Hobbies And Interests
Bees and Wasps
All totaled there are more species of bees than those of mammals and birds combined. These different species adapted to their particular ecological environment. In the northeastern United States. the most popular species is the European honey bee, brought to the United States in the colonial period. Honey bees can be found in large populations in any agricultural area, although they are currently facing huge population losses. The yellow jacket wasp is also common in the northeastern United States and Canada, especially in higher elevations in wooded areas with evergreen trees.
Flies and Mosquitoes
Flies are found almost everywhere on the planet where there are carbon life forms in decay. The largest of the species, the dragonfly, is found in wooded areas in the northeastern United States. The name mosquito means "little fly" in Portuguese. Of all insects, mosquitoes are the species humans most readily try to eliminate, with some scientists actually theorizing that there would be no environmental or ecological loss if they were killed off. Mosquitoes are found around water such as rivers, lakes and ponds.
Butterflies and Moths
Gypsy moths are most common in the northeastern United States; they feed on the leaves of oak trees. Butteflies are also common in the Northeast, with two species in particular being found in New England. The migratory monarch butterfly is found throughout the region in the spring and summer months after migrating to Mexico during the winter for mating. The Karner blue butterfly, listed as imperiled, is the state insect of New Hampshire. This butterfly is native to oak forests. The species is in decline in the Northeast, but intervention is bringing it back.
Lady Bugs
The seven-spotted lady bug, named for the seven black spots on its red wings, are found anywhere there are aphids, since lady bugs live on a constant diet of aphids, or plant lice. Lady bugs are found along the entire middle and northern United States seaboard in areas with agriculture and domestic gardens.
Locust Leaf Miner
The locust leaf miner eats the leaves of apple, birch, wild cherry, elm and oak trees. These trees are found throughout the northeastern United States. The leaf miners eat holes in unfolding leaves in the spring and cause damage ranging from leaf patches to complete defoliation and are thus thought of as dangerous to the trees.