Insects have been alive for almost 400 million years, making them one of the oldest living species on the planet.
While their lifetime is remarkable, the present fall in insect populations is quite concerning.
Human actions such as habitat destruction, deforestation, and climate change threaten insects.
Our post will look at several common insects that start with E. Some are common names, while others are scientific names.
Let’s get started!
1. Eastern Yellowjackets
Eastern yellowjackets are also one of the insects that start with E, which are prevalent across the eastern United States.
They make underground nests and eat insects and small animals. These wasps are aggressive, and their stings are painful.
2. Eyed Paectes
The Eyed Paectes is a nocturnal insect that starts with E and is worth staying up late to see.
It is drawn to lights, and if one happens to pass by, the enormous eyespots on its wings will capture the attention of practically any spectator.
The eyespots are large and brown, with white, black, and blue in them, and they sit near the bottom margin of the rounded forewings.
When the wings are extended wide, the eyespots maintain a stable expression.
The eyes appear sad and droopy when the wings are flat and closed.
Streaks of crimson red or pinkish-orange run down the sides of the wings, and the outer borders may be a dark purple-hue.
Creamy white patches surround the eyespots and sit near the base of the wings by the thorax, enhancing the region around them.
The legs and abdomen are brown, and the antennae feature comb-like teeth.
Like a few other moths in its family, the caterpillar feeds on poison ivy.
When spotted, inspect the surrounding foliage to avoid contact with the harmful urushiol oil released by poison ivy leaves.
The oil is notorious for causing an allergic reaction in most people, resulting in red, itchy blisters that can take weeks to cure.
The brilliant green caterpillar is plump and randomly coated in little yellow spots.
The prolegs in the center of the body are white and curled. Each year, two or more broods can be generated.
3. Ephemeroptera
Ephemeroptera, generally known as mayflies, are aquatic insects with short adult lifespans, often lasting only a few hours to a few days.
They provide food for many other aquatic species and serve as markers of water quality.
4. Eggplant Flea Beetles
Eggplant Flea beetles are small, black leaf munchers that harm various nightshade plants together.
They can be spotted scurrying in plain sight at times. Potatoes and tobacco are also available.
Even though it is a beetle, this little insect jumps like a flea.
Examining the leaves reveals feeding activity in the form of little brown-edged dots on every leaf’s surface.
The adults munch on the inside of the leaf, but the larvae begin feeding beneath the roots.
Both can harm a plant’s health, resulting in fewer fruit, a lesser crop, or even plant mortality.
Using row covers to keep the beetle from locating the plant until bloom time is an efficient way to fight infestations.
Because these insects start with E, they spend the winter near food plants, and larvae may already be in the ground in the spring.
Chemical sprays (when applied correctly) and tilling the ground around the plant are two more population control methods.
The earlier the Eggplant Flea Beetle is identified, the higher the odds of preventing major plant damage.
5. Eastern Subterranean Termites
Eastern subterranean termites are starting our list of insects that start with E, found in the eastern United States.
They eat wood and other cellulose materials and reside in underground colonies. These termites may wreak havoc on homes and other timber structures.
6. Ebony Jewelwing
Damselflies are smaller and have thinner bodies than dragonflies.
They do, however, congregate in the same environment. The bodies of Ebony Jewel Wings are lustrous and metallic blue-green.
The wings are rich, matte black, and slightly shorter than the abdomen.
Females have a small, bright white oval at the tip of each of their four wings, but males do not.
An Ebony Jewelwing can travel relatively far inland from water sources, but it is more likely to be seen on the bank of a marsh, pond, lake, or stream.
Males are extremely territorial, circling intruders to guard their territory.
Males and females of this Damselfly species communicate by flapping their wings.
By snapping their wings together, they produce a faintly audible sound.
The male flies on the back of the female with whom it is mating to protect her from rival men while she deposits fertilized eggs.
Aquatic plant stems are filled with eggs. The naiads (hatched young) resemble predatory insects rather than damselflies.
Other little organisms that dwell in or fall into the water that they eat include beetles, fleas, and small crustaceans.
When grown and developed sufficiently, they leave the water to molt onto land as a winged adult.
7. Eastern Tiger Swallowtails
Eastern tiger swallowtails are large, brilliant insects that start with E and are found east of the Mississippi River.
They come in various colors and shapes, depending on their age and gender. The most common variation has black, tiger-like stripes on yellow wings.
Males are predominantly yellow with black margins, whilst females have blue and orange waves on the edges of their wings.
Young females bear little resemblance to their adult counterparts. The wings are primarily black, with blue at the bottom borders.
