Connected on 2010-02-03 10:00:00
from Latexo, TX, US
- 9:01 am
- Bugscope Teampumping down, waiting for vacuum. at 1.8
- Bugscope Teamhi
- Bugscope Teamwelcome to bugscope
- Bugscope Teamhi
- Teacheryep, i see you
- Bugscope TeamHello!
- Bugscope TeamOh.....
- Bugscope TeamHi!
- Bugscope TeamO.k.
- Bugscope TeamMy name is Jungkoo Kang
- Bugscope TeamI am an entomology-grad student.
- Bugscope TeamYes!
- Bugscope TeamThank you. I need to get a candy bar right now.
- 9:06 am
- Bugscope TeamAha!
- Bugscope TeamIs this a specimen from students?
- Bugscope Teamno these are all from our collection
- Bugscope TeamOh. my god...
- Bugscope TeamI love this machine.
- 9:12 am
- Bugscope TeamTracey, we are setting up presets now
- Bugscope TeamPresets are interesting places that Tracey can click on any time and the scope will move to that location
- TeacherOk
- Teacher5th grade students will be watching as well. So any information about what we are seeing would be appreciated.
- Bugscope TeamO.k.
- Bugscope TeamOh yeah, totally, we will be chatting about what you are seeing
- Bugscope TeamNormally the teacher would ask all kinds of questions
- Bugscope Teamand students that are logged in would ask questions too
- Bugscope Teambut if it's only Tracey logged in, then we can try to just chat more about what we are seeing on the screen
- TeacherOh we will have lots of questions. We have been studying adaptations of insects.
- Bugscope Teambecause we don't want her to have to type 10 questions every second!
- Bugscope TeamSounds great. We will try to answer every question
- Bugscope TeamAlso, make sure to note your bugscope member page. This will contain all the chat and images from today's session, Tracey and her students can review that page anytime after the session is done: http://bugscope.beckman.illinois.edu/members/2009-160
- 9:18 am
- Bugscope TeamWe knew that you wanted to image/study parasites, but we don't really have what we think of as parasites right now. (Such as parastic wasps that inject eggs into caterpillars.) So we will be able to answer some questions but we are sorry that we do not have good physical/viewable examples right now.
- Bugscope Teamof course aphids like these are thought of as plant parasites
- Bugscope Teamcornicle!
- Bugscope TeamWoow!
- Bugscope TeamSad fly..
- TeacherWell to be honest I had not gotten far enough in my TEKS to get to the symbosis. So if we could view the features of the bugs that help them to survive in their environment would be great.
Bugscope TeamThat sounds great!
- Bugscope TeamLil J you can likely help identify these Hemiptera like this for example better than we can.
- 9:23 am
- Bugscope TeamI will try it.
- Bugscope TeamWe like, particularly, insects that are specialists at what they do, compared to, for example, crickets and roaches that are generalists.
- Bugscope TeamLil J what we are doing now is making the presets that run along the right side of the chat and are available to the Teacher to click on. Clicking on the thumbnails will drive the microscope to that place on the stub.
- Bugscope TeamThe session does not start officially until 10 a.m.
- Bugscope TeamPresently Tracey can chat with us but does not yet have control of the microscope because we are setting things up.
- Bugscope Teamhere is a generalist...
- Bugscope TeamI can see a pin hole!
Bugscope Teamoh yeah! how did that get there?
- Teacherone question: Do you have a gnat?
- Bugscope Teamnot sure -- we'll have to ask Cate what's on the stub this morning
- 9:28 am
- TeacherHoneybee stinger?
- Bugscope TeamWe don't have any honeybees today, sorry
- Bugscope Teamthis is someone else's stinger
- Bugscope Teamthis is a stinger/ovipositor from a parasitic wasp
- Bugscope Teamstingers are modified ovipositors
- Bugscope Teamand can sometimes serve both purposes
- Bugscope TeamTracey part of the deal is that in the dead of winter like this we do not have access to fresh samples, so we have to use what we have.
