Mating fly

(Jurong Woods - 9 Oct 2008)

A dewy black ant

(Wild Wild West - 4 Oct 2010)

A strange bug

(2 Oct 2010)

Fresh Water Forest Crab

(Upper Peirce Forest - 20 Sep 2010)

Leaf Insect (Phyllium sp.)

The Leaf Insect, as its name implies, is a green insect with a leaflike appearance.  They are also referred to as the "Walking Leaf". They are about 2 to 4 inches long and feed on the leaves of plants and trees.  I have not seen the adult leaf insect but my friend, Allan Lee, spotted one at Pasir Ris Park not too long ago (see below).

(Image taken by my friend, Allan Lee - May 2010 )

The eggs of the leaf insect are normally just scattered on the ground.  They resemble various types of seeds to prevent the eggs from being eaten. When the eggs are first hatched, the baby insects are a deep red colour.  After about 2 days, they would change to brownish yellow.  Subsequently, about 2 weeks later, the nymphs would start to turn green after they started feeding on leaves.

(Upper Peirce - 20 Sep 2010)

I was fortunately to have spotted this nymph leaf insect at Upper Peirce.    It was about 2 cm long with a very nice leaf-liked abdomen.   This has to be one of the most ususual insects that I have seen so far!

(Side View)

Long Horned Grasshopper

Family : Tettigonidae

A nymph of a Long-horned Grasshopper (1.5cm)

(Jurong Woods II - 15 Aug 2010)

An unusual Praying Mantis

(Tagore Forest - 6 Sep 2010)

Tiger Beetle

Tiger Beetle has been on my wishlist for a long time.  During my previous macro outing to Upper Seletar Reservior where we found quite a no. of tiger beetles at a sandy playground, I did not get any nice shots as they are very active.  Tiger beetles are not called the "fastest land insect in the world" for nothing!

(Front View - Upper Seletar Reservior, 18 Aug 2010)

Accordingly to Yan Leong, it is best to prone down flat on the ground to have nice eye-level shots.  Also, to have a higher success rate of capturing this super active insect, it is necessary to fix a 1.4TC so that you do not need to go too near to scare away the sensitive tiger beetle.  I followed this advice and was rewarded with a decent frontal and side view of this beauty.

(Side view - Upper Seletar Reservior, 18 Aug 2010)

(YL demonstrating how to shoot a tiger beetle)

ID Required!

(Venus Drive - 27 Dec 2009)

ID Required

(Upper Peirce - 23 Dec 2009)

Mosquitoes

(Dairy Farm - 23 Sep 2009)

Wasp? ID required!

(Choa Chu Kang Ave 5 - 19 Sep 2009)

Unusual Insect - ID required!

This is my first encounter of this strange insect spotted at Jurong Woods II.  A cooperative bug that allowed me to take many shots of it.  If you know the ID, please let me know.

(Jurong Woods II - 31 July 2010) 

Bee - ID required

(Kranji Nature Trail - 16 May 10)

Molting - ID required

(Wild Wild West - 25 Oct 09)

Black Ant

This was an ant that had just woken up and was doing some stretching exercise.

(Wild Wild West - 21 Mar 10)

True Bugs

(Diary Farm Nature Reserve - 27 Feb 10)

Metallic Wood-boring Beetle

Family : Buprestidae
Name : Belionota Prasina

The Metallic Wood-boring beetles are among the most handsome insects in the world. The beauty of their metallic hard chitin has inspired artists and provides a constant inspiration for designers of jewelery and embroidery!

Based on the coloration, it could be Belionota prasina, a very common jewel beetle,frequently seen on the bark of kapok and casuarina trees. This is a small beetle that measures about 2.5cm.

(Dorsal View - Upper Pierce Forest)


(Side view - Upper Pierce Forest)

A species of the Shield or Stink Bug?

