OK what kind of bugs are these??

[OBCT]

Originally Posted by Stumptown

They go by many names, most call them Potato Bugs, genus Stenopelmatus. They're really crickets, and also closely related to the Wetas of New Zealand.

Thanks, StumpTown. It is a Potato Beetle - aka Jerusalem Cricket - indeed!

Though, strangely, it is not technically a cricket (EDIT: at least, according to Wikipedia)... and is not at all partial to potatoes.

Regardless, very cool.

[Stumptown]

Originally Posted by OBCT

Though, strangely, it is not technically a cricket (EDIT: at least, according to Wikipedia)... and is not at all partial to potatoes.

Regardless, very cool.

Technically, wikipedia is correct because they say they're not "true crickets," which is the general term for Family Gryllidae. But they are part of the same order as "true crickets" and mole crickets, camel crickets and great grigs.

[OBCT]

Originally Posted by Stumptown

Technically, wikipedia is correct because they say they're not "true crickets," which is the general term for Family Gryllidae. But they are part of the same order as "true crickets" and mole crickets, camel crickets and great grigs.

Gotcha.

I think.

[RedMileDJ]

I need some help to.

Can anyone tell me WTF this is? It landed on my wind-shield out in Airdrie a couple weeks ago. FREAKIN' HUGE...at least the horns, or whatever, on it made it look huge. Freaked me out a little. I took this picture with my BlackBerry.

[icarus]

^^ Oh yeah, I've seen a number of those in Alberta. They scare the **** of you when they land on your back or chest. Trying to remember the name, but it's escaping me right now... EDIT: We'd call them longhorn beetles, but I am not 100% if that is what it is exactly.

EDIT 2: Could be this bad boy, the Spruce Sawyer...

http://www.insectsofalberta.com/sprucesawyer.htm

[DOK]

Originally Posted by Red-Mile-DJ

I need some help to.

Can anyone tell me WTF this is? It landed on my wind-shield out in Airdrie a couple weeks ago. FREAKIN' HUGE...at least the horns, or whatever, on it made it look huge. Freaked me out a little. I took this picture with my BlackBerry.

Don't get me started on these horrible things! If anyone is from Fort Mac they are known as "Tar sand beetles". They live deep in the ground, so when the trucks are excavating they dig these terrible things up. They'll also be brought up when digging for a house foundation. We lived with them in between the insulation and the plastic, could hear them scurrying on the plastic at night with no way to kill them. Squishing them only pressed them into the soft insulation, shudder. They are harmless, but look like a terrible sin, poor buggers have it hard looking so freaking nasty.

[icarus]

Originally Posted by DOK

Don't get me started on these horrible things! If anyone is from Fort Mac they are known as "Tar sand beetles". They live deep in the ground, so when the trucks are excavating they dig these terrible things up. They'll also be brought up when digging for a house foundation. We lived with them in between the insulation and the plastic, could hear them scurrying on the plastic at night with no way to kill them. Squishing them only pressed them into the soft insulation, shudder. They are harmless, but look like a terrible sin, poor buggers have it hard looking so freaking nasty.

Yep, same as the Spruce or White-Spotted Sawyer...

Although the White-spotted Sawyer can be very abundant at times it is not generally considered a pest except to logging companies. People who own newer log cabins, however, do occasionally have larvae in the logs. The larvae make enough noise when chewing their way through the wood that it sounds like a distant saw, hence the name. When adults emerge inside the cabin they can be rather disconcerting.

In Fort McMurray, Alberta, this beetle is referred to as the Tar Sands Beetle. Evidently the beetles tend to swarm around any place where the bitumen is exposed. One theory as to why they swarm is that the bitumen gives off terpineols, the same substance that recently damaged trees give off, and this is what attracts the beetles. The Athabasca River, which goes right through the middle of Fort McMurray, cuts a deep channel through the surrounding landscape and exposes the bitumen-rich layer, which, particularly on hot days of summer, releases the terpineols.

