線路際に咲いていた綺麗なこの花はゼニアオイというようです。ちょうど何かのつるが巻き付いて絵的に美しい構成になっていたので、思わずパチリ。ゼニアオイの英語の common name は high mallow, tall mallow もしくは cheeses というそうです。なんで cheese (チーズ) なんでしょうね？Cheese には 写真撮影のときに "Say Cheese!" と言うところから「口を横開きにしてほほ笑む」なんて動詞が派生しているようですが、この花のイメージが微笑んでいるようだから？？？分かりません。このゼニアオイはヨーロッパ原産で江戸時代に渡来したそうです。丸い花が「一文銭」ぐらいの大きさだったことから「銭」が付き、 「葵」は「立葵」の葉っぱに似ている事に由来するそうです。線路際に生えていた事から分かるように、とても強い植物です。学名はMalva sylvestris と言うそうです。
I found this beautiful flower named high mallow near a rail road. That means this flower is very strong. Alternative English names of this plant are tall mallow and cheeses. I don't know why this flower is called "cheeses". Maybe this flower looks like smiling like people smile when camera man says "Say cheese!". This flower came from Europe to Japan in Edo era (1603-1867). Japanese name of this flower is "Zeni aoi". "Zeni" means old coins that were used in the era. "Aoi" is a kind of plant that has similar leaves. Scientific name of this plant is Malva sylvestris.
おそらくこのカメムシは羽が透けているのでスカシヒメカメムシです。ただヒメカメムシ科のカメムシってとても似てるので、間違っていたらすみません。英語の common name は Hyaline Grass Bug。学名は Liorhyssus hyalinus。日本のみならず、アフリカやアメリカなど世界中いるようです。エジプトでは cotton に被害が、アフガニスタンではタバコに被害が、アメリカではピスタチオに被害が出ているようです。
This bug is probably Hyaline Grass Bug. But I'm not sure, because the family of this shield bugs is very similar. Scientific name of this insect is Liorhyssus hyalinus. It distributes all over the world. According to a book titled "Heteroptera of economic importance" by Carl W. Schaefer, Antônio Ricardo Panizzi, the hyaline grass bug feeds on sorghum and pistachio fruit in North America. The nymphs damage fruit and seeds. Thus bug moves onto these crops from nearby wild hosts, mostly grasses. Liorhyssus hyalinus occurs worldwide. It is common on cotton in Egypt and occasionally common on tobacco in Afghanistan; in neighboring countries it feeds also on cereals and legumes. In California, it and several other heteropterans are responsible for "early season epicarp lesion" in April and May of pistachio,the damaging and darkening of tissue and subsequent abortion of the young fruit.
I found a chestnut tree. Actually, I forgot the word "chestnut". Oops. I'm forgetting lots of English words that I remember in the US. It's very difficult to remember English words in Japan, especially words that are not related to work. Sigh....
I found a spider that hid a grass. It looks like a breaststroke swimming player after a stroke. I almost missed the spider, since it camouflaged very well. I always feel like I'm playing "hide-and seek" when I find insect, since they hide very well in grasses. The name of this spider is probably "ashi naga gumo" in Japanese that means spider that have long legs. Its scientific name is probably Tetragnata praedonia and native to Japan.
I found a nymph of another kind of locust. Japanese name of this locust is "Onaga sasakiri" that means long tail grasshopper. Its scientific name is Conocephalus gladiatus. It is native to Japan, Korea, and China. It is now middle of August. There are still a lots of nymphs of insects.
コバネイナゴの幼虫を見つけました。黄緑色が綺麗です。イナゴのキック力って強いですよね。幼虫の時からこのたくましい足。イナゴ全般の英語の common name は locust。でも locust ってホント何もかも含み過ぎですよね。学名は Oxya yezoensis。分布は日本全土、台湾、フィリピン、セレベス、インドだそうです。
I found a nymph of locust. Japanese name of this locust is "Kobane inago" that means "locust that has short wings". The kick power of this locust is very strong. Look at the large hind legs. Scientific name of this locust is Oxya yezoensis. It distributes Japan, Taiwan, Philippines, Celebes, and India.
