Melting Snow

My Favorite "Bug" Isn't a Bug, It's a Beetle

Saturday, June 11, 2016

The "Blogging Circle of Friends "  prompt for Day 1305
EEWWW! You hate bugs! The NIA, The National Insect Association has asked you to give a speech on your favorite insect. Reluctantly, you agree. Which bug do choose and why?

Hate bugs could either be an understatement or an overstatement depending on the species of bug and the number of legs it possesses. Bugs seems to be a generic term referring to any creature with six or more legs that crawls or flies. Bugs can also define a virus of any type from a pathogen passed from living creature to living creature or from computer to computer. It can even refer to a problem with a computer program that has nothing to do with computer viruses. I don't like to use generic designations for anything because they don't express an idea in a precise manner.

Dictionary.com gives several definitions for bug1 depending on whether the term is used as a noun, a verb, a verb phrase, or an idiom. The definition for bug as a noun also give several informal definitions for the word.

Ask a Biologist2 true bugs3 have mouth parts called a proboscis which sucks juice from plants and, in some cases, animals4.

What is my favorite "bug"? My favorite "bug", the ladybug, isn't a true bug because it doesn't have a proboscis and, therefore, doesn't suck the juice of plants. The ladybug is a beetle5 because it is in the order of Coleoptera6 with a hard shell and wings. The proper name for the "ladybug" is the Lady Bird Beetle.7

Ten Fascinating Facts about Ladybugs8

Ladybugs are beetles and not bugs.
The Lady in the Ladybug's name refers the the Virgin Mary.
Ladybugs eat pests that destroy crops.
The markings and colors of ladybugs vary.
Ladybugs are attractive to humans, but not to ladybug predators.
The larvae of Ladybugs don't resemble their adult form.
These beautiful beetles hibernate.
Ladybugs are world citizens because they can be found all over the world.
Some species of Ladybugs eat plants instead of pests.
You can't tell the age of a ladybug by counting its spots.

Footnotes
1  http://www.dictionary.com/browse/bug
2  https://askabiologist.asu.edu/
3  https://askabiologist.asu.edu/explore/true-bugs
4  A bedbug is an example of a bug that sucks juices from animals.
5  https://theamericanscholar.org/a-bug-is-not-a-beetle/#.V1wvhJOo294
6  http://www.coleoptera.org/
7  http://www.bugs.org/bugquiz/answers/ladybugs.shtml
8  http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2015/06/26/ladybug-fact...