previousindexnext   
  ABC > Home > THE FAUNA PROJECT > Survey March 12, 2015


The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Fauna Project

This week's survey was conducted by six participants under mostly cloudy, cool and windy conditions. There are a number of different species of lady beetles, or ladybugs, in our area. They are often orange or red, but the familiar black spots are not a universal feature, as shown in the comparison below. By the way, the introduced Multi-colored Asian Lady Beetle lives up to its name; it can be almost any shade from yellow to red and have any number of spots, including zero.

Select Photos and Complete List of Sightings:


Unknown sp. (long-legged flies, male on female)
photo by Val Bugh


Paracantha sp. (fruit fly)
photo by Barbara Ribble


Unknown sp. (root maggot fly)
photo by Val Bugh


Copestylum marginatum (flower fly)
photo by Val Bugh


Walshomyia sabinae (gall midge larva in gall on juniper)
photo by Val Bugh


Camponotus festinatus (carpenter ants, major worker
with minor worker in background)
photo by Dan Zinn


Draeculacephala sp. (leafhopper)
photo by Val Bugh


Harmonia axyridis & Cycloneda munda
(multi-colored Asian lady beetle & native species with no common name)
photo by Val Bugh


Psaphida resumens (figure-eight sallow)
photo by Val Bugh


Phigalia titea (the halfwing)
photo by Barbara Ribble


Lycia ypsilon (woolly gray)
photo by Barbara Ribble


Orthonama obstipata (the gem, male)
photo by Val Bugh


Orthonama obstipata (the gem, female)
photo by Val Bugh


Ellabella melanoclista (tropical fruitworm moth)
photo by Val Bugh


Unknown sp. (moth)
photo by Barbara Ribble


Xysticus sp. (crab spider)
photo by Val Bugh


Lynx rufus (bobcat track)
photo by Val Bugh


Canis latrans (coyote track)
photo by Val Bugh

  • Birds:
    Bewick's Wren (Thryomanes bewickii)
    Black-crested Titmouse (Baeolophus atricristatus)
    Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe)
    Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus)
    Greater Roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus)
    House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus)
    Ladder-backed Woodpecker (Picoides scalaris)
    Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus psaltria)
    Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)
    Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
    Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos)
    Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)
    Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)
    White-winged Dove (Zenaida asiatica)
    Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo)

  • Mammals:
    Eastern Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger)
    Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus)
    Coyote (Canis latrans), fresh tracks
    Bobcat (Lynx rufus), fresh tracks
    White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus), fresh tracks

  • Reptiles:
    Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans)
    Eastern Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta picta)

  • Misc.:
    Julid Millipede (Aniulus sp.)
    Garden Snail (Otala lactea)

  • Insects & Spiders:
    orderfamilygenus/speciescommon name

    lepidoptera  nymphalidae  Vanessa atalanta  Red Admiral
      noctuidae  Galgula partita  The Wedgling
        Psaphida resumens  Figure-eight Sallow
        Spodoptera ornithogalli  Yellow-striped Armyworm Moth
        Morrisonia mucens  Moth
        Psychomorpha epimenis  Grapevine Epimenis
      erebidae  Aon noctuiformis  Moth
        Caenurgina erechtea  Forage Looper Moth
      nolidae  Meganola minuscula  Confused Meganola
      geometridae  Synchlora frondaria  Southern Emerald
        Orthonama obstipata  The Gem
        Phigalia titea  The Halfwing
        Phigalia strigataria  Small Phigalia
        Lycia ypsilon  Woolly Gray
        Tornos scolopacinaria  Dimorphic Gray
      crambidae  Udea rubigalis  Celery Leaftier Moth
        Nomophila nearctica  Lucerne Moth
      tortricidae  Chimoptesis pennsylvaniana  Filigreed Moth
        Cudonigera houstonana  Juniper Budworm (larva)
      lacturidae  Lactura sp.  Moth
      elachistidae  Ethmia semilugens  Ethmia Moth
      copromorphidae  Ellabella melanoclista  Tropical Fruitworm Moth
      tineidae  Unknown sp.  Moth

    coleoptera  chrysomelidae  Diabrotica undecimpunctata  Spotted Cucumber Beetle
      coccinellidae  Coccinella septempunctata  Seven-spotted Lady Beetle
        Harmonia axyridis  Multi-colored Asian Lady Beetle
        Cycloneda munda  Lady Beetle

    homoptera  aphididae  Unknown sp.  Aphid
      cicadellidae  Neokolla dolobrata  Leafhopper
        Draeculacephala sp.  Leafhopper

    hymenoptera  apidae  Apis mellifera  Honey Bee
      formicidae  Solenopsis invicta  Imported Fire Ant
        Camponotus festinatus  Carpenter Ant
      ichneumonidae  Unknown sp.  Ichneumon

    diptera  tipulidae  Tipula sp.  Crane Fly
      cecidomyiidae  Walshomyia sabinae  Gall Midge (larva)
      anthomyiidae  Unknown sp.  Root Maggot Fly
      tephritidae  Paracantha sp.  Fruit Fly
      syrphidae  Toxomerus marginatus  Flower Fly
        Copestylum marginatum  Flower Fly
      dolichopodidae  Unknown sp.  Long-legged Fly

    orthoptera  acrididae  Chortophaga viridifasciata  Northern Green-striped Grasshopper (nymph)

    araneae  lycosidae  Unknown sp.  Wolf Spider
        Rabidosa rabida  Rabid Wolf Spider
      thomisidae  Xysticus sp.  Crab Spider
      tetragnathidae  Tetragnatha laboriosa  Silver Longjawed Orbweaver

previousindexnext   
  ABC > Home > THE FAUNA PROJECT > Survey March 12, 2015