Series: Membracids of Venezuela

Membracids are insects from a family (Membracidae) of the order Hemiptera. It comprises around 3000 species worldwide, but most of them live in tropical America, where the family is known to originate. The Membracidae of Venezuela have a diversity of shapes, colors, and sizes.

The members of this group stand out for the modification of their pronotum, a sclerite on the back of their head, which presents a great variety of colors and shapes, such as bulbs, halos, horns, thorns, leaves and even some perfectly imitate ants or wasps. Researchers believe that the shape of the pronotum may constitute a defense or camouflage mechanism. Their diet consists of plant sap that they can suck thanks to their suction apparatus.

In this series, I represent some of the most outstanding species in terms of their shape and colors:

• Umbonia crassicornis with its enormous spine-shaped pronotum that scares away potential predators.
• Cladonota apicalis due to its particular resemblance to a dry twig.
• Cyphonia clavata with its strange but excellent imitation of an ant.
• Enchenopa squamigera with a coloration that allows it to go unnoticed on stems.
• Alchisme grossa with three large spines that deter anyone from eating it.
• Membracis foliata with its dry leaf appearance.

Another characteristic of this group is the symbiotic relationship that some species have with other insects, such as ants, bees, and wasps, which they attract with the secretion of sugary substances, in exchange for defense and protection on their part.

These illustrations were made as a personal project, to experiment with different illustration techniques.

Year: 2023
Technique: Digital illustration.
Illustration type: Scientific.
Type of project/Client: Personal.