I saw a cute butterfly (skipper) that has big eyes. Japanese name of this skipper is "Ichimonji-seseri". Scientific name of this butterfly is Parnara guttata. We see this butterfly all places in Japan. I did web search and found an article that was published on "Japanese Journal of Ecology" in 1973. The title is "An observation on the migration of Parnara guttata bremer et gray in 1970" written by Kazuyoshi Miyashita. I cited the abstract of this article (see below).
"A marked mass migration of Parnara guttata was observed on September 9,1970,in the Kanto district, Japan. The butterflies in this migration flew against the wind, and their directions observed at different places in the district were generally south or south-west. The peak time of migration tended to be become later towards the south-western part of the district. The starting point and destination of the butterflies are not known, but some discussions on this problem are given. The mean flight speed of the migrating butterflies was estimated to be 8.2m/s."
Wow! This small butterfly can migrate at 8.2m/s!? Although Usain Bolt, the gold medalist of the Olympic, can run 10.3m/s, he is special. The small butterfly can fly faster than ordinary people. Since I was not able to get the full paper, I don't know where the butterflies were came from and where the butterflies went to. There is a book about the migration. If I have a change, I would like to read it.
ヒラヒラ舞う姿は美しいモンシロチョウ。英名は small white。学名は Pieris rapae。アメリカにもモンシロチョウはたくさんいて、一度御紹介した事がありました（コチラ）。日本のモンシロチョウと見比べてみましたが、同じように見えます。
Small white is a beautiful butterfly. I saw it in the US and introduced it once (click here). I compared America's one and Japanese one. It looks like the same. Japanese name of this butterfly is "Mon shiro chou" that means white butterfly that have a dot. Its scientific name is Pieris rapae.
こちらは肩が棘のようなカメムシです。すごく尖っていますよね。ホソハリカメムシと言うそうです。英語の common name は Narrow coreid bug、学名は Cletus punctiger と言うそうです。どうやら日本固有種のよう。ホントにいろいろなカメムシがいるものです。
This is another shield bug that has very sharp spines on its shoulder.Japanese name of this insect is "Hoso hari kamemusi" in Japanese that means slim needle like shield bug. English common name is Narrow coreid bug. Scientific name of this insect is Cletus punctiger. It is probably endemic in Japan. There are so many kinds of shield bugs!!!
I found a shield bug that has a very unique face. Name of this insect is "Uzura kamemushi" in Japanese. Scientific name of this shield bug is Aelia fieberi. It is endemic in Japan. It lives on poaceous grasses, and it likes the ears of poaceous grasses. It's camouflage is perfect!
I found a small yellow and black moss. This moss is called "Ki madara ko yaga" that means "yellow dotted small night moss". This moss is native to Japan and Eurasia continent. In Japan, population of this moss is now decreasing. I saw it at the first time. Scientific name of this moss is Emmelia trabealis.
多摩川にはたくさんのベニシジミがいました。英語の common name は、羽の色が copper (銅) 色と言う事から、small cooper。学名はLycaena phlaeas。分布はアジア、ヨーロッパ、北アメリカ、そして北アフリカととても広いようです。そんなに世界中にいるなんてびっくりです。
I found a small copper today. Japanese name of this small butterfly is "Beni sijimi" that means "red clam". Scientific name is Lycaena phlaeas. It is widespread and common across Europe, Asia and North America, and also found in North Africa. Wow. I did not know that we can see this cute butterfly around the world.
