Gallery of insect photographs

taken by Michael Obach

"Mouse click" on the pictures shows a larger image. If you need pictures with an even higher resolution than that, please contact me.
Photograph Two specimens of Sclerodermus domesticus (Bethylidae, Hymenoptera; left) and two specimens of a species of the superfamily Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera; German: Erzwespen im weiteren Sinne; right). They were found in Zumaia1), between pine firewood in a cellar in October 2001. The wood was dry, without bark and full of xylophagous coleopterans (wood eating beetle and their larvae, probably the death-watch beetle Anobium punctatum). People living in that house were bothered by relatively painful stings of the "señoritas", that is how they called the female, wingless S. domesticus. However, this bethylid wasp is rather beneficial because the parasitoid kills larvae of many wood destroying beetles (see e.g. KÜHNE & BECKER 1974 and several other publications below).
Photograph Comparison of the size of S. domesticus and a match. Most of the wasps of this species were less than 2 mm long.
Photograph Wingless female of Sclerodermus domesticus KLUG 1809. In some papers this species is named Scleroderma domesticum LATREILLE, in German Ameisenwespchen, compare KÜHNE & BECKER 1974. They affirm that although the species was described by KLUG, the author of the concerning publication was LATREILLE.
Photograph Wingless female of Sclerodermus domesticus.
Photograph Winged male of Sclerodermus domesticus.
Photograph The two wasps (see above) of the superfamily Chalcidoidea. The female on the left (dorsal view) has a prominent sting. It is not known, why the specimen on the right hand side has a such a reduced abdomen.
Photograph Chalcid wasp with reduced abdomen (above) and female of S. domesticus (below).
Photograph Chalcid wasp with normal abdomen (above) and female of S. domesticus (below).
Photograph Ventral view of a female specimen of the genus Thrips (Thysanoptera), found on a room plant in Günsterode1) (Germany). At first sight and without using a magnifying glass, the two insects might be confused because of their similar size, shape and colour, and also considering that thrips also may bother man. However, the latter bite with their piercing-sucking mouthparts and have no venomous sting like many hymenopterans. To obtain a dorsal view of another specimen: follow this link. More information with a key to thrips in greenhouses: http://ipmwww.ncsu.edu/INSECT_ID/AG136/thrips.html
Photograph A shining green tiny wasp of approx. 3 mm length, maybe a member of the family Pteromalidae (Chalcidoidea, Hymenoptera). It was found with about 80 other specimens of this species on a window in a flat in Günsterode in 2000; to see another specimen click here. Many pteromalid wasp species develop in pupae of the cabbageworm and other caterpillar pests and are therefore useful.
Photograph A predatory fly of the family Asilidae (Diptera; probably genus Machimus) sucking a common housefly Musca domestica out (Schlitz, Germany; September 2001).
Photograph Wingless aphid (Homoptera; greenfly, Blattlaus) (Schlitz, Germany; November 2001).
Photograph Aphid with wings (Schlitz, Germany; November 2001).
Photograph Portrait of an aphid with wings (Schlitz, Germany; November 2001).
PhotographPhotographPhotograph Pine-feeding Processionary Caterpillars (German: Raupen des Pinien-Prozessionsspinners) Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Zumaia, Basque Country/Spain; February 2002).
Photograph Solitary bees (Colletes cunicularius (LINNAEUS, 1761), Apoidea) near the sandy beach "Santiago" in Zumaia (Basque Country/Spain; February 2002); their size was similar to that of the Honey Bee.
Photograph Swallowtail Papilio machaon (German: Schwalbenschwanz) (Schlitz, Germany; August 2001).
Photograph Comparison of a wasp (Vespula sp.) and a hornet (Vespa crabro) (German: Wespe und Hornisse) (Schlitz, Germany; September 2002). A picture of a hornet's nest in a German chapel can be found here.
Photograph Male of Xylota segnis (Diptera; Schlitz, Germany; September 2002).
Photograph Cockchafer Melolontha melolontha (German: Feld-Maikäfer) (Scarabaeidae; Schlitz, Germany; June 2002).
Photograph Amphimallon solstitialis (German: Junikäfer) (Schlitz, Germany; June 2002).
Photograph Caddis fly larva (Schlitz, Germany; 2002).
Photograph Smerinthus ocellata (German: Abendpfauenauge) (Schlitz, Germany).
Photograph Stonefly Perlodes microcephalus (Plecoptera; Günsterode, Germany; May 2002).
Photograph Bumble-bee Bombus lapidarius (German: Steinhummel) (Diptera; Günsterode, Germany; May 2002).
Photograph Chrysis (maybe ignita) (Chrysididae, Hymenoptera; Schlitz, Germany; July 2002).
Photograph A female of a parasitic wasp of the genus Odynerus had put some coleopteran larvae - serving as food for the wasp's next generation - into a small hole in a window-sill (left). A hyperparasite, Chrysis (right), arrived minutes before Odynerus left for a moment, probably laid its eggs into the hole and disappeared. Later on, Odynerus closed the hole with clay (Schlitz, Germany; July 2002).
Photograph Chrysomela menthastri (?) (Chrysomelidae, Coleoptera; Thiersee, Austria; August 2002).
Photograph Zygaena sp. (Zygaenidae, Lepidoptera; Thiersee, Austria; August 2002).
Photograph Cetonia aurata (Zumaia, Basque Country; May 2006).
Photograph Spider with prey (Zumaia, Basque Country; May 2006).
Photograph Mantis religiosa (Zumaia, Basque Country; November 2006).
Photograph Male Great Peacock Moth, Giant Emperor Moth or Viennese Emperor (Saturnia pyri); in German Wiener Nachtpfauenauge (Zumaia, Basque Country; 4th of May 2008).
Photograph Mating of Xylocopa spec.; in German Holzbiene (Zumaia, Basque Country; 5th of April 2010).

