Field Guide

Land Invertebrates

Showing 1 - 10 of 19 results
Jagged ambush bug on a plant stem
Ambush Bugs
Phymata spp. and others in subfamily Phymatinae (ambush bugs)
Ambush bugs are a subfamily of assassin bugs. They’re chunky, small insects with powerful grasping forelegs. They hide motionless in flowers waiting for prey to venture near.
several yellow aphids on plant
Aphids
More than 1,300 species in North America north of Mexico
Aphids are common, small, soft-bodied insects that suck plant juices. To see them well, you probably need a hand lens, but the damage they do to plants can be all too obvious!
Photo of a green crab spider on a leaf
Green Crab Spider
Misumessus oblongus (formerly Misumenops oblonga)
The green crab spider has spines, and the entire body and legs are pale green to silvery white. Like other crab spiders, its legs extend outward from the sides, and it can walk in any direction.
image of Green Lacewing clinging to rock
Green Lacewings
About 85 species in North America north of Mexico
Green lacewings are delicate insects whose larvae are ravenous predators of aphids. This makes the lacewing a friend to gardeners!
A metallic green sweat bee gathering pollen on a yellow flowerhead
Halictid Bees (Sweat Bees)
More than 500 species in North America north of Mexico
Missouri has many species of halictid bees, or sweat bees. Some are solitary, but a number show different levels of social behavior. They're named for their attraction to perspiration, which offers them precious moisture and salts.
Swamp milkweed leaf beetle on a leaf it has chewed on.
Leaf Beetles
About 2,000 species in North America
Leaf beetles, or chrysomelid beetles, are members of a large, diverse beetle family. As the name suggests, they eat leaves and other plant parts and are common on foliage.
image of a Leafhopper on leaf
Leafhoppers
More than 3,000 species in North America north of Mexico
The leafhoppers are a large and diverse family of sap-sucking, hopping insects. You can distinguish them from similar groups of hoppers by the hind legs, which have at least one row of small spines on the hind tibiae (“shins”).
Red milkweed beetle eating a common milkweed leaf.
Longhorned Beetles (Borers; Sawyer Beetles)
About 1,000 species in North America north of Mexico
Longhorned beetles are elongated and cylindrical, with antennae that are at least half the length of the body — sometimes much longer. The larvae are grubs that bore in wood or other plants. Some are serious pests.
Side view of longlegged fly, Condylostylus, perched on a wooden railing
Longlegged Flies
About 1,300 species in North America north of Mexico
The longlegged flies are a large, diverse fly family. They often have eye-catching metallic green, copper, bronze, or blue bodies and long legs. Their delicate wings are often clear and look iridescent in bright light, but many species have dark marks near the wing tips.
Photo of a northern crab spider
Northern Crab Spider
Mecaphesa asperata
The northern crab spider has many spiny hairs covering the top surfaces of the carapace, abdomen, and legs, and it has usually has greenish-yellow or yellow-brown markings.
See Also
Photo of a Yellow-Collared Scape Moth
Yellow-Collared Scape Moth
Cisseps fulvicollis
The yellow-collared scape moth is more often “orange-collared.” And whether you think it looks more like a firefly or a wasp, it’s still a moth!
image of Plume Moth on blade of grass
Plume Moths
Nearly 150 species in North America north of Mexico
Slim, delicate plume moths are instantly recognizable by their T-shaped silhouette, long legs, and muted shades of tan and brown. It can be hard to separate the various species.
Photo of an Isabella Tiger Moth
Isabella Tiger Moth (Woolly Bear; Woolly Worm)
Pyrrharctia isabella
Not many people know the adult Isabella tiger moth when they see one, but we’re all acquainted with its caterpillar, the woolly worm, or woolly bear.

About Land Invertebrates in Missouri

Invertebrates are animals without backbones, including earthworms, slugs, snails, and arthropods. Arthropods—invertebrates with “jointed legs” — are a group of invertebrates that includes crayfish, shrimp, millipedes, centipedes, mites, spiders, and insects. There may be as many as 10 million species of insects alive on earth today, and they probably constitute more than 90 percent all animal species.