Wildlife in Full Color - Ohio Department of Natural Resources

hio’s insects are found in a rainbowof color. From the jet black Americanoil beetle to the bright yellow Easterntiger swallowtail butterfly, the colorsfound on these tiny animals will amaze acareful observer.You have probably seen red ladybugsflying outside and black ants crawling onthe ground, but there are thousandsof other insects that call Ohiohome, each with their owncolors and patterns.Like all animals, insects use colors tohelp them survive, either by helping themto hide, warning predators not to eatthem, or by attracting a mate. What kindof insect uses camouflage to hide on treesor in grasses?_______________ (hint on pg 7)What kinds of butterflies use bright colorsas a warning that they taste bad or arepoisonous if eaten?__________ (hint on pg 6)What kinds of insects use flashes oflight to attract males to mate with?_________________ (hint on pg 9)Every once in a while, weird thingshappen in the insect world. In 2009, notjust one, but two pink katydids werediscovered in their normal prairie habitat.Pink is not a color that you normally seeon katydids!So how do all of these colors, each withtheir own meaning or message, come tobe?There are two ways that insects gettheir color – pigments and structure.Pigments are chemicals inside theinsect’s body that absorb or reflect light,which your eyes see as colors. Usually,pigments are “warm” colors, like red,orange, or yellow. Your skin color is alsocaused by pigments in your skin tissue.