pfft... not sure about cheeky, the Beetle is over an inch long and is an absolute menace haha! I removed him pretty quickly before he scared all my little mothy buddies away
It is precisely a 'science definition' thing. 😆
Beetles refer to a group of insects call Coleoptera, Bugs refer to Hemiptera... and there are clear taxonomic diferences between the 2 groups, just like all the other groups of insects. Eg Beetles have hard wing cases, Bugs have soft, Beetles have jaws to eat food, bugs have a tube to pierce food (and suck out the insides), and both have very different life cycles.
Buuuut, 'Bug' is often used as a general term much like 'minibeast' or 'creepy crawley'.... and while I understand the majority of people won't be aware of the differences etc, it still winds me up. I spend so much effort into identifying and naming species correctly that putting everything under the umbrella term 'bug' just irks me a little 🤣
Fair enough!! Knowing that irks me too. I may not be as invested as you are, but I understand the frustration haha. 😅 There are clear, major differences between the different insect groups. Hm. Well, as they say, “the more you live the more you learn”. Thanks for explaining this!