今日はとてものんびり屋さんのコフキコガネも見つけました。手の上に乗せても逃げる事もなくやたらとおっとりとしたコガネムシです。全身に細かい毛が生えていて、粉を吹いているように見えるので、コフキコガネというそうです。オオコフキコガネというとても似たコガネムシがいるようなのですが、本州にいるのはコフキコガネだけと書かれているweb site があったので、きっとコフキコガネで間違えないと思います。学名はMelolontha japonica。学名に japonica が付く事からも分かるように、日本原産のコガネムシで、英語の common name はないようです。
I found a beetle named "Kofuki kogane". "Kofuki" means "Have powders" and "kogane" means "beetle". If you look closely, this insect has lots of small dense hairs on its body. The hairs look like powders. That's why this insect is called "Kofuki kogane (=beetle that have powders)". Scientific name of this beetle is Melolontha japonica. As you expect, it is native to Japan. There is no English common name.
多摩川の土手に上る階段の脇に蝶が死んでいました。『クロアゲハかな？かわいそうに。でも成虫になれて一生懸命生きたんだから良かったね。』って思って写真を撮って帰って来ました。家でクロアゲハの模様を調べてみたら、この写真のアゲハと模様がちょっと違うみたい。このアゲハ、都会では珍しいカラスアゲハのようです。カラスアゲハは羽を開くと美しい青や緑らしいんですが（南に行く程に美しくなるらしい）、今回checkしなかったのが悔やまれます。でも僅かに覗く羽の内側が緑色。今度は美しく花から花へと舞っているカラスアゲハに会いたいです。ちなみに英語の common name は Chinese peacock というそうです。Peacock (クジャク) のように美しい羽に由来するようです。学名はPapilio bianor。分布は日本と台湾との事です
I found a dead butterfly on the way to go to the bank of the Tama river. I felt little sad when I saw it. But anyway the butterfly became an adult (It's very difficult to become just an adult in insect world), thus I also felt that the butterfly was anyway lucky. I took a picture of it and went back to home. First I thought that it was Papilio protenor that is common in Tokyo. But the pattern on its wings are different, so I realized that it is not a Papilio protenor (Kuro ageha in Japanese), but a Papilio bianor (Karasu ageha) that is very rare in Tokyo or any other big cities. Its English common name is Chinese peacock. The name is derived from its beautiful wings; the butterfly that lives in south part of Japan has more beautiful wings shining blue and green. It distributes in Japan and Taiwan. Next time if have a chance to see it, I would like to see this butterfly flying beautifully flower to flower.
葉っぱの上に綺麗な色のコガネムシを見つけました。マメコガネというそうです。英名は Japanese beetle。学名は Popillia japonica。もともと日本の在来種ですが、移入先のアメリカで大繁殖してしまい、外来害虫として嫌われているようです。どうやらアヤメの球根か何かに紛れてアメリカに渡ってしまったようです。人や外敵が近づくと後ろ足をあげる習性があるのが特徴的。英語版のWikipediaにはとげのある「後ろ足で防御するため」と書いてありましたが、ちょっと違うような。綺麗な虫ですが、天敵のいない他所の国で迷惑をかけていると思うと申し訳ないです。
I found beautiful beetles on leaves. Name of this beetle is Japanese beetle. Scientific name is Popillia japonica. According to Wikipedia, As the name suggests, the Japanese beetle is native to Japan. The insect was first found in the US in 1916 in a nursery near Riverton, New Jersey. It is thought that beetle larvae entered the US in a shipment of iris bulbs prior to 1912 when inspections of commodities entering the country began. Although the beetle is beautiful, I feel sorry because the Japanese insect is making troubles in other countries. The beetles have a curious, identifying defense: they lift their hind legs up in the air, even when simply approached. According to Wikipedia, these hind legs are spiny, and the behavior is probably intended to ward off predators. I can't believe it. Does anyone know?
