{"id":8736,"date":"2017-09-12T10:45:46","date_gmt":"2017-09-12T15:45:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/field-station\/?p=8736"},"modified":"2017-09-13T10:47:28","modified_gmt":"2017-09-13T15:47:28","slug":"upon-ash-tree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/field-station\/bug-of-the-week\/upon-ash-tree\/","title":{"rendered":"Once Upon an Ash Tree"},"content":{"rendered":"

Greetings, BugFans,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s saga could also be called \u201cThe Hemiptera Mystery,\u201d though one of the Hemipterans appears only in a supporting role. The main character is a decent-sized true bug (Hemipteran) named Acanthosephala terminalis<\/em>. For an insect that has a wide range (much of eastern North America), is conspicuous, and is not a shrinking violet, it\u2019s surprising that the AT<\/em> doesn\u2019t have a common name. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Quick review: members of the order Hemiptera are the only ones that can \u201clegally\u201d be called bugs, though they loan out the name to other groups. The order has been massively reconfigured – lumped. It now includes a bunch of bugs like leaf\/plant\/treehoppers, aphids, cicadas, scales, etc. that used to be in their own, separate order (Homoptera), plus the original Hemipteran insects (stink, leaf-footed, assassin, seed, and aquatic bugs, etc.), which are now tucked into a suborder called Heteroptera within the order Hemiptera. Hemipterans (the name means \u201chalf-wing\u201d) have wings that are membranous (like a fly\u2019s wing) at the tip but leathery at the base. They have piercing-sucking mouthparts, which some species apply to plants, and some apply to other animals. <\/p>\n

\u201cAcanthocephala terminalis<\/em>.\u201d \u201cThorny-head\u201d (there\u2019s a short spine that protrudes from the front of the head, easily seen here http:\/\/bugguide.net\/node\/view\/1428294\/bgimage) with the terminal<\/em> segment of the antennae different from the rest (in this case, in its color) (its six \u201csocks\u201d match, too). There are four species of Acanthocephala<\/em> in North America, and AT<\/em> is the one that ventures north into God\u2019s Country. It\u2019s in the Leaf-footed bug family Coreidae, though not all Coreids have the little flange on the hind tibia that gives the group its name. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Although it feeds on woody plants, AT<\/em> is found in a wide variety of habitats including woods, edges, and grasslands. <\/p>\n

AT<\/em> overwinters as an adult, and mates and lays eggs in spring. The infants are pale at first<\/a> but change color as they get older (see buggguide.net<\/a> for a great series of pictures of an older nymph molting – some other bugs are also pink\/red immediately and temporarily after they molt). The upturned abdomen is a typical posture for the nymph. <\/p>\n

Adults are generalist sap feeders, but AT<\/em> nymphs\u2019 sip sap from their main host plants – sumac, wild grape, and ninebark. The nymphs are found on a variety of trees, though it\u2019s not known if they actually feed on them, and they seem to have a special affinity for collecting on ash trees. The BugLady sees AT<\/em> nymphs as well as those of the related Helmeted Squash bug on leaves with bird droppings on them, and she always wonders if they get minerals from the whitewash. <\/p>\n

If you try to take its picture, a Coreid nymph will often sneak around to the other side of a leaf or stem, and adults will fly readily and can fly well. In aid of their defense, they have the ability to produce and spray a nasty-smelling\/tasting chemical.<\/p>\n

(Googling Anthocephala terminalis<\/em> results in a surprising number of hits from homeopathy sites, but the BugLady doesn\u2019t know what that\u2019s all about.) <\/p>\n

OK – so where\u2019s the mystery? And what about the other two bugs? <\/p>\n

Recently, the BugLady came across a young ash tree that was wounded in some way \u2013 whether by being pierced by the beaks of AT<\/em>s or nicked by something larger (or both), she cannot say. The trunk was being visited by a small, emerald-green solitary bee, as well as by ants and yellow jackets, all of which have a sweet tooth. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The books say that AT<\/em>s seem to be somewhat gregarious and that they can be found in mixed-age groupings, and that\u2019s what the BugLady saw on the ash tree. One source mentioned that males (presumably adults) will fight with other males, but as the BugLady watched, she saw several nymphs that just couldn\u2019t walk past each other without throwing a few kicks. <\/p>\n

[metaslider id=8739]<\/p>\n

The BugLady also saw an adult Helmeted Squash bug on an adjacent blackberry stem, being checked out by an AT<\/em> nymph. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

But all of this came later. What attracted her eye in the first place was two bugs on a leaf, one an AT<\/em> nymph and the other a Rough stink bug (Brochymena<\/em>) (coincidentally or not, they were standing over a bit of bird poop). <\/p>\n

The books say that AT<\/em>s are, as are other Coreids, drinkers only of plant sap, although a few references say that although there is some anecdotal testimony about predaceous leaf-footed bugs, they are probably misidentified assassin bugs. They do not have a carnivorous, nymphal, Rumspringa<\/em>-like fling. <\/p>\n

And yet. Here\u2019s what the BugLady saw through her lens. The AT and the Brochymena<\/em>, standing an angle to each other, never budged during five minutes of close-ups. Right from the start, the BugLady had the feeling that the AT<\/em> was piercing the Brochymena<\/em>, though the pictures aren\u2019t clear enough to show a connection. In one of the pictures, it\u2019s obvious that one of the Brochymena\u2019s<\/em> front feet is off the leaf. And, oh yeah \u2013 several times while she was focusing on the pair, she saw the Brochymena<\/em> gave a little shiver. <\/p>\n

[metaslider id=8746]<\/p>\n

\u201cEach observation, however, has raised more questions than it answers, so the sum of my watching has caused me to grow in ignorance, not in knowledge.\u201d Sue Hubbell, in Broadsides from the Other Orders<\/u>. <\/p>\n

 
\nThe BugLady<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today\u2019s saga could also be called \u201cThe Hemiptera Mystery,\u201d though one of the Hemipterans appears only in a supporting role. The main character is a decent-sized true bug (Hemipteran) named Acanthosephala terminalis<\/em>. For an insect that has a wide range (much of eastern North America), is conspicuous, and is not a shrinking violet, it\u2019s surprising that the AT<\/em> doesn\u2019t have a common name.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9370,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","uwm_wg_additional_authors":[]},"categories":[8],"tags":[127],"class_list":["post-8736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bug-of-the-week","tag-ants"],"yoast_head":"\nField Station<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/field-station\/bug-of-the-week\/upon-ash-tree\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Once Upon an Ash Tree\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Today\u2019s saga could also be called \u201cThe Hemiptera Mystery,\u201d though one of the Hemipterans appears only in a supporting role. 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