Heathland
267 species found in this habitat
Acacia Ant
Pseudomyrmex ferruginea
A slender orange-brown ant that lives inside the swollen thorns of bullhorn acacia trees in a classic mutualistic relati...
African Bulldog Ant
Myrmecia regularis
A large aggressive ant with excellent vision and powerful mandibles. It can leap and deliver a painful sting when threat...
African Dung Beetle
Scarabaeus rugosus
A medium-sized, roughly textured black roller beetle found in southern African sandy habitats. It has prominent teeth on...
African Harvester Termite
Microhodotermes viator
A harvester termite found in the fynbos and semi-arid regions of the Western Cape in South Africa. Workers have pigmente...
African Moon Moth
Argema mimosae
A large pale green silk moth with long hindwing tails and maroon eyespots on each wing. Males have broad feathery antenn...
African Soldier Beetle
Cantharis africana
A soft-bodied soldier beetle from Sub-Saharan Africa with orange-brown elytra and a darker head region. Like other canth...
African Twig Mantis
Popa spurca crassa
A subspecies of twig mantis with an even rougher bark-like texture. Its flattened body and ragged edges mimic a broken-o...
African Twig Stick Insect
Clonopsis maroccana
A slender stick insect that mimics dry twigs with remarkable accuracy. It reproduces parthenogenetically, with females p...
Angular Brown Lacewing
Wesmaelius nervosus
A widespread brown lacewing with strong wing venation patterns. Found across much of the Northern Hemisphere in varied h...
Ant Nest Beetle
Paussus favieri
A bizarre reddish-brown beetle with swollen club-shaped antennae that lives inside ant nests. It mimics ant chemical sig...
Apache Paper Wasp
Polistes apachus
A large paper wasp of the American Southwest with yellow and reddish-brown coloring. It constructs open paper comb nests...
Apple Sucker
Cacopsylla mali
A small psyllid pest of apple trees with greenish-brown coloring that changes seasonally. Nymphs produce copious honeyde...
Arctic Woolly Bear Caterpillar Moth
Gynaephora rossii
A close relative of the Greenland woolly bear, this moth has pale gray wings and a densely furred body. The caterpillar ...
Arctic Woolly Bear Moth
Gynaephora groenlandica
A medium-sized moth whose caterpillar is famous for its extremely long development. Adults are gray-brown with hairy bod...
Asian Velvet Ant
Smicromyrme rufipes
A small to medium velvet ant with reddish legs and black body found across southern Asia. It parasitizes various ground-...
Australian Large-headed Bee
Stenotritus greavesi
A robust, fast-flying bee endemic to Australia with a disproportionately large head and powerful mandibles. It belongs t...
Australian Stiletto Fly
Anabarhynchus bilineatus
A slender gray stiletto fly with two pale longitudinal stripes on the thorax and a distinctly tapered abdomen. It is com...
Austrophasma caledonense
Austrophasma caledonense
A heelwalker from the Caledon district of South Africa. Females are larger than males and deposit eggs in sandy soil whe...
Autumn Horse Fly
Tabanus autumnalis
A large greyish horse fly active in late summer and autumn. It has striking green-banded eyes and a persistent biting ha...
Balearic Green Lizard Beetle
Timarcha balearica
A large flightless leaf beetle endemic to the Balearic Islands. It is black with a bluish-purple sheen and exudes red he...
Banded Oogaster Ground Beetle
Anthia sexguttata
A large Indian ground beetle with six prominent white spots on its black elytra. It is a fast-running nocturnal predator...
Banded Peacock
Papilio crino
A stunning swallowtail with emerald green bands on velvety black wings. The hindwings have red and blue markings near th...
Bearded Robber Fly
Machimus atricapillus
A common European robber fly with a prominent mystax (facial beard) of bristles that protect its face during prey captur...
Beautiful Snout
Hypena crassalis
A moth with long palps forming a snout-like projection and warm purple-brown wings crossed by pale lines. It is associat...
Bedstraw Hawk Moth
Hyles gallii
A striking hawk moth with olive-green forewings bearing a buff median band and pink hindwings. It is a migratory species...
Bee Killer Assassin Bug
Apiomerus crassipes
An assassin bug that coats its legs with plant resin to capture bees visiting flowers....
Black Ichneumon Wasp
Coelichneumon deliratorius
A large, entirely black ichneumon wasp with a robust build. It is a solitary parasitoid of large moth pupae hidden in so...
Black Leafcutter Ant
Acromyrmex lobicornis
A cold-tolerant leafcutter ant that builds conspicuous mound nests from vegetation debris. Workers are dark brown to bla...
Blackburn Earth-Boring Beetle
Blackburnium reichei
A small, globular earth-boring dung beetle with a dark brown to black body. Endemic to Australia, it processes marsupial...
Blackburn's Sphinx Moth
Manduca blackburni
The largest native insect in Hawaii, this sphinx moth has a wingspan up to 120 mm. It was once widespread across the isl...
Blood Bee
Sphecodes monilicornis
A cleptoparasitic bee with a bright red abdomen and black head that attacks the nests of furrow bees. Females enter host...
Blue Hawker
Aeshna caerulea
A small hawker dragonfly with bright blue spots on males and yellow spots on females. It is restricted to high-altitude ...
Blue Pansy
Junonia orithya
A medium-sized butterfly with stunning bright blue hindwings bearing large eyespots and brown forewings with smaller ora...