Although White-spotted Sawyer Beetles are capable of biting, this is a rare occurrence, and the bite is not in any way dangerous because it is a simple mechanical bite without the use of any poisons or digestive enzymes. These beetles only bite when they feel threatened or they are trapped, so panicking just increases one's chance of being bitten.

http://www.royalalbertamuseum.ca/nat...faq/sawyer.htm

[habernac]

Originally Posted by DOK

Don't get me started on these horrible things! If anyone is from Fort Mac they are known as "Tar sand beetles". They live deep in the ground, so when the trucks are excavating they dig these terrible things up. They'll also be brought up when digging for a house foundation. We lived with them in between the insulation and the plastic, could hear them scurrying on the plastic at night with no way to kill them. Squishing them only pressed them into the soft insulation, shudder. They are harmless, but look like a terrible sin, poor buggers have it hard looking so freaking nasty.

used to grab them by their antennae and kick them like footballs.

[Cactus Jack]

Dear God, they aren't Africanized bees, are they?!?!?!?

[RedMileDJ]

Thanks for the info guys. I'll be sure to pass it onto my wife, as well. She was convinced that it could bite a chunk of skin off her.

You should have seen her run!! LOL

[Teh_Bandwagoner]

Time to bring in the big guns!

[Stumptown]

Originally Posted by Red-Mile-DJ

I need some help to.

Can anyone tell me WTF this is? It landed on my wind-shield out in Airdrie a couple weeks ago. FREAKIN' HUGE...at least the horns, or whatever, on it made it look huge. Freaked me out a little. I took this picture with my BlackBerry.

Definitely a pine sawyer of some sort. The one you need to be on the lookout for is the invasive, and very destructive Asian Long-horned Beetle, which looks pretty similar to the native pine sawyers. If you spot one and are sure of the ID, contact your agricultural authorities. I don't think they've made it very far west yet, but readers in the east should be on the lookout.

[Stumptown]

Forgot to add - here's a more detailed photo of the Whitespotted Sawyer. We get them at our cabin in Colorado a lot, too.

[Champion]

OT, but didn't want to make a new topic

Fruit Flies. I have put out two small bowls with apple cider vinegar and a few drops of dish soap....

Not one went in there in a 24 hour period...What am I doing wrong???

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Champion

OT, but didn't want to make a new topic

Fruit Flies. I have put out two small bowls with apple cider vinegar and a few drops of dish soap....

Not one went in there in a 24 hour period...What am I doing wrong???

You don't catch anything with vinegar. Isn't there a saying or something?

Here's what you do:

You need

- tall drinking glass
- piece of paper
- tape
- delicious plums

Take the piece of paper and make a cone with the small opening about the size of a dime, and the large opening as wide as you want, and tape it so that it stays as a cone. Then eat a delicious plum or maybe two, and throw the pit(s) into the glass, and then put the cone into the glass.
The cone should sit so that the small opening is about halfway into the glass, and the body of the cone seals the rim of the glass.
The fruit flies will smell the deliciousness of the plum pits and crawl into the glass via the small hole, and then never be able to find the hole to get out. Once there are a bunch of bugs in there, take the glass outside before taking the cone out of the glass. Then eat more delicious plums and reset the trap. You'll probably get all the fruit flies in your house within a day or two.

[Champion]

I looked this up for half a day and seen youtube videos of people having an open bowl and these two things in it ans they caught a lot. hmmmm..

Thanks for your suggestion I will give that a go as well.

[username]

You sould really determine the source of the where the fruit flies are coming from and just remove it. The rest of the flies will die off in a few days.

[Titan]

So now I need to know what Stumptown does for a living. And hope he does not have a dog he calls Precious!

[4X4]

Originally Posted by username

You sould really determine the source of the where the fruit flies are coming from and just remove it. The rest of the flies will die off in a few days.

The fruit flies that I've had to battle from time to time like my plants. They will live among my plants and then go feed on an empty beer can or pop can at night. Until I catch them and murder them.
Actually, the one flaw with the trap I use is that your only real option is to set them free. I usually walk a few steps away from my door, lest they beat me back into the house before I close the door. Maybe I should just set the glass on the sidewalk and then give it the old WD-40 flame thrower instead of setting them free.

[Prototype]

Speaking of Airdrie and creepy bugs, I managed to eliminate a few Orb Weavers from my home this summer.

Not my picture, but just as creepy.


Had to research "spider that looks like hermit crab" when I first saw it to figure out what it was.