Mark Sturtevant wrote:
E
www. And Wow! I am definitely sharing that. Reminds me of this, from the web comic Xkcd:
I cannot document this, but there may be a virus that is sexually transmitted. To this end the infection seems to cause a lessening of moral standards, therefore, proliferation of the species. I DO NOT make these things up. There is a lot of literature on this subject. Skim it. There are a large number that infect insects, and seem to force their wills on same. All with the same goal.
SURVIVAL
Bill
napabob wrote:
https://gizmodo.com/infected-zombie-spiders-forced-to-build-incubation-ch-1830718189?utm_medium=sharefromsite&utm_source=gizmodo_email&utm_campaign=top
Not for the faint of heart. I recommend 'Parasite Rex', by Carl Zimmer.
Chapter eleven in Howard Ensign(wasps) Evans book, 'Life on a Little Known Planet' also interesting. Sacculina carcini,a barnacle, turns crabs into zombie crabs, nurturing eggs for S.c.
Evil place we live on. BUT, there is photography.
Bill
Mark Sturtevant wrote:
👍
Ambush bugs are small, artfully camouflaged predatory insects that lurk on plants, often on flowers, and they wait for another insect to come along to get nectar. The other insect does not leave the plant. They can be hard to find because they don't move much and they really blend in, especially on flowers like goldenrod. They are actually fairly common.
They can, when too common, exert pressure on honeybee population. This in conversation with a man who studied bees from pre 1960 to, I bet, the end of his life. His bees loved him. Sorry for the athropomorphisation, but it seemed true(read Conrad Lorenze). This you mentioned about spiders, pressure, not love. I wish I was from west coast. In persuit of an education(mine, not yours) our paths might have crossed. I would have enjoyed that.
Bill
newtoyou wrote:
At least he didn't say pug ugly.😀
The Caterpillar, Hag moth???
Bill
Also called monkey slugs. Go figure.
Bill
PS, urticating spines. That's two.
tinusbum wrote:
i cant believe you called my bug ugly
its an ambush bug
At least he didn't say pug ugly.😀
The Caterpillar, Hag moth???
Bill
EnglishBrenda wrote:
Yes, of course I found this interesting Bill. I will look into the subject too. You are a mine of useful information which benefits all of us so thanks.
A mutual admiration society.
Don, the 2nd son wrote:
Insects are getting to be scarce here so I was elated to find one caterpillar yesterday. He was not so pleased. SONY a6300, Canon 24mm f/2.8, Metabones V, Canon 450D Close-up "filter"/attachment and diffused shoe mount flash.
By the way, if I hijacked your post, my apology. Forgot my place(what post) I was on.
Bill
EnglishBrenda wrote:
Thanks for that Bill
. I wonder if Oyster crabs are common around here. About 15 miles away is a seaside resort called Whitstable which is famous for its oysters. Between here at Margate and there the beach is liberally scattered with beautiful oyster shells.
In looking deeper I find:
There is a confusion of species here. Two??? They range at least most of the east coast of the Americas. Most common in the "North Atlantic", (circumpolar???) So for sure in England. The salinity preference is ten PPT and up, