Ugly Bug needs I.D.

[Junebug]

I found this ugly bug on my daughter's passiflora. He wasn't eating the vegetation, but just sat there most of the day. He may be a nymph stage of some beneficial insect, so I let him be.

I know the plant looks bad. It's recovering from a red spider mite infestation and has been chewed to bits by Frutillary caterpillars.

[flhiker]

Looks like a type of weevil.

[s.kallima]

It is a spider, just trying to hide so all the legs are close to the body. This spider is not a problem for your plant at all !

[Junebug]

Thank you both. He's definitely not a weevil. I'm familiar with those horrid bugs.

He might be a spider but from the side view it looked like he had claw appendages.

He actually resembles a water dwelling creature called a horse shoe crab only without the long spikey tail.

[flhiker]

I think there are 10's of thousands of different weevil's. Maybe you can find it here!
What's That Bug? Insect identification

[Junebug]

Originally Posted by flhiker

I think there are 10's of thousands of different weevil's. Maybe you can find it here!
What's That Bug? Insect identification

Thanks Dave, but I did a lot of research on weevils last year when they were eating my chid blooms and orange tree leaves.

This guy doesn't resemble them. For one thing he didn't have the tell-tale snout and hard body. He wasn't ingesting the vegetation either and weevils have the habit of notching the perimeter of leaves and folding them over for nests. Weevils are voracious eaters.

This ugly guy was all by himself and wasn't doing any of those things. He was just harmlessly sitting there. He could be something that eats caterpillars or red spider mites because that's what did all the existing damage to the leaves. I suspect he's not reached the mature stage of whatever he is.

I'm not completely convinced he's a spider either.

Camille has a lot of knowledge about bugs. Perhaps she'll see this post and chime in with more suggestions.

Thanks again for contributing your suggestions.

[Paul]

No, that is definitely a spider. That is a very common body stance when they are trying to stay on the "down low". Looks to be one of the many types of orb weavers.

And, June, shame on you for calling the poor blighter "ugly", you may have hurt his/her feelings! LOL

[Junebug]

Originally Posted by Paul

No, that is definitely a spider. That is a very common body stance when they are trying to stay on the "down low". Looks to be one of the many types of orb weavers.

And, June, shame on you for calling the poor blighter "ugly", you may have hurt his/her feelings! LOL

Well let's just say he had a face and body that only a mother could love.

[s.kallima]

Junebug, I am an entomologist and I can assure you it IS a spider, and Paul is right it is in the family of Orb weavers (Araneidae)
Check this : Family Araneidae - Orb Weavers - BugGuide.Net

[Junebug]

O.K. I'm convinced. Just never saw one like that before. He was all chilled out and had rather floppy looking legs for a spider.