Blue-black Spider Wasp
Anoplius viaticus
A dark metallic blue spider wasp with orange-red abdominal bands. It hunts wolf spiders on sandy heathlands and dunes ac...
Bog Bush-cricket
Metrioptera brachyptera
A dark-colored bush-cricket with short wings and pale lateral stripes on the pronotum. It favors wet heathlands and bogs...
Boreal Bumblebee
Bombus borealis
A medium-sized bumblebee with yellow bands on the thorax and a white-tipped abdomen. It nests underground in abandoned r...
Box Bug
Gonocerus acuteangulatus
A slender, reddish-brown coreid bug historically restricted to box trees in southern England but now expanding its range...
Brazilian Wanderer Spider Wasp
Pepsis fabricius
A large metallic blue-black spider wasp with bright orange wings that hunts tarantulas as food for its larvae. The femal...
Brimstone
Gonepteryx rhamni
Males are vivid sulphur-yellow; females are pale greenish-white. Leaf-shaped wings provide excellent camouflage at rest....
Broad-Toothed Scarab
Scarabaeus laticollis
A medium-sized, glossy black roller dung beetle with a broad pronotum and strong clypeal teeth. Common across Mediterran...
Brown Chafer
Serica brunnea
A small chestnut-brown beetle with a velvety sheen to its elytra. It is nocturnal and attracted to lights on warm summer...
Brown Locust
Locustana pardalina
A medium-sized brown locust endemic to southern Africa that periodically swarms in the Karoo region. Nymphs are known as...
Brunner's Stick Mantis
Brunneria borealis
A slender stick-like mantis found in the southeastern United States. It is remarkable because only females are known and...
Buck Moth
Hemileuca maia
A day-flying black and white moth with a red-tipped abdomen that appears in autumn. Its spiny caterpillar delivers a pai...
Budwing Mantis
Parasphendale affinis
A sturdy, aggressive mantis from East Africa named for the bud-like wing stubs of the females, who are mostly flightless...
Bulldog Ant
Myrmecia gulosa
A large aggressive ant with long mandibles and excellent vision found in Australia. It can jump and sting simultaneously...
Canary Islands Blue Butterfly
Cyclyrius webbianus
A small endemic blue butterfly found on the Canary Islands. Males have bright violet-blue upperwings and females are bro...
Cape Antlion
Crambomorphus sinuatus
A southern African antlion found in fynbos and sandy coastal areas. Its larvae inhabit loose sand in wind-sheltered spot...
Cape Mountain Cockroach
Aptera fusca
A large, wingless cockroach endemic to the mountains of South Africa. It lives in fynbos vegetation and rocky outcrops....
Cape Spoonwing
Palmipenna aeoleoptera
A South African nemopterid with broad, paddle-shaped hindwings. One of the most spectacular insects in the Western Cape ...
Cardo Longhorn
Agapanthia cardui
A strikingly patterned longhorn with alternating bands of grey and dark pubescence on the elytra. It specializes on this...
Caribbean Calligrapha Beetle
Calligrapha cubana
A leaf beetle found in Cuba with intricate dark patterns on a pale background. Each individual has a unique pattern on i...
Caribou Bot Fly
Cephenemyia jellisoni
A robust, furry fly that parasitizes caribou and deer in North America. Like its Eurasian relative, it deposits larvae n...
Cederberg Heelwalker
Austrophasma cederbergense
A predatory heelwalker found in the Cederberg Mountains of South Africa. It is greenish-brown and well-camouflaged among...
Chocolate Mining Bee
Andrena scotica
A medium-sized bee with warm brown fur, common across the British Isles. It visits a wide range of spring and early summ...
Cleopatra Butterfly
Gonepteryx cleopatra
A large butterfly with deep orange forewings in males and pale greenish wings in females. Common in Mediterranean areas....
Cloaked Groundhopper
Tetrix ceperoi
A small pygmy grasshopper of bare, damp ground on heathlands and coastal salt pans in western Europe. It is distinguishe...
Clouded Buff Moth
Diacrisia sannio
A medium-sized moth where males are golden-buff and females are pinkish with darker wing borders. Males fly actively in ...
Colorado Three-lined Leaf Beetle
Lema trivittata
A small, elongated beetle with an orange-yellow body and three dark longitudinal stripes on the elytra. It feeds on toma...
Common Crow Butterfly
Euploea core
Dark brown wings with rows of white marginal spots. Highly toxic due to alkaloids sequestered from its larval food plant...
Common Field Grasshopper
Chorthippus brunneus
An abundant European grasshopper with highly variable coloration ranging from green to brown. It produces a distinctive ...
Common Green Grasshopper
Omocestus viridulus
A small grasshopper varying from bright green to brown with a characteristic buzzing song that accelerates to a crescend...
Common Groundhopper
Tetrix undulata
A tiny, dark pygmy grasshopper whose pronotum extends backward over the entire abdomen like a shield. It is active year-...
Common Hawker
Aeshna juncea
A large, dark brown hawker dragonfly with blue and yellow spots. It favors upland and moorland habitats across the North...
Common Leopard
Phalanta phalantha
A medium-sized tawny butterfly with black spots arranged in a leopard-like pattern across the wings. It has a rapid, gli...
Common Mormon
Papilio polytes
Males are plain black with a cream band; females occur in multiple forms mimicking different toxic species. A textbook e...
