| Latin Name | Observation date | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Cletus punctiger | January 19 2025 | Buket Alue Puteh, Aceh, Indonesia |
Cletus punctiger is a species of insect belonging to the tingidae family which is famous for its unique body shape and also its ability to adapt to the surrounding environment. This insect is often found in various tropical areas, especially in Southeast Asia (Indonesia), the presence of this insect is interesting the attention of many fans of the insect world because of its very distinctive morphology and way of life, Cletus punctiger is not a species of insect that can be found in home gardens or human settlements, but the Cletus punctiger insect can only be found in dense tropical forests where plants are the main source of food.
As part of the Tingidae family, Cletus punctiger has prominent physical characteristics, namely a small, slender body and often looks like the plants where they live. Another characteristic that is easy to recognize is its body structure which is covered with a thin and hard layer. which functions as protection from attacks by predators, apart from that Cletus punctiger also has excellent camouflage abilities, with body colors ranging from faded yellow, brown to slightly gray so this insect can blend in with the surrounding environment, especially with plant stem which has the same color as their body.
This insect is included in the group of insects that suck plant sap, Cletus punctiger uses its very special mouthparts or what is more popularly known as "rostrum", now these mouthparts function to pierce plant tissue and suck the sap, this sap sucking process does not cause damage which is significant for plants, but insects can still have a negative effect on plant growth, especially if their population grows rapidly in an area, the sap that Cletus punctiger sucks contains a number of nutrients that are really needed for its survival, so that's where the Cletus insect comes from. punctigers get enough energy to reproduce.
one of the reasons why Cletus punctiger is able to survive in a challenging environment is their efficient reproductive ability. Cletus punctiger reproduces by laying eggs which then hatch into nymphs that resemble adults but are small and do not have wings, a metamorphosis process that occurs in This insect is also said to be very interesting because the nymph will undergo several changes before finally becoming an adult individual who is ready to become a beautiful creature like the one you see in the photo, as an insect that is able to adapt to various conditions, that's why Cletus punctiger can live on various types of plants and proves its flexibility in finding food sources.
on the other hand, even though Cletus punctiger has extraordinary camouflage abilities and adapts well to the environment, this insect still has natural predators that threaten its existence, insect predator birds and several other predatory insects which are the main enemies of Cletus punctiger, to protect itself Cletus punctiger It only relies on camouflage techniques and very careful movement which allows it to avoid detection from predators, with a hard body structure and covered with a protective layer, this insect is quite difficult for predators to reach or eat.
| Camera used | smartphone |
|---|---|
| Lens | - |
| Photography | Cletus punctiger |
| Location | Buket Alue Puteh |
| Photographer | @lightofhope |
| Link to original | community |
|---|---|
| Link | https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/259231259 |
| Latitude Longitude | Map | |
|---|---|---|
| =5.080479 | =97.46383 | https://www.openstreetmap.org/?mlat=5.0804793232&mlon=97.4638302997 |
