These bees are recognizable by their metallic green head and thorax. The eyes are droplet shaped, and their antennae are highly visible. The female’s abdomen is black, with bands of white hair, while the male’s is black with hairless bands. Their translucent wings are slightly smoke-coloured or amber.
The males are 10 mm long and the females, 11 mm.
These insects look like large, slender wasps. They have a yellow head with a dark stripe between the eyes. The thorax and abdomen are dark, either black or dark brown. Their long legs are mainly yellow, while their four elongated, narrow wings are almost black.
Females have an impressive 12- to 15-cm long dark brown ovipositor.
This species resembles two other ichneumons found in the same habitat in Quebec: Megarhyssa macrurus and M. greenei. Giant ichneumons are recognizable by their blackish-brown abdomens. In addition, they have the longest ovipositors.
These insects generally resemble wasps, but their antennae are longer and more segmented.
In many species, the female’s abdomen ends in a filament even longer than the rest of the body. This egg-laying organ is called an ovipositor.
The vast ichneumon group comprises thousands of species, ranging widely in size (from 3 to 50 mm long) and coloration. Many are a single colour, varying from yellowish to black, while others are bicoloured, black and brown or black and yellow.
These black wasps have greenish-yellow bands on their abdomens. Their legs are yellow, except for the parts nearest their bodies. Their wings are transparent, with brown veins. They are 13 to 16 mm long.
These black wasps have broken whitish or pale yellow bands in the centre of their abdomens, narrowing toward the tip. They have light-coloured legs and amber or greyish wings. They are 17 to 19 mm long.
These insects vary greatly in size, but all have narrow “thread-like” waists. They have an effective stinger at the tip of their abdomens and are solitary hunters.
The larvae are legless.
Until recently, the Crabronidae were included in the Sphecid family of wasps, as they are all fairly similar in appearance and behaviour. The Crabronidae are now considered a separate family.
The monarch is one of Quebec’s largest diurnal butterflies. It has orange wings with black veins and a wingspan of 9.3 to 10.5 cm. This butterfly is well known for the spectacular migration that eastern North American populations undertake each autumn to Mexico.
The male can be distinguished from the female by two small black spots on the hindwings. In addition, the black bands on the wings of the female are wider than those of the male.
These butterflies help to pollinate various nectar-bearing plants as they browse on their flowers.
Click beetles have slender bodies that are elongated and parallel-sided. They are usually brown or black in colour, and some have markings on their back. The posterior corners of their pronotum (area behind the head) extend backward and end in sharp points. A few species have large eye spots on the pronotum.
The larvae, called wireworms, are slender and hard shelled.
Crickets are black or brown insects over 13 mm long. They have long antennae, two compound eyes and grinding mouthparts. They have two pairs of many-veined wings on the thorax. The forewings are fairly tough. They protect the membranous hindwings, which are folded in a fan shape when at rest. Of the three sets of legs, the hindmost legs are the most noticeable, since they are adapted for jumping. Their femurs are particularly strong. Crickets have two sensory appendages called cerci at the tip of the abdomen.
Females have an ovipositor, a long cylindrical egg-laying organ, between the cerci.
These large insects are often spotted clinging to tree bark. On hot summer days, they produce a loud, unmistakable sound. You can recognize them by their triangular shape and flattened head.
Cicadas found in Quebec can grow up to 5 cm long, a size comparable to many cicada species around the world.
Cicadas also hold a special place in popular culture, thanks in part to La Fontaine’s fable La cigale et la fourmi (The Cicada and the Ant). But unlike the carefree character in the story, real cicadas have a complex life cycle and behaviour that help them survive remarkably well.
People often say cicadas “sing,” but the sound doesn’t come from their mouths. Only males produce it, using membranes called tymbals located at the base of the abdomen. These domed, elastic organs are connected to muscles that, when they contract, make the tymbals vibrate, creating the cicada’s song.
Males sing to attract a mate. Their call can also draw in other males and prompt them to join in. This collective chorus can, in turn, help attract females from farther away. Each species has its own distinctive sound.
Unlike orthopterans, which tend to sing from the ground, cicadas’ calls usually come from the trees.
In Quebec, you can hear three species. The most common is the northern dog-day cicada (Neotibicen canicularis), but you may also encounter the aspen cicada (Okanagana noveboracensis) and the Say’s cicada (Okanagana rimosa).
