"Insect olfaction Insect olfaction refers to the function of chemical receptors that enable insects to detect and identify volatile compounds for foraging, predator avoidance, finding mating partners (via pheromones) and locating oviposition habitats. Thus, it is the most important sensation for insects. Most important insect behaviors must be timed perfectly which is dependent on what they smell and when they smell it. For example, olfaction is essential for hunting in many species of wasps, including ""Polybia sericea"". The two organs insects primarily use for detecting odors are the antennae and specialized mouth parts called the maxillary palps. However, a recent"
"specimen can sting, because only females have the ability to sting. The velvet ant has multiple defensive strategies, but is best known for its painful sting, earning it the nickname of ""cow killer"". Its defenses include the ability to run fast and evasively, warning coloration, stridulatory sounds, a chemical secretion, and venom. Dasymutilla occidentalis Dasymutilla occidentalis (red velvet ant or eastern velvet ant), is a species of parasitoid wasp native to the eastern United States. It is commonly mistaken for a member of the true ant family, as the female is wingless. The species ranges from Connecticut to Missouri in"
"Velvet antler Velvet antler is the whole cartilaginous antler in a precalcified growth stage of the Cervidae family including the species of deer, elk, moose and caribou. Velvet antler is covered in a hairy, velvet-like ""skin"" known as velvet and its tines are rounded, because the antler has not calcified or finished developing. Velvet antler preparations are sold in China as part of Traditional Chinese medicine, and in the United States and some other countries as a dietary supplement. Most of the world's supply of velvet antler comes from Sika deer, red deer and elk or wapiti, including a large"
"Onychophora Onychophora (from Ancient Greek, ""onyches"", ""claws""; and ""pherein"", ""to carry""), commonly known as velvet worms (due to their velvety texture and somewhat wormlike appearance) or more ambiguously as peripatus (after the first described genus, ""Peripatus""), is a phylum of elongate, soft-bodied, many-legged panarthropods. In appearance they have variously been compared to worms with legs, caterpillars, and slugs. They prey upon smaller animals such as insects, which they catch by squirting an adhesive slime. Approximately 200 species of velvet worms have been described, although the true number of species is likely greater. The two extant families of velvet worms are"
"and lasts up to 30 minutes), hence the common name cow killer or cow ant. However, mutillids are not aggressive and sting only in defense. In addition, the actual toxicity of their venom is much lower than that of honey bees or harvester ants. Unlike true ants, they are solitary, and lack complex social systems. Mutillidae can be found worldwide with approximately 230 genera or subgenera and around 8,000 species worldwide. Over 400 species occur in the North American southwest. The exoskeleton of all velvet ants is unusually tough (to the point that some entomologists have reported difficulty piercing them"
"are known to parasitize other types of hosts; exceptions include the European velvet ant, ""Mutilla europaea"", one of the only species that attacks social bees (e.g., ""Bombus""), and the genus ""Pappognatha"", whose hosts are tree-dwelling orchid bees. The mutillid larvae then develop as idiobiont ectoparasitoids, eventually killing their immobile larval/pupal hosts within a week or two. Velvet ants exhibit haplodiploid sex determination, as do other members of the superfamily Vespoidea. Mutillidae The Mutillidae are a family of more than 3,000 species of wasps whose wingless females resemble large, hairy ants. Their common name velvet ant refers to their dense pile"
"velvet ants would immediately sting the lizards. This sting resulted in the dropping of the ants in both cases and avoidance for the remainder of the trial. The side-blotched lizard was found dead in its tank 24 hours later. The side-blotched lizard is a natural predator to the velvet ant, while the whiptail is not. The aposematic red and black coloration of the velvet ant corresponds to a specific Müllerian mimicry ring consisting of dozens of species. This offers the velvet ant protection because many of its predators have learned to avoid prey with this same coloration. The velvet ant,"
"made about a number of products that were unsupported by scientific research. Some of these products were marketed as 'dietary supplements.'"" The assistant Alabama attorney general ""says that Deer Antler Spray is dangerous and its sellers are law-breakers."" Velvet antler Velvet antler is the whole cartilaginous antler in a precalcified growth stage of the Cervidae family including the species of deer, elk, moose and caribou. Velvet antler is covered in a hairy, velvet-like ""skin"" known as velvet and its tines are rounded, because the antler has not calcified or finished developing. Velvet antler preparations are sold in China as part"
"Velvet spider The velvet spiders (family Eresidae) are a small group (about 100 species in 9 genera) of almost totally Old World spiders (exception: a few species are known from Brazil). The characteristics of this family of spiders are that they are entelegyne (have a genital plate in the female), eight-eyed araneomorph spiders that build unkempt webs. They are cribellate (use woolly silk). Some species are nearly eusocial, lacking only a specialized caste system and a queen. They cooperate in brood rearing, unlike most other spiders except for some African agelenid spiders in the genus ""Agelena"" and a few others."
