Hemipterian Puberty

On September 1, we posted photos of our milkweed bug nursery. The milkweed bug is a true bug, which means it belongs to the Insect order Hempitera. Most folks think that all insects are bugs - not true! Entomologists place the true bugs in the Hemipterian group. Hemiptera comprises around 80,000 species of cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, shield bugs, and others. They range in size from 1 mm to around 15 cm, and share a common arrangement of sucking mouthparts.

Look closely and you will see that the nymphs are now a vivid red, have black wing pads developing, and some have now developed into the adult stage. There are two new adults crawling over the sibling nymphs in the photo below.


I wish to share with you the developing nursery feeding on the milkweed pods.

It is always special to take some time out of each day of your life to enjoy and marvel at the wonders of nature!