(Mandai Orchid Garden - 17 Apr 10)

Soldier Fly

Red Hopper

(Venus Drive - 11 Apr 08)

Weevil

(Bukit Timah Bicycle Trail - 30 Apr 09)

Wasp

(Chestnut Ave - 1 Aug 09)

Cotton Stainer Bug (Dysdercus Decussatus)

A widespread species which feeds on the seeds of Hibiscus Tiliaceus. Adults are about 12 mm in length and may be found under leaves, gathering in large numbers.

(Singapore Botanical Gardens - 19 Aug 09)

Praying Mantis

The praying mantis is named for its prominent front legs, which are bent and held together at an angle that suggests the position of prayer. The larger group of these insects is more properly called the praying mantids. Praying Mantis.

Praying Mantis are formidable predators. They have triangular heads poised on a long "neck," or elongated thorax. Mantids can turn their heads 180 degrees to scan their surroundings with two large compound eyes and three other simple eyes located between them.

(Chestnut Ave - 28 Apr 2010)

Typically green or brown and well camouflaged on the plants among which they live, mantis lie in ambush or patiently stalk their quarry. They use their front legs to snare their prey with reflexes so quick that they are difficult to see with the naked eye. Their legs are further equipped with spikes for snaring prey and pinning it in place.

(Diary Farm Nature Reserve - 26 Apr 2010)

Moths, crickets, grasshoppers, flies, and other insects are usually the unfortunate recipients of unwanted mantid attention. However, the insects will also eat others of their own kind. The most famous example of this is the notorious mating behavior of the adult female, who sometimes eats her mate just after—or even during—mating. Yet this behavior seems not to deter males from reproduction.

(Dairy Farm Nature Reserve - 7 Sep 2009)

Females regularly lay hundreds of eggs in a small case, and nymphs hatch looking much like tiny versions of their parents.

(Venus Drive - 20 Nov 2009)

Common Housefly

(Daily Farm Nature Reserve - 8 Nov 09)

Shield Bug (Pycanum Rubens)

(Adult - Kranji Nature Trail, 16 May 09)


(Juvenile - Singapore Botanical Gardens, 18 Apr 09)

Leaf Hopper

(Kranji Nature Trail - 16 May 09)

Neriid Fly (Telostylinus Lineolatus)

(Venus Drive - 27 May 09)

Robberfly

I have seen 6 robberfly species in Singapore so far but only managed to capture 3 of them. The most common ones are image 1st 2 images below:


(Venus Drive)


(Wild Wild West - 17 Oct 09)


(Choa Chu Kang Ave 5)

Grasshoppers

These are 3 of the most common grasshoppers that can be easily found in most bushes. I would usually give it a miss unless they are covered with dews, mating or 2-in-1.

(Choa Chu Kang Ave 5 - 19 Sep 09)

(Holland Woods - 14 Apr 10)

(Holland Woods - 14 Apr 10)

(Old Jurong Road Canal - 8 Aug 2010)

Snail Mating

I have never seen snails mating before, so when I saw a pair having an intimate moment, my guess was that "This Is It"!


(Wild Wild West - 10 Nov 09)

My friend didn't think so and told me that, like most animals, the male would climb on top of the female snail to mate. Not convinced, I searched the internet and found these interesting facts:

How to differentiate Male from Female Snail?

There is no male or female snail because they are all both! Snails are hermaphrodites which means that each individual processes both male and female reproductive organs. It can produce sperms and eggs at the same time. In some rare cases, self fertilization are possible but normally mating is between two individuals of the same species. To fertilize the eggs, the snails would exchange sperms with each other. After mating, both become pregnant and go off separate way and lay fertilized eggs in nests dug out of moist soil.

Why do snails have both reproductive organs?

Because of its slowness, the snail needs much time to move in a very small area. So the chances to meet a mating partner are too low to divide them even further by two sexes to choose from! Having both reproductive organs increase their mating chances i.e. they can mate with any snails of the right species.

How do snails mate?

When two snails mate, each snail presses the front part of its foot against the foot of the other snail. The snails shoot a hard dart into each other (see close-up image below) which makes sperms pass between them. However, a single snail can do all this by itself!

Tapered Head Hopper

(Jurong Woods - 16 Jan 2010)