Insects and Spiders Gallery

Common cockchafer (Melolontha melolontha)

Common cockchafer (Melolontha melolontha), male resting on a twig at night. Females have only six leaves on their antennae. Powys, Wales

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Amusing, Animal, Animal Portrait, Beetle, Billy Witch, Black Background, Cockchafers, Coleoptera, Comical, European, Eye Contact, Fauna, Females Six Leaves On Antennae, Fringed, Funny, Gaze, Humorous, Insect, Insecta, Leafed Antennae, Major Crop Pest, Males Seven Leaves On Antennae, May Bug, Melolontha, Scarabaeidae, Sexual Dimorphism, Sexually Dimorphic, Spang Beetle, Stare, Watching, Wildlife, Zaltzman Bug

Teddybear bee (Amegilla bombiformis)

Teddybear bee (Amegilla bombiformis) flying towards Salvia flower (cv. Black and Blue) to collect nectar and pollen. The long siphoning proboscis is clearly visible. Wauchope, New South Wales, Australia

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Australian, Blue, Drinking, Feeding, Flight, Flower, Flying, Furry, Fuzzy, Hairy, Hover, Hovering, Insect, Movement, Pollinating, Pollination, Proboscis, Purple, Sage

Chequered swallowtails (Papilio demoleus)

Chequered swallowtails (Papilio demoleus), group of three mud puddling, showing the red tornol spots. Butterflies get salts and minerals from mud puddles, usually males because the sperm benefits. When the butterflies mate, the nutrients pass to the female, improving the viability of the eggs thus increasing the chances of passing the strong genes to the next generation. Boulia, central west Queensland, Australia

© Nick Rains/AUSCAPE All rights reserved