Common Stiletto Fly
Thereva nobilitata
A slender, densely hairy fly with a pointed abdomen and silvery-white body hairs. Adults bask on sunlit leaves and bare ...
Common Tiger
Danaus genutia
A tawny-orange butterfly with black veins and white-spotted black wing margins, resembling the Monarch butterfly. Its bo...
Conehead Mantis
Empusa pennata
A distinctive European mantis with a tall conical head crest and feathery antennae in males. Nymphs resemble small alien...
Coreid Bug
Thasus neocalifornicus
One of the largest leaf-footed bugs in North America with vivid nymph coloration....
Coronated Jewel Beetle
Stigmodera coronata
A recently described jewel beetle from southwestern Western Australia with striking metallic colors. The genus Stigmoder...
Corsican Seed-Harvesting Ant
Messor wasmanni
A large dark harvester ant found in the western Mediterranean region. Major workers have broad heads for seed processing...
Cotton Stainer Bug
Dysdercus suturellus
A red and black bug that stains cotton bolls by introducing fungal spores while feeding....
Creoleon Antlion
Creoleon plumbeus
A robust Mediterranean antlion with lead-grey coloring on the thorax. Found in dry, warm habitats across southern Europe...
Creosote Lace Bug
Corythucha morrilli
A tiny lace bug with delicate, ornately patterned wings found on creosote bushes. It feeds in groups on the underside of...
Crimson Rose
Pachliopta hector
A striking black swallowtail with bright crimson patches on the hindwings and a red body. It is a model species for mimi...
Cristina's Timema
Timema cristinae
A small, stout walking stick from California that comes in green, striped, and melanistic forms. It is a major model spe...
Crotch's Bumblebee
Bombus crotchii
A western North American bumblebee that has declined by over 90% from its historical range. Once common in California's ...
Cylindrical Tachinid
Cylindromyia brassicaria
A slender, wasp-like parasitic fly with a narrow cylindrical abdomen. Parasitizes shieldbugs by laying eggs directly ont...
Daffodil Aphodius
Aphodius fossor
A large, entirely shiny black dweller dung beetle with a convex, robust body. Despite being classified as a dweller, it ...
Dawson's Burrowing Bee
Amegilla dawsoni
A large solitary bee endemic to Western Australia that nests in massive aggregations in hardpan clay. Males engage in vi...
Desert Globe Mallow Bee
Diadasia diminuta
A specialist solitary bee that visits only globe mallow flowers in the American Southwest. It lines its underground nest...
Desert Leaf-Footed Bug
Narnia femorata
A gray-brown bug with expanded hind legs found on cacti in the American Southwest. Males use their enlarged legs to wres...
Devils Flower Mantis
Idolomantis diabolica
One of the largest and most spectacular flower mantises. When threatened, it produces a dramatic deimatic display, sprea...
Dusky Green Lacewing
Chrysopa dorsalis
A green lacewing with a dark dorsal stripe running along the abdomen. Prefers wooded habitats across southern Europe....
Egyptian Grasshopper
Anacridium aegyptium
One of the largest European grasshoppers with distinctive striped eyes. It has grey-brown coloring with subtle patternin...
Eight-spotted Jewel Beetle
Castiarina octospilota
A compact jewel beetle with eight distinctive pale spots arranged on dark metallic elytra. It is an active flower visito...
Emperor Moth
Saturnia pavonia
Europe's only native member of the giant silk moth family, with prominent eyespots on all four wings. Males are colourfu...
Erratic Ant
Tapinoma erraticum
A small dark ant common in southern Europe that runs in characteristic erratic zigzag patterns. It nests in dry, warm ha...
Ethiopian Cockroach
Deropeltis erythrocephala
A striking cockroach with a bright reddish-orange head contrasting with its black body. It is native to East Africa....
European Velvet Ant
Mutilla europaea
A robust wingless wasp with black and orange-red banding and dense velvety hair. Females enter bumblebee nests to lay eg...
Feather-Legged Assassin Bug
Ptilocnemus lemur
An Australian assassin bug with bizarre feathery hind legs used to lure ant prey. It waves its feathered legs near ant t...
Field Digger Wasp
Mellinus arvensis
A yellow and black wasp that nests in sandy soil and provisions each cell with paralyzed hoverflies....
Flower Wasp
Cerceris rybyensis
A solitary wasp that hunts small mining bees to provision its nest. Nests in sandy soil, often in dense aggregations. Di...
Foam Grasshopper
Dictyophorus spumans
A large black and red grasshopper that produces a foul-smelling toxic foam when disturbed. It is one of Africa's most re...
Four-Spotted Hister Beetle
Hister quadrimaculatus
A glossy black hister beetle with four orange-red spots on its wing cases. It is associated with mammal dung in pastures...
Galapagos Flightless Katydid
Nesoecia cooksoni
A large flightless katydid endemic to the Galapagos Islands. Part of the archipelagos remarkable pattern where 74% of en...
Giant Agave Bug
Acanthocephala thomasi
A large coreid bug from the southwestern US and Mexico that feeds on agave and cacti. Males have impressively swollen hi...
Giant Australian Jewel Beetle
Julodimorpha bakewelli
A large, bumpy-textured jewel beetle from Australia. Males are famously attracted to discarded beer bottles....
Giant Darkling Beetle of St. Helena
Hegeter politus
A darkling beetle endemic to the remote island of St. Helena in the South Atlantic. It is nocturnal and hides under ston...
