Not bed bugs, but interesting subject matter.
The New York Entomological Society, Inc.
Incorporating the Brooklyn Entomological Society
American Museum of Natural History
Central Park West at 79th Street
New York, New York 10024
Phone: 212.769.5613 Fax: 212.769.5277
Email: nyes@amnh.org Web: http://www.nyentsoc.org
Speaker:
James W. Beck
Biologist and Nature Photographer
Marrero, Louisiana
Presentation:
“Loxosceles rufescens (Araneae: Sicariidae) in Louisiana”
James Beck is trying to understand the distribution of L. rufescens in Louisiana. A common name for it is the Mediterranean recluse. It has been generally accepted that the similar L. reclusa (brown recluse) has been present throughout the state of Louisiana. James suspects, however, that for many years Loxosceles have been misidentified or assumed to be L. reclusa in the southern portion of Louisiana, where it may have been L. rufescens all along. L. rufescens has been commonly collected from the Greater New Orleans area, and only rarely has L. reclusa been taken. Rick Vetter, another Loxosceles researcher, expressed similar thoughts*. It appears that L. rufescens is the dominant Loxosceles species in south Louisiana (as well as all of the other Gulf Coast states in their southern portions) and L. reclusa is more common in the central and northern parts of these states. [Note: L. rufescens has been collected from a few buildings in the NYC area. L. Sorkin].
James is currently employed at Algiers Animal Clinic in New Orleans. He has over 15 years’ experience from two different zoological institutions and has over 20 years’ experience as a Field Biologist working in Forest Ecology in the areas of Ornithology, Herpetology, Botany and others. His interest in spiders and insects began at age 15 as a volunteer while at Audubon Zoo in New Orleans. His main interest in spiders is centered on species of Loxosceles (recluses) and Latrodectus (widows). His hobbies include birding, herping, bugging and wildlife photography. His main webpage is venomousphotography.shutterfly.com https://venomousphotography.shutterfly.com/ where he has links to his other sites.
*The most recent publication on Loxosceles spiders is by Richard S. Vetter (2015):
The Brown Recluse Spider. ISBN: 978-0-8014-7985-4. Cornell University Press.
Where: Linder Theater (77th Street Entrance)
Date: Tuesday, September 15, 2015
Time: 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Dinner: 9:00PM – TBA
Society meetings are always open to the public with no admission charge