"organism’s morphology, physiology, and behavior. During this coevolution of the prey either being consumed by the predator or escaping has resulted in a plethora of impressive defensive strategies to improve the likelihood of escape. The velvet ant (Dasymutilla occidentalis) has benefited greatly from this process. The velvet ant females avoid predation using the following defense mechanisms; a venomous sting, aposematic coloration, a stridulatory organ in their abdomen, an alarm secretion from their mandibular gland, and a powerful, rounded exoskeleton. The venom that velvet ants inject through their stinger has an unknown composition. It outscored 58 species of wasps and bees"
"Mutillidae The Mutillidae are a family of more than 3,000 species of wasps whose wingless females resemble large, hairy ants. Their common name velvet ant refers to their dense pile of hair, which most often is bright scarlet or orange, but may also be black, white, silver, or gold. Black and white specimens are sometimes known as panda ants due to their hair coloration resembling that of the giant panda. Their bright colors serve as aposematic signals. They are known for their extremely painful stings, (the sting of the species ""Dasymultila klugii"" rated a 3 on the Schmidt pain index"
"Trombidiidae Red velvet mites or rain bugs are arachnids found in soil litter known for their bright red color which are often mistaken for spiders. They are active predators as grown adults but as early instars are often parasites on insects and some arachnids. The pattern of stages is shared with that of other members of the Prostigmata: egg, pre-larva, larva, protonymph, deutonymph, tritonymph and adult (male or female). They usually have only one breeding cycle per year. One well known species from Europe, Asia, and North Africa is ""Trombidium holosericeum"". The systematics of this group has been in flux"
"Velvet water bug Velvet water bugs are members of the family Hebridae. They are semiaquatic insects that live among moss or ponds with an abundance of vegetation, in which they prey on small arthropods. Velvet water bugs are the smallest of the Gerromorpha, and have an appearance of tiny veliids. Hebrids sometimes move across water surfaces, but walk or run rather than skate or scull on the surface. Hebrids are small, ranging from lengths of 1.3 to 3.7 mm. They have a characteristic layer of short, dense hairs that cover their entire bodies, except on their abdomens and appendages, from"
"which they derive the common name ""velvet water bug"". They have tarsi in two segments, with their hing legs shorter than their bodies. Unlike the Veliidae and Mesoveliidae, they are known only as winged forms. These wings, however, may be well-developed to short or lacking. The wing's membrane, when it is present at all, lacks any distinct veins that are common of shore bugs Saldidae. They are typically dark-colored. The beak of hebrids is long and reaches to their middle pair of legs, and sits in a ventral groove on their heads. They also have apical claws, lacking the preapical"
"1 meter of the velvet ant it would begin contracting the organ. These contractions became more frequent as the predator got closer to the velvet ant so the shrew never attempted to attack the velvet ant. However, different scenarios with shrews have shown that the velvet ant would contract the organ after the shrew attacked it. Every time this occurred the shrew dropped the ant. The exoskeleton of the velvet ant is remarkably strong. When compared to the exoskeleton of a honeybee, the velvet ant’s required 11 times more force to crush using a force transducer. As well as being"
"worms have been known to live for up to six years. The velvet worm's important predators are primarily various spiders and centipedes, along with rodents and birds, such as, in Central America, the clay-coloured thrush (""Turdus grayi""). In South America, Hemprichi's coral snake (""Micrurus hemprichii"") feeds almost exclusively on velvet worms. For defence, some species roll themselves reflexively into a spiral, while they can also fight off smaller opponents by ejecting slime. Various mites (Acari) are known to be ectoparasites infesting the skin of the velvet worm. Skin injuries are usually accompanied by bacterial infections, which are almost always fatal."