Giant Leaf-Footed Bug
Acanthocephala declivis
One of the largest leaf-footed bugs in North America with broad hind tibiae. Adults emit a strong fruity odor when distu...
Giant Tachinid Fly
Tachina grossa
The largest tachinid fly in Europe, covered in dense black bristles. It parasitizes large moth caterpillars and is often...
Gladiator Bug
Mantophasma zephyra
One of the first species described in the newest insect order Mantophasmatodea, erected in 2002. A small wingless predat...
Globular Tachinid
Gymnosoma rotundatum
A distinctive round-bodied parasitic fly colored bright orange-red with black markings. Parasitizes shieldbugs. One of t...
Gold Cuckoo Wasp
Chrysis fasciata
A brilliant green and gold metallic cuckoo wasp found across southern Europe. It parasitizes the nests of potter wasps a...
Gold Swift
Phymatopus hecta
A small primitive moth with golden-brown forewings marked with silvery-white spots. Males perform hovering display fligh...
Golden-tailed Bull Ant
Myrmecia chrysogaster
A strikingly coloured bull ant with a distinctive golden-yellow gaster and reddish-brown head and thorax. Like other Myr...
Golden-tailed Hoverfly
Chrysotoxum cautum
A wasp-mimicking hoverfly with bold yellow and black bands and long antennae. It flies with a distinctive slow, wasp-lik...
Great Banded Grayling
Brintesia circe
A large brown butterfly with a prominent white band across the hindwing underside, resembling a tree-trunk fragment. It ...
Great Pied Hoverfly
Volucella bombylans
A furry hoverfly that exists in multiple colour forms, each mimicking a different bumblebee species. Larvae develop insi...
Greater Arid-Land Katydid
Neobarrettia spinosa
A large, aggressive predatory katydid from the American Southwest with powerful spiny legs. It is one of the most voraci...
Greek Ground Longhorn
Dorcadion graecum
A stout, flightless longhorn endemic to Greece with black elytra bearing distinct white pubescent stripes. It is found o...
Green Banana Cockroach
Panchlora nivea
A small, bright green cockroach often mistaken for a leaf or small moth. It is a strong flier attracted to lights and li...
Green Hairstreak
Callophrys rubi
A small butterfly with plain brown uppersides but stunning iridescent green undersides. It always rests with wings close...
Green Tiger Beetle
Cicindela campestris
A fast-running, metallic green beetle with cream-colored spots. It is a fierce predator that chases down prey on bare gr...
Ground Mantis
Litaneutria minor
The smallest North American mantis, well camouflaged on dry rocky soil....
Guedin's Hawk Moth
Macroglossum gyrans
A small day-flying hawk moth with olive-brown forewings and orange-yellow hindwings. It hovers at flowers like a humming...
Hairy-saddled Colletes
Colletes succinctus
A late-summer plasterer bee that is a specialist on heather, secreting a cellophane-like lining in its underground nest ...
Harvester Ant
Messor barbarus
A large, polymorphic harvester ant with impressive major workers that have broad heads for seed crushing. Workers form l...
Hazel Sawfly
Croesus septentrionalis
A medium-sized sawfly with an orange abdomen and dark thorax. The bluish-green larvae with black heads feed gregariously...
Heath Grasshopper
Chorthippus vagans
A small brown grasshopper confined to heathland. One of the rarest grasshoppers in Britain....
Heather Mining Bee
Andrena fuscipes
A late-summer specialist bee that collects pollen almost exclusively from heather and bell heather. It nests in sandy so...
Helmeted Squash Bug
Euthochtha galeator
A North American coreid with an expanded helmet-like pronotum. It feeds on various plants but is not as destructive as t...
Hieroglyphic Ladybird
Coccinella hieroglyphica
A European ladybird with extraordinarily variable elytral patterns resembling hieroglyphs. It is primarily found on heat...
Honey Bee
Apis mellifera
The worlds most important pollinator. Lives in complex colonies of up to 80,000 individuals with a single queen. Communi...
Honey Pot Ant
Myrmecocystus mexicanus
Certain workers called repletes serve as living food storage vessels. They hang from the ceiling, gorged with honey and ...
Honeypot Ant
Myrmecocystus mimicus
A honey ant species that engages in ritualized territorial tournaments between neighboring colonies. Workers are amber-c...
Horned Treehopper
Centrotus cornutus
A European treehopper with two prominent lateral horns projecting from the pronotum. Its dark brown body and horn-like p...
Horse-head Grasshopper
Pseudoproscopia scabra
An extremely elongated grasshopper with a head shaped like a miniature horse head....
Indian Domino Cockroach
Therea regularis
A striking wingless cockroach with bold white spots on a jet-black body resembling domino tiles. Nymphs burrow in soil w...
Indian Flower Mantis
Creobroter pictipennis
A small, colorful flower mantis with green and white coloring and a single large eyespot on each forewing. It frequents ...
Indian Rose Mantis
Gonypeta brigittae
A small pastel pink mantis that sits among rose petals and other flowers to ambush prey. Its delicate coloration provide...
Indian Spider Wasp
Hemipepsis tamisieri
A large dark-winged spider wasp from Africa and the Middle East that hunts large burrowing spiders. It is one of the big...
Indian Stick Insect
Carausius morosus
One of the most commonly kept stick insects in the world, originating from southern India. It reproduces almost entirely...
