Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Leaf-footed bug - Acanthocephala terminalis


Large odd bug, originally uploaded by imarsman.

Here's a fun bug, large for Ontario. It's a Leaf-footed bug, one of a large variety of related bugs that suck juices from plants. It's a bug in the truest sense of the word, being of the sub-order Heteroptera, having a sucking part, six legs, and other features, along with having a nymph phase rather than a true metamorphosis. 

I had a bit of a hard time getting good shots of this individual. In typical avoidance fashion, it kept on moving away from the camera, hiding on the underside of the leaf. At this small scale, gravity is less of a consideration, certainly less of a hindrance.