Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
slowpoke_gardener

what is this bug?

slowpoke_gardener
11 years ago

I have a large supply of these flying bugs. I can not see small bugs very well and find it even harder to take pictures of them. In this case I just took a picture of the area where they were. They are a red and dark striped bug on the mulch on the left side of the picture.

I did not down-size the picture because I might mess up.

Thanks, Larry

Comments (13)

  • TraceyOKC
    11 years ago

    Larry, I think it could be a Milkweed beetle. I have these in my gardenshed. When I was at the fair I was able to identify it by looking at the 4H projects. There was actually another person there looking for the same bug. He said it was under the siding of his house.

  • helenh
    11 years ago

    I thought it was a moth and looked at lots of google images. I never did find one that looked like that. Squash vine borer had the same colors. Maybe it is a beetle. If you could catch one and put it on white paper for its picture, someone might be able to identify it.

  • slowpoke_gardener
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    It looks like some sort of moth or fly to me, they seem skinny compared to most moths. Catching one may be a bit tricky. I was so hoping it liked Cucumber beetles.

  • helenh
    11 years ago

    Does it look like this? I think yours has more black bands.

    Here is a link that might be useful: beetle

  • helenh
    11 years ago

    This bug would like the mulch.

    Here is a link that might be useful: mating beetles

  • slowpoke_gardener
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Helen, that is the closest one I have seen yet. I have gone through my insect book 2 times and have not found it.

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    11 years ago

    Helen, That's a fantastic ID. I kept looking at that thing and trying to remember if I'd ever seen anything like it here, but don't think I have.

    Larry, Very few of the insects I see here, other than the really common ones, are in my insect books either. There's just too many insects around and the books can only hold so many. I look at bugguide.net a lot or at a handful of websites that have Oklahoma insects. A lot of the time, I never figure out what it was I saw, but then they generally aren't hurting anything either so I guess it doesn't really matter if I know what they are or not.

    Dawn

  • slowpoke_gardener
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I think the bug may be some type of parasitic wasp, it has a long tail that is shaped something like a carrot and has 4 wings. I went out to check the potatoes and try to get a better picture of the bug.

    I am going to start harvesting that bed of sweet potatoes because the foliage is so damaged and the ground is dry. We have chances of rain for the next few days and I had rather not dig wet potatoes.

    How do y'all remove the vines from the potato bed. I try to run a rope through the vines and drag them off with the lawn mower, but that sure is a lot of work. My back wont permit me to do pulling or lifting?

    Larry

  • slowpoke_gardener
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    This is probably the wrong place to put this, but I want you to see my surprise. This is what I dug from under my first Centennial sweet potato plant. This may be the only vine that produces anything but it does not look like all the dry weather and insects hurt production to badly.

    This is rough on this old man. I have set under the air conditioning all summer and had forgotten how to sweat, but it is coming back to me fast.

    Larry

  • jessaka
    11 years ago

    where is waldo?

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    11 years ago

    Larry, Nice harvest! It could be some kind of parasitic wasp. I have seen lots of wasps this month, but also lots of unwelcome flying things like SVB moths. I keep wondering why they aren't gone yet!

    I got soft sitting inside in the AC this summer too, and it has been hard to get re-acclimated to the outdoor temperatures and humidity again.
    I usually clip the foliage off the plants before digging, leaving just enough of a visable stem that I know exactly where each plant was. (Usually there is a slight bulge in the earth where the sweet potatoes are anyway, but I still leave a smidgen of a vine stem visible anyway.) I pile up the vines in the wheelbarrow and take them to the compost pile. The way you're already doing it likely is easier on your back than the way I do it. Then I dig. There's no way around digging, unfortunately, no matter how old we get or how much our backs dislike it.

    Dawn

  • susanlynne48
    11 years ago

    My poor eyesigt - can't see the photo that well, but from the descriptions it may be a Giant Ichneumon or a Horntail Wasp. Their tails are not stinging. The tails are ovipositors with which they lay eggs.

    Susan

  • jessaka
    11 years ago

    i am with you susan, which is why i said, where is waldo?

Sponsored
Ed Ball Landscape Architecture
Average rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars30 Reviews
Exquisite Landscape Architecture & Design - “Best of Houzz" Winner