CATDOLL : CATDOLL: What kind of bug is this?

Chinese name

Earthworm

Aliases

Earthworm, new star earthworm, earthworm, earthworm, crossing the street, turning dungworm, earthworm

boundary

Animalia

Door

Arthropoda

Subphylum

Hexapoda

Outline

Insecta

Subclass

Pterygota

Order

Blattodea

division

Blatidae

The earth beetle is an important medicinal insect that lives in dark, humid, loose soil rich in humus. It is afraid of sunlight, hides during the day and is active at night. The optimal growth temperature is 28-30℃. Temperatures below 0℃ or above 38℃ will cause mass death of adults and nymphs. When the temperature drops to 8℃, it will stop being active and enter a dormant period.

The Chinese earthworm is an omnivorous insect. It likes fresh food, and likes bran and rice bran the most, followed by cornmeal, broken grains, peanut cakes, soybean meal, fish, meat, various grass and vegetable leaves, fruit peels, chicken, cow dung and other coarse feed. If it is fed with grass alone, it will grow slowly. The complete feed can be 72% wheat bran, 20% cornmeal, 5% soybean cake, and 3% animal feed (cooked feed). It should be boiled with boiling water when feeding, and 30% to 40% green vegetables or fruits should be added. It can grow into an adult after 5 to 6 months of feeding with complete feed.

The above answers are for reference only

This is the cannonball beetle (scientific name: Brachinus explodens), which is 5-13 mm long and generally of medium size. The cannonball beetle has a small sac at the end of its abdomen that can spray out a poisonous liquid to defend against natural enemies. The cannonball beetle emits the liquid at an extremely high temperature, and the hot liquid vaporizes as soon as it comes into contact with the air. The liquid contains toxic quinones, which react violently with hydrogen peroxide (also produced by the insect and stored somewhere in the body) in a chamber in the insect's body. The liquid is ejected with a "bang" sound, which surprises the enemy.

Chinese name

Cannon-shooting beetle

Latin name

Brachinus explodens

Aliases

Bombardier beetle, African air beetle, cannonball beetle

boundary

Animalia

Door

Arthropoda

Overview

Commonly known as the "farting beetle". A widely distributed beetle of the genus Brachinus. It is 9 mm long and has a blue-grey and orange-yellow coloration. When it encounters an enemy, it will secrete a foul-smelling liquid from its anus and make a "pop" sound to protect itself. Similar beetles of the genus Pherosophus are found in Asia, Africa, and East India.

Appearance characteristics

The body of the artillery beetle is 5-13 mm long and brightly colored, with wings that are dark blue, black or blue-green, often with a metallic luster. The head, palps, body and legs are light reddish yellow. The fine hairs on the edge of the apex of the elytra are very short and golden yellow. The body surface is smooth and has fine engravings of different shapes. There is a dorsal suture on the prothorax; the hind wings have small longitudinal chambers; the coxa of the hind legs extends backwards, cutting the first ventral plate into two parts, and the coxa of the hind legs is fixed to the metathorax ventral plate and cannot move; there are 6 visible ventral plates, and the center of the first ventral plate is completely divided by the coxa of the hind legs. The larvae are S-shaped; there is no molar area in the upper jaw; the thoracic legs have 5 segments; and the tail process is segmented.

The body wall is hard. The antennae have 11 segments and are filamentous. The mouthparts are chewing type, and the upper jaw is generally well developed and equal in length to the body. The compound eyes are relatively well developed, and the prothorax is well developed; the forewings are keratinized, hard, and have no wing veins, called elytra, which cover the back when at rest, covering the mesothorax and most or all of the abdominal segments (the mesothorax scutellum is generally exposed). The hind wings are generally large and membranous, folded vertically and horizontally and hidden under the elytra. The legs have various morphological variations, suitable for scurrying, swimming, jumping, digging or grabbing. There is a pair of claws. The ovipositor of female insects is generally extended from the 9th abdominal segment, and the male external genitalia mainly consists of two parts: the penis and the base. The penis is generally a strongly ossified tubular object, and the opening at the end is called the copulatory sac hole or port. The base is also called the penis base, and its base is often V-shaped. The male external genitalia have obvious interspecific differences and are an important basis for species identification.

Habitat

Found on loose bark, rocks, boards, etc. Also found in open areas at night. Flood plains and often temporary ponds. Prefers moist soil or near water.

Living habits

Adults are not good at flying and are terrestrial. They are active on the ground and move quickly. They dig tunnels in the soil and hide under trees, leaf litter, bark, moss or caves during the day. They are phototactic and can feign death. Adults and larvae feed on small insects such as earthworms, snails, spiders and mollusks. They are predatory species.

Reproduction method

The life cycle is relatively long, usually one generation is completed in 1 to 2 years, and the adults or larvae overwinter. The eggs are usually laid alone in the soil. The larvae have 3 instars, and the mature larvae pupate in the soil chamber.