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The Wild Pest
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Bugs of South Asia

Atlas moths, leaf insects, and the bees that nest in cliffsides.

38 on file

On File
An atlas moth (Attacus atlas) at rest, displaying its enormous patterned wings with cobra-head tips.
Curious
Six Legs76
Alias
Attacus atlas

Atlas Moth

World's largest moth. Wings shaped like snake heads. No mouth, no food, no time.

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On File
A desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) in gregarious yellow-and-black phase.
Outlaw
Six Legs89
Alias
Schistocerca gregaria

Desert Locust

Solitary green bug, until crowded. Then it turns yellow, swarms, and darkens the sky.

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On File
A globe skimmer dragonfly (Pantala flavescens) in flight, golden body and clear wings.
Beneficial
Six Legs80
Alias
Pantala flavescens

Globe Skimmer Dragonfly

Longest insect migration on Earth (18,000 km). 95% kill rate. 360-degree vision.

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On File
A hummingbird hawkmoth (Macroglossum stellatarum) hovering in front of a flower, long proboscis extended.
Curious
Six Legs74
Alias
Macroglossum stellatarum

Hummingbird Hawkmoth

Looks like a hummingbird. Flies like a hummingbird. Is, in fact, a moth.

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On File
An orchid mantis (Hymenopus coronatus), her body pink and white with petal-shaped leg extensions.
Curious
Six Legs79
Alias
Hymenopus coronatus

Orchid Mantis

The world's only animal that mimics an entire flower. Bees prefer her to the real flowers.

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On File
Weaver ants (Oecophylla smaragdina), green-amber bodies, in a chain pulling leaves together to form a nest.
Curious
Six Legs86
Alias
Oecophylla smaragdina

Asian Weaver Ant

Builds nests using their own larvae as living glue guns. Used as pesticide for 1,500 years.

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On File
An Asian honey bee (Apis cerana), fuzzy black-and-yellow striped body, smaller than Western honey bee.
Beneficial
Six Legs81
Alias
Apis cerana

Asian Honey Bee

The bee that cooks giant hornets alive. Tolerates varroa. Speaks waggle-dance with a Japanese accent.

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On File
An ogre-faced spider (Deinopis spinosa) hanging upside down with a silken net stretched between her front legs.
Curious
Six Legs79
Alias
Deinopis spinosa

Ogre-Faced Spider

Casts a silken net at prey like a fisherman. Sees in starlight. Hears with her legs.

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On File
Giant Asian honey bees (Apis dorsata) on a massive single-comb open-air hive suspended from a cliff overhang or tree branch, large golden-brown bees with darker abdominal bands clustered on the visible comb surface.
Outlaw
Six Legs92
Alias
Apis dorsata

Giant Asian Honey Bee

LARGEST HONEY BEE in the world. MASSIVE single-comb open hives. SHIMMERING WAVE DEFENSE.

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On File
A citrus leaf with characteristic serpentine silver mine trails left by Phyllocnistis citrella larvae winding through the leaf tissue, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs82
Alias
Phyllocnistis citrella

Citrus Leafminer

Larvae develop INSIDE citrus leaves. Diagnostic SERPENTINE silver mine trails visible in leaves.

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On File
A female Asian blue cattle tick (Rhipicephalus microplus), reddish-brown tick with slightly bluish coloration, eight legs, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs83
Alias
Rhipicephalus microplus

Asian Blue Cattle Tick

Most damaging tick species globally. $20-30B annual cattle losses. Successfully eradicated from US in 1943.

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On File
An Indian stick insect (Carausius morosus), slender brown-to-green walking stick with small body size and reduced wings, six legs, side profile.
Curious
Six Legs79
Alias
Carausius morosus

Indian Stick Insect

WORLD'S MOST COMMON PET STICK INSECT. Obligate PARTHENOGENESIS — captive populations are essentially all female.

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On File
A migratory locust (Locusta migratoria) in gregarious phase, large bright yellow-and-black grasshopper, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs92
Alias
Locusta migratoria

Migratory Locust

Catastrophic crop pest of Africa/Asia/Europe. Foundational PHASE POLYPHENISM case — solitary becomes gregarious.

