The original shot is much higher quality, but for some reason (speed?) Blogger always drops the quality of images.
Friday 28 August 2009
End of a Sawfly
The other day I showed the Shieldbug Picromerus bidens, which are predatory on caterpillars. This shot shows a sawfly larva being consumed tail-first by another specimen. The larva is about 3 cm. long and is suspended from the proboscis of the Shield Bug.
The original shot is much higher quality, but for some reason (speed?) Blogger always drops the quality of images.
The original shot is much higher quality, but for some reason (speed?) Blogger always drops the quality of images.
A great capture Stuart. I have seen a few shield bugs around here but had no idea what they ate.
ReplyDeleteYikes, and there I was under the impression that all shield bugs were herbivores...great behaviour shot
ReplyDeleteWhat stops the larva dropping to the ground? Is the proboscis hooked or something?
ReplyDeleteShame about the pixellating, I wonder why they do that? I've never noticed it so much before.
I think the proboscis splits at the tip and hooks both left and right.
ReplyDelete