Top 20 Most Common Insects in Newcastle

The wingspan is about 1 cm. The forewings are pale brown with two dark chevrons.

Tectocoris diophthalmus, commonly known as the Hibiscus Harlequin Bug or Cotton Harlequin Bug, is the sole member of the genus Tectocoris. It is a brightly coloured convex and rounded shield-shaped bug with a metallic sheen that grows to about 20 mm. Adult females are mostly orange and males are both blue and red or orange, while nymphs are typically metallic green and purple. The colours are quite variable, and experiments suggest that the variation in colour may reduce bird predation, especially on the immature stages. This extreme level of variation is such that different taxonomists have, since 1781, described this species under different new names at least 16 times, some of these supernumerary names remaining in use until 2006, when it was finally confirmed that they were all colour forms of a single organism. It is common in Eastern Australia, New Guinea and several Pacific Islands in habitats ranging from urban to agricultural and coastal areas. The Hibiscus Harlequin Bugs feed on many species of the family Malvaceae, as well as cultivated cotton. They will also feed on Illawarra flame tree flowers, grevillea and bottlebrush saplings. They pierce the stems of young shoots and suck the sap. Females lay clusters of eggs around stems of usually the hibiscus plant and then guards them until they hatch.

The wingspan is about 3 cm. Adults are brown, with an orange patch on each hindwing ending in an eyespot. The underside of the wings is brown with two eyespots on the hindwings.

Banded coral shrimp (Stenopus hispidus) is a crustacean that occupies tropical waters in the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and reefs surrounding Australia and New Zealand. It acts as a cleaner fish, and removing parasites and fungi from other passing fish. This species is monogamous and mates for life.

The monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is the most recognizable butterfly in North America. It is best known for its appearance, but should be better known for the fact that it has a 3000-mile migration that takes the butterfly 4 generations to complete. Their diet is also a natural deterrent for predators, as they eat milkweed, a poison that induces vomiting.

The cephalothorax is black in colour with a bluish metallic sheen. It is covered with small white hairs (setae). The carapace (upper part of the cephalothorax) is rectangular in shape. The sternum (chest) is brownish black, with a yellow central area. The chelicerae (fangs) are black with four to six small teeth. The maxillae and other mouthparts are black at the base, lightening to brown and bright yellow at the tips. The pedipalps are dark brown. Jewel spiders have eight eyes arranged in two rows. The front row is recurved, with the two middle eyes (anterior median eyes) further in front than the two at the sides (anterior lateral eyes). The back row is procurved, with the two middle eyes (posterior median eyes) further in the back than the two at the sides (posterior lateral eyes). The legs in females are predominantly dirty yellow to orange in color. Black tips are present on the last three segments of the legs (the tibiae, metatarsi, and tarsi). The first pair of legs are longer than the others. In males, the legs are mostly black, with brownish tips. The opisthosoma (abdomen) is large, slightly wider than it is long, and strongly rounded at the front and back. It is shiny black with bright colourful patterns. These colours can vary, but they are usually white, yellow, or yellow-orange. Its most distinctive feature are the three pairs of large "spines" projecting outwards. The first two pairs on the front are close to each other, forming a V-shape as they point to the sides. They are short and roughly conical. The spines on the rear are longer and point backwards. There are wide spaces between them and the two front pairs. The spines are black or brownish black from above, but has a yellow-orange to rusty red lower surfaces. Jewel spiders are sexually dimorphic. Females are about twice as large as males, reaching 0.28 to 0.47 in in total length. Their carapace (upper part of cephalothorax) is squarish, usually around 0.11 to 0.12 in long and 0.10 to 0.12 in wide. Males are usually only around 0.12 to 0.20 in. The carapace is slightly rectangular, usually around 0.08 in long and 0.07 in wide. They are also less colourful than females; with predominantly dark reddish brown bodies. The spines are blunt and are much shorter than the spines of the females. Like all mature male spiders, they are relatively easy to identify because of their greatly enlarged pedipalps used in sperm transfer during mating. Jewel spiders exhibit colour polymorphism. They can be found in white, yellow, or red colour morphs. Jewel spiders found later in autumn (from March to April) are also sometimes melanistic, being entirely dark brown to black in coloration.

Native to Australia, grey House Spider has extended its range to other countries, including the United States. While the spider prefers temperate climates, its hardy nature allows it to survive in warm and cool temperatures. The spider is typically found in manmade structures where it spins a messy-looking web designed to trap wandering insects.

The orchard swallowtail (Papilio aegeus) is a swallowtail butterfly without the long tail. Despite the confusion, it is still a beautiful butterfly that is a combination of black, white, and orange. While they are typically in Australia, they are known to expand their territory to Victoria when citrus trees are abundant. This gives it the secondary name of the Large citrus butterfly.

The wingspan is about 6 cm for males and 7 cm for females.

Compared to other stingless bees, Tetragonula carbonaria tends to be medium-sized. However, their size can vary based on location. They are all predominantly black-bodied, covered in microscopic hairs. The adult workers and males are all black, with some brownish tint in certain areas such as the legs. The worker’s body length is 4 - 4.5 mm, and the wing length (including tegula) is 4 - 4.5 mm. The male drones have very similar bodies and wing lengths, but can be identified by different antenae.