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On File
Pink hibiscus mealybug (Maconellicoccus hirsutus) colonies, dense white cottony masses on the underside of hibiscus leaves and along stems, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs81
Alias
Maconellicoccus hirsutus

Pink Hibiscus Mealybug

Major invasive Caribbean pest. Attacks 200+ plant species. Foundational classical biocontrol case study.

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On File
A greenhouse whitefly (Trialeurodes vaporariorum), tiny pale yellow insect with clear wings covered in white pollen-like waxy powder, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs80
Alias
Trialeurodes vaporariorum

Greenhouse Whitefly

Most damaging pest of GREENHOUSE production worldwide. First-ever commercially mass-reared biocontrol target.

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On File
A pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella), small inconspicuous tan-brown moth with dark wing markings, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs81
Alias
Pectinophora gossypiella

Pink Bollworm

Major historical cotton pest. Successfully ERADICATED from US in 2018 — flagship Bt+SIT eradication program.

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On File
A giant Asian mantis (Hierodula membranacea), large bright leaf-green mantis with raptorial front legs and triangular head, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs76
Alias
Hierodula membranacea

Giant Asian Mantis

8-10 cm SE Asian mantis. Captures small lizards, snakes, hummingbirds. Popular pet mantis worldwide.

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On File
A brown planthopper (Nilaparvata lugens), small brown-tan planthopper with short wings, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs82
Alias
Nilaparvata lugens

Brown Planthopper

Major rice pest of Asia. Causes 'HOPPERBURN' — entire fields die in days when populations explode.

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On File
A coffee berry borer (Hypothenemus hampei), tiny dark brown bark beetle with short cylindrical body and short antennae, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs85
Alias
Hypothenemus hampei

Coffee Berry Borer

Single most damaging pest of COFFEE worldwide. $500M-$1B annual losses. Detoxifies CAFFEINE with gut microbes.

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On File
A fall armyworm caterpillar (Spodoptera frugiperda), color-polymorphic light green to dark brown caterpillar with longitudinal stripes and inverted Y-shaped marking on the head capsule, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs85
Alias
Spodoptera frugiperda

Fall Armyworm

Major NA agricultural pest. INVADED Africa in 2016, Asia in 2018, Australia in 2020. Threat to global food security.

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On File
A male spotted-wing drosophila (Drosophila suzukii), small tan-yellow fly with large red compound eyes and a single dark spot on the front edge of each forewing, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs82
Alias
Drosophila suzukii

Spotted-Wing Drosophila

Major invasive soft-fruit pest. Lays eggs INSIDE firm ripe intact fruits using SERRATED ovipositor.

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On File
A yellow crazy ant (Anoplolepis gracilipes), yellow-orange ant with very long thin legs and antennae, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs87
Alias
Anoplolepis gracilipes

Yellow Crazy Ant

World's 100 worst invasive species. Killed 10-15 MILLION red crabs on Christmas Island. Catastrophic.

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On File
A coconut crab (Birgus latro), enormous reddish-brown terrestrial crab with massive chela (front claws) and long walking legs, top view.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs88
Alias
Birgus latro

Coconut Crab

LARGEST land-living arthropod on Earth. 4 kg, 1 m leg span. Climbs trees and opens coconuts.

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On File
A Hessian fly (Mayetiola destructor), tiny delicate mosquito-like dark midge with long legs and slender body, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs81
Alias
Mayetiola destructor

Hessian Fly

Major wheat pest. Brought to NA in 1776 by Hessian mercenaries. Foundational gene-for-gene coevolution model.

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On File
An Indian red scorpion (Hottentotta tamulus), small reddish-brown to orange-brown scorpion with relatively thin tail and stinger, eight legs and large pedipalps, top view.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs88
Alias
Hottentotta tamulus

Indian Red Scorpion

World's most lethal scorpion. Pre-treatment childhood mortality 30-40%. Cardiac autonomic storm.

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On File
A chigoe flea (Tunga penetrans) free-living adult, very small dark wingless insect with powerful hind jumping legs, magnified scientific specimen.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs90
Alias
Tunga penetrans

Chigoe Flea (Jigger)

Female burrows INTO your foot. Stays embedded 4-6 weeks. Affects 20M+ people worldwide.

