Howdy Ya All ! Today I'd like to share a few photos of flying insects I've shot in our area. I feel as if I am now obsessed with taking these kind of photos. As I go on a hunt for information and the identity of each insect, I am awed by what I learn, and how they look. Each is a creation designed to be delicate, yet engineered perfectly for their environment. To view these we must venture into the world of macro. For otherwise...a bug is just a little bug.

This is the underside of a Robber Fly. There are more than 7,000 species in the Asilidae Family. They are also called the "assassin fly" because they wait to ambush their prey (mainly insects) in flight. They are aggressive and will not back down from a fight. They can defend themselves by biting. They have  powerful sucking and sharp mouths. Some mimic the colors of a bumblebee.

Female Crane Fly- sometimes referred to as a Skeeter Hawk. There are 4,250 species, all feed on nectar!                             This is a type of Fly.

This is a Bee. Not a Bumble Bee, which has hair all over it's body. That hair is called Pile. The legs are covered with bars of hair used to transport pollen grains and nectar back to their hungry young. Here's an interesting fact: The Queen lays eggs, and depending on the need, she may allow them to be fertilised from a sac inside her body. Unfertilised eggs become males, fertilised become females and Queens.

Ladybug; This insect is not considered a true bug. There are 5,000 species, 450 native to North America alone. They are useful in our gardens because the eat aphids & scale insects. They produce and lay extra infertile eggs for their larvae to eat when they hatch.

Butterfly : Scientific name is Rhopalocera. The order of Lepidoptera which include Moths.
Some migrate over long distances to breed and procreate. They have even formed special symbiotic and parasitic relationships with social insects such as Ants( The ants protect the Pupal). The pupal are the last  of several stages of morphing they do before becoming a Butterfly or Moth. Their wings are made of scales that produce the colors.

The Moth is in the same family and order as the Butterfly.

The Fly ! The common house fly makes up 91% of all flies in human habitations.
They can carry serious diseases. The female can lay 500 eggs in several (75-150) batches.

Robber (Assassin) Fly

The Moth is mainly seen at night around lights. The Butterfly is mainly a day-flying insect.

The Cicada come out every 17 or 13 years depending upon the species. There are 2,500 different species. They are harmless to humans as they feed on sap. They are harmful to trees because this is where the female lays her eggs deep in the branches. They are eatable with the females being meatier.

The Misquito has been branded the most dangerous animal on the Earth.
 It is able to transmit diseases such as Malaria, Yellow Fever and Filariasis.