The mystery of the white lacewing
Very often as I follow the insects and other small creatures in my backyard, I come across a mystery. These aren’t truly mysteries, as I’m sure someone knows the answer, but in my research I am unable to find an answer as to why things are.
Take for example, this lacewing that I found recently in my backyard.
This lacewing appears to be dead. It has grown pale white and has some ’stuff’ on it. In cases like this, I do not know truly what has happened but I can comment on what I have observed.
First, it appears that the time of year does not affect when this phenomenon occurs. The picture above was taken on October 25th. The following picture was taken on April 23rd.
This appears to be the same phenomenon and the same type of insect. It also occurred in very nearly the same place in the yard - a large rhodendron bush on the size of our house. Also, both subjects were around the same height - about five feet from the ground. However, it’s likely that I just happened to look in the same spot.
I believe that this is a lacewing - though I have wrongly identified insects a number of times before.
So if anyone has any ideas with this mystery, please let me know!
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Tags: entomology, lacewing, macro, mystery, photography, white
This is an insect that we use to stump the students in some of the Entomology classes I’ve taught. Most students have a tough time even figuring out what order it belongs to, because the wing venation is much reduced compared with more “typical” members of the order.
But you’ve nailed it. It is a lacewing of sorts, in the family Coniopterygidae. They white coating is a wax produced by the insect itself.