For this Bug of the Week, I've posted a picture of one of my favorite insects. Do you know what it is? If you can ID it, submit your answer by posting a comment below. You have until next Tuesday to do so. Don't forget to read the clues, which I've posted in the forum. Next Wednesday, I'll give you the correct answer, as well as another challenge.

Last week, I posted a photo of the elder borer (Desmocerus palliatus), or elderberry borer, as it's also known. As you might guess from the common name, this beetle bores into elderberry, its larval host plant. Congratulations to Moni for the correct identification.

_{Photo: Cheryl Moorehead, individual, Bugwood.org}

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Many millions of years ago, the first winged insects realized they had a problem. While their wings gave them some definite advantages (going airborne was a good way to avoid predators and pursue prey), they were rather cumbersome to slog around on land. Wings were a bit of a drag (literally) when an insect tried to run. They tended to get caught on vegetation, and forget about squeezing into a crack or crevice with those things sticking out from your body on either side. Clearly, wings were a step in the right direction, but not quite a finished product.

Cover image courtesy of Amateur Entomologists' Society

Thanks to the remarkable problem-solving mechanism we call evolution, most insects today can fold their wings over their bodies when not in use. How they do it varies a bit, depending on the type of insect. Insect wings contain no muscle whatsoever - they're made up of cuticle - so the biomechanics of insect wing-folding are surprisingly complex. And that's the point of a cool new activity book published by the Amateur Entomologists' Society (AES), called How do insects fold and unfold their wings: an activity book.

In this 18-page booklet, you learn about wing-folding systems by making origami models. What a clever idea! Dr. Robin Wootton (University of Exeter), who authored the booklet, studied insect flight for 35 years. He notes the unique ways different insects solved this engineering problem. Cockroaches, rove beetles, stick insects, and earwigs all evolved with folding wings, though their folding methods differ.

You can order a copy of How do insects fold and unfold their wings: an activity book from the AES for just £4.92.

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Did you know...

Click beetles are so named for the loud clicking sound they make when they attempt to right themselves. Should a click beetle wind up on its back, it snaps its thoracic segments sharply, creating enough momentum to flip itself over. The click beetle is unique among beetles for having a flexible juncture between the prothorax and mesothorax, enabling them to fling themselves in the air when stranded.

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This Bug of the Week should be fairly easy to identify, with its bold markings and well-defined shape. If you're having trouble, try reading the clues I've posted in the forum. You have until next Tuesday to post your ID of this insect in a comment. Next Wednesday, I'll give a shout out to anyone who answers correctly, as well as another challenge.

The butterfly I posted last week was a tricky one. The Juvenal's duskywing (Erynnis juvenalis) is common in oak forests of eastern North America, and that's just where I photographed this one. Congratulations to Moni for answering correctly.

_{Steven Katovich, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org}

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Have a bug question? Visit the Insects Forum
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