Brown-winged Earwig Vostox brunneipennis

Found throughout the Americas, the brown-winged earwig thrives across a huge geographic range. Like all earwigs, it uses its distinctive pincers (cerci) for defense and prey capture. Earwigs have an unusual parental streak for insects—females guard their eggs and even their young nymphs, making them surprisingly devoted mothers. These nocturnal scavengers play an underappreciated role in decomposing organic matter in forests and gardens. Watch for them under rotting logs and mulch, where they quietly hunt smaller arthropods and scavenge plant debris.