Fellow insect lovers! I'm jazzed as hell to have encountered what I am pretty certain was my first ichneumon wasp this afternoon around 5pm. Of course, even though I had my phone on me, I was way too busy crouching down and goggling at it to even try to take a picture, and my subsequent attempts to identify it using my handy Insects of the North Woods book doesn't have me feeling particularly certain. As unlikely as it is, I'd love to hear what any and all of you may think.

Size: About 1/2" to 3/4" body. No visible ovipositor, but a classic "long and skinny" ichneumon-style abdomen.

Location and behavior: crawling through the grass, though it did make a short flight when I knelt down to examine it. Urban backyard, Twin Cities, Minnesota.

Color: Black translucent wings, black body and antennae as far as I can remember. No bright colors stand out in memory.

I'm well aware there are an incredible number of ichneumonoid species and it could always just be an ichneumon-alike like a sawfly, but I'd love to hear if y'all have any guesses about what species it might have been. If I spot it again, however unlikely, I'll try and snap a picture. Thank you in advance!

Hi friends! I’m currently trying to figure out what this mayfly is. It has pink eyes, is about an inch long and has dark wing parts. It was found in a small low gradient mountain stream in SWVA! Thanks! :)

Hi, I've kept a colony of L. decipiens for a few months. I've seen them molt, grow and mate and I often find gravid females. The strange thing is that none of the ooths that they laid in these couple of months have hatched. This isn't a fertility issue, as I've seen them mate and I'm sure adult males are present. I feed them fresh veggies, dog food and rarely uneaten prey insects (flies, crickets). The substrate is a thin layer of oat meal, they have 2 layers of egg carton covering the entire enclosure, so the hiding spaces aren't scarce. I never spray, but I don't think humidity is the issue as they molt just fine and they are an arid species. I can't figure out the problem, any help?

Hello, I'm hoping someone here knows more than I do and can help me with understanding something about Armadillidiidae, commonly known as a wood lice, pill bugs, roly polies, slaters, potato bugs, butchy boys and doodle bugs.

From what I understand they have a unique way of sequestering heavy metals in the soil by crystallizing it in their bodies. This can be a big deal to determine how contaminate a soil is.

But I'm assuming that it doesn't really help the soil in the long run since once the bug passes the metal is released back into the soil and the crystallization could break down. Am I wrong, is there something about this crystallization that does protect the water and soil in the long run?

Just saw a bunch of these bugs on my zucchini plant and was wondering if anyone knows what they are and if they’re harmful for the plant? If they are any good way to get them off or advice on natural pesticide? (This plant is in a pot on a deck in New York)

I reached to pull weeds from the outside of the fence and almost grabbed this. There were dozens and dozens in the weeds along the fence. Are the big ones feasting?

Wanted to show appreciation to the atlas/cecropia/deaths head moths mix on this painting my neighbor made me

They were on my garbage can.