The Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata) is found throughout the U.S., into Canada, and south of the border well into Mexico. Black Saddlebags also have a presence on the Hawai’ian and the Caribbean Islands. They choose fish-free still/stagnant/very slow-moving water with lots of vegetation for their nurseries and will oviposit in roadside ditches.
Milkweed Bugs of one kind or another are found on milkweeds across the U.S. and into southern Canada, and they’re most common in the Southeast. MBs are reported to sip nectar and to feed on non-milkweed species when milkweeds are scarce; SMBs are known to eat insects that they find on milkweeds, including the occasional monarch caterpillar (there’s that caveat).
The Antelope Beetle is mainly found east of the Great Plains, and it’s one of five Lucanids in Wisconsin, all of which like wooded areas. Lizard Beetles are one of only two members in their genus in North America. Lizard beetles used to have their very own family (Languridae),
The Prominents are a bunch of long-winged, hairy, often-drab, mostly-tropical moths. Of the 3,800 species in the family, 138 are found in North America (half of them in Eastern forests). Prominents generally lay their eggs on the undersides of leaves, where the larvae may initially feed gregariously. Caterpillar menus are generally limited to one or just a few host plants per species.
Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) feed on a variety of flowers but lay their eggs only on plants in the milkweed family. The bright, aposematic (warning) colors of both the butterfly and its caterpillar alert potential predators to back off (poisonous milkweed sap renders the caterpillar toxic, and it carries its toxicity into adulthood).
There are about 660 species in the Hooktip and False Owlet moth family worldwide (only 8 in the eastern U.S.A.). Drepanid moths are medium-sized moths (wingspread 1” – 1 ½”) that have uniquely-formed hearing organs, and many (but not all) have hooked wing tips. According to the range map, Arched Hook-tip Moth is largely missing from the Great Plains and the Gulf Coast but is present across Canada.
The BugLady would like to dedicate this episode to the late (great) Cornell Professor Richard B. Fischer (January 19, 1919 – August 7, 2005) who taught the BugLady how to sneak up on insects (no bobbing or weaving, just slow and steady and straight ahead.
There are about 50 species of these Ripiphorid beetles in North America, and 30 of them are in the genus Ripiphorus. While the general outline of how the family operates has been charted, only one species in the genus Ripiphorus has been studied, and it’s assumed that the other 29 follow the same general pattern.
There are about 170 species of Cicadas, family Cicadidae, in North America north of Mexico. Wisconsin has nine species — Periodical cicadas like the famous 17-year locust, genus Magicicada; and Annual/Dogday Cicadas, mostly in the genus Neotibicen (formerly called Tibicen).
Chrysomelid beetles are vegetarians for their whole lives, eating a variety of plant tissues above and below the ground. Their numbers include some serious plant pests like the Colorado potato beetle and the asparagus beetle, and also some species that are used as biological controls. It’s a huge group, with almost 2,000 species in North America alone. Chrysomelids generally produce a single generation per year; most overwinter as adults and hit the ground running in spring.