might be the grownup.

Hi BW,
You need this book. With it you can clasify just anbout any insect in australia, unless of course you discovered a new one, but even then it will go down to family. To get to genus you will need a microscope to look at bits very close up....

I did a few entomology subjects at uni a few years back. This set of books cost about $250 15 years ago, migh be updated and more $$$ by now. Or maybe the CSIRO just publish to the web site you listed.

Insects are pretty amazing but getting the clasification right is pretty hard. Im not much good at it any more.

the CSIRO web site is pretty hard to get past genus and the selector is pretty basic, although it does take us to Corydalidae.
It looks to me like it is Archichauliodes sp. , Corydalidae. From your pic, the leading edge wing looks pretty similar to the top wing definition marked as A:
page 519 from volume 1:

So I would say yes it is probably an Dobsonfly....if the above is correct.
To get a better idea, catch it, kill it in a jar by adding nail polish remover saked in cotton wool(drop the wool in the jar and put the lid on - don't watch its gruesome), then pin the wings out carefully.
If you can get a pic of the anal claspers, we can be sure (see A in pic for Archichauliodes sp.)


Heres one on Flickr taken out of Canberra http://www.flickr.com/photos/dhobern/5210611965/

Yay me! My first insect ID

I think I'd rather wait until I see a few more before I pin one out. I'd hate to knock off the only egglayer in the back yard. I take it I'm right in saying these critters eat aphids? Wouldn't be the first time I cared for a pest if they dont


I have no idea how these critters find there way into my little grow house, but I can spend hours in there watching things hunting and going about their day.

That book's a little out of my price range, but I'll try to find it second hand

How do you know if you are dealing with an adult version of the insect you are looking at?

Say a ladybird pre-adult beastie - looks like a beastie in its own right.

I found this, and I'm going to try to identify it, but if it's a pre-adult stage beastie is there some way to go about finding what it will be?

Cockroach.

Dont nuke it, you will all die and it will survive laughing at you , nasty buggers they are

Really?

Beautiful little critter.

Doesn't look like our normal house hold version. Perhaps just because it's young.

These tiny bugs have the most amazing paint jobs.

Except for lady bugs. They look a little hand painted when you get up close.