Indian Treehopper
Leptocentrus taurus
A small, dark sap-sucking insect with a spectacular thorn-shaped pronotum that provides perfect camouflage on thorny bra...
Italian Stick Insect
Bacillus atticus
A small Mediterranean stick insect found in southern Europe. It is notable for its complex reproductive biology involvin...
Jack Jumper Ant
Myrmecia pilosula
A medium-sized black ant with powerful mandibles and an extremely potent sting. It is one of the most dangerous ant spec...
Jewel Beetle (Golden Castiarina)
Castiarina aureola
A dazzlingly coloured jewel beetle endemic to Australia, with a golden-yellow body adorned with dark markings. Australia...
Jewel Beetle of Cyprus
Julodis ehrenbergii
A large, robust jewel beetle with textured, dark bronze-green elytra dotted with golden pits. It is one of the largest b...
Karoophasma biedouwense
Karoophasma biedouwense
A gladiator insect endemic to the Biedouw Valley in South Africa. It is nocturnal and hunts among low shrubs in semi-ari...
Kite-tailed Robber Fly
Tolmerus atricapillus
A common grey robber fly with a slightly club-shaped abdomen. It is widespread across Europe, frequently hunting from lo...
Large Emerald
Geometra papilionaria
A beautiful bright green moth with delicate white wavy lines across both wings. Its green color fades to whitish after d...
Large-legged Chalcid
Chalcis myrifex
A parasitoid wasp with conspicuously thickened hind femora used to brace itself while ovipositing. It attacks the pupae ...
Leaf-Footed Assassin Bug
Psytalla horrida
A fearsome-looking African assassin bug covered in spines and tubercles. It is one of the most heavily armored assassin ...
Lebia Greenhead
Lebia viridis
A small, brightly colored ground beetle with a metallic green head and pronotum and reddish-brown elytra. Its larvae are...
Lesser Cockroach
Ectobius panzeri
A small dark cockroach found in heathlands and open habitats across Europe. It is active during warm summer months....
Lesser Swallow Prominent Moth
Pheosia gnoma
A white moth very similar to the Swallow Prominent but with a thinner dark wedge mark and a clear white hindwing. It is ...
Long-legged Oil Bee
Rediviva longimanus
An extraordinary South African bee whose front legs are nearly twice its body length, the longest of any bee relative to...
Long-Necked Antlion
Palpares libelluloides
One of the largest European antlions with a wingspan exceeding 100 mm and boldly patterned wings. Adults are strong flie...
Lord Howe Island Stick Insect
Dryococelus australis
Once thought extinct after rats were introduced in 1918, a tiny population was rediscovered in 2001 on Balls Pyramid, a ...
Lucasian Green Lacewing
Chrysopa lucasina
A European green lacewing common in Mediterranean olive groves. Important natural enemy of the olive moth and olive psyl...
Malaysian Jewel Leaf Beetle
Chrysolina coerulescens
A brilliantly metallic blue to blue-green beetle with a smooth, highly reflective surface. It is found on aromatic plant...
Mantidfly
Mantispa styriaca
A remarkable insect with raptorial forelegs strikingly similar to a praying mantis, a textbook example of convergent evo...
Mantis Lacewing
Mantispa perla
A delicate insect with mantis-like raptorial forelegs and lace-like wings. An ambush predator of small insects....
Maricopa Harvester Ant
Pogonomyrmex maricopa
Produces the most toxic insect venom known — with an LD50 of 0.12 mg/kg in mice. Just 12 stings can deliver a lethal dos...
Mediterranean Drilus
Drilus mauritanicus
A North African drilus beetle with small winged males bearing brown elytra and pectinate antennae. The larviform females...
Mediterranean Firefly
Luciola italica
A common Southern European firefly that flies through warm summer nights producing a continuous greenish glow. It is wid...
Mediterranean Green Lacewing
Chrysoperla mediterranea
A cryptic species within the carnea group found in Mediterranean climates. Distinguished from close relatives by substra...
Mediterranean Harvester Ant
Messor capitatus
A large dark brown harvester ant common in southern Europe and North Africa. Major workers have distinctly enlarged head...
Mediterranean Mantis
Iris oratoria
A medium-sized mantis with striking eyespots on its hindwings used to startle predators. It is native to the Mediterrane...
Mediterranean Stick Insect
Bacillus rossius
A slender brown or green stick insect common around the Mediterranean. It is one of the few stick insects native to Euro...
Mediterranean Web Spinner
Embia ramburi
A brownish web spinner found throughout the Mediterranean region under bark and stones. Females live communally in inter...
Mediterranean Webspinner
Haploembia solieri
A small, brown webspinner native to the Mediterranean region. It constructs silk tunnels on rocks and walls, and reprodu...
Mexican Twig Ant
Pseudomyrmex pallidus
A pale yellowish twig-nesting ant found from the southern United States through Central America. Small colonies occupy s...
Mexican Walkingstick
Pseudosermyle straminea
A straw-colored walkingstick found across Mexico and the southwestern United States. It is commonly encountered on mesqu...
Midge Gall Fly
Asphondylia sarothamni
A gall midge that induces pod-like galls on broom shrubs. Its larvae develop inside swollen seed pods alongside symbioti...
Minotaur Beetle
Typhaeus typhoeus
A robust, black beetle where males sport three forward-pointing horns on the thorax. It buries rabbit dung in deep under...
