September 22, 2021

Lab 2 Journal Entry, Bioblitz (Bugs)-Mila Boucher

1) I found that Clover Mites, one of the bugs I observed, have a very unique lifestyle. On the contrary to most bugs, they prefer colder temperature. In fact, these pests tend to come out and feast off grasses, clover and other weedy plants the more the temperature drops outside. However, when it gets to cold (or too hot), they and their eggs are able to go into dormancy to protect themselves from the weather. Their tiny size permits them to go in just about any crack or crevasse they can find to do so.
2) It is important to mention that not all bugs that I found and observed are insects, for example, worms, snails, and spiders. However, all 10 of my observations still do have a common adaptation, which is that they are all invertebrates. An invertebrate, by proper definition, is a cold-blooded animal with no backbone. They can live on land or in water. The ones that I observed, however, were all found on land. All invertebrates evolved long ago (by things such as their tissues and organs and their different nervous/skeletal systems) which brought them to be such important components of food webs and fulfil many ecosystem services.
3) The Phylogeny of a European Earwig:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Infraclass: Neoptera
Superoder: Exopterygota
Order: Dermaptera

Posted on September 22, 2021 06:43 PM by milaboucher