1) Zumaia is a small town in the Basque Country (Spain) near San Sebastián, lat. 43.300, long. -2.250, see my panorama photograph.

2) Günsterode is a small village in Central Germany, lat. 51.167, long. 9.650.

Acknowledgement

I gratefully acknowledge the help and the determination of the wasp and bee species by Jeroen de Rond (Netherlands), Wijnand Heitmans (Netherlands), Javier Blasco-Zumeta (Spain), Massimo Olmi (Italy), Eduardo Portuondo Ferrer (Cuba). The specimen of Xylota was determined by Paul-Walter Löhr (Germany).

Selected references

BERLAND, L., 1951.
Les Aculéates - Super-famille des Bethyloidea. In Pierre-P. Grassé: "Traité de Zoologie", Vol. X, 977-979
Language: French.
BERNARD F., JACQUEMIN P., 1955.
Effets des piqures de Scleroderma (Hyménoptéres Bethylidae), et révision des espéces nord-africaines. 8 pp.
(Available at e.g. http://www.s-direktnet.de/homepages/entomology/ant2/1hym00.htm, ref.: C40046, 6,00 DM / 3,07 EUR)
Language: French.
CASALE, A., 1991.
Some notes on the parental and parasocial behavior of Sclerodermus domesticus Latreille (Hymenoptera, Bethylidae). - Ethology Ecology & Evolution, 35.
Language: English.
GORDH, G. & MÓSCÁR, 1990.
A catalog of the world Bethylidae. - Mem. Amer. Ent. Inst., 46, 364 pp.
Look there for more references. The name of the journal is: Memoirs American Entomological Institute ann Arbor Michigan
Language: English.
INFANTE, F., (last visited 10/28/2004).
Los betílidos (bethylidae), una familia de insectos poco conocida. - http://www.conabio.gob.mx/institucion/conabio_espanol/doctos/betilidos.html.
Language: Spanish.
KÜHNE, H. VAN & BECKER, G., 1974.
Zur Biologie und Ökologie von Scleroderma domesticum LATREILLA (Bethylidae: Hymenoptera), einem Parasiten holzzerstörender Insektenlarven. - Zeitschrift für Angewandte Entomologie, 76, 278-303.
Probably the most comprehensive paper on S. domesticum. Breeding is described in detail, too.
Language: German.
PEYRÍ, J.M. 1953.
El Scleroderma domestica, bajo el aspecto dermatológico. - Rev. Ibérica Parasitol. 13: 357-362.
This paper is about the insect, not about the disease Scleroderma.
Language: Spanish.
PSCHORN-WALCHER, H. & HEITLAND, W., (last visited 10/17/2001).
Fam. Bethylidae. - http://zoologie.forst.tu-muenchen.de/HEITLAND/PONLINE/HYMENOPTERA/CHRYSIDOIDEA/BETHYLIDAE/bethylidae.html
Good overview of bethylid wasps.
Language: German.
ROND, J. DE, 2001.
Bethylidae. - In: Dathe, H. H., Taeger, A., Blank, S. M., 2001 (Eds.): Verzeichnis der Hautflügler Deutschlands.
Recent list of bethylids found in Germany with references and remarks.
Language: German.
SUZZONI-BLATGER, J., 2003.
Le Scléroderme domestique, un Hyménoptère vulnérant peu connu. - Insectes 23 n° 129 - 2003 (2).
Language: French.
SYSTEMATIC ENTOMOLOGY LABORATORY, (last visited 10/17/2001).
Chalcidoidea - Systematics, Biology, and General Information. -
http://www.sel.barc.usda.gov/hym/chalcid.html
Good starting point to read about chalcids with literature review.
Language: English.
SYSTEMATIC ENTOMOLOGY LABORATORY, (last visited 10/17/2001).
Chalcidoidea - Systematics, Biology, and General Information. -
http://www.sel.barc.usda.gov/hym/hymenoptera.html
Overview with very interesting facts about Hymenoptera: "the order that includes ants, bees, sawflies, and wasps is one of the most diverse groups of animals. The largest family, Ichneumonidae, includes more species than those of all birds and mammals combined, but it is only one among a number of large families in the order. Hymenoptera are valuable to both man and the environment. Bees, especially, are well known for pollinating agricultural crops and other plants. Even the relatively few kinds of wasps that are apt to sting man when their nests are disturbed are usually predaceous on plant-feeding insects and are decidedly beneficial. Perhaps most beneficial of all are the myriad natural enemies of insects found among the non-social wasps and, especially, the parasitoid wasps".
Language: English.

© Michael Obach, 2004-2010