- 9:34 am
- Bugscope TeamCells in moth compound eyes look totally different from those in fly compound eyes!
Bugscope Teamyes they do. they seem to have another level of complexity.
- Bugscope Teamocelli!
- Bugscope TeamOh!
- Bugscope Teamstemmata!
- Bugscope Teamjuj
- Bugscope Teamu
- 9:39 am
- Bugscope TeamAdaptation.....
- Bugscope TeamIt is zen.
- Bugscope TeamGenetic mutation, genetic draft, adaptation,...
- Bugscope TeamLil J the school will be most interested in adaptations that each insect/arthropod has.
- Bugscope TeamO.k.
- Bugscope Teamthis caterpillar had an aphid on its back
- Bugscope Teamlooks like...
- 9:46 am
- TeacherWe are good with that. Here in Texas we still have quite a few insects still out. So, when we get really started can we use laymens terms?
- Bugscope Teamwe can try that -- some of the things we're talking about may not have common names, but we can explain what they do
- 9:52 am
- Bugscope TeamTracey we are ready to roll, as soon as you wish.
- Bugscope TeamYou now have control of the microscope.
- Bugscope Teamwe are not making a preset of this but it is a cool view of the inside of the June bug's antenna
- 9:58 am
- Bugscope Teamwe are ready anytime, let us know when you are
- 10:04 am
- Teachergenetic
- Bugscope TeamHi Tracey!
- Bugscope TeamWelcome to Bugscope!
- Bugscope TeamHello!
- Bugscope Teamthis is a housefly
- Bugscope TeamThis is the Head of a Fly
- Bugscope Teamusually we can tell the males from the females because the eyes in females are far apart, whereas those of males are close together
- Bugscope Teamand this is a spiracle
- Bugscope Team'doh
- Teacherok
- Bugscope Teamif you take the magnification down you can see where you are on the insect's body
- TeacherHello
- TeacherThank you
- Bugscope TeamHello!
- Bugscope TeamHello!
- Bugscope TeamPlease ask us any questions you have about what you are seeing
- Bugscope TeamWe are hear to help guide your Bugscope session
- Bugscope Teamhere, I mean
- Bugscope Teamcool!
- Bugscope Teamyou can see lots of tiny hairs called microsetae that are on the surface of the abdomen of this bug
- TeacherIs that hair around it?
Bugscope TeamWell, not hair like our hair. They are called setae (pronouced see-tee), they help it to sense their environment
- 10:10 am
- TeacherWhat is the purpose?
- Bugscope TeamLike air flow
- Bugscope Teamone seta, multiple setae
- Bugscope Teamsense of contact
- Bugscope Teamsome setae are known as chemosensory, which means that they can sense smells in the air
- Bugscope Teamthe very fine setae may not be connected to nerves; they may have other purposes
- TeacherCan germs or bacteria enter the spiracles
Bugscope Teamcertainly they could -- the openings are large enough. but there are often filter-like combs inside that help keep dust and perhaps bacteria out
- Bugscope TeamInsects have a hard outer shell, called an exoskeleton, and they can't feel anything with that. The setae, however, stick through the exoskeleton, to nerves underneath, and that's how it feels things, senses things...
- Bugscope TeamSetae can sense movement, taste, smells, wind, etc.
- Bugscope Teamyou can see the databar on the lower left side of the screen: it says 174 micrometers right now
- TeacherIs the setae hard or soft
Bugscope Teamsome of them are very hard, and some are more flexible; I would say that most of them are flexible to some extent
- Bugscope Teamrod-shaped bacteria -- the bacilli -- are usually about 2 micrometers long, so they would easily fit into the spiracle opening
- 10:15 am
- Bugscope Teamnow we see where we were. this is the abdomen -- the stomach, in a way -- of the true bug
- TeacherWhat is that located at the bottom?
Bugscope TeamWell, it's probably dirt or grime, we call stuff like that Juju.
Bugscope Teampiece of dirt or dust, we call it juju- stuff that isn't part of the insect
- Bugscope TeamTracey be sure to try some of the other presets so you get a chance to look at everything, if you would like
- Bugscope Teaminsects are often 'hairier' and dirtier than we would expect
- Bugscope TeamYou are doing great Tracey!
