Today’s featured insect is a Costa Rican cockroach from the family Blaberidae. Members of this family are ovoviviparous, meaning the female gives birth to live nymphs that develop inside her body.

Spotlighted today is Dorytomus imbecillus, also known as the Innocent Willow Weevil from Nunavut. True to their name, they subsist primarily on willow!

Featured today is a dance fly (family Hybotidae), a predator that seizes its prey with its front legs and uses its long proboscis to inject enzymes, digesting the prey from the inside.

Today's featured specimen is an antlion from Mojave California. The predatory larvae are commonly found in sandy, dry habitats across the southwest United States, where over 94 species are known.

Featured today is a Lychee Stink Bug nymph (Lyramorpha rosea) from the "Giant Shield Bug" family Tessaratomidae. Native to eastern Australia they are major pests of lychee trees throughout Asia.

Today's featured insect is the distinctive Yellow Marking Flower Beetle, Ixorida mouhotii. It is a pollen-feeding scarab beetle from Thailand.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Featured today: a Bethylid parasitoid "flat" wasp from Costa Rica. In some species, females are wingless and ant-like. They have painful sting which is used to paralyze their prey.

Featured today is Linne’s Cicada (Neotibicen linnei). This annual cicada species spends about two years underground as nymphs feeding on tree roots before emerging each year as an adults to mate.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s specimen from the Yukon is the Pure Click Beetle (Stenopronus pudicus), a forest-dwelling species. Click beetles possess a unique "clicking" mechanism that lets them snap into the air.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s specimen is Xylotrechus undulatus, the Spruce Zebra Beetle from the Yukon. These longhorn beetles are wood-borers that feed beneath the bark of conifers, especially spruce.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is an Aedes mosquito (Family Culicidae), collected in Manitoba—often considered the mosquito capital of Canada!

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured arthropod is the American Dog Tick (Dermacentor variabilis). It is a three-host-tick with each life cycle stage (larvae, nymphs and adults) feeding on a separate mammal host.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Although today's insect from Costa Rica resembles a ladybird beetle, it is actually a true bug (Hemiptera) from the small family of 8 species Canopidae that are exclusively neotropical and thought to feed on fungus.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is the ubiquitous Australian cockroach, Periplaneta australasiae which was collected in the Galápagos Islands. The species has been introduced worldwide (including Canada).

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s spotlight is on the larva of the Cucujus clavipes. To endure extreme cold, these larvae produce antifreeze proteins and lower the water content in their bodies to prevent ice formation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured is the cream-spotted ladybird beetle (Calvia quatuordecimguttata) from Canada's Yukon territory. Its range spans across North America, Europe, and Asia.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured Neuropteran specimen is a Silky Lacewing (Family: Psychopsidae) from New South Wales, Australia. The carnivorous larvae hide under tree bark by day and hunt for insects at night.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen from Georgia is Cercopis vulnerata, a froghopper that is commonly found throughout Europe.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a chalcidid parasitoid wasp from Costa Rica, easily recognized by its enlarged hind legs lined with tooth-like projections.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is an Asian shield bug from the genus Eusthenes (Family: Tessaratomidae) from Vietnam. When threatened, these bugs have an impressive defense—they can squirt a strong, foul-smelling liquid.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is Dresserus kannemeyeri, a species velvet ground spider from South Africa.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured bizarre specimen is a treehopper (Family: Membracidae) from Costa Rica. Some treehopper species, like this one, possess elaborate, ornate “helmets” that aid in mimicry and camouflage.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is Tabanus albocirculus, a horse fly (Family: Tabanidae) collected in Costa Rica.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a species of Scelionid wasp. Scelonids are parasitoids that specialize in attacking the eggs of insects and spiders.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is the spectacular Chrysobothris capitata, a metallic wood-boring beetle (Buprestidae) found throughout Central America.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a member of the rhinoceros beetle subfamily (Dynastinae) within the scarab beetle family, collected in New South Wales, Australia.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a species of straight-snouted weevils (Family Brentidae) from Costa Rica. The larvae are fungivorous, feeding on fungi growing on dead wood.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen from Tanzania is Maximegachile maxillosa which is widely distributed in Africa. This large bee species constructs nests of sand and resin.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Although today's insect specimen from Western Australia resembles a praying mantis, it is actually a mantis fly (family Mantispidae). It is identifiable by its net-veined wings.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a cockroach from the Blaberidae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a fly from the Richardiidae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a wasp from the Ichneumonidae family, collected in Argentina. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontiers in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a beetle from the Biphyllidae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a fly from the Pipunculidae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a longhorn beetle from the Cerambycidae family, collected in Peru. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontier in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a beetle from the Chrysomelidae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a moth from the Erebidae family, collected in Jujuy, Argentina. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontiers in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a Huntsman spider from the Sparassidae family, collected in Puntarenas, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a froghopper from the Cercopidae family, collected from the Western Cape of South Africa. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontiers in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a net-winged insect from the Berothidae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a wasp from the Gasteruptiidae family, collected in Qalyubia, Egypt. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontiers in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a beetle from the Chrysomelidae family, collected in Limpopo, South Africa. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontiers in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a fly from the Empididae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a fly from the Phoridae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a beetle from the Curculionidae family, collected in Limpopo, South Africa. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontiers in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a spider from the Salticidae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a fly from the Rhagionidae family, collected from the Western Cape of South Africa. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontiers in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is a spider from the Salticidae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is from the Cerambycidae family, collected from the Northern Cape of South Africa. This record was made possible through funding from the New Frontiers in Research Fund.

Our DNA library is made possible thanks to the support of our funding partners. Today’s featured specimen is an amphipod from the Talitridae family, collected in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This record was made possible through funding from the Walder Foundation.