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Photo#55996
lacewing larvae?

lacewing larvae?
Dallas, Collin County, Texas, USA
June 5, 2005
I suspect this is a lacewing larvae with debris but I thought it was hysterical because you can clearly see the dead ants he has collected as camouflage topped off by one very good ant head! Also, the larvae's head and pinchers are clearly visible here as well. It is a lacewing larvae, right? Love this site and I'm learning a lot! Thanks.

Moved
Moved from Green Lacewings.

brown lacewing
On further reading, I believe this is a brown lacewing larvae, sometimes referred to as a "trash bug" because some varieties collect and camouflage themselves with dead bugs and bug parts (yuk!). I did release him back to the garden, however, because he also eats aphids and other destructive garden pests. What a funny little "bugger"!

 
No, green lacewing:-)
Actually, brown lacewing larvae never carry debris like this. They don't possess the spiny tuberacles that larvae of green lacewings do, to which the debris adheres in large part. So, this is a green lacewing larva. Neat image, thanks for sharing.

 
Thanks, Eric
Eric - Thanks for your response. I think the following link to U. of Ky. dept. was where I read this would be a brown lacewing. Brown or green, my children were very entertained and interested in learning about this funny little creature (which they rescued in the nick of time from the family cat!). I leave the ID to you and the other experts and I thank you for helping solve this mystery for us! We are having fun learning here.

http://www.uky.edu/Ag/CritterFiles/casefile/insects/lacewings/lacewings.htm#brown

 
This one is a kick!
It reminds me of the opening credits of "Beverly Hillbillies", with the truck all loaded up. Thanks for a chuckle!

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