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From time to time, we will add some interesting Stories of Hastings Invertebrates.
Butterflies- photos, etc.
Tardigrades- Water Bears- tiny animals that can be dehydrated and live!
Black Widow Spiders- Widespread, abundant and poorly known!
California Oak Moths- These moths that defoliate oak trees are described here.
Rain Beetles
Rain Beetles occur in several locations
in Califonia, and Hastings was important in the discovery of an endemic
sub-species of rain beetle. The scientific name of th beetle is Pleocoma.
There are at least 30 species, and the one on Hastings is Pleocoma
lucia.
As close to Hastings as Garrapata Creek there may be another form, P.
garrapata (Havore) .
Entomologists do not know the entire story of these secretive beetles;
how many species and where one species' range ends and another's begins.
These beetles fly at the first rains, and do not eat during their short
lives above ground. For more information on these beetles, check out
the San
Diego Museum of Natural History site. One of our collaborating
researchers, Dr. Frank
Hovore,
worked on these beetles for may years. He passed away in 2006, and
we have lost this champion of rain beetles. Earl
Gordon Linsley was the pre-eminent student of Pleocoma.
Photo: M. Stromberg,
2002, Hastings.
Havore, F. T. (1977). "New synonomy and status changes in the genus
Pleocoma Leconte (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)." The Coleopterists
Bulletin 31(3): 229-238.
Lindsey, E. G. (1941). "Additional observations and descriptions
of some species of Pleocoma (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae). " Pan-Pac.
Ent. 17: 145-152.
Ants of Hastings
People ask us about our ants from time to time. In the early days of Hastings, Jean Linsdale collected insects and sent them across the country in a huge correpsondence, asking experts to identify the insects. This resulted in a working list of insects, and this has been scanned and can be found elsewhere on this website. But, a list in "Word" format or HTML format would be useful. Remember, these are the names (nomenclature) in use in about 1945. If anyone is able to update this list, please contact the reserve resident director.
Kissing Bugs
Hastings is home to woodrats, and woodrat piles are often home to Kissing Bugs. Bugs are, technically, a family of insects with sucking mouth parts. Kissing bugs live in many places, but are attracted to mammals. They suck blood, generally from sleeping animals, including people. People can be allergic to the bite, and some carry disease, "Chagas Disease". For more on the Kissing Bugs....click here.