With the exception of some parasitoid rove beetles ants are not a common prey for rove beetles. Unless they use traps (like spiders) virtually all ant-predators are very specialized, with very sophisticated means of infiltrating or warding off ants.
Because ants are generally not soft targets, and if you're an insect they're more likely to eat you than the other way around.
"The western world sips from a poisonous cocktail: Polarisation, populism, protectionism and post-truth"
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
Ants are to me literally the most terrifying being on this planet.
I've seen footage of roving ant colonies literally obliterating anything that was too slow to get out of the way. Snakes, Spiders, Birds, Mammals of varying sizes, any insect...Doesn't matter it will be drowned in acid, filled with poison and taken apart by thousands of tiny jaws.
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OrcaAlso known as EspressosaurusWrexRegistered Userregular
Ants are to me literally the most terrifying being on this planet.
I've seen footage of roving ant colonies literally obliterating anything that was too slow to get out of the way. Snakes, Spiders, Birds, Mammals of varying sizes, any insect...Doesn't matter it will be drowned in acid, filled with poison and taken apart by thousands of tiny jaws.
Grey goo is already here, it's just brown and has jaws?
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RingoHe/Hima distinct lack of substanceRegistered Userregular
Ants are to me literally the most terrifying being on this planet.
I've seen footage of roving ant colonies literally obliterating anything that was too slow to get out of the way. Snakes, Spiders, Birds, Mammals of varying sizes, any insect...Doesn't matter it will be drowned in acid, filled with poison and taken apart by thousands of tiny jaws.
Grey goo is already here, it's just brown and has jaws?
Also, sometimes movie characters make friends with one and you cry when the friendly ant dies
ceresWhen the last moon is cast over the last star of morningAnd the future has past without even a last desperate warningRegistered User, Moderatormod
If you've never seen AntsCanada, man that guy can tell a story. The death of The Fire Nation was one of the saddest things.
And it seems like all is dying, and would leave the world to mourn
I'm pretty sure that's an assassin bug nymph* (many assassin bug nymphs are red, regardless of what they will look like when they're adult).
They're really only dangerous in south and central america where they can carry really nasty passengers (like the parasites that cause chagas disease). They bite like motherfuckers though (sting, bite. Dunno what to call it but they jab you with their needle-like mouthparts).
P.S: It has wings. Which means it's adult. Still assassin bug.
Fiendishrabbit on
"The western world sips from a poisonous cocktail: Polarisation, populism, protectionism and post-truth"
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
I'd second that's an assassin bug of some type, but would also like to mention that the subfamily of assassin bugs that carry chagas (the Traitominae, or kissing bugs) definitely exists in the United States, and we have many strains of Chagas in circulation domestically. Chagas in the United States is primarily a canine disease, however, because in order to get infected with Chagas you need to rub the feces of the kissing bug into the open wound caused by the bite. For various reasons United States Triatomines don't defecate where they bite, unlike other species.
In addition, we don't tend to encounter many kissing bugs in the United States, since they tend to live in more wooded areas. In other countries where people have thatched roofs and dirt floors, you're more likely to run into kissing bugs.
Anyway the point is that the reason it's a disease we primarily see in dogs is because dogs, upon being bitten, will eat the insect, thus ingesting the parasite.
This is actually the focus of some of my personal research, in conjunction with Texas A&M's Chagas Disease initiative.
They bite like motherfuckers though (sting, bite. Dunno what to call it but they jab you with their needle-like mouthparts).
If there's already a sub family called 'kissing bugs,'
then it seems like a fine opportunity to appropriate "snog" from the British and give it an entirely different meaning that is still contextually similar enough to change the meaning of a sentence.
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JedocIn the scupperswith the staggers and jagsRegistered Userregular
That might be confusing, since they're called "kissing bugs" because they like to bite humans around the lips while you sleep so they can drink your blood. Also around the eyes, but I guess they couldn't come up with a cute name for that.
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OrcaAlso known as EspressosaurusWrexRegistered Userregular
That might be confusing, since they're called "kissing bugs" because they like to bite humans around the lips while you sleep so they can drink your blood. Also around the eyes, but I guess they couldn't come up with a cute name for that.
Because I defeated him in battle does this mean I'm an assassin now?
No, first you have to go through your entire house clear all the templar bug nests.
There are no Templar bugs.
There are however
Clymene moths, aka Crusader moths
And Crusader bugs
"The western world sips from a poisonous cocktail: Polarisation, populism, protectionism and post-truth"
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
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Inquisitor772 x Penny Arcade Fight Club ChampionA fixed point in space and timeRegistered Userregular
For some reason, I thought assassin bugs used their mouth parts to cut open tough leaves to get at the gooey insides. Did I make that up?
