Garden Insects in Big Bend, Wisconsin

Garden Insects

Insect
Photograph Description and observations
Milkweed Tussock Moth
Pest
Additional Image
Additional Image

Observed: 8/30/2006 - Caterpillar found eating the leaves of Tropical Milkweed, Asclepias curassivica. About 0.5 inches long.

White Marked Tussock Moth
Pest
Additional Image

Observed: 8/30/2006 - Caterpillar found scurying across the lawn. About 1.5 inches long.

Insect Photograph	Description and observations
	Milkweed Tussock Moth Pest Additional Image Additional Image Observed: 8/30/2006 - Caterpillar found eating the leaves of Tropical Milkweed, Asclepias curassivica. About 0.5 inches long.
	White Marked Tussock Moth Pest Additional Image Observed: 8/30/2006 - Caterpillar found scurying across the lawn. About 1.5 inches long.

Rust
Photograph Description and observations
Rust
Disease
Additional Image

Observed: 5/24/2008 - Rust infection on Arisaema triphyllum, Jack In The Pulpit. This rust displayed on all 20 A. triphyllum plants on our shady hillside garden. Plants were visibly in decline. The rust seems to only infect A. triphyllum and no other neighboring plants.
"This rust is caused by Uromyces ari-tryphylli. This is an autoecious rust (i.e., needs only one host to complete it's life cycle). Unfortunately, there's not much one can do about this disease because the pathogen basically becomes systemic and once infected, plants stay infected. About all you can do is live with the disease (with the possibility that the disease will spread to other Jacks), or to dig up the affected plants and destroy them."
- Brian Hudelson, Plant Disease Diagnostics Clinic, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Rust Photograph	Description and observations
	Rust Disease Additional Image Observed: 5/24/2008 - Rust infection on Arisaema triphyllum, Jack In The Pulpit. This rust displayed on all 20 A. triphyllum plants on our shady hillside garden. Plants were visibly in decline. The rust seems to only infect A. triphyllum and no other neighboring plants. "This rust is caused by Uromyces ari-tryphylli. This is an autoecious rust (i.e., needs only one host to complete it's life cycle). Unfortunately, there's not much one can do about this disease because the pathogen basically becomes systemic and once infected, plants stay infected. About all you can do is live with the disease (with the possibility that the disease will spread to other Jacks), or to dig up the affected plants and destroy them." - Brian Hudelson, Plant Disease Diagnostics Clinic, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Beneficial Insect
Photograph Description and observations
Viceroy Butterfly
Beneficial Insect
Additional Image

Observed: 9/3/2007 - Viceroy found on 'Lady in Red' Salvia.

Beneficial Insect Photograph	Description and observations
	Viceroy Butterfly Beneficial Insect Additional Image Observed: 9/3/2007 - Viceroy found on 'Lady in Red' Salvia.

Beneficial Insect
Photograph Description and observations
Ichneumonid wasp
Beneficial Insect
Additional Image

Observed: 6/10/2008 - On wood pile in our garage.
"This is a type of Ichneumonid wasp, Megarhyssa macrurus. It is a female that is using her long ovipositor to lay eggs in wood, the larvae are parasite of the horntail (Siricid), a type of wood feeding wasp."
- Phil Pellitteri, Insect Diagnostic Lab, University of Wisconsin, Department of Entomology

Ichneumonid wasp
Beneficial Insect
Additional Image

Observed: 6/10/2008 - On wood pile in our garage. This is another Ichneumonid wasp, found with female Megarhyssa macrurus.
"In the genus Megarhyssa and is a male, I can not be sure of the species. There are four species found in the US. This one looks like Megarhyssa atrata, but could also be another species.
Both landed on exact same log in stack of over 500 pieces.
"Suspect they know which one has the wood wasps in them. We do find more than one species in an area, but this suggest you have a couple, suspect they are both M. macrurus."
- Phil Pellitteri, Insect Diagnostic Lab, University of Wisconsin, Department of Entomology