Insecta › Coleoptera › Lampyridae
Common glow-worm
Female 12 to 20 mm
Despite the name, the glow worm is a beetle and not worm-like at all.
Field Guide · Chapter 21 of 29
Beetles and bugs
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Insecta › Coleoptera › Lampyridae
Common eastern firefly
10 to 14 mm long
Males fly in a J shape and flash on the way up, which is how the big dipper firefly got its name.
Insecta › Coleoptera › Scarabaeidae
Sacred scarab
Up to 4.0 cm long
A dung beetle that the ancient Egyptians venerated.
Insecta › Coleoptera › Chrysomelidae
Colorado potato beetle
Over 500 eggs
A whole life cycle can take as little as 21 days.
Insecta › Odonata › Aeshnidae
Emperor dragonfly
Larvae: around 46 mm
Its larvae are very aggressive and likely to influence the native species where they arrive.
Insecta › Odonata › Calopterygidae
Beautiful demoiselle
Up to 980 m
Its larvae are hurt once temperatures rise above 22 °C.
Insecta › Phasmida › Phasmatidae
Giant prickly stick insect
About 20 cm long
With no males around, the females still lay eggs, and those eggs hatch into females only.
Insecta › Orthoptera › Gryllidae
House cricket
16 to 21 mm long
The pet and lab trades turned this insect into a staple feeder in half a century.
Insecta › Blattodea › Rhinotermitidae
Eastern subterranean termite
Up to 5 million
One colony can grow to as many as 5 million workers.
Insecta › Hemiptera › Cimicidae
Bed bug
Six months unfed
An adult bed bug can last as long as six months between feedings.
Insecta › Psocodea › Pediculidae
Human louse
Head louse: 1 to 2 mm
Lice are obligate ectoparasites, so they live off the blood of humans.
Insecta › Phasmida › Phylliidae
Giant leaf insect
Almost 12.0 cm
Its eggs are the largest and heaviest of any leaf insect.
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