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JedocIn the scupperswith the staggers and jagsRegistered Userregular
That's what most hemiptera do. And some of the larger ones, like leaf-footed bugs, have a very similar body plan to assassin bugs.
But no, assassin bugs are straight up carnivores. One reason their bites hurt so bad despite the lack of venom is because they inject their victims with digestive juices and then slurp up the dissolved tissue. A lot like spiders, except with a long crazy hypodermic mouthpart instead of retractable fangs.
ceresWhen the last moon is cast over the last star of morningAnd the future has past without even a last desperate warningRegistered User, Moderatormod
And it seems like all is dying, and would leave the world to mourn
I've spotted a couple of these things recently around my home in central VA, USA. Wingspan is maybe 25% bigger than a quarter. At first I mistook it for some type of fancy day-moth, but my roommate was like "dude, that's a fly":
Using my totally scientific method of "that sort of looks like it," I have identified this as Xenox tigrinus, the Tiger Bee Fly
I've spotted a couple of these things recently around my home in central VA, USA. Wingspan is maybe 25% bigger than a quarter. At first I mistook it for some type of fancy day-moth, but my roommate was like "dude, that's a fly":
Using my totally scientific method of "that sort of looks like it," I have identified this as Xenox tigrinus, the Tiger Bee Fly
It's a tiger bee fly. If you were further west or south it could be one of it's nearly identical cousins, but in VA it's a Tiger Bee fly.
"The western world sips from a poisonous cocktail: Polarisation, populism, protectionism and post-truth"
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
Insects surviving freezing temperatures is a lot easier to believe than microwaving them. The latter being much more disruptive at cellular level...
Insects can survive microwaving though. Oven microwaves are standing waves with a wavelength far longer than the diameter of roughly ant-sized insects. Thus from an insects perspective, the oven contains islands of high energy that heat them up, and low energy areas where they can chill down. And if the insect has a sufficiently large surface area to volume ratio, it's able to quickly cool down all the heat it receives from passing through a high-energy island, making the oven entirely survivable.
OrcaAlso known as EspressosaurusWrexRegistered Userregular
Furry little bastard.
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JedocIn the scupperswith the staggers and jagsRegistered Userregular
edited August 2020
Don't touch it, a lot of caterpillars that look that like that in the northeast have pretty potent contact poisons. They're like creeping little wigs full of poison ivy.
So I had this hitchhiker on my car earlier (NJ) what Pokémon is this?
It's a sycamore tussock moth caterpillar (Halysidota harrisii). The hairs are barbed and designed to irritate the fuck out of anyone stupid enough to touch it.
Fiendishrabbit on
"The western world sips from a poisonous cocktail: Polarisation, populism, protectionism and post-truth"
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
Aren't the white ones the kill-on-sight-to-prevent-ecological-disaster moths?
The sycamore moth is not an invasive species nor is it considered much of a pest on the larger scale (though it can certainly be destructive).
There are other species of tussock moths that are considered dangerous on a large scale (though tussock moths a usually very sensitive to biological pesticides, like several species of fungus and bacteria).
The Douglas fir tussock moth, Gypsy moth, satin moth, nun moth, yellow-headed tussock... There are some 10-20 species in that family that will make orchard owners and foresters blanch (since an infestation can strip leaves/pines completely, and sometimes the bark as well).
However, none of them look like a "white sycamore moth", so I don't know where that particular idea came from.
"The western world sips from a poisonous cocktail: Polarisation, populism, protectionism and post-truth"
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
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RingoHe/Hima distinct lack of substanceRegistered Userregular
It was the gypsy moth I was thinking of because my brain was making bad leaps of deduction.
Started seeing a few of these running around the office at work the last few days. Are these cockroaches, or something less gross that just wandered in? They're maybe 3/4 of an inch long. Best pic I could get because the little asshole wouldn't stand still very long.
It looks to be some kind of ground beetle in the family Carabidae.
My gut says it's a Black Clock Beetle - Pterostichus madidus, but I'd need a bit more information (location, for example, I think Black Clock Beetles are a UK thing) a better scale and a better picture of the antennae to be sure.
The eyes are a bit off as well, but it could just be the picture quality and angle.
EDIT: Could also be Harpalus pensylvanicus, if you're US-based.
It looks to be some kind of ground beetle in the family Carabidae.
My gut says it's a Black Clock Beetle - Pterostichus madidus, but I'd need a bit more information (location, for example, I think Black Clock Beetles are a UK thing) a better scale and a better picture of the antennae to be sure.