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On File
An Indian dead leaf butterfly (Kallima inachus) with wings closed showing the dead-leaf-mimicking underside with veins and fungal-spot patterns.
Curious
Six Legs78
Alias
Kallima inachus

Indian Dead Leaf Butterfly

Wings closed — perfect dead leaf with veins and fungal spots. Wings open — brilliant blue-and-orange.

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On File
An emerald cockroach wasp (Ampulex compressa), brilliant metallic emerald-green body with bright orange thighs, transparent wings, six legs, side profile.
Curious
Six Legs89
Alias
Ampulex compressa

Emerald Cockroach Wasp (Jewel Wasp)

Stings the cockroach's BRAIN. Cockroach becomes zombie. Wasp leads her by the antenna into the grave.

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On File
Fall webworm caterpillars (Hyphantria cunea), pale tan caterpillars with dark spots inside a large silken web enveloping the end of a tree branch.
Outlaw
Six Legs76
Alias
Hyphantria cunea

Fall Webworm

Drapes branch tips in silken webs in late summer. Native invasive across Europe and Asia since 1940s.

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On File
A Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata), oval beetle with cream-yellow elytra carrying ten distinctive black longitudinal stripes, six legs.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs82
Alias
Leptinotarsa decemlineata

Colorado Potato Beetle

Most pesticide-resistant insect on Earth. Resistant to 56+ different insecticides. Devastates potato crops globally.

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On File
A khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium), small oval brown beetle with mottled body pattern and short antennae, magnified specimen on cream backdrop.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs87
Alias
Trogoderma granarium

Khapra Beetle

Most-feared stored grain pest. Larvae survive YEARS without food. One specimen triggers container fumigation.

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On File
A wandering violin mantis (Gongylus gongylodes), elongated stick-like brown body with leaf-shaped paddles on each leg and a tall pointed head crest.
Curious
Six Legs80
Alias
Gongylus gongylodes

Wandering Violin Mantis

Body shaped like a stick, leg lobes shaped like leaves. Endemic to South Asian dry forest.

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On File
A fat-tailed scorpion (Androctonus australis), dust-yellow scorpion with prominent swollen tail and large pincers.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs87
Alias
Androctonus australis

Fat-Tailed Scorpion

Latin name means 'man-killer.' Hundreds of deaths per year across North Africa and the Middle East.

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On File
A sand fly (Phlebotomus papatasi), tiny hairy brownish fly with V-shaped wings held above the body and long thin legs.
Outlaw
Six Legs75
Alias
Phlebotomus papatasi

Sand Fly

Tiny enough to slip through mosquito netting. Vector of leishmaniasis. Affects 12 million people.

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On File
A Gooty sapphire tarantula (Poecilotheria metallica), brilliant cobalt-blue iridescent body and legs with intricate cream-and-gold geometric pattern.
Curious
Six Legs80
Alias
Poecilotheria metallica

Gooty Sapphire Tarantula

Brilliant cobalt-blue iridescent. Endemic to one 100 km² Indian forest. Critically Endangered.

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On File
A Portia jumping spider (Portia fimbriata), small mottled brown body with leg tufts and large forward-facing principal eyes.
Curious
Six Legs82
Alias
Portia fimbriata

Portia Spider

Smartest invertebrate on Earth. Hunts spiders using deception, detours, and multi-step planning.

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On File
A chigger larva (Trombicula alfreddugesi), tiny bright orange-red rounded body with six short legs.
Outlaw
Six Legs81
Alias
Trombicula alfreddugesi

Chigger (Harvest Mite)

Larva liquefies your skin and drinks it through a tube. The 'burrow into the skin' myth is false.

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On File
A tailless whip scorpion (Damon variegatus), flattened mottled body with spiked raptorial pedipalps held forward and extremely long thin antenniform first legs.
Curious
Six Legs81
Alias
Damon variegatus

Tailless Whip Scorpion

Looks terrifying. Completely harmless. 60 cm of antenna-leg sensors. Featured in Harry Potter.

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