At first it looked like rodent poo but I couldn't understand how it got on that top leaf of the Brug, then I notice the little legs and mouth.
I know you and some others are posting pictures of Identified Insects so I thought you might recognize this guy and want his picture for the collection. It was at least licking my brug leaf.
Judy
I will be glad to send you the original picture. I'm sure you are better at extracting a clear image than I am.
What a awful looking thing. Bugs, bugs and more bugs. This year is really bad. I guess that is what we get for having such a mild winter.
I'm weird about insects and to be honest it startled me!!
Judy
Could be in the dung beetle family. They can usually be seen pushing around balls of various animal dung.....
Adult Dung Beetles push the poop around but they don't cover themselves with it. The baby dung beetles are eventually laid inside the ball but the dungballs are much bigger than your picture and they are buried in the ground. edited to say-This is only my understanding of dung beetles.
There's a VERY slight chance that it could be a Lacewing larvae before it pupates. They cover themselves with poop and dead vegetation and the skins and skeletons of the aphids and icky critters they eat. But I've never seen one so smooth and round as yours. Usually they look like this picture.
I lean more towards it being the pupa of the greatly beneficial Lacewing. After the larvae hatches from the egg it feeds on the insects and covers itself like the picture. Then it creates a little silk-like ball and hangs out (pupates) inside of it for a week or two until it emerges as an adult. Normally these little balls are attached to the leaf but it is possible his loosened up and he will carry it around until he emerges.
This is just my opinion. :)
Sorry that I can't assure you but I have a strong feeling that it is the pupa of the Lacewing.
edited ... how big is that ball anyway? That would surely help to to qualify or disqualify the Lacewing theory.
This message was edited Jul 27, 2006 5:31 PM
Vee8ch here's a extreme closeup of a lacewing larvae, the underside .. reminds me too much of that alien thing that attaches to your face .. just glad they are teeny tiny!
I though I was having a 60's flashback when I saw a piece of garbage walking up the side of a pot.
X
lol looks like a little mouse staring at you
Cool pic X. You should put that one in BugFiles!
Judy I found this pic of the pupa I mentioned. Other than this I don't have a clue as to what your guy could be.
http://ippc2.orst.edu/mint/lacepupa_lg.htm
I think I'll post it on the ID Forum. It's some kind of beetle critter, weirdest one I've ever seen.
Thank you to all who have responded.
Judy
Vee8ch I got that pix in a novel way .. an entymologist told me the secret to photographing bugs .. stick em in the freezer for a minute .. slows em down but doesn't kill them. Anyway, my camera wasn't good enough to get a good closeup so I stuck him on my scanner and scanned at 800% with 600 dpi. Orange paper was the only color background that brought out detail.
Once done, I stuck him back outside and he waddled off.
X
Lol! X . ... funny!
Judy maybe the Garden Foes forum would be the best place to post your pic.
Try this place
http://www.whatsthatbug.com/
That thing sort of looks like Arnold the pig from Green Acres. Check out the snout.
