by Peter Rowland | Monday, October 19, 2020
Cockroaches and Termites (Order: Blattodea) Over 580 species of cockroaches within six families recorded in Australia, including several introduced species, which are common pests around residential and commercial buildings. The ‘pest’ species feed largely on human...
by Peter Rowland | Monday, October 19, 2020
Dragonflies and Damselflies (Order: Odonata) Subdivided into two suborders: the dragonflies of Odonata, and the damselflies of Zygoptera. Fifteen families of dragonflies and 10 families of damselflies occur in Australia, with around 326 described species. Body long...
by Peter Rowland | Monday, October 19, 2020
Earwigs (Order: Dermaptera) Seven families within Australia, containing 90 described species, which are commonly encountered in homes and domestic gardens. Tip of the abdomen has pronounced forcipules/pincers, which are curved in males and straight with inward...
by Peter Rowland | Tuesday, October 27, 2020
Hard Ticks (Family: Ixodidae) Hard ticks are parasites that feed on the blood of their hosts. Of the 70 species described in Australia, 56 are hard ticks and 14 are soft ticks (family Argasidae), and around 16 of them are known to feed on human blood, however, over...
by Peter Rowland | Wednesday, October 21, 2020
Insects (Class: Insecta) An incredibly diverse assemblage of animals and the most numerous multicellular organisms on the planet, with over 1 million species currently identified. Adults have 3 pairs of legs and a 3 part segmented body, consisting of a head, thorax...