"Velvety myotis The velvety myotis (""Myotis simus""), is a species of vesper bat from South America. The velvety myotis is a small bat, although of average size for a myotine, with a total length of and weighing between . It has short, velvety, orange-brown fur over the whole of the body, which may fade to a brownish shade in preserved specimens. The ears and wing membranes are black and hairless. The ears are short and triangular, with a pointed tragus. Velvety myotis can be distinguished from all other New World members of the genus ""Myotis"" by the velvety nature of"
"Velvet flycatcher The velvet flycatcher (""Myiagra hebetior"") is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to the Bismarck Archipelago. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. The velvet flycatcher was originally described in the genus ""Monarcha"". Alternate names include dull flycatcher, dull monarch, Hartert's flycatcher, island flycatcher, lesser shining flycatcher, little shining flycatcher and velvet myiagra. Three subspecies are recognized: The velvet flycatcher is threatened by habitat loss due to logging. While the subspecies ""Monarcha hebetior eichhorni"" is assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN, the"
"Velvet scoter The velvet scoter (""Melanitta fusca""), also called a velvet duck, is a large sea duck, which breeds over the far north of Europe and Asia west of the Yenisey basin.The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek ""melas"" ""black"" and ""netta"" ""duck"". The species name is from the Latin ""fuscus"" ""dusky brown"". A small, isolated population nests in eastern Turkey. The East Siberian and North American white-winged scoter is sometimes considered conspecific with the velvet scoter, and its two constituent subspecies are then known as ""M. f. stejnegeri"" and ""M. f. deglandi"". Velvet and white-winged scoter, along with"
"Velvetfish Little velvetfishes or simply velvetfishes are a family, the Aploactinidae, of scorpaeniform fishes. As the name implies, they are small fish that have skin with a velvet texture. They are generally flattened in shape, with small pelvic fins, and a fleshy pad under the head, which, in at least one species, forms a sucker for attaching the fish to the sea floor. Some also have venomous spines. They live on the sea bottom close to the shore, at depths of up to . There are about forty known species of velvetfish, although, since they are rarely seen, it is"
"in the painfulness of its sting. The only species with a more painful sting are the ""Paraponera clavata"" (bullet ant), ""Synoeca septentrionalis"" (warrior wasp) and ""Pepsis"" spp. and ""Hemipepsis"" spp. (tarantula hawk). This evidence supporting the pain associated with the sting of the velvet ant explains the common name Cow Killer. During the lizard trials of the Gall et al. experiment, only two lizards (one whiptail and one side-blotched lizard) attacked a velvet ant it was exposed to. In both cases the velvet ants were exhibiting rapid lateral and vertical movements to prevent an attack. Once the attack occurred the"
"Vervet monkey The vervet monkey (""Chlorocebus pygerythrus""), or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term ""vervet"" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus ""Chlorocebus"". The five distinct subspecies can be found mostly throughout Southern Africa, as well as some of the eastern countries. Vervets were introduced to Florida, St. Kitts, Ascension Island, and Cape Verde. These mostly herbivorous monkeys have black faces and grey body hair color, ranging in body length from about for males to about for females. In addition to behavioral research on natural"
"other two subspecies (the Mussau and Djaul flycatchers) are considered Vulnerable by the IUCN. Velvet flycatcher The velvet flycatcher (""Myiagra hebetior"") is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to the Bismarck Archipelago. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. The velvet flycatcher was originally described in the genus ""Monarcha"". Alternate names include dull flycatcher, dull monarch, Hartert's flycatcher, island flycatcher, lesser shining flycatcher, little shining flycatcher and velvet myiagra. Three subspecies are recognized: The velvet flycatcher is threatened by habitat loss due to logging. While"
"cm (approximately 8.7 in) long. Peripatus solorzanoi Solórzano's velvet worm (""Peripatus solorzanoi"") is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family. The holotype was discovered by herpetologist Alejandro Solórzano in Guayacán de Siquirres, Costa Rica, in 1996. Morera-Brenes and Monge-Nájera subsequently described it in 2010. The generic name ""Peripatus"" is derived from the Ancient Greek ""peripatos"", meaning ""walking about"". The specific name ""solorzanoi"" is in honour of its discoverer. The body is light brown or wine red with pale yellow oncopods. Newborns are red. Males have 34 pairs of oncopods; females 39-41. This species is the largest velvet worm"
"the English zoologist Philip Sclater in 1862. Dot-winged antwren The dot-winged antwren (""Microrhopias quixensis"") is a passerine bird in the antbird family. In the past it was sometimes known as the velvety antwren, and some of its more distinctive subspecies have their own infrequently used English names. It is a resident in tropical Central and South America from southeastern Mexico south to western Ecuador, northern Bolivia, central Brazil and the Guianas. It is the only member of the genus Microrhopias. This is a common bird of the understory of wet forest, especially at edges and clearings, tall second growth, and"