Monkey Beetle
Hopliini scolioides
A hairy scarab beetle that pollinates flowers in South African fynbos....
Mormon Metalmark
Apodemia mormo
A small butterfly with dark brown wings covered in white spots arranged in irregular bands. Several of its subspecies ar...
Narrow-headed Ant
Formica exsecta
A bicolored red and black wood ant with a distinctly notched head. It builds low thatched mounds in open heathland and i...
Narrow-Headed Harvester Ant
Pheidole pallidula
A dimorphic Mediterranean ant with small minor workers and large-headed majors adapted for seed milling. Colonies build ...
Nebroides Ground Beetle
Carabus problematicus
A common black ground beetle of northern European heathlands and moorlands. It is an active nocturnal predator with ridg...
Neotropical Cotton Stainer
Dysdercus peruvianus
A bright red and black seed bug that feeds on cotton bolls and malvaceous plants. Its feeding stains cotton fibers, redu...
New Caledonian Giant Gecko Cricket
Pseudoplectus cornutus
A large raspy cricket endemic to New Caledonia with powerful jaws. It is nocturnal and hides in silk-lined retreats duri...
New Caledonian Giant Stick Insect
Clitarchus hookeri caledonicus
A large stick insect found in New Caledonia that mimics twigs and branches. Females can reproduce parthenogenetically wi...
New Zealand Cicada
Kikihia muta
A small endemic cicada from New Zealand notable for being silent - it has lost the ability to produce sound. It communic...
New Zealand Giant Centipede
Cormocephalus rubriceps
New Zealand's largest centipede, reaching up to 160 mm in length. While not an insect, it is a prominent invertebrate pr...
Norse Grayling
Oeneis norna
A medium-sized grayish-brown butterfly with subtle orange patches and small eyespots. The wings have a semi-translucent ...
North African Bombardier Beetle
Brachinus humeralis
A bombardier beetle found in North Africa and the Mediterranean basin. It has a reddish-brown head and thorax with dark ...
Northern Bumblebee
Bombus hyperboreus
A very large, heavily furred bumblebee with orange and black coloring. It is a social parasite that takes over colonies ...
Northern Emerald Dragonfly
Somatochlora arctica
A rare dragonfly of northern bogs and moorland pools. Has brilliant emerald-green eyes and a bronzy-green body. One of t...
Northern Ladybird
Coccinella trifasciata
A small ladybird with orange-red elytra bearing three distinct black crossbands. It is cold-adapted and found further no...
Oak Eggar
Lasiocampa quercus
A robust moth with rich brown wings and a distinctive white spot on each forewing. Males are active fast fliers during t...
Ocellated Flower Mantis
Pseudocreobotra ocellata
A small African flower mantis closely related to the spiny flower mantis. It has a prominent spiral marking on its wings...
Ordinate Large-headed Bee
Ctenocolletes ordensis
A rarely collected bee from the Kimberley region of northern Western Australia. It is known from very few specimens and ...
Pacific Cuckoo Wasp
Chrysis pellucidula
A brightly metallic cuckoo wasp with green-blue head and thorax and a coppery red abdomen. It parasitizes solitary mason...
Painted Grasshopper
Poekilocerus pictus
A strikingly colorful grasshopper with bright yellow and turquoise markings found in the Indian subcontinent. Its vivid ...
Parabacillus Walking Stick
Parabacillus hesperus
A western North American walkingstick found in California's chaparral regions. It is a small species well camouflaged am...
Parent Bug
Elasmucha grisea
A birch-feeding shieldbug remarkable for its extended maternal care behavior. Females stand guard over their egg cluster...
Patagonian Bumble Bee
Bombus dahlbomii
The largest bumble bee in the world, with queens reaching up to 40 mm in length and covered in dense orange fur. Its pop...
Plain Tiger
Danaus chrysippus
An orange butterfly with black borders and white spots that is extremely widespread across Africa and Asia. It is toxic ...
Polar Rove Beetle
Atheta graminicola
A tiny, elongate rove beetle with short wing covers and a flexible abdomen. It is dark brown to black and very agile. It...
Potter Wasp
Delta unguiculatum
A solitary wasp that constructs small urn-shaped mud nests on walls and branches. Each pot is provisioned with paralyzed...
Praying Mantis
Mantis religiosa
The original praying mantis, named for the prayer-like position of its folded forelegs. A formidable predator with stere...
Predatory Bush Cricket
Saga pedo
The largest European bush-cricket reaching up to 12cm. It is a formidable predator of other insects. The entire known po...
Privet Thrips
Dendrothrips ornatus
A small pale thrips that feeds on privet hedges causing silvery leaf damage. It has an unusual jumping ability for a thr...
Proscopiid Stick Grasshopper
Proscopia scabra
An extremely elongated, wingless grasshopper that closely resembles a stick insect. Its thread-thin body and swaying wal...
Provencal Burnet
Zygaena occitanica
A small day-flying moth with dark blue-green metallic forewings bearing red spots and bright red hindwings. It contains ...
Provencal Cicada
Lyristes plebejus
A large European cicada iconic to the Mediterranean region, especially Provence. Its loud continuous song is a defining ...
Rainbow Ground Beetle
Carabus nitens
A spectacularly colored ground beetle with elytra showing bands of metallic green, copper, and red, with three prominent...
Red Dwarf Honey Bee
Apis florea
The smallest honey bee species, building single exposed combs hanging from tree branches. They are important wild pollin...