多摩川でヒメアカタテハを見ました。私はタテハチョウのシャープな感じが好きです。英名は painted lady と言うそうです。タテハチョウ科の羽の模様は本当に綺麗で、画家が描いたよう。Painted lady の名前も、きっと美しい羽の模様から来たんでしょうね。学名は Vanessa cardui または Cynthia cardui。南極大陸を除く全ての大陸に分布していて、現在最も分布が広いチョウの一つだそうです。以前御紹介したナガサキアゲハと同様、温暖化により北上しつつある種のひとつでだそうです。この蝶は移動性が高く、鳥のように「渡り」という習性があって、なんと1,000km以上も飛ぶことができるんだそうですよ。私が今日見たヒメアカタテハも異国からの長旅の後かもしれませんね。お疲れさま。
I saw a painted lady at Tama river. I like its beautiful patterns on its wings. It is like an elaborate painting by a professional artist. Scientific name of this butterfly is Vanessa cardui or Cynthia cardui. It distributes almost global. It migrates like birds. It can fly 1000 km! Wow! The butterfly that I saw today might have came from foreign countries. I wanna say "Nice to see ya!".
今日はコカマキリの幼虫を見つけました。コカマキリは茶色っぽくて小さくて、カマの裏に白黒模様があるのが特徴です。写真では見えづらいですが、ちょっとだけ白黒模様が見えていますね。分布は日本と韓国、中国だそうです。英語の common name はないようで、学名はStatilia maculataです。
I found a small brown praying mantis (still nymph) today. Japanese name of this mantis is "Kokamakiri" that means small praying mantis. This mantis has a unique black and white mark inside of their front legs. There is no English common name. Scientific name of this mantis is Statilia maculata. It is native to Japan, Korea and China.
セミの声がうるさいくらいの夏真っ盛り。目の前の枝に一匹のミンミンゼミが来てとまってくれたので、綺麗な写真が撮れました。ミンミンゼミの英語の common name は robust cicada。学名は Oncotympana maculaticollis。分布は日本の他、韓国と中国だそうです。
It has been so hot and humid in Japan. Cicadas' songs are so loud and noisy. A robust cicada came and sit on a branch of a tree in front of me. Japanese name of this cicada is "Min Min zemi", since it sings "Min Min Min Min....." (zemi means cicada). Scientific name of this cicada is Oncotympana maculaticollis. It is native to Japan, Korea, and China.
今日は多摩川に久しぶりに散歩に行きました。木の枝を見上げたら、びっくりするほどたくさんのセミの抜け殻 (cast-off shell of a cicada) がついていました。こんな風に折り重なってくっついているのを見たのは初めてです。そんなにある特定の葉っぱが人気がある訳が分かりません。
I went to Tama river in Tokyo for a walk. I looked up a tree and saw so many cast-off shells of cicada. I have never seen cast-off shells of cicada that are piled up so high on others shells. I don't know why there are popular spots for cicada to do adult eclosion (There are many empty leaves).
I found a very beautiful moth on the way to go back home yesterday. I have seen it several times, but I am amazed every time whenever I see it because its beauty. Name of the moth is "Oomizuao" in Japanese that means "big water blue". Scientific name is Actias artemis. It is native to Japan as well as Korea, China, India and Malaysia. Adults of the moth don't have a mouth, so they can't eat or drink anything. Thus their life as adults are so short (10 days or so). Please don't keep them in a small cage. In Europe, there is a moth named Luna moth (Actias luna) that is very close to Actias artemis. Wow! The moth got a name from a goddess of the moon! I understand why the moth got the name.
なんか虫の写真ばかりなこの頃なので、綺麗なお花の写真をどうぞ。この花は一度紹介しましたが（コチラ）、ランタナという花です。和名は七変化。一株からホントにいろいろな色の花が咲くので楽しいです。素敵でしょう？ランタナはいろいろな種類があるようですが、Lantana camara は Spanish Flag とも呼ばれているそうです。スペインの国旗をランタナの下に載せましたが、似ていますでしょうか？
I've been introducing insects, so please enjoy this beautiful flower. I introduced this flower once only in Japanese article. So this time, I would like to write an English article too. Name of this flower is Lantana. It is native to tropical regions of the Americas and Africa. But it is so beautiful, so you see this flower in Japan as an ornamental flower.Lantana is also called Spanish Flag. I uploaded Spanish Flag just under the photos of Lantana. Do you think that the flag is similar to the flower?
