Two Bugs Dead

So far, there are 3 orange things (eggs?) and two bugs have died. There are two bugs intertwined, but one of them is dead. How strange!

Assume the Position!

I caught two bugs in the act of mating...it's about to get busier!

Is He Doing What I Think He's Doing?

I saw the guys crowding one of the girls. One was on top! I wonder if there will be eggs soon.

Coloration and Size

Nancy wrote me today. Males do seem to be smaller in size than females, but as for the coloration, it's still up in the air. Maybe it's genetics, maybe it's nutrition! (Or maybe it's both!) All I know is that Crawly and Chibi seem redder than the males I brought in.

Boys!

Yesterday Nancy gave me three males. I didn't put them in until today. Crawly and Chibi look much bigger and redder than the newcomers. I wonder why! The ladies still haven't taken an interest in them yet.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

So I think both Crawly and Chibi are female...I need to find them a boyfriend!

Love Bugs

Now Crawly and Chibi are both adults. Crawly is a female, and Chibi is a male. (At least, comparatively that is what I think.) I hope they start having cute little milk weed bug nymphs! When the weather gets nice, I'll release some to take care of the milk weeds!

Chibi just molted!

I know I haven't been keeping up with the blog...but I have with the bugs. I'm not sure how to feel about missing my test, but I'm really happy about it now. I got a chance to see Chibi molt! Which is awesome! Chibi started in a head down position, and after he freed himself from his old skin, he repositioned himself next to the skin in an upright position. I wonder if that's typically how they do it. For some reason, he looks really flimsy. What's neat is he's not only that red/pink color from earlier, but his wings finally came in! I had no idea they were going to be white coming out. I can see him inflating himself! How cool is that?!

Let's Talk About Sex

When I came home last night, I was happy to find that both Crawly and Chibi were doing well. At first I thought Chibi was Crawly because he looked exactly the same as Crawly before I left. However, after I saw two casings, I knew that Chibi had molted once more, and that Crawly did as well! I wish I could have seen it. I will get my chance with Chibi.

Crawly is now a full fledged adult! I think he is really a he! There's nothing on his abdomen that looks anything like spots, however, last night, he was rather skittish. I will have to get some kind of magnifying glass to get a better look.

Early Morning Breakfast

Today Crawly and Chibi are together, as usual, eating seeds! I have a lot to clean, so I expect to clean their cage in the evening as preparation for the trip tomorrow.

Maniawanakatta

I waited till the last possible moment to post. While Crawly is getting bigger and bigger by the day, he just didn't become an adult in time for the paper. Oh well! Development has no concept of a deadline. At least Crawly and Chibi are continuing to grow, and appear healthy. I will continue to post about the bugs until they pass away. This weekend, I will clean the cage and replace the food and the pad. (The food might be okay, but it's getting quite dirty inside the cage. I'm not sure how important sanitation is to bugs, nor am I sure how bugs will act when they get sick. Either way, it's better to start fresh!)

Chibi Molted

I'm not sure when this occurred, but Chibi has molted once more! I've been so preoccupied with Crawly becoming an adult, that I've missed the progress that Chibi has made. (Although it explains the casings near the seeds.) It's interesting how the bugs elongate as they get bigger. The cage is starting to get dirty again, and I feel the need to clean it. I think it's better to wait until Crawly molts though.

I added more water to the pad today.

Like a Boil

I wonder if Crawly is going to make it into adulthood in time for this report. As of now, he looks like a boil that's ready to pop! I'll have to read up on this a little more thoroughly, but it seems that the bugs become this sort of pale yellow color right before they molt. Crawly has lost most of the red on his underside, and is now this bright sort of yellow-orange.

Another strange sort of thing is how they tend to hang out together right quite a bit, even to the point of looking clingy. Yet right now, the bugs have clearly put some distance between each other, although they are on the same side of the cage. I wonder if hanging to the side of the cage helps them shed their old skins!

Stuck On You

Crawly and Chibi seem to be hanging out together again. At first it was underneath the water pad. Now it's on the side of the cage. I can't help but wonder if one of them is getting to molt again. They seem extra "clingy" when something like that is about to happen.

