Dormant

©2021 Karen Richards

We’re heading into a cold stretch for the season, so there are few outdoor insect days in sight. Looking through past Januarys in my photos, I found several interesting insects photographed indoors. Above is an assassin bug from a couple of years ago. I’ve posted several photos of these predators before, including the fierce-looking youngsters.

Insects aren’t “gone” now, of course, but they’re dormant. Dormir is French for “to sleep,” and maybe it is like that for some. Many insects overwinter as eggs, some are larva or pupa, and some are adults. Most true bugs live through the winter as adults, as do some beetles, as well as bee and wasp queens.

©2024 Karen Richards

Even though it’s 45 degrees outside, there are small gnats gnatting about on the windows and siding on the deck. Being about 2mm long and twitchy, though, I couldn’t get an image of one worth publishing.

I could barely get an image worth sharing of the dead wasp (above), which lay unmoving, and which I could manipulate with an eyeglasses screwdriver. It’s just 2 mm long (that’s a ruler at the bottom of the frame) and may be in the Trichopria genus, which is a parasitoid of flies. In any case, it probably is a parasitoid (which lays eggs in other insects’ eggs), because of its tiny size.

Warmer days will be here soon. In the meantime, curating old photos and planning outings for 2024 are great pastimes.

Cheers!

Operant Conditioning

©2023 Karen Richards

I’ve always thought of my insect searches as a treasure hunt, and it occurred to me that part of the reason it’s attractive is because of intermittent reinforcement. Many times, like today (1/1/24), when I go out to look for creatures, I only see fairly common species that I’ve seen before. But occasionally, often enough, I see something extraordinary or something that’s new to me.

B.F. Skinner was the first person to use the term “intermittent reinforcement.” He learned that rats will press a bar to get fed, but they will go crazy pressing the bar if they don’t get fed every time. The model fits with a few bad behaviors (gambling, emotional abuse). But it also works for positive behaviors such as persisting with scientific inquiry or hobbies (fishing or looking for insects).

The photo above is of a plant bug called Pamillia behrensii that mimics, in size, coloring and perhaps even chemical emissions, a particular kind of ant. It was a fun find on an otherwise cool and cloudy late December day.

©2024 Karen Richards

The winter crane fly above was among the most interesting things I saw today. It’s not colorful or rare. But I do think there’s something intriguing to learn about every species. For example this is not a “typical” crane fly, and is also called a winter midge or winter gnat. Like crane flies, though, the adults don’t eat. The larvae eat decaying organic matter, which is why I saw several of them today… they were on the lid of our compost container. There’s a nicely written profile of them here.

Happy 2024!