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Insect Identification Key
Identify Insects in Michigan ... and beyond!

Your answer to the previous question was that your insect’s wings have many crossveins.

Tail filaments
This is an example of an insect that has two obvious caudal filaments, which are indicated by the green arrows. Public-domain illustration.

Does your insect have two or three long, slim caudal filaments?

You are looking for two or three long, slim, tail-like appendages on the tip of the abdomen, as shown in the photo.

Click one of the following:

Yes, my insect has two or three long, slim caudal filaments.

No, my insect does not have this characteristic.


I would like to return to the start of this key.



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Unless noted otherwise, photographs on this website are the property of the photographers and may not be reused without written permission from the photographers. To obtain permission, email the photographers here. High-resolution versions of the photographs are available.

Photos at the top of this website are (from left to right): potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) — photo credit: Scott Bauer, U.S. Department of Agriculture; ebony jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata)— photo credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; sweat bee (Agapostemon splendens) — photo credit: Natalie Allen and Stephanie Kolski, U.S. Geological Survey; preying mantis, monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), hellgrammite (aka toe biter) larva and eyed click beetle (Alaus oculatus) — photo credit: Leslie Mertz, DailyGraceCards.com; Halloween pennant (Celithemis eponina) — photo credit: Kay Meng, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

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