Scattered

The seeds must have scattered when I moved the cage! Crawly is at a lone seed, which is close to the water pad, but not so close it would mold. I wonder how long he's been there. Chibi is at the other end of the cage working on a seed of his own. They'll grow again quickly at this rate!

Pig Out

The bugs are at the seeds again. There are splotches of yellow on the side of the cage. I'm glad the bugs don't smell.

Hanging Around II

Crawly has taken to hanging upside down again. Chibi, on the other hand, has been hanging around the food again! Now that he's bigger, he's easier to watch! He's doing the same thing with his antennas that Crawly does when he eats, which is wave them up and down rhythmically. It's like watching someone pump water from those old water pumps.

Water

Today, I added more water to the cotton pad. Crawly was thirsty! His proboscis is so big now, that it's actually kind of bent. (I hope it's really not from an injury or something.) I tried to sex them again, but I'm not sure if the sex actually is apparent until the bugs reach adulthood!


Here's what I'm looking for. I wonder if it's just the photo, but the female looks a little bigger. Anyways, he seems to be growing quite quickly, I will just wait until next week! (I hope he finishes by then.)

Dark and Handsome

Crawly has darkened up once again. He's looking pretty good. I may be able to tell the sex soon. I feel like it's a bit early. Looking at this wing pads are neat! I can't wait until he gets a pair of wings. He's eating right now, so maybe he's making some as we speak!

Chibi is acting like the new crawly. I guess when they get a bit bigger, the bugs are more active. It's really cute because now I can track them  with ease.

Crawly Molts

Crawly has just molted! I missed the actual event, but it seems as if he is not quite an adult yet. (So I have future moltings to look forward to.) It couldn't have been long, since he molted though. Earlier this morning, he was still the same. He is now easily the size of a sunflower seed! I wonder if he feels a little bit vulnerable right now. The previous debris I saw in January is definitely one of the casings from a molt. I wonder if it was from Crawly then. If so, this is would make the third time.

Chibi Molts

Today, I saw evidence that Chibi actually molted recently. AH! I knew it was going to happen soon. I want to be here when Crawly does it, he's really big now. I know he's not an adult quite yet because he doesn't have wings. Anyways, I'm happy for Chibi.

Hanging Around

Today, Chibi and Crawly were just hanging out on the side of the cage. I wonder what triggers molting? It's really cute to see them together! I wonder if that's just a coincidence, or if they actively seek each other.

Sunflowers

I am ready to see some molting action! I wish I had a time-stop camera to increase my likelihood of catching the moment, but I don't. If the weather were warmer, I'd probably carry my box with me all over the place until I can watch the event. My thoughts are turned to molting because Crawly is nearly as big as the sunflower seeds he's been sucking down on. (Hm...I need to clarify the difference between siphoning and sucking; the terms are tricky.) Chibi has been spending a lot of time at the seeds today too! I'm thinking that having a good supply of seeds is really important in the life cycle of these bugs. I read some forum posts of people complaining that their bugs aren't growing, and I can't help but wonder if the bugs aren't getting enough to eat. Ever since I changed the seeds, it seems like the growth of both bugs have been much greater.

Feeding Hole

After coming back, I saw Crawly next to a seed with his proboscis out. It felt like I was walking into something a little bit naughty. I also caught a glimpse of Chibi by the seeds. It seemed like only yesterday he was so small that it would have been easy to accidentally crush him. (I'm so glad I can see them better now.) Those two are getting really plump again. I really like it when they molt because they turn this sort of bright red color for a while, which happens to be my favorite color. Anyways, I'm glad that they decided to come out into the open. They are more interesting when I can actually watch them!

At the Water Cooler

Today, Crawly and Chibi are hanging out underneath the water pad. Although they are often on the ceiling of the cage, they periodically like to hide away under or in between the layers of the pad. Maybe they'll molt again! They have been gaining quite a bit of weight.

Growing!

Crawly is getting HUGE! I wonder if he's getting ready to molt again. I feel like that would be his third time. Chibi is catching up as well. He's gone through at least two molts.

Buffet 2

I never notice them hanging out by the seeds this much before. I wonder how much time they're actually spending eating these seeds. I noticed sort of this brown splotch on the side of the cage. I wonder if it is waste products or something else. Is it possible for bugs to over eat?

