Insect and Disease Identification Thread

[TJ_westPA]

Ladybug larvae! Not sure which species, but definitely ladybugs.

[mamuang]

Well, unfortunately, they are dead now

[TJ_westPA]

lol Well they could have been the invasive Asian ladybeetles, so in that case it’s probably better that they’re dead.

[Hillbillyhort]

I often find these in / on fruit laying on the ground.
( persimmons, tomatoes, strawberries, etc.
Best match I can find is a soldier beetle larva.
But on line info says they are predators, not fruit eaters.?
These are definitely eating fruit on the ground.
Found this one and others in persimmons today.
Anyone know what they really are ?

@LarryGene ?

I put this one in the freezer for a few minutes to slow it down some
So I could get a pic.

[LarryGene]

from bugguide: " larvae are fluid-feeding predators, feed on insect eggs and larvae".

Your ID is probably correct. You may need to observe them more closely and for a longer time. Do they actually consume fruit or are they simply patrolling on fruit. Perhaps they are ingesting moisture from damaged fruit, but not actually consuming solids or not chewing a hole in undamaged fruit.

[Hillbillyhort]

Overnight in a bowel with persimmon,shows it’s head inside fruit.
In a newly chewed hole.
This is how I often find them outside

[LarryGene]

Do you know what chewed the hole? It could well be the beetle larvae displaying undocumented or unusual behavior.

[nil]

Is there anything else feeding on the persimmon? If there are maggots inside, it could be eating the maggots?

[Hillbillyhort]

Well I did not see it chew the hole.
I think ( almost certain )the fruit was undamaged when I put the the fruit and bug in a bowel overnight before taking the above pic the next morning.
To be sure I replaced that fruit with a perfect new unblemished persimmon.
It’s been 4 days , no new hole.
So now I wonder if it made the first hole.
Maybe it’s full.?.
Maybe just drinking the juice the first time.
The larva seams fascinated with its new persimmon, have seen it pulling at the skin, but no new hole. I do often find them in similar holes in fruit on ground,
And @nil. …I never thought of it eating other bugs in the fruit.
Maybe SWD. Inside there? Interesting.
It’s my new coffee table pet for now.

[btle]

Is this spider poisonous? The body is about 1/2 inch. I see the egg sacs too.

[KSprairie]

I found two small Golden Delicious apples hidden on a grafted branch a week or so ago. I didn’t get any other apples this year due to the late freeze. Since I hadn’t seen these until a few weeks ago, they did not get any sprays for protection from insect pests. Can you guys tell me what did this damage?

[mamuang]

I’ve found this link very helpful to identify those damage. Credit goes to @galinas who posted it last week.

https://extension.unh.edu/resource/fruit-injury-types-recognized-annual-new-hampshire-apple-harvest-evaluations-fact-sheet.

I saw crescent moon marks of Plum curculio on your apples. Your apples definitely had other insects’ attacks in addition to PC.

[Colleen7]

My Cherry tree has these tiny critters on it. What is it and what should I do about it? Thank you! Zone 6a.

[Bradybb]

Looks like some kind of Scale insect.I took an old toothbrush and rubbed them off of a plant.That was a small,potted one though.

[Hillbillyhort]

@Colleen7
Those are extra floral nectaries, not a critter.
On the contrary, they feed critters.
Like ants and other “ critters “ that patrol the plant, keeping the bad critters off .
A way the plant offers food ( nectar ) for protection.
So really cool. When you look at the symbiotic part of it.

[Monardella]

They might be glands, which occur naturally on cherry petioles. Honeybees will harvest material from them.

[Hillbillyhort]

http://www.wbrc.org.uk/WORCRECD/32/Winnall_Rosemary--Ants_and_Extra-floral_.html

[KSprairie]

Thank you @mamuang. The information at that link is really helpful. I am really bad at insect damage and disease identification, and NH Ext had a lot of information all in one spot, which is very helpful. From the looks of my only two apples, I can probably say with some certainty that I will have significant insect pressure in my orchard!

[thepodpiper]

i recently grabbed some very old cedar fencing to use as an accent wall and am going to debug with borax in a sprayer. I noticed this little insect in abundance, anyone have a guess?

[LarryGene]

This is a fly and not a moth.