"distinctly longer than the dorsal arolium, and the parameres is symmetrical. This subfamily has only one included genus, ""Hyrcanus"" (Distant), of four Asian species. Velvet water bug Velvet water bugs are members of the family Hebridae. They are semiaquatic insects that live among moss or ponds with an abundance of vegetation, in which they prey on small arthropods. Velvet water bugs are the smallest of the Gerromorpha, and have an appearance of tiny veliids. Hebrids sometimes move across water surfaces, but walk or run rather than skate or scull on the surface. Hebrids are small, ranging from lengths of 1.3"
"Peripatus solorzanoi Solórzano's velvet worm (""Peripatus solorzanoi"") is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family. The holotype was discovered by herpetologist Alejandro Solórzano in Guayacán de Siquirres, Costa Rica, in 1996. Morera-Brenes and Monge-Nájera subsequently described it in 2010. The generic name ""Peripatus"" is derived from the Ancient Greek ""peripatos"", meaning ""walking about"". The specific name ""solorzanoi"" is in honour of its discoverer. The body is light brown or wine red with pale yellow oncopods. Newborns are red. Males have 34 pairs of oncopods; females 39-41. This species is the largest velvet worm known, growing up to 22"
"and many former subfamilies of this are now raised to families within the Trombidioidea. The oil from the red velvet mite ""Trombidium grandissimum"" is used in traditional Indian medicine to treat paralysis. "" Trombidiidae Red velvet mites or rain bugs are arachnids found in soil litter known for their bright red color which are often mistaken for spiders. They are active predators as grown adults but as early instars are often parasites on insects and some arachnids. The pattern of stages is shared with that of other members of the Prostigmata: egg, pre-larva, larva, protonymph, deutonymph, tritonymph and adult (male"
"Weaver ant Weaver ants or green ants (genus Oecophylla) are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae (order Hymenoptera). Weaver ants live in trees (they are obligately arboreal) and are known for their unique nest building behaviour where workers construct nests by weaving together leaves using larval silk. Colonies can be extremely large consisting of more than a hundred nests spanning numerous trees and containing more than half a million workers. Like many other ant species, weaver ants prey on small insects and supplement their diet with carbohydrate-rich honeydew excreted by small insects (Hemiptera). Weaver ant workers exhibit a clear bimodal"
"Crematogaster Crematogaster is an ecologically diverse genus of ants found worldwide, which are characterised by a distinctive heart-shaped gaster (abdomen), which gives them one of their common names, the Saint Valentine ant. Members of this genus are also known as cocktail ants because of their habit of raising their abdomens when alarmed. Most species are arboreal. These ants are sometimes known as acrobat ants. Acrobat ants acquire food largely through predation of other insects, like wasps. They use venom to stun their prey and a complex trail-laying process to lead comrades to food sources. Like many social insects, they reproduce"
"Velvet belly lanternshark The velvet belly lanternshark (or simply velvet belly) (""Etmopterus spinax"") is a species of dogfish shark in the family Etmopteridae. One of the most common deepwater sharks in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, the velvet belly is found from Iceland and Norway to Gabon and South Africa at a depth of . A small shark generally no more than long, the velvet belly is so named because its black underside is abruptly distinct from the brown coloration on the rest of its body. The body of this species is fairly stout, with a moderately long snout and tail,"
"by the 20th century. However, the red kite is being reintroduced by the trans-location of breeding pairs from other parts of Europe. Vermin types can also include ferrets, stoats, sables, rats, and occasionally foxes. Vermin Vermin (colloquially varmint or varmit) are pests or nuisance animals, that spread diseases or destroy crops or livestock. Since the term is defined in relation to human activities, which species are included vary from area to area and person to person. The term derives from the Latin ""vermis"" (worm), and was originally used for the worm-like larvae of certain insects, many of which infest foodstuffs."
"pets at that time. Vervet monkey The vervet monkey (""Chlorocebus pygerythrus""), or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term ""vervet"" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus ""Chlorocebus"". The five distinct subspecies can be found mostly throughout Southern Africa, as well as some of the eastern countries. Vervets were introduced to Florida, St. Kitts, Ascension Island, and Cape Verde. These mostly herbivorous monkeys have black faces and grey body hair color, ranging in body length from about for males to about for females. In addition to"