Buffet

Crawly and Chibi seem to like the new seeds. They've been hanging out by the new seeds quite a bit. It's cute to see Chibi among the sunflower seeds because he's still really small. He looks like a little glutton.

Happy Valentines Day!

Today, I finally changed out all of the old stuff in the cage. I changed the old cotton pad, for a fresh one. (I also made sure it was damp.) Then I changed out the seedy looking sunflower seeds for a fresh batch. I hope Crawly and Chibi like it!

Lazy Saturday

The bugs aren't doing much today, but who can blame them? It's a good day to be lazy.

Guard

With Crawly being so big, it looks like he's guarding Chibi. They haven't moved much since yesterday. Chibi is "underneath" Crawly. They look comfy.

Dark again!

Crawly and Chibi got their dark color back again. They're looking really good!

Molted!

Crawly and Chibi molted recently. I'm surprised to see the shells after I woke up. Woe is me! No camera to document this occasion. What is amazing is how much more different Crawly looks! Chibi looks a bit like Crawly a week or so ago. It's also surprising to see that they molted at the same time. They are bright red and orange right now. (I'll have to check back and see if they become darker.) Also, it's interesting to see how the bugs are getting more and more elongated. They are still cute, but they are losing that round quality that made them look super cute! I can't wait to see what happens next.

Bigger II

Both bugs really are bigger! Crawly is about 6mm big and Chibi is about 2mm. The are doing well, but they seem to be sleepy. They haven't been moving around much lately.

Bigger

The buggers have been hanging out on top lately, so it's hard to tell if they had actually grown. It's probably just my eyes deceiving me. I had to open the cage to check the moisture levels. Everything looks fine!

Huddle House

The morning is kind of chilly today. Crawly and Chibi were found huddled together near the ceiling again. I started to notice that the seeds were beginning to darken in color. I wonder if it's because of Crawly and Chibi. I will fill one section with new seeds, and put all of the old seeds together and see what happens.

Breakfast

Today Crawly was just hanging around the top of the cage. Chibi was already at the seeds! There's no change in appearance in either.

Sleepy heads

The two guys are resting in the cotton wad. I'm glad no one got out today! There's a lot more debris around the cotton pad; it looks like poo! Which is great because someone must be eating. If the pad gets really dirty, I'll completely change it out.

Searching

Crawly is doing something weird! He's out in the middle of the cage, with his proboscis sticking out. He looks like he's looking for something! I thought it might be food, but he's walking toward the cotton pad. Chibi has finally emerged. I wonder if he's hungry.

I put a double layer of that fine nylon cloth, then closed the lid, and secured everything with a rubber band. The set up is not air tight, but hopefully, it will prevent any further break outs.

Snow Day

Today, the school is having a snow day, which is great because I might not have noticed that the middle bug got out! I saw the little bug sitting on top of the screen, which must have gotten loose somehow. I hope the middle guy is just hanging around, but it's unlikely. At least I was able to recover the smaller one. So now I'm back to two bugs, Crawly and Chibi (the smallest one; just named him). I'll have to be sure to take roll twice a day. Once before I go to sleep, and once when I wake up.

Developmentally, I'm sure that Chibi has grown. I think this may be his second or third instar. I found a casing this morning. Crawly is still doing fine. He's a more active bug, but I'm glad he stays in his cage. What's interesting is how he keeps himself clean. Well, I guess that's what he's doing...

Wow. I feel awful. The middle bug was on the outside of the cage, and I accidentally smushed him just now while I was picking up the cage to inspect the bugs inside. I wished they'd hurry up and get bigger! I don't like being a bug killer.

Well, before the bad news, I was going to write about how Crawly seems to be cleaning his proboscis. He takes his front two legs and moves them up and down along his proboscis, and he does something similar with his antennae. He cleans each antenna one at a time. I like how he waves them up and down when he walks. I wonder why he waves one more vigorously sometimes than the other. Do bugs have "handedness"? I also noticed the black pads on his back. I'm guessing that is supposed to be the wing pads I've been reading about.

I've been trying to figure out how big these guys really get. Crawly looks like he's is quite a bit older than Chibi. I don't know how much bigger the bugs get with each molt. Chibi looks like he's grown a bit, but he's not that much bigger.

I wish I had a camera to take pictures with. I had to return the one I borrowed yesterday, and there's a 24 hr limit before being able to borrow again.