I found a camel cricket (alternative name is cave cricket) at my bathroom. I know that many Japanese don't like this insect, but it is not toxic, dangerous, so totally harmless. I like its long legs. Japanese name of this insect is "Kamado uma". "Kamado" means kitchen in old Japanese, and "Uma" means horse (Its face is long, so little bit looks like horse face). In Japan, we often saw this insect inside of our house especially around kitchen, although these days we don't see it often around kitchen because of Americanization of house style. That's because we call it "Kamado Uma (Kitchen horse)".
I found a small cicada named NiiNii zemi in my institute. I did not have my good camera (OLYMPUS SP-550UZ) with me at that time, thus I used my old camera (CASIO EXILIM EX-Z4). So the resolution of this photo is not so good. This cicada is very small around 2 cm and well camouflaged with tree. It is native to Japan, Taiwan, China, and Korea. There is no English common name. Scientific name of this cicada is Platypleura kaempferi.
最近夜11時近くまで働く日が続いており、体力も限界に近づいている今日この頃。仕事が終わって疲れた目をふと近くの木に向けると、そこで一匹のアブラゼミが羽化していました。その美しさときたら。一日の疲れが飛びました。天使のような羽化したてのセミの写真を楽しんで下さい。アブラゼミの英名は large brown cicada。皆さん、羽が固まった後のアブラゼミは御存知だと思うので写真は載せませんが、もし見たい方がいらっしゃったら、昨夏御紹介しましたので、コチラまで。ちなみにアブラゼミの学名は Graptopsaltria nigrofuscata と言うそうです。
I have been working until midnight everyday these days. I've been so tired. But day before yesterday, I saw a large brown cicada (scientific name is Graptopsaltria nigrofuscata) that just finished adult exclosion. I completely forgot that I was tired, since it was so beautiful like an angel. Please check my previous entry (Click here!), if you want to see this cicada after its wings get hard.
I saw a long-horned beetle named "Katashiro gomafu kamikiri" close to my office. Scientific name of this insect is Mesosa hirsuta hirsuta. It is probably endemic in Japan. It is 16-20mm according to web sites, but I thought that it was bigger than that, probably because I was excited by the interesting insect.
My American friend sent me a photo of cool looking slug. He found it in Maryland, US. Probably, this is spotted leopard slug. Alternative names of this slug are Great Gray Garden Slug, Giant Gardenslug, and Tiger slug. As you expect from its name, it is big around 4 inches (10 cm). I've never seen such slug that has leopard like spots in Japan. I wanna see it!
赤い頭がちょっと毒々しいこの虫はヤマイモハムシと思われます。英語の common name はおそらくないです (それらしき物が書かれたweb siteを一つ見つけたんですが、添付されていた写真があまりにも別のハムシだったので自信がないです)。学名は Lema honorata。これもおそらく日本固有種です。なんとハムシ科の仲間は日本に約570種もいるそうです。もしこのハムシがヤマイモハムシでなかったらすみません。それにしても昆虫の種類の多さには目を見張る物がありますね。
I found a insect that have a red head. Probably, this is "Yamaimo hamushi" that means "yam leaf beetle". Scientific name of this leaf beetle is Lema honorata. It is probably native in Japan. This time, I don't have solid confidence, since there are 570 kinds of leaf beetles in Japan. If it's not "Yamaimo hamushi", I'm sorry. Anyway, the variety of insects are really amazing!!!