Red-bordered Metalmark
Caria ino
A dark metalmark butterfly with bright red-orange borders along the wing edges and metallic blue-green scaling at the wi...
Red-legged Pimpla
Pimpla rufipes
A robust black ichneumon wasp with distinctive reddish-orange legs. It parasitizes a wide range of moth and butterfly pu...
Reindeer Nose Bot Fly
Cephenemyia trompe
A large, hairy, bee-like fly that squirts live larvae into the nostrils of reindeer. The larvae develop in the nasal pas...
Reindeer Warble Fly
Hypoderma tarandi
A stout, furry fly that parasitizes reindeer and caribou. Females dart at reindeer to lay eggs on their legs. Larvae bur...
Robin's Pincushion Gall Wasp
Diplolepis rosae
A gall wasp that forms spectacular mossy red-green growths on wild roses. Each gall may contain up to 60 larval chambers...
Rosemary Beetle
Chrysolina americana
A small oval beetle with metallic green and purple stripes on its elytra. Despite its name, it originates from southern ...
Rothschild's Silkmoth
Rothschildia jacobaeae
A large silkmoth with reddish-brown wings featuring bold triangular translucent patches. Each wing also bears a crescent...
Ruby Tiger Moth
Phragmatobia fuliginosa
A small tiger moth with dark brownish-red forewings and rosy-red hindwings spotted with black. It is common across the n...
Saddle-backed Bush-cricket
Ephippiger ephippiger
A robust bush-cricket named for its saddle-shaped pronotum. It has vestigial wings used only for sound production. Both ...
Sand Gropper
Cylindraustralia kochii
A bizarre cylindrical cricket adapted for burrowing in sandy soils in Australia....
Saunders' Case Moth
Metura saundersi
A smaller relative of the large case moth that constructs a tapering case of silk and plant debris. Males are dark, shor...
Scalloped Hook-tip
Falcaria lacertinaria
A small moth with strongly curved wingtips and scalloped wing margins that rests resembling a dead leaf. Its mottled bro...
Scarce Swallowtail
Iphiclides podalirius
A pale yellow swallowtail butterfly with bold black tiger stripes and long tailed hindwings tipped with blue. It soars e...
Seven-Spotted Lady Beetle
Coccinella magnifica
A scarce ladybird that lives exclusively in and around wood ant nests. It closely resembles the common seven-spot ladybi...
Short-horned Grasshopper
Phymateus morbillosus
A toxic foam grasshopper that sequesters milkweed poisons and displays bright warning colors....
Silverfish Strepsipteran
Mengenilla chobauti
A primitive strepsipteran that parasitizes silverfish and firebrats. Unlike most strepsipterans, the adult female is fre...
Sisyphus Dung Beetle
Sisyphus schaefferi
A small, black roller dung beetle with very long, slender hind legs adapted for ball rolling. Named after the mythologic...
Slant-faced Grasshopper
Acrida ungarica
A striking grasshopper with an elongated, cone-shaped head and long antennae. It can be green or brown depending on habi...
Slave-Making Ant
Formica sanguinea
A facultative slave-making ant that raids colonies of other Formica species to steal pupae. The stolen brood hatches and...
Sloe Bug
Dolycoris baccarum
A medium-sized, purplish-brown shield bug with distinctive black and white banded antennae and a hairy body. It is commo...
Small Copper
Lycaena phlaeas
A vivid little butterfly with burnished copper-orange forewings spotted with black. It is feisty and territorial for its...
Small Emerald Moth
Hemistola chrysoprasaria
A small, delicate moth with uniformly pale green wings and fine white fringe. It is one of the daintiest European emeral...
Snowy Tree Cricket
Oecanthus fultoni
A pale green, delicate tree cricket known as the 'thermometer cricket.' Its chirp rate correlates precisely with air tem...
Socotra Island Blue Butterfly
Azanus socotranus
A small blue butterfly endemic to Socotra Island in the Indian Ocean. Males have bright blue upperwings while females ar...
Socotran Emperor Butterfly
Charaxes balfouri
An endemic butterfly found only on the island of Socotra in the Indian Ocean. Part of the islands extraordinary 42% inse...
South African Argid Sawfly
Arge capensis
A medium-sized dark sawfly found in the fynbos and bushveld regions of South Africa. Adults have robust bodies and simpl...
South African Robber Fly
Alcimus tristrigatus
A large, hairy robber fly endemic to southern Africa's fynbos and savanna. It perches conspicuously on shrubs while scan...
Southern Dogface
Zerene cesonia
Yellow butterfly with a pointed forewing showing a poodle-dog-face pattern in black. Males have a warm orange flush on t...
Southern Festoon
Zerynthia polyxena
A strikingly patterned butterfly with yellow wings marked with black zigzags and red spots. It is one of Europe's earlie...
Spanish Festoon
Zerynthia rumina
A brightly patterned butterfly with zigzag black markings and red and yellow patches on its wings. It is a spring-flying...
Spanish Stick Insect
Leptynia hispanica
A small, slender European stick insect found across the Iberian Peninsula. It is one of the few phasmids native to Europ...
Splendid Ochre
Trapezites petalia
A moderately large skipper butterfly with bright orange uppersides and mottled brown undersides. Males perch conspicuous...
Spotted Flower Chafer
Protaetia morio
A matt black scarab beetle with scattered white spots on its elytra. It feeds on flowers and ripe fruit in Mediterranean...