I wrote a lot about Crawly because he's easier to observe. Chibi is still very, and he's hard for me to see. He also doesn't venture far from the cotton pad (when it is moist). I will try experimenting on different pad locations, and seeing if he will move closer to the food.

I may tape down the nylon mesh to the cardboard frame today. I may have said that I used cheesecloth earlier, but I was mistaken.

New House

Originally, I had these posts on my other blog, but I think that these bugs really deserve their own space! So I moved all of the previous post to Mushishi, and I will continue with my observations from here.

Snug As A Bug in a Wad

All the bugs are still alive! I'm happy! Crawly is up and about, but the other two are hiding in the cotton wad again. Everyone is alive and well. The pad is still moist, and there is plenty of food!

Long Tongue!

Crawly is by the seed pits eating. I was really surprised! While he was eating the seeds, it seemed as if another limb was present. I wonder if that was his tongue. It was cute how his antennae would sway up and down as he was eating. The motion sort of reminded me of those old water pumps.

Now Crawly is hanging upside down from the ceiling. Bugs don't seem to care what position their bodies take. Although he hasn't gotten much bigger, his body color seems to have gotten darker. At least near his rump. I wonder if that's normal.

I haven't seen the other two out today yet. The bugs seem to like hiding in that bit of cotton! I'll check on them later, once the sun comes out.

*After further research, I found out my eyes weren't deceiving me! What I was looking at was Crawly's proboscis, which is more like a straw than a tongue!

Birds of a Feather

Last night I witnessed a curious thing, the bugs were huddled up together. Today they are huddled up again! They seem to like to hang from the cheese cloth on the top of the container. Maybe they feel safer when the whole group is together.


It's a nice day today, so I think I'll but them somewhere a bit brighter.

Photo Shoot

FOUND!

CRAWLY IS STILL ALIVE! I have no idea where he could have gone to in his big-tiny cage, but I guess he didn't escape after all. Which means I need to call the other bug something else! Hm... I wonder if they will all end up being the same size when they become adults. Right now Crawly is a lot bigger than the other two. I wish it were easier to tell the sex of these bugs. Okay, until I can tell exactly, all of the bugs will be referred to in the masculine pronoun.

Anyways, Crawly seems to be eating right now. That makes me feel happy. I hope he grows big soon. I think I will wait until the morning to put the other two in the cage. I wonder if Crawly will mind the company.

Try Again!

I picked up another set of bugs. I did my best to find two that were nearly identical in size to my previous two. The big one, of course, will be called Crawly. I hope the original is still alive and well, but search parties don't often turn out good. I pretend that the mishaps didn't happen. I will do better to keep my bugs alive! (Well, I guess more than two days would be an improvement, right?)

This time, I stopped by the IS to check out a camera. (It's due on Thursday this week.) I really wanted a digital camera that has a macro feature, and this one can go "super macro." I'm glad the bugs don't move around too much, or else it would be difficult to get a decent shot, at least with this point-and-shoot camera. I wonder if the graph paper will show up in the pictures. I really want to get a feel for how big these bugs really are! Right now they are tiny.

MIA

I hope it's just my eyes playing tricks on me, but Crawly has gone missing! I wonder how he got out...I'm a bad bug owner. I'll need to get some new ones tomorrow! I guess there are some openings that he could have squeezed out of. Next time, I'm sticking to glass. I have a bottle ready. I'll just use a rubber band to keep the cheese cloth in place this time. Then they can't escape. I'm glad these aren't endangered species...I need a bit more practice.

Good Morning!

Crawly made it through the night. Just to be sure, I encouraged Crawly to move with a piece of tissue. It makes me feel happy to see that little red and black bug moving around. Last night, he was hanging out toward the top of the cage on the side that had the seeds. I haven't actually seen him move to the seeds, or get near them. I wonder if they're any good. Maybe Crawly just isn't hungry...

The graph paper worked! Crawly is about 4 mm. If only had a good camera to take pictures! (I will go to Innovation Space on campus to check out a camera at 1 pm when they open.) Right now he's just standing still toward the top again. I wonder why! Maybe Crawly is cold. My house can be chilly. I'll move him to some place warmer today.