This darker coloring is more popular in the southern United States, whereas the traditional yellow coloring is more common in the northern states.
Each hindwing of an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail has a lengthy tail-like extension.
The state butterfly of five eastern states is this species: Delaware, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
As a member of the Swallowtail family, it joins its relatives as the continent’s largest group of butterflies.
These insects that start with E are particularly easy to attract, flocking to gardens with many flowers.
They are beneficial pollinators and should be encouraged for aesthetic reasons.
They can also be observed flying along highways, in woodlands, meadows, fields, and parks.
8. Eastern Tent Caterpillars
Eastern tent caterpillars are moth caterpillars that spin huge webs in tree branches.
They feed on the tree’s leaves, causing substantial defoliation and damage.
The eastern United States and Canada are the most typical locations for these insects, starting with E.
9. Eastern Shieldbacks
Eastern shield backs are related to grasshoppers and crickets. The pronotum is flat and wide, like a shield.
Eastern Shieldbacks have a mottled brown coloration that blends in with dead grasses and leaf litter.
They can jump because of their long, muscular legs. They can’t fly because they don’t have wings but can bite.
The katydid’s wingless, exposed abdomen gives it a perplexing appearance.
A long, curving ovipositor protrudes from the abdomen of females. It is not a stinger, despite its appearance.
Fertilized eggs are deposited deep into the earth by ovipositors.
Eastern Shield Backs are voracious eaters, consuming various plant debris and insects.
They can be found foraging in forests and woodlands in the eastern United States.
They cannot fly, but their muscular legs allow them to leap quite a distance when threatened.
10. Embioptera
Embioptera, popularly known as web spinners, are microscopic insects that can spin silk utilizing glands on their front legs.
This silk forms a protective web around themselves and their eggs. These insects that start with E are mostly found in the tropics and subtropics.
11. Eastern Pondhawks
Pondhawks attack their insect prey with the same agility as their bird counterpart.
They are excellent predators, capable of taking down insects as large as themselves. They will even consume other members of their own species.
This species’ males and females are different colors. Adult males have a powdery blue abdomen with a yellow tip, while females have a brilliant green abdomen with dark brown/black markings.
Young males, like females, are green with rings on the abdomen, but their color will change as they age.
Males defend their territories ferociously, especially along the water’s edge.
These insects that start with E continually patrol their airspace, occasionally landing on the ground or floating debris or tree branches to rest.
Females deposit fertilized eggs in the water. They prefer warmer, quiet waters because fewer possible predators could devour young.
The larvae (naiads) grow in this environment by eating other aquatic insects until they are mature enough to crawl on land and molt into their adult form.
12. Earwigs
Earrings are insects distinguished by pincer-like cerci on their abdomen. Earwigs do not crawl into human ears, contrary to a common misconception.
They are generally nocturnal and omnivorous, eating various plants and insects.
13. Earthworm
Earthworms are segmented worms found in dirt all over the world. They contribute significantly to soil health by breaking down organic materials and boosting soil aeration.
They are also an essential food source for many creatures, including birds and moles.
14. Eastern Hercules Beetle
This enormous beetle is found in hardwood forests in the eastern United States.
Despite their enormous size and weight, they can fly extremely well. Male Rhinoceros beetle members have two horn-like pincers on their heads, whilst females do not.
These insects that start with e are most likely employed in territorial battles with other males.
Both sexes are a creamy, golden color with black droplet-like specks. When they are completely hydrated and fed, their overall color can darken.
Larvae feed on decaying wood from dead trees such as pines, oaks, and maples.
They pupate within a rotten tree in a protected cage of earth and their own feces for two years before becoming mature adults.
The larvae pupate in autumn but remain inside the tree until warmer weather returns in the spring. Adults are drawn to rotting fruits, tree sap, and night lights.
15. Eastern Harvestmen
Harvestmen are not spiders, despite their many similarities. They are related to spiders because they are members of the same Order.
The Harvestman lacks fangs, is not venomous, and does not bite. Their mandibles are far too small for humans to feel anything, even if they try.
Their eight long, spindly legs serve a purpose other than transportation.
The second pair functions as antennae and is extremely sensitive.
This second pair of legs also aids a Harvestman in capturing prey, smelling their surroundings, and even breathing (through spiracles on their legs). The Harvestman will perish if the second pair of legs is lost.
A Harvestman’s body is totally united and spherical rather than segmented like other arachnids.
Harvestmen blend well with their surroundings, although certain species can discharge a powerful fragrance from a gland between their first pairs of legs.
