The TwelveBugsof Christmas
Let’s celebrate this Season of Love and Light with a list of 12 insect found in Alabama and their place in our environment. (Only good things will make this list!)
12 - Crickets Chirping
Crickets rub their wings together to make the chirping sound. Only male crickets can chirp and they have 4 very specific songs: a calling song, a courting song, a territorial song and a successful mating song. Barry White for crickets, oh yeah!
11 – Bees A’Buzzin’
Estimates say that one-third of the human diet can be traced directly, or indirectly, to bee pollination.North Dakota is the number one producer of honey in this county.
10 – Grasshoppers Hopping
In many places around the world, grasshoppers are eaten as a source of protein.Grasshoppers have also been used as test animals to study the effects of chemicals on the nervesystem since humans and grasshoppers have a similar nervous structure. In fact, insects, especially fruit flies, have long been used to map genes and study heredity.
09 – Ladybugs A’Flitting
Ladybugs and their larvae eat aphids. They are even commercially bred and sold to greenhouse owners. Because of their ability to survive on other prey when aphids are in short supply, ladybugs are particularly valuable natural enemies.
08 – Mosquitoes Swarming
Okay, I have to admit this one was tricky. Mosquitoes are a critical food source for many positive things in our world, bats, spiders, etc. Mosquitoes use an anesthetic to numb the area they are about to pierce that is similar to one now commonly used in dentistry. So we can thank mosquitoes for painless dentistry?
07 – Spiders Spinning
Spider silk is remarkably strong. Its tensile strength (ability to withstand breaking) is superior to high-grade steel, and as strong as Kevlar (used in Flak jackets for police and military). It is extremely lightweight and able to stretch up to 40% of its length without breaking. Unfortunately, science has yet to be able to commercially farm spider silk like silk is harvested from silkworms.
06 – Ants A’Marchin’
Both indoors and out, ants eat the eggs and larvae of fleas, flies, spiders, bed bugs, silverfish and clothes moths. They also go after cockroach larvae too!
05 – Monarch Butterflies
The state insect of Alabama. Take that Texas – oh wait, it’s your state insect too. And Idaho’s , Illinois’, and West Virginia too!Monarch butterflies are one of the few insects capable of making transatlantic crossings.
04 – Calling June Bugs
Toasted June bugs have a surprisingly sweet taste (June bugs roasting on an open fire . . .) The flavor closely resembles thick, raw molasses. June bugs can be crushed into fine powder, (bug-flour) and added to hot water to form a nourishing drink suited to victims suffering from anemia, dehydration, and other maladies.
03 – Praying Mantis
Praying Mantisare fantastic for eating caterpillars, cut worms and even slugs.It has been discovered that the mantid (singular) uses ultrasonic detection as a tool of defense against bats, their main predator. Experiments show a relationship between the volume of the bats ultrasonic signal and the mantis flight pattern: The louder the signal, the more erratic the pattern.
02 – Rolling Sowbugs
Also know as rolly pollys, they are scavengers and eat decaying or rotting material, both plant and animal. They help compost to break down faster. Many folks interchange sowbugs and pillbugs, but they are slightly different creatures. 1) They are not insects, but crustaceans – yes, like lobsters and horse-shoe crabs. 2) A pill bug can roll into a compact little “pill” (thus the name), while a sow bug can only fold itself in half, leaving its little legs visible.
01 – And An Aphid in a Lime Tree
Aphids are frequently a problem in fruit trees. In fact, they almost destroyed the orange crop in California several years ago. Aphids are a food source for many kinds of bug larvae, praying mantis and ladybugs. Fortunately, they are pretty easy to get rid of by power washing the tree or plant with the problem. A little soap and water and the plant is good as new!
There you go - a Christmas themed bug list. Somehow, I don’t think anyone will be rushing out to change the lyrics of “The Twelve days of Christmas.” May this season fill you home with warmth, laughter and love not bugs. Happy Holidays from your friends and family at Hadley Termite and Pest Control, Inc.