RIP

Tonight, something sad happened. I lost my the smallest bug while transferring the two into a new habitat I built. I was checking the pad where the water is kept, to see if it was still moist, and in the process I smushed it. I read that dehydration can cause the bugs to die quickly, but clumsy fingers can do that too!

I was really looking forward to seeing it grow! The big one is already large. According to my research, they have 5 instars before they become adult bugs. Maybe I can get some more bugs later. It might take some time, but maybe I can get a pair to breed! (After the class is over, maybe.)

I will do my best to keep the remaining bug alive. I hope it likes the new place!  I have a moist cotton wad on one end of the container, and the seeds on the other to reduce the likelihood that the seeds will go moldy. The top is covered by cheese cloth held down by a frame.

I guess since it's awkward to call the bug "the bug" or "it" (since I don't know the sex yet) I need to come up with a name! Since it likes crawling around in the new cage, I'll call it "Crawly." Right now Crawly seems to have settled down. I hope Crawly moves some more later. (Especially tomorrow.)

http://insected.arizona.edu/milkrear.htm
http://bugguide.net/node/view/460

Buggers

Today I discovered some debris in my cup! I wonder if one of these guys molted. It's hard to see them in the cup that was provided...So I decided to buy them a new plastic cage! I have some cheese cloth that I can use to help keep the little buggers inside and safe. I hope they like their new house. I would like to take pictures, but the  cup isn't very clear, so my pictures come out blurry. The bigger one looks just a little big bigger, but I don't know if that's true or not because I couldn't measure it to begin with. When I transfer the bugs to the new enclosure, I will try lining the bottom with fine graph paper. Maybe it will be easier to keep track of relative size that way.

Poo

The two bugs don't seem to be doing anything at the moment. I don't even see a speck of poo, which is weird. I have a rat, and he defecates quite a bit. So I was thinking that the bugs being very small would probably poo quite a bit too. I wonder if they are eating properly. The sponge should be moist still, so I think they will be okay even if they don't eat immediately. I hope they eat soon though.

Birthday Present

Today I got two new bugs!  Nancy was handing the bugs out at Price hall. (She's a phD grad student who works with bees primarily.) They're from the order Hemiptera, which makes them true bugs. Commonly called, Milk weed bugs. I got a very small one and a somewhat larger one in my cup. I put some water on the sponge before transporting them. (I kept them in my coat pocket...it was freezing today!) I also got a seed packet. They don't look like they eat much. They didn't do much the first day. Not even poo!

Bug Report; Five sections are required

Introduction . State your objectives for the project.

My objective is to observe and raise a milk weed bug from nymph to adult.

Methods. Explain your methods of caring for and observing your bugs during the project.

After obtaining my bugs, I will house them in a small plastic container outfitted with a cheese cloth screen to contain the bugs. On the underside of the cage, graph paper (each square = 2mm) will be taped from the outside to gauge approximate size. For moisture, a rectangular cotton pad will be folded in half and kept on one end of the cage. Water will be added as needed to keep the pad moist. For food, raw unsalted sunflower seeds will be kept on the side of the cage opposite from the cotton pad.

Observations will be made at least once a day, and recorded on my blogger.com account online. Periodically, digital pictures will be taken and added when possible. (Camera on loan from the Innovation Space at Torgersen Hall.)

Results. This is your journal of daily observations. If you've kept a hand written journal, you can place this in your report between Methods and Discussion.

勉強になった！: bug-in-a-cup

Discussion. Write a 1-2-page summary of the biology of the milkweed bug. Begin by explaining if and how you met the objectives described in your introduction. More importantly, compare your observations to those of other scientists who have studied milkweed bugs and written about their results. If your observations are different, speculate why. The work of others must be cited as references. You must have 3 references and they must include: 2 web sites and 1 journal article or book.

References Cited.   This is a list of the bibliographic citations from your Discussion section, presented in a consistent format as explained in the VT Library Information Skills Modules ( http:\\info-skills.lib.vt.edu ).

http://www.life.illinois.edu/ib/109/Insect%20rearing/milkweedbug.html

http://insected.arizona.edu/milkrear.htm

https://kb.osu.edu/dspace/bitstream/1811/3805/1/V51N01_027.pdf

These are the requirements for my report. For now, I'll write about each section as a different entry on my blog. Then I will consolidate the whole thing later!