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The stink beetle is aptly named since the insect emits a foul odor when touched or crushed, limiting its number of natural predators. While the stink beetle is a garden pest with a voracious appetite for plant leaves, the insects also have spiritual meanings that include protection, strength, and perseverance.
Eleodes osculans, the wooly darkling beetle, is a common nocturnal insect in coastal southern California. As a stink beetle of genus Eleodes, its easily observed defensive posture is to raise its hind end and secrete an unpleasant odor. This is one of the few Tenebrionid beetle species in North America to be covered in visible fuzz. E. osculans is the only known darkling beetle species which has brightly colored reddish brown hair covering most of its black exoskeleton.
The obscure darkling beetle is distinguished by its behavior of standing on its head when threatened, a unique defensive strategy it employs possibly to deter predators with the appearance of greater size or to emit defensive secretions. Inhabiting arid environments, these creatures exhibit remarkable adaptations to conserve water, including a waxy layer on their exoskeleton to minimize moisture loss and behavior that reduces activity during the heat of the day.
Triple-ridged darkling beetle is a species of desert stink beetle in the family Tenebrionidae.
Eleodes acuticauda is a species of desert stink beetle in the family Tenebrionidae, found in southwestern North America.
Eleodes suturalis, or the red-backed darkling beetle, is a species of darkling beetle in the genus Eleodes found in the United States. Their range extends from South Dakota to Texas and are not known to exist west of the Rocky Mountains. They can be easily identified by the distinctive red stripe which goes down the center of their flat elytra.
In the arid environments where rough-lipped darkling beetle thrives, this robust creature plays a vital role in nutrient recycling. As a detritivore, its diet consists mainly of decomposing plant material, catalyzing the process of decomposition. This species is distinguished by its defensive posture, which involves standing on its head and secreting a foul-smelling substance to deter predators, a behavior known as thanatosis. With a nocturnal lifestyle, it avoids predators and extreme daytime temperatures, ensuring its survival in challenging habitats.
The eleodes goryi is a notable inhabitant of arid environments, with a striking ability to withstand harsh, dry conditions. Its lifecycle includes a transformation from grub to a hard-shelled adult – a master in conserving water through its highly adapted exoskeleton. In its juvenile phase, eleodes goryi consumes organic debris, while adults mainly feed on live plant material, showcasing an adaptable diet that reflects its resilience in varying habitats.
Western honey bee（Apis mellifera） is the most common species of honeybee in the world. Among the first domesticated insects, its cultural and economic impact on humanity has been vast and far-reaching, providing honey, wax and its services as a pollinator. Western honey bee faces challenges worldwide, such as colony collapse disorder, and populations are thought to be decreasing.
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 japanese rhinoceros beetle (Trypoxylus dichotomus) is a massive beetle about the size of the palm of a hand. It's distinguished by its long Y-shaped horn, which it uses to fight other males with. It's a nocturnal bug that feeds on sap and sweet fruits. This species is sometimes kept as a pet due to its unique appearance and simple care requirements.
The silken threads produced by silkworm during its larval stage have been highly coveted for millennia, manifesting as a luxurious fabric in human society. Remarkably, this creature has a singular diet, feeding exclusively on the leaves of its primary host plant from which it extracts the necessary nutrients to facilitate its transition into a non-feeding, winged adult.
Menelaus blue morpho (Morpho menelaus) is a gorgeous butterfly with large, royal blue wings. Linnaeus named the genus Morpho the Aphrodite-Ancient Greek goddess of love and beauty for its extreme beauty. It is native to tropical rainforests. Though many butterfly gardens now cultivate them in captivity, there are still many people who never get a chance to see them.
While the atlas moth (Attacus atlas) can't tell you where to find your country on the map, it does earn its name through other means. It is one of the largest moths in the world, with a wingspan that is far larger than its body, creating an abnormal comparison. In India, their silk is gathered in a non-commercial capacity and is considered to be more durable than the domestic silkworm.
Both sexes reach about 5 mm in body length. Females and immatures of both sexes are brown but have color patterns by which they can be distinguished from related species. Also, the males dance to attract females.
Often confused for the ladybug, multicolored asian ladybeetle (Harmonia axyridis) is a separate species that, unlike the ladybug, is a household pest. It is considered particularly annoying for its habit of returning to places from which it is removed. One of the most variable species in the world, there are many different colors and patterns multicolored asian ladybeetle may display, making identification potentially difficult.
