The distribution and abundance of insect pests that affect field crops is correlated with climate, weather, agronomic practices, and natural enemies. Since then, the Prairie Pest Monitoring Network (PPMN) has been involved in developing monitoring protocols and in coordinating and conducting insect population monitoring of pests of field crops. The concept of a coordinated insect surveillance program for the prairies first took shape in 1997. Review previously featured insects by visiting the Insect of the Week page.Ībout the Prairie Pest Monitoring Network WHY WE EXIST An insect that looks, moves and acts like a pest may in fact be a look-alike or doppelganger.
This can be challenge since insects often mimic each other or look very similar. When making pest management decisions, be sure that the suspect is actually a pest. The case of the innocuous versus the evil twin For the rest of the growing season, the Insect of the Week will feature insect crop pests and their doppelgangers. It also enables a producer to select and apply the most effective control option(s) including method and timing of application. Identification and monitoring enables the application of economic thresholds. Doppelgangers are usually relatively harmless but sometimes the doppelganger is a pest yet their behaviour, lifecycle or hosts may be different.Ĭorrectly identifying a pest enables selection of the most accurate scouting or monitoring protocol. same genus) or may not be related, as in the case of monarch butterflies ( Danaus plexippus) and viceroys ( Limenitis achrippus). Giant water bugĬc-by-nc 4.0 Christian Schwartz American cockroachĭoppelgangers may be related (e.g. they are decomposers) and others are television and movie stars (i.e. Their legs are also adapted for swimming and have no obvious spines.Ĭockroaches are usually classified as pests by humans, but some provide important ecosystem services (i.e. Water bugs have forelegs adapted to grabbing prey (raptorial legs).
Both water bugs and cockroaches have large, oval shaped bodies that are usually brown coloured. Giant water bugs can be easily mistaken for adult cockroaches (especially the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana, Blattodea: Blattidae). These ‘toe-biters’ are best avoided, but they are important beneficial insects in aquatic ecosystems. Then they feast on a liquid lunch by sucking their victim dry. First, they inject enzymes into their prey that breakdown prey tissues into a liquid. Giant water bugs use their forelegs to capture prey and then use their long beak-like proboscis to feed on their prey. They are predators of other insects, small fish, snails, amphibians, and other animals that they encounter in the water. They spend most of their time in the water, but disperse between bodies of water by flying (except in species that have reduced wings and are flightless), at which time they may be found around streetlights or porchlights.
Belostomatids are usually found in ponds, lakes, or slow moving rivers and streams. There are over 150 species of water bugs in the Belostomatidae, but most are quite large (> 2 cm). Giant water bugs ( Lethocerus americanus) are true bugs ( Hemiptera) that belong to the family Belostomatidae. From inside the container, it was clear that I had scooped up a water bug. I say that I “carefully collected” it, because water bugs are known for their painful bite and I did not want to take any risks. Either way, I needed it for my collection, so I carefully collected it using the only container I had on hand. Upon a quick glance, I knew it was one of two things: a giant water bug or a cockroach. It was just off of a major crosswalk under a streetlight. Years ago, I was walking home from the University of Alberta campus on a September evening, watching the ground, as entomologists are wont to do, when I saw a huge insect on its back on the sidewalk.
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