- TeacherWhat exactly is this
- Bugscope Teamthis is a haltere. that is a modified hindwing that moves opposite the beat of the wings
- Bugscope Teamnormally it would be rounded and plump, but it is dried
- TeacherWhat is it's purpose
Bugscope TeamIt helps to stabilize the insect during flight
- Bugscope Teamthe haltere balances the motion of the wings and keeps the insect stable in the air as it flies
- TeacherIs there teeth?
Bugscope TeamWell, not teeth like ours, but some have mandibles that will help insects to gather food into their mouth area. Ant's have mandibles. Flies, of course, puke on their food, which dissolves some of the insides of other bugs, and then they suck up the puke juice with their proboscis
- Bugscope Teamwhen we see those structures, which are quite small but heavy, we know we are looking at a fly
- Bugscope TeamNotice that setae are found almost everywhere on insects...
- 10:21 am
- Bugscope Teamthis is the tongue of the fly!
- Bugscope Teamflies like this spit on their food and suck up what dissolves in their saliva
- TeacherDo the setae on the tongue work the same
Bugscope TeamGreat question! The setae on the tongue are chemosensory, and they can sense taste, and smell!
- Bugscope Teamthe tongue is dried out as well, and it does not look as plump as it did when the fly was alive
- TeacherYes we studied how flies get their food and have all decided not to eat after a fly lands on our food!!
- Bugscope Teamsome of the setae on the tongue are touch sensitive, so the fly can feel what it is touching, but as Alex said, some are like tastebuds
- Bugscope Teamnow you can see the eyes, on either side of the head
- TeacherWhat are the dark parts on the head?
- Bugscope Teamand the bases of the antennae
- Bugscope Teamat the top, above the tongue, are two antennae, and one has part broken off
- Bugscope Teamthis is cool!
- 10:26 am
- Bugscope Teamnow we see taste buds again, and they are on a stalk called a 'palp'
- Bugscope Teamthose little fingerlike things are what this June bug uses to help taste what it might like to eat
- Bugscope Teamthe palp looks like a Jet engine
- Bugscope Teamyou can see there is a lot of dirt and stuff there as well
- TeacherAre we looking at the feet
Bugscope Teamthese are palps, they kind of look like legs, but they are mouth parts. They are used to help the insect move around food or to taste food
- Bugscope Teamthese are the palps, so we are at the head of the June bug
- Bugscope Teamthe palps are much like feet
- Bugscope Teamnow you can see the whole head of the June bug
- Teacherwhat are the hairs by the abdomen
Bugscope Teamthose hairs are at the junction between the head and the thorax, and we think that they help the June bug, as Annie says, sense when it moves its head
- 10:32 am
- Bugscope TeamYou can see the line of hairs on the "chin," these help the junebug to sense the position of its head
- Bugscope Teaminsects are different from us in many ways, and one is that they do not have an internal skeleton. instead they have a shell, called an exoskeleton, and it is like if you were wearing armor all of the time. you would not be able to feel what was touching you.
- Teacherwhat are the paddle shape things
Bugscope TeamThose are the antennae.
- Bugscope Teamso if you were wearing a coat of armor, and you pushed little sticks through the armor, you could feel when the sticks bumped into things. that is what setae do for insects.
- Teacherthis is the straw they use to suck up food
Bugscope Teamyes it is!
- Bugscope TeamThere are three segments hidden beneath the large end of the paddle. When the beetle was alive, he could spread those three segment apart. It would have looked like a little hand.
- Teacherwe have smart students
- 10:37 am
- Bugscope Teamsome of those proboscises, like that, have parts that move back and forth to help cut into what they are trying to pierce so they can suck up the juice inside
- Teacherwhat are the little bumps on the proboscis
Bugscope Teamsome of those bumps are dirt, and some of them are ridges that help cut into what they want to pierce
Bugscope TeamI think those are juju's, just dirt and stuff
- Bugscope Teamthis is an aphid, so it pokes its proboscis into leaves and plant stems
- Bugscope Teamso very lovely!