Spotted Jezebel
Delias aganippe
A boldly patterned butterfly with black-bordered white wings and red-spotted undersides. It is the most widespread Delia...
Spring Dor Beetle
Geotrupes vernalis
A medium-sized, metallic blue-green to violet dung beetle active in spring. Unlike other dor beetles, the metallic color...
Springbok Mantis
Miomantis caffra
A small bright green mantis native to southern Africa that has become invasive in New Zealand. Females are notorious for...
Subarctic Flesh Fly
Sarcophaga nigriventris
A medium-sized gray fly with black longitudinal stripes on the thorax and a checkered abdomen. Unlike most flies, female...
Sumac Flea Beetle
Blepharida rhois
A relatively large flea beetle with a mottled brown and tan pattern providing excellent camouflage on sumac bark. Despit...
Sunny Stick Insect
Sungaya inexpectata
A small, chunky stick insect covered in short spines and tubercles, native to the Philippines. It is popular in captivit...
Superb Ant-hill Hoverfly
Xanthogramma pedissequum
A striking yellow-and-black hoverfly that mimics a wasp. Larvae develop inside ant nests where they feed on root aphids ...
Svalbard Rove Beetle
Atheta islandica
A tiny, dark brown rove beetle found in some of the most northerly terrestrial habitats on Earth. It shelters in bird ne...
Table Mountain Ghost Frog Assassin Bug
Reduvius tabulensis
A rare assassin bug found only on Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa. It preys on small invertebrates among the f...
Tangle-veined Fly
Nemestrina longirostris
A fly with an extraordinarily long proboscis for feeding from deep tubular flowers....
Tarantula Hawk
Pepsis grossa
A giant wasp that hunts tarantulas. The female paralyzes a tarantula with her sting, drags it to a burrow, and lays an e...
Teratembiid Web Spinner
Teratembia geniculata
A small web spinner found in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It has distinctively bent hind femora u...
Texas Unicorn Mantis
Phyllovates chlorophaea
A medium-sized green mantis with a distinctive horn-like process on its head. It is found in the southern United States ...
Thread-winged Antlion Lacewing
Croce filipennis
A bizarre nemopterid with extremely long, thread-like hindwings. Males have hindwings that can be several times their bo...
Thread-Winged Lacewing
Nemoptera sinuata
An unmistakable insect with elongated, ribbon-like hindwings that trail behind in flight. Found in dry Mediterranean hab...
Tyrannophasma gladiator
Tyrannophasma gladiator
A South African heelwalker named for its fierce predatory habits. Males drum their abdomens on plant stems to communicat...
Valenzuela Barklouse
Valenzuela flavidus
A common yellowish barklouse found on a wide range of trees and shrubs. It is one of the most abundant psocids in temper...
Velvet Tree Ant
Liometopum occidentale
A large ant that nests in oak trees and produces a distinctive trail pheromone odor....
Vietnamese Stick Insect
Medauroidea extradentata
A large, smooth-bodied stick insect commonly kept as a pet and used in school biology classes. It reproduces readily thr...
Villa Bee Fly
Villa hottentotta
A striking bee fly with dark-tipped wings and a stout, densely hairy body. Its larvae are parasitoids of moth caterpilla...
Violet Cuckoo Wasp
Chrysis rutilans
A stunning cuckoo wasp with violet, purple, and green metallic hues across its body. It parasitizes mud-nesting wasps in...
Violin Mantis
Gongylus gongylodes
Named for its elongated prothorax resembling a violin neck. Has leaf-like lobes on all legs and a distinctive crown on i...
Wahlberg's Flower Mantis
Pseudocreobotra amarae
A small East African flower mantis with spiny projections on its abdomen and thorax. Its coloring ranges from white to g...
Wandering Violin Mantis
Gongylus gongyloides
An extremely bizarre-looking mantis with an elongated thorax, leaf-like appendages, and a violin-shaped body. It is one ...
Wax Scale
Ceroplastes destructor
A scale insect that covers itself with a thick waxy dome for protection....
Wax-Tailed Planthopper
Pterodictya reticularis
A Neotropical planthopper that produces long waxy tail filaments from its abdomen. These white wax strands may confuse p...
Western Banded Glowworm
Zarhipis integripennis
A North American glowworm beetle where the larviform female produces rows of greenish-yellow bioluminescent spots along ...
Western Large-headed Bee
Ctenocolletes smaragdinus
A metallic green bee endemic to Western Australia that belongs to the ancient family Stenotritidae. It nests in sandy so...
White-footed Ant
Technomyrmex difficilis
A small black ant with pale tarsi that forms enormous colonies numbering in the millions. It is a serious pest in Florid...
White-spotted Ichneumon
Compsocryptus texensis
A medium black ichneumon wasp with conspicuous white spots on the thorax and legs. It parasitizes spider egg sacs and ca...
Woodland Grasshopper
Omocestus rufipes
A small dark grasshopper with a distinctive red-tipped abdomen in both sexes. Found in warm sheltered spots....
Wroughton's Army Ant
Aenictus wroughtonii
A small reddish-brown army ant that conducts well-organized raids on termite mounds in tropical Asia. Workers are monomo...
Yemeni Conehead Mantis
Empusa mendicaria
A slender conehead mantis from the Arabian Peninsula with a well-developed head process. It inhabits dry wadis and acaci...