A neighbor gave me a jar of these Eastern Ash Bark Beetles (Hylesinus aculeatus) for ID. Apparently there were hundreds on the windows of the garage where they stored firewood. The beetles were dead having been "RAID-ed".
A couple of beetles had a a couple of Varroa Mites attached to the elytra, anchored by the blue thread at their rear end.
These mites are parasites on insects and one species is especially damaging to honey bees.
Mite: BHS 10x SPlan Apo + 1.25x intermediate lens + 2.5x NFK relay lens; polarization 6µ frames, ZS PMax.
NU12067
NU12068
NU.
student of entomology
Quote – Holmes on ‘Entomology’
” I suppose you are an entomologist ? “
” Not quite so ambitious as that, sir. I should like to put my eyes on the individual entitled to that name.
No man can be truly called an entomologist,
sir; the subject is too vast for any single human intelligence to grasp.”
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr
The Poet at the Breakfast Table.
Nikon camera, lenses and objectives
Olympus microscope and objectives
Thanks Mitch.
Not a scale bug but a Varroa Mite.
That blue thread (colourless under BF) is used to attach the mite to the host.
It is actually longer than shown, I had to break it to remove the mite from the beetle. You can see it as a white thread in the beetle image. It is a really tough thread.
NU.
student of entomology
Quote – Holmes on ‘Entomology’
” I suppose you are an entomologist ? “
” Not quite so ambitious as that, sir. I should like to put my eyes on the individual entitled to that name.
No man can be truly called an entomologist,
sir; the subject is too vast for any single human intelligence to grasp.”
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr
The Poet at the Breakfast Table.
Nikon camera, lenses and objectives
Olympus microscope and objectives
