Monday, May 7, 2007

Webspinners (J.R.)


Webspinners are not a very common insect. They are very small and slender. The male webspinners have a flattened body and the females are cylindrical in shape. Female Webspinners fead on dead leaves and the males feed on other insects.

Sunday, May 6, 2007

The Honey Bee (PW)



The Honey Bee


The Honey bee may be a small insect that looks useless, but, it does many things for humans. It pollinates flowers which in turn gives us oxygen.
There are many different species of bees which have adapted to their environments. All honey bees have stingers, and for one simple reason. They need to protect their queen and their hive.

The European honey bee can be found in many different places and has adapted by changing colors to blend into the environment.
The dwarf honey bee is very small, so it build nests. Its stingers can't actually hurt humans but, it doesn't need stingers as much because it is always by other bees.

The giant honey bee is fierce. Because people take its honey it has a large stinger. These bees are the type of bee that can hurt and can even kill people in large groups.

The honey bee can be dangerous, and harmless, but they do give back to us humans, therefore, they are one of the most important insects that there is.

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

Monarch Butterfly (E.S.)

Ever seen on of those orange and black butterflies? Well, that's a Monarch Butterfly. It's the mostly known butterfly in North America, and it's famous for its unbelievable migration, it migrates all the way to Mexico in the fall! Why it migrates is because of the same reason lots of animals do!-because it's getting cold! [brrrrrrrrrr.]

It's scientific name is Danaus plexippus.
The reason why it has it's bright color is to warn predators of its bad taste.

The egg is only found on species of Milkweed, which is also known as the host plant. It leaves cone-shaped, ivory-colored eggs on the host plant. It's Nectar plants are Milkweed, Asters, Red Clover, Zinnia, Cosmos, Lantana, Pentas, and Daisies. It's cocoon is green, smooth, dotted with gold, and crowned with a gold circle. As a caterpillar it is white with yellow and black stripes and it is about two inches. It's average wingspan is 4-6 inches.

lady bug (((KW)))


Lady Bug
Description:Long with orange-red wings. And different amounts of black dots. Heres a really good site that will tell you more.
Habitat: They live in lots of gardens all over the US, they also live in field, and on plants.
Reproduction: They lay 15-30 eggs.
Food: They usually eat plant lice, and other pests.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Coccinellidae
Genus: Hippodamia