Last Saturday, I spied an interesting character on a pearl milkweed vine in our back yard. In years past, I've blogged about debris-carrying larvae of green lacewings. But THIS ONE would have won a trophy in a decorating contest! What caught my eye (and yours, too) is the bright yellow blob on its side. That's the carcass of an oleander aphid (Aphis nerii), which often infest milkweeds. The lacewing larva sucked the aphid dry, then stuck it on its back along with other insect leftovers and dead bits of foliage. Biologists believe that lacewing larvae disguise themselves like this to fool predators, including ants. I think they're funny looking.
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| See the larva's head and mandibles? |
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