- Teacherdo they have a stinger
Bugscope TeamAphids don't have stingers. They have two little bumps on their abdomens called cornicles. The cornicles secrete a sweet sap that ants like to eat.
- TeacherWhat color are they
Bugscope Teamthey are different colors: sometimes white, sometimes green, sometimes black, and I imagine brown
- Teacherin that case do ants eat them
Bugscope TeamThere are lots of species of ants and lots of species of aphids. But in some species, the ants will protect the aphids. They will tend them like cattle
Bugscope TeamAnts try to protect them from other predators.
Bugscope TeamWhat Ants is to aphids is what human being to cows.
- Bugscope Teamsometimes instead of secreting nectar for ants to eat, the cornicles secrete very sticky glue that immnobilizes ants like a hot melt glue gun
- 10:43 am
- Bugscope Team(that should have read 'immobilizes')
- Bugscope Teamyou can see the cornicles now
- Bugscope Teamthe flattened-ended tubes coming out of the back
- Teacherwhy do they want to protect them
Bugscope Teamthey can help each other
- Bugscope Teamthat gives a weird image of ants herding around aphids
- Bugscope TeamIn some species the ants will take the aphids from the plants, carry them into the nest to keep them safe for the winter, and then return them to plants in the spring.
- Bugscope TeamI should not that not ALL ants tend or herd aphids. But some do, and that is really neat. Ants have evolved agriculture.
- Bugscope Teamthe ants can protect the aphids from other bad ants, and the aphids can produce sugary nectar that the ants like to eat
- Bugscope TeamSymbiosis?
- Bugscope TeamOr mutualism?
- Teacherwe agree that it would be mutualism
Bugscope TeamThere are those smart students again.
- Bugscope Teammany insects have trouble with ants, which can be voracious, eating anything in their path. so you often find that other insects have special defenses against ants bothering them. often they have chemicals that they release to discourage the ants from eating them.
- 10:50 am
- Teacherso who are their enemies
- Bugscope TeamLadybird beetles!
- Bugscope TeamParasitoid wasps!
- Bugscope Teamsmall wasps!
- Bugscope Teamthat's right! ladybugs, other ants, parasitic wasps, people with sprayers
- Bugscope Teamand speaking of parasitoid wasps...
- Bugscope TeamLacewings
- Bugscope Teamoften when we look at mouthparts, like now, there is so much going on that it looks like there is another insect inside the mouth
- Teacherthe segmented parts are the tongue?
Bugscope TeamThose are palps, like we saw on the junebug earlier
- Teacherwhat are the horn looking parts
Bugscope Teamthe horned things are mandibles- jaws. The feathery part here is like the tongue
- 10:55 am
- Bugscope Teamnow you can see the tongue as well
- Bugscope Teamthe thing with the ridges is the tongue, which is sometimes called a 'glossa'
- Bugscope Teamdo you know what this is?
- Teacherabdomen
Bugscope TeamRight!
- Bugscope TeamIf you decrease the magnification and/or drive north you can see exactly where you are on the abdomen.
Bugscope Teamno we wont, the abdomen is to the left somewhere. I broke it off because it was long
- Bugscope TeamDOH!
- Bugscope TeamOh~no~
- Bugscope TeamNevermind me...
- Bugscope Teamthis is what insects use to sting, and also, in some insects, to lay their eggs deep into something like a fruit or a caterpillar
- 11:00 am
- TeacherThey find that cool
- Bugscope Teamthe ridges on the stinger help it cut into the prey, or the fruit
- Teacherokay now you reading our mind
- Bugscope Teamthe ridges also help the stinger stay in place
- Bugscope TeamOr into aphids~!
- Bugscope Teamif we had a honeybee stinger we would see that some of the ridges are more pronounced -- they are larger -- and when a honeybee stings you it leaves the sting in your skin
- Bugscope Teamthat is right -- if a tiny wasp was to sting an aphid...
