Insects, Spiders, Centipedes, Millipedes

 
Green praying mantis grasps a bent green plant stem.
A praying mantis climbs a plant in the park.

© Jim Schmidt

Despite being the most diverse and abundant animals in natural ecosystems, insects and other related invertebrates (e.g. spiders, millipedes, etc.) are greatly under appreciated. They have survived on earth for more than 300 million years and may possess the ability to survive for millions more. Insects are vital to the complex cycle of life, furnishing food for other creatures and breaking down natural materials to chemicals and nutrients for recycling into new life. Whirling, buzzing, singing, chewing, vibrating with energy, they are all around us.

Insects and their relatives, along with other species of plants and animals in the park, can be enjoyed through such activities as observation, study, and photography. They are protected from collection, harassment, or other activities that may injure them or alter their environment.

Studies of invertebrates in Cuyahoga Valley include butterfly monitoring and inventories of dragonflies, bees, ants, and spiders.

 
Spider with black legs and black and yellow belly hangs on a strand of silk.
An argiope spider begins to spin a web.

© Jim Schmidt

Spiders

Spiders are generalist predators. They play an important role in the food web by stabilizing insect populations and providing an important food source for birds, amphibians, and other small vertebrates. Spiders are very sensitive to small changes in environmental variables and habitat structure. Therefore, spiders are good ecological indicators of contaminants, disturbance, vegetation complexity, and the diversity of other taxa. The Ohio Spider Survey reports that more than 580 spider species have been recorded in Ohio. Several hundred species may reside in the park. To learn more about the role that spiders play in the park, a preliminary spider inventory in major park habitats was initiated in 1999.

Butterflies

Butterflies are important pollinators and are also significant in nutrient recycling, both as consumers and as prey for other species. Many species are restricted to unique ecological conditions, making them valuable indicators of ecosystem quality and change. In 1996 the national park was invited to participate in a long term butterfly monitoring program initiated by the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. After eight years of monitoring, a total of 54 species of butterflies have been recorded along the selected transect in the park. The long term project has grown to over 65 transects in 22 counties in all parts of Ohio.

The 20 most commonly seen butterflies in Cuyahoga Valley are:

  • Pearl crescent
  • European cabbage white
  • Little wood satyr
  • Orange sulphur
  • Eastern tailed blue
  • Common wood nymph
  • European skipper
  • Monarch
  • Silver-spotted skipper
  • Viceroy
  • Great spangled frittilary
  • Tiger swallowtail
  • Clouded sulphur
  • American copper
  • Wild indigo duskywing
  • Zabulon skipper
  • Red-spotted purple
  • Least skipper
  • Black swallowtail
  • Acadian hairstreak
 
Black and gray dragonfly hangs on a green stem below a yellow flower.
A dragonfly in a summer meadow.

© Ed Toerek

Dragonflies

Dragonflies (Order Odonata) are among the best insect fliers, capable of hovering and even flying backwards. They have four silky transparent wings and huge wrap-around eyes. With names like jewelwing, dancer, rubyspot, damsel, and bluets, dragonflies are considered beneficial insects that feed on mosquitoes, gnats, and flies and are harmless to humans. The biggest threat to dragonflies is the loss of wetland habitats and pollution of streams.

A statewide census of dragonflies and related damselflies has identified 157 species in Ohio, approximately one-third of all species found in North America. Little is known about the dragonflies and damselflies in Northeast Ohio; information on abundance, distribution, and identification needs to be updated. Researchers are searching the Cuyahoga River and wetland areas within the park to establish the existence of rare or previously unknown dragonfly species of Northeast Ohio.

Use the search tool below to see which creatures call the Cuyahoga Valley home.

 

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Visit NPSpecies for more comprehensive information and advanced search capability. Have a suggestion or comment on this list? Let us know.

 
 

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    Last updated: March 10, 2022

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