Connected on 2011-06-15 10:00:00 from Harris, Texas, United States
- 9:07am
- Bugscope Team almost pumped down...
- Bugscope Team we will start making presets in a sec
- 9:13am
- 9:19am
- 9:24am
- 9:29am
- 9:35am
- Teacher Hi, I am logging on for our younger campers --- 5 and 6 year olds. The teachers plan on having them in two groups.
- Teacher They may not take the entire hour and a half because of their attention span. :)
- 9:41am
- Bugscope Team ok sounds good
- 9:55am
- Teacher FYI they may be a little late they are pond dipping right now but I am off to get them.
- Bugscope Team ok we will be here
- 10:00am
- Teacher They should be arriving in about 15 minutes. Thanks so much!
- 10:11am
- Bugscope Team let us know if you have any questions, but I'm sure you will be fine
- Teacher Hi! We're here :)
- Bugscope Team hi everyone!
- Teacher Charlotte asks "what is it?"
Bugscope Team this is a caddisfly larva head. These live in the water
- Bugscope Team they eat other insects, and can breathe in the water. the adult version of these can fly
- Teacher Jacob asks "what is the fuzz in the mouth for?"
Bugscope Team it does have a fuzzy mouth. There are hairs in there, maybe to help keep out things it doesn't want to eat
- Bugscope Team like dirt
- 10:18am
- Teacher Emilia asks "why is it covered in hair?'
Bugscope Team the hairs help it feel what is going on around it. They dont have sensitive skin like we do. Their 'skin' is more like a suit of armor. The hairs are connected to nerves underneath that allow it to feel or taste/smell
- Teacher Bryan asks "where are the eyes?"
Bugscope Team usually if there are eyes on a larva, they are very simple and don't see well. This larva doesn't have any at all!
- Teacher cool! no eyes!
- Bugscope Team they probably wait for insects to hit it, and then it snatches it and tastes it to see if the insect it grabbed is what it wants. That is only a guess on my part though
- Bugscope Team spiders have simple eyes as well that they don't see well out. They mostly feel for vibrations in their web
- Bugscope Team this is a spiracle. It is a breathing hole. they don't breathe out of their mouths like we do
- 10:24am
- Teacher Is this where the smell comes from?
Bugscope Team no, stink bugs actually don't like their stinky smell, so it wouldn't be anywhere they would breath most likely. The little hairs in the hole are kind of like nose hairs- they keep out unwanted particles
- Bugscope Team here is a junebug with some aphids stuck to its face
- 10:30am
- Bugscope Team they have some clubbed antennae- they look like putters for mini golf
- Teacher Finn says "it looks like an alien!"
Bugscope Team yes there are some very alien looking insects
- Bugscope Team these can be found all over fruit trees in the summer
- 10:37am
- Bugscope Team these are thought to produce the smell
- Teacher wow!
- Teacher what kind of chemical comes from the glands?
Bugscope Team there are 2 aldehydes that separately are used in the food industry to add flavor and aroma to products! But together when emitted from the stink bug will give a powerfully bad odor
- Teacher Ali says "YUCK!"
- 10:43am
- Bugscope Team these are individual scales from a moth wing. They are the same soft powder that comes off when you rub their wings
- Teacher Is this from the wing?
Bugscope Team yes
- Bugscope Team here is a fruit fly. They kind of look like they are wearing gas masks.
- Teacher roars of laughter from the class on this one! We like him!
- Bugscope Team the eyes are the bulging parts on the side of the head. The top of the head has those furry pads- those are the antennae. The mouth is the part in the lower part of the image
- Teacher Are there hairs on his eyes?
Bugscope Team yes there are. The hairs on the eyes are responsible for helping tell the fly the direction of the wind currents so it can fly better
- 10:50am
- Bugscope Team here is a mosquito. the eyes are the parts that cover almost the entire head!
- Bugscope Team The long thing is the part that bites into you
- Teacher wow! Scott says "it looks like little seed things on it."
Bugscope Team those are scales if we are looking at the same things
- Teacher they look like seeds with hairs coming off of them
Bugscope Team yeah there are scales and hairs on their bodies
- 10:55am
- Teacher thank you so much Ms Cate!!! I think I've surpassed the attention span of 5 & 6 yr olds :)
- Teacher We have had so much fun looking through your microscope!!!
- Bugscope Team heh ok. Thanks for using Bugscope this morning. Will there be any more groups today?
- Teacher 1 sec, let me check
- Teacher Nope, we are it. No more groups today.
- Teacher Thanks again.
- Bugscope Team thanks for all the great questions
- Bugscope Team and commentary :)
- Bugscope Team chat and images can be found on your member page: https://bugscope.beckman.illinois.edu/members/2011-011