- Teacherwhy does it hurt, how many stinger do they have
Bugscope TeamEach bee or wasp has only one stinger. It hurts because they inject you with venom when they sting. The venom makes it itch and or hurt.
- Bugscope TeamThe movie, "alien", was inspired by parasitism in insects.
- 11:06 am
- Teacherwhy do they attact
Bugscope TeamBees and wasp will sting when they feel threatened or if their hive is threatened. They very seldom sting without being provoked.
Bugscope TeamSometime, they lay eggs inside the aphid's body in order for their offsprins to eat it.
- Bugscope Teamwhen a mosquito bites you, it uses its mouthparts, and there may be four different blade-like lancets that cut into your skin.
- Bugscope TeamWhen mosquitoes bite, they inject a substance that numbs you--so you don't feel them biting you. This substance and the mosquito saliva are what makes mosquito bites itch.
- Bugscope TeamOf course, this is not a mosquito...so I am going off topic.
- Bugscope Teamyes what Jungkoo (J) says is correct. some wasps sting to immobilize their prey and also inject their own eggs into its body
- Bugscope TeamI mentioned mosquitos as well, Annie...
- Bugscope TeamRight, but I was afraid that I was going too far down the garden path....
- 11:12 am
- Teacherno we studied that they inject an anticoagulant
- Bugscope Teamwith mosquitos it is only the female who bites, and she does it because she needs that blood meal in order to be able to successfully lay her eggs.
- Bugscope TeamYes, that too...I forgot about that....you are keeping me on my toes!
- Bugscope TeamI learned only a few days ago that some mosquitos do not suck blood.
- Bugscope TeamSome mosquito species live on nectar, like from flowers -- both males and females.
- Bugscope TeamThere is one species of mosquito that is predatory on other mosquitos as a larva
- Bugscope Teammosquito larvae live in water
- TeacherDo wasp attack other wasp
Bugscope TeamYES!!!
Bugscope TeamScott! help me!
- Teacherreasons
- Bugscope Teamsometimes it is just for defense of their territory
- Teacherhow long is it's life expectancy
Bugscope TeamIt depends on the wasp. Social wasps that are workers live for 20 days or less sometimes. Drones can live longer, say maybe a month? Queens can live 12 months or more.
- 11:17 am
- Teacherso if they attack it is because they are extremely territorial
Bugscope TeamSometimes. Other times, wasps will attack other wasps to eat them. Many wasps are predators of other insects.
- Bugscope TeamIsn't it somewhat related to their size?
- Bugscope Teamwasps are very aggressive
- Bugscope Teamthere is a paper someone wrote called "Wasp Eat Wasp"
- Bugscope Team"Wasp eat wasp: facultative hyperparasitism and intra-guild predation by bethylid wasps."
- Bugscope Teamsome wasps can be used to keep other wasps away from coffee, coconuts, and almonds
- Teacherplease let me have the session numbers because we have to go to lunch, but we have ENJOYED this!!!!!!
Bugscope TeamAll the images and chat from today's session are saved to your member page: http://bugscope.beckman.illinois.edu/members/2009-160
- Bugscope TeamA wasp can beat its wing up to 240 times a second!
- Bugscope TeamThere are many species of wasps that do not sting humans. They feed on plants. For example, figs are pollinated by tiny wasps.
- Bugscope Teamthat lets you know that some wasps actually bore into coffee beans, and coconuts, and almonds
- Bugscope TeamThank You!
- Bugscope Teammember page: http://bugscope.beckman.illinois.edu/members/2009-160
- Bugscope Teamthanks for participating in bugscope witj us
- Bugscope TeamEat healthy~!
- Bugscope TeamEat more vegetables~!
- Teacherwill do ewwwwwww
- 11:22 am
- Bugscope Teamover and out!
- Bugscope TeamGood Bye
- Bugscope TeamNice session everyone, closing things down now
- Bugscope Teammember page: http://bugscope.beckman.illinois.edu/members/2009-160
- Bugscope TeamGoodbye!