Self-amputation is one of the most perplexing forms of predator defense.
To distract a predator, this insect that starts with e will remove one of its own legs (but not one from the essential second pair).
The harvested leg can twitch for up to an hour, giving the Harvestman enough time to flee.
Unfortunately, the leg cannot regenerate. Therefore, it is an expensive kind of self-defense.
16. Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Eastern tiger swallowtail butterflies are a type of butterfly found in the eastern United States.
They can be found in forests and woodlands, where they feed on nectar and pollen.
These insects that start with E are distinguished by their bright yellow and black coloring.
17. Eastern Eyed Click Beetle
The Eastern Eyed Click Beetle has a southwestern cousin called the Southwestern Eyed Click Beetle and cousins called the Western Eyed Click Beetle on the West Coast and in the Pacific Northwest.
Their ranges may overlap at the borders, but species are unlikely to cross across and occupy the other regions entirely.
Click Beetles, like all members of the Elateridae family, acquire their name from the sound they make when they flip themselves upright. It makes a loud noise when it snaps its spine’ under its thorax.
This propels the beetle into the air and, if it is on its back, aids in turning it right-side-up. It may also help you flee from predators during an attack.
18. Eastern Comma
The eastern comma is next on our list of insects that start with E.
The odd curvature of the wings on the Eastern Comma is also evident in other varieties of Comma butterflies, collectively dubbed ‘angel wings.’
When the wings are flat, the curves and points produce an edge similar to braces, often called curly brackets. The wings‘ top surfaces are orange with black dots and edges.
The Question Mark butterfly has an extra black mark near the tip of its forewings that this species lacks.
Because the distinction is subtle, it is possible to confuse the two. In summer broods, the hindwings are almost totally black.
The undersides of the wings contain light and dark brown ripples. Each hindwing has a white comma mark in the center.
A little tail protrudes from the hindwing as well. This butterfly blends nicely in the woods due to its color, shape, and resemblance to dried, dead leaves.
It can sit on a branch or twig almost unnoticed if it sits still. When it decides to move, it is a rapid and erratic flier.
19. Eastern Carpenter Bees
Unlike the Bumble Bee, the Carpenter Bee does not have a totally fuzzy abdomen.
It is fairly prevalent throughout the continent’s center and eastern regions.
Eastern Carpenter Bees can be found in parks, gardens, woods, and fields, and they are skilled at finding flowers to pollinate.
These insects that start with E are important pollinators and should be welcomed in any landscape.
Even though adults feed on flower nectar, they occasionally chew through stems, causing minor plant damage, to get the nectar.
They quickly migrate from blossom to flower, pollinating and gathering from a huge region in a short period of time.
Even though they don’t appear to mind sharing feeding sites with other bee species, females utilize their powerful jaws to cut holes in wood the size of their bodies.
These relatively deep holes can be found in wooden fence posts, lumber stacks, tree trunks, log cabin walls, and other substantial wooden structures.
They rarely bore enough holes to weaken the structure they are digging, but the result is unattractive.
A female will lay her eggs in this hole, attaching pollen grains to each egg to provide sustenance for the larvae after they hatch.
A male guards the nest’s entrance, preventing other males from reproducing with the female.
20. Eastern Treehole Mosquito
The eastern tree-hole mosquito breeds in tree holes and other small pockets of water.
They are particularly widespread in the eastern United States and can be dangerous to humans and animals.
These insects that start with e can transmit diseases, including West Nile virus and Eastern equine encephalitis.
21. Eastern Blood-sucking Coneno
Eastern blood-sucking coneno is ending our list of insects that start with E.
The tapering beak of the Eastern Blood-sucking Conenose resembles a cone on the insect’s face.
The Eastern Blood-sucking Conenose is a type of biting bug known as a Kissing Bug. It is also referred to as a sort of bed bug.
The female feeds at night and draws blood from her mammalian host to aid in egg development; the male feeds on other insects, especially Bed Bugs.
Females in the wild go in quest of a mammal, usually a mouse, to feed on. They may, however, wander inside and look for a host.
Blood hosts can be pets or humans; if chosen, the insect or proof of its existence is frequently found in the host’s mattress.
Feces, eggs, and nymphs (juveniles) have been discovered in mattresses, blankets, pillows, and around pet beds.
Conclusion
The widespread extinction of insects that start with E might result in catastrophic ecosystem collapse, including a drop in food production and the number of birds and insectivores that rely on them for nourishment.
While the future of insects is uncertain, we can all help to conserve them by caring for our gardens, avoiding chemical pesticides, and supporting organizations that advocate for insect protection and conservation.
