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Autohaemorrhage
Autohaemorrhaging, or reflex bleeding, is the action of animals deliberately ejecting blood from their bodies. Autohaemorrhaging has been observed as occurring in two variations. In the first form, blood is squirted toward a predator. The blood of these animals usually contains toxic compounds, making the behaviour an effective chemical defense mechanism. In the second form, blood is not squirted, but is slowly emitted from the animal's body. This form appears to serve a deterrent effect, and is used by animals whose blood does not seem to be toxic. Most animals that autohaemorrhage are insects, but some reptiles also display this behaviour. Some organisms have shown an ability to tailor their autohaemorrhaging response. Armoured crickets will projectile autohaemorrhage over longer distances when attacked from the side, compared to being attacked from an overhead predator. Insects Several orders of insects have been observed to utilize this defence mechanism. *Beetles **Meloid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Acanthoplus Discoidalis
''Acanthoplus discoidalis'' is a species in the Hetrodinae, a subfamily of the katydid family (Tettigoniidae). Like its closest relatives, ''Acanthoplus discoidalis'' variously bears common names such as armoured katydid, armoured ground cricket, armoured bush cricket, corn cricket, setotojane and . The species is native to parts of Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Note that the common names are characteristically misleading; the species is not closely related to true crickets and "katydids" which originally belonged to the unrelated subfamily Pseudophyllinae. Description ''Acanthoplus discoidalis'' is a wide-bodied, flightless species that typically grows to a body length of about 5 cm/1.95 inches. The pronotum bears several sharp, conical spines. The mandibles, or main biting jaws, are powerful; they can inflict a painful nip and they permit the insect to feed on material such as tough herbage or carrion. Another defense against predators is ref ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phrynosoma Orbiculare
The Mexican Plateau horned lizard (''Phrynosoma orbiculare'') is a species of horned lizard in the family Phrynosomatidae. The species, also known commonly as the Chihuahua Desert horned lizard, is endemic to Mexico. There are five recognized subspecies. The specific epithet, ''orbiculare'', comes from the Latin adjective ''orbis'', meaning "circular". Description ''P. orbiculare'' has a characteristic single row of lateral abdominal fringe scales. This "horned toad" also has two short occipital horns. Geographic range ''P. orbiculare'' is found only in the high plateau country of central Mexico. Specifically, it is found in the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Durango, Morelos, Nuevo León, Puebla, and Veracruz. Habitat ''P. orbiculare'' occurs in a wide range of primary habitats (dry scrubland, pine-oak forest, oak forest, juniper forest) and secondary habitats (agricultural land, and agave and ''Opuntia'' fields). Subspecies Five subspecies of ''P. orbiculare'' are recogni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prosapia Bicincta
''Prosapia bicincta'', the two-lined spittlebug, is a species of insect in the family Ischnorhinidae (formerly Cercopidae). Adults are black with two red or orange lines crossing the wings. It reaches a length of 8–10 mm. It is widespread in the eastern half of the United States. A similar species, ''Prosapia simulans'', can be found throughout Central America where it is considered an agricultural pest. Nymphs feed on various grasses (including Eremochloa ophiuroides, centipedegrass, Cynodon, bermudagrass and corn) from within foam (consisting of their own spittle) produced from juices of their host plant. Adults feed on the leaves of both native and introduced species of holly, as well as on the leaves of the Cercis canadensis, eastern redbud tree. It is a pest of forage grasses and turf grasses such as those grown for lawns and its consumption of these plants causes economic damage throughout the southeastern United States. Since 2016, ''P. bicincta'' has been assoc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Katydid
Insects in the family Tettigoniidae are commonly called katydids (especially in North America) or bush crickets. They have previously been known as "long-horned grasshoppers". More than 8,000 species are known. Part of the suborder Ensifera, the Tettigoniidae are the only extant (living) family in the superfamily Tettigonioidea. Many species are nocturnal in habit, having strident mating calls and may exhibit mimicry or camouflage, commonly with shapes and colours similar to leaves.[] Etymology The family name Tettigoniidae is derived from the genus ''Tettigonia'', of which the Tettigonia viridissima, great green bush cricket is the type species; it was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. In Latin ''tettigonia'' means a kind of small cicada, leafhopper; it is from the Greek τεττιγόνιον ''tettigonion'', the diminutive of the imitative ( onomatopoeic) τέττιξ, ''tettix'', cicada. All of these names such as ''tettix'' with repeated sounds are onomatopoeic, i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Milkweed
''Asclepias'' is a genus of herbaceous, perennial, flowering plants known as milkweeds, named for their latex, a milky substance containing cardiac glycosides termed cardenolides, exuded where cells are damaged. Most species are toxic to humans and many other species, primarily due to the presence of cardenolides. However, as with many such plants, some species feed upon milkweed leaves or the nectar from their flowers. A noteworthy feeder on milkweeds is the monarch butterfly, which uses and requires certain milkweeds as host plants for its larvae. The ''Asclepias'' genus contains over 200 species distributed broadly across Africa, North America, and South America. It previously belonged to the family Asclepiadaceae, which is now classified as the subfamily Asclepiadoideae of the dogbane family, Apocynaceae. The genus was formally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753, who named it after Asclepius, the Greek god of healing. Flowers Members of the genus produce some of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glycosides
In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. These can be activated by enzymatic, enzyme hydrolysis, which causes the sugar part to be broken off, making the chemical available for use. Many such plant glycosides are used as medications. Several species of ''Heliconius'' butterfly are capable of incorporating these plant compounds as a form of chemical defense against predators. In animals and humans, poisons are often bound to sugar molecules as part of their elimination from the body. In formal terms, a glycoside is any molecule in which a sugar group is bonded through its anomeric carbon to another group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides can be linked by an O- (an ''O-glycoside''), N- (a ''glycosylamine''), S-(a ''thioglycoside''), or C- (a ''C-glycoside'') glycosidic bond. Accord ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phymateus Leprosus
''Phymateus'' is a genus of fairly large grasshoppers of the family Pyrgomorphidae, native to shrubland, semi-deserts, savanna, woodland, gardens and cultivated areas in Sub-Saharan Africa, with ten species in the African mainland and two species in Madagascar. Some species have bright aposematic colours and are highly toxic. Description ''Phymateus'' are African grasshoppers that typically are about long as adults, with females generally being larger than males of the same species. Some species at maturity are capable of long migratory flights. They raise and rustle wings when disturbed and may secrete a noxious fluid from the thoracic joint.''Field Guide to Insects'' - Picker, Griffiths & Weaving (2004) Their toxins, which are accumulated from the toxic plants they feed on, can be very strong and there have been reported deaths in birds and mammals, including humans, after eating ''Phymateus'' grasshoppers. While they do show a preference for feeding on certain toxic plants, no ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phymateus Viridipes
''Phymateus viridipes'', also known as the green milkweed locust or African bush grasshopper, is an African locust in the family Pyrgomorphidae (gaudy grasshoppers). Body characteristics It is about long at maturity and capable of long migratory flights. Its body and fore-wings are green in colour while the hind-wings are bright red and blue, presenting a striking appearance in flight. The pronotum, or dorsal area immediately behind the head, is covered in spines or carbuncles which are often tipped with red. Development The Nymph (biology), nymphs or hoppers are bright yellow and black and highly gregarious, forming large groups during this growth stage and are more or less polyphagous. Behaviour As with other ''Phymateus'' species it raises and rustles its wings when disturbed and may Autohaemorrhaging, secrete a noxious fluid from its thoracic joint.''Field Guide to Insects'' - Picker, Griffiths & Weaving (2004) This locust feeds on highly toxic plants such as ''Acokant ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dictyophorus Spumans
''Dictyophorus spumans'', the koppie foam grasshopper, , or African foam grasshopper, is a species of grasshopper in the family Pyrgomorphidae indigenous to southern Africa. The name "foaming grasshopper" derives from the insect's ability to produce a toxic foam from its thoracic glands. The foam is created by a combination of hemolymph with air from the grasshopper's spiracles. Its genus '' Dictyophorus'' is closely related to ''Phymateus''. Adult males are typically long and females typically , but can grow up to a length of . The neck shield has a warty surface, and the grasshopper's colors are highly variable but usually with at least parts that are contrasting and bright. It is toxic due to the poisons that it sequesters from its diet, which includes a large number of toxic and distasteful plants such as milkweed ''Asclepias'' is a genus of herbaceous, perennial, flowering plants known as milkweeds, named for their latex, a milky substance containing cardiac glycoside ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orthoptera
Orthoptera () is an order of insects that comprises the grasshoppers, locusts, and crickets, including closely related insects, such as the bush crickets or katydids and wētā. The order is subdivided into two suborders: Caelifera – grasshoppers, locusts, and close relatives; and Ensifera – crickets and close relatives. More than 20,000 species are distributed worldwide. The insects in the order have incomplete metamorphosis, and produce sound (known as a " stridulation") by rubbing their wings against each other or their legs, the wings or legs containing rows of corrugated bumps. The tympanum, or ear, is located in the front tibia in crickets, mole crickets, and bush crickets or katydids, and on the first abdominal segment in the grasshoppers and locusts. These organisms use vibrations to locate other individuals. Grasshoppers and other orthopterans are able to fold their wings (i.e. they are members of Neoptera). Etymology The name is derived from the Gree ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