The eyes are a bit off as well, but it could just be the picture quality and angle.
Oh sorry! Forgot location. I'm in Maine. Next one that visits, we'll try to corral it for a better pic. Just happy it's not a roach.
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I'd never heard of a Devil's Coach Horse Beetle until I picked up Empires of the Undergrowth. They're a formidable enemy in the game!
Although when I wiki'd them, it didn't say anything about them preying on ants. I gather they'll eat anything they can fit in their jaws, though?
Because ants are generally not soft targets, and if you're an insect they're more likely to eat you than the other way around.
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
I've seen footage of roving ant colonies literally obliterating anything that was too slow to get out of the way. Snakes, Spiders, Birds, Mammals of varying sizes, any insect...Doesn't matter it will be drowned in acid, filled with poison and taken apart by thousands of tiny jaws.
Grey goo is already here, it's just brown and has jaws?
Also, sometimes movie characters make friends with one and you cry when the friendly ant dies
That's right, ants can take you apart emotionally
Just making sure my arm won't fall off or anything.
They're really only dangerous in south and central america where they can carry really nasty passengers (like the parasites that cause chagas disease). They bite like motherfuckers though (sting, bite. Dunno what to call it but they jab you with their needle-like mouthparts).
P.S: It has wings. Which means it's adult. Still assassin bug.
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
Because I defeated him in battle does this mean I'm an assassin now?
Only if you ate the heart to gain its strength.
In addition, we don't tend to encounter many kissing bugs in the United States, since they tend to live in more wooded areas. In other countries where people have thatched roofs and dirt floors, you're more likely to run into kissing bugs.
Anyway the point is that the reason it's a disease we primarily see in dogs is because dogs, upon being bitten, will eat the insect, thus ingesting the parasite.
This is actually the focus of some of my personal research, in conjunction with Texas A&M's Chagas Disease initiative.
Requiescat in secta
No, first you have to go through your entire house clear all the templar bug nests.
then it seems like a fine opportunity to appropriate "snog" from the British and give it an entirely different meaning that is still contextually similar enough to change the meaning of a sentence.
AHH!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!
There are no Templar bugs.
There are however
Clymene moths, aka Crusader moths
And Crusader bugs
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
Whatever you say, Abstergo crony. We know the truth!
But no, assassin bugs are straight up carnivores. One reason their bites hurt so bad despite the lack of venom is because they inject their victims with digestive juices and then slurp up the dissolved tissue. A lot like spiders, except with a long crazy hypodermic mouthpart instead of retractable fangs.
Using my totally scientific method of "that sort of looks like it," I have identified this as Xenox tigrinus, the Tiger Bee Fly
It's a tiger bee fly. If you were further west or south it could be one of it's nearly identical cousins, but in VA it's a Tiger Bee fly.
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
Insects can survive microwaving though. Oven microwaves are standing waves with a wavelength far longer than the diameter of roughly ant-sized insects. Thus from an insects perspective, the oven contains islands of high energy that heat them up, and low energy areas where they can chill down. And if the insect has a sufficiently large surface area to volume ratio, it's able to quickly cool down all the heat it receives from passing through a high-energy island, making the oven entirely survivable.
And i wonder, if the disc is spinning, will they figure out where to move?
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It's a sycamore tussock moth caterpillar (Halysidota harrisii). The hairs are barbed and designed to irritate the fuck out of anyone stupid enough to touch it.
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
The sycamore moth is not an invasive species nor is it considered much of a pest on the larger scale (though it can certainly be destructive).
There are other species of tussock moths that are considered dangerous on a large scale (though tussock moths a usually very sensitive to biological pesticides, like several species of fungus and bacteria).
The Douglas fir tussock moth, Gypsy moth, satin moth, nun moth, yellow-headed tussock... There are some 10-20 species in that family that will make orchard owners and foresters blanch (since an infestation can strip leaves/pines completely, and sometimes the bark as well).
However, none of them look like a "white sycamore moth", so I don't know where that particular idea came from.
-Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
Anyway, thanks for clearing that up, FR
It looks to be some kind of ground beetle in the family Carabidae.
My gut says it's a Black Clock Beetle - Pterostichus madidus, but I'd need a bit more information (location, for example, I think Black Clock Beetles are a UK thing) a better scale and a better picture of the antennae to be sure.
The eyes are a bit off as well, but it could just be the picture quality and angle.
EDIT: Could also be Harpalus pensylvanicus, if you're US-based.
Oh sorry! Forgot location. I'm in Maine. Next one that visits, we'll try to corral it for a better pic. Just happy it's not a roach.