ムラサキシラホシカメムシの幼虫を見ました。背中に２つある白い点が見分けるポイントです。幼虫には白い点の下に白い横線がありますが、成虫になるとこれがおそらく羽で隠されて見えなくなるようです。これも日本固有種のようで、英語の common name はないようです。学名は Eysarcoris annamita。なんか白い2つの点が目のようで、白い線が口にも見えますよね。
I found a nymph of "Murasaki sira hoshi kamemusi" that is endemic in Japan. "Murasaki sira hoshi kamemusi" means "violet weevil with white stars". I don't think that its is violet though. It does not have an English common name. Its scientific name is Eysarcoris annamita. We can distinguish this weevil from other weevils by two white stars on its back. Its nymph has a white horizontal line under the two dots, while its adult does not have. The two white spots look like eyes and the white line look like a mouth a little bit, aren't them?
お尻の先が白いアブを見つけました。シオヤアブ (塩屋虻) と言うようです。お尻の先の白い部分を塩に見立てた命名だとか。どうやら日本固有種のようで、英語の common name はないようです。学名は Promachus yesonicus と言うそうです。
I found a fly that has white on tip of its tail. Its Japanese name is "Sioya-abu" that means a fly that sells salt. Hmm. The white region looks like salt a bit!? It seems that the insect is endemic in Japan. There is no English common name. Scientific name of this fly is Promachus yesonicus.
なんか泥まみれに見えるゾウムシを見つけました。でも何回かおそらく別個体を見かけて、すべて泥まみれに見えるので、別に本当に泥にまみれているのではなく、これが本来の姿のゾウムシのようです。もし地面にいたら、完璧な保護色になりますね。このゾウムシの名前はスグリゾウムシというようです。英名はtwobanded Japanese weevil。Weevil とは「ゾウムシ」という意味です。学名はPseudocneorhinus bifasciatus Roelofs。英名にJapaneseが付いていますが、日本だけではなく、中国、韓国、モンゴル、そして東シベリアにもともと生息していたようです。今ではアメリカでも外来動物として生息圏を広げているようですが。ただし、遠くまで自ら移動できる訳ではないので、人間が植物を移動する時にくっついて広がっているようです。ちなみにスグリゾウムシは単為生殖をするので、アメリカでは雄は見られないそうです。雄は日本では男女群島女島と言う限られた島にだけおり、あと中国でも雄がいるそうですが、やはり雌の数の方が圧倒的に多いようです。面白いですね！
I found a beetle that looks like covered in mud. But I saw several same looking weevils. So it is actually not covered in mud, it is the natural look. Japanese name of this insect is "Suguri-zoumusi" and English name of this insect is two banded Japanese weevil. Although English name has Japanese in it, it is native to China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, and eastern Siberia. It is now established in the eastern United States, and occurs in New England, the mid-Atlantic states, Indiana, and Illinois. Its presence in Florida was confirmed in July 2005. As the weevil is flightless, it is unlikely to spread to long distances by jumping, and a pattern of dispersal in this manner is not evident in the mapped records of the southeastern region (Wheeler and Boyd 2005). Therefore the spread in the southeastern states is possibly due to the movement of infested ornamental plants. Twobanded Japanese weevils reproduce parthenogenetically, and males are generally not encountered in the United States although they are known to occur in China. In Japan, we can find males of this insect in only very limited place. Females are dominant in most of places in Japan. It's very interesting, isn't it?
Author:Motoko
I had been working at Maryland, US for 4 years since 2004. Now I went back to Tokyo, Japan and started to work here again. This blog is primarily a English-Japanese dictionary, but I started to introduce nature in Japan in English since May 2008. So please use this blog as a Japanese nature encyclopedia. Enjoy! Your comments are very welcome.
。この花は一度紹介しましたが（コチラ）、ランタナという花です。和名は七変化。一株からホントにいろいろな色の花が咲くので楽しいです。素敵でしょう？ランタナはいろいろな種類があるようですが、Lantana camara は Spanish Flag とも呼ばれているそうです。スペインの国旗をランタナの下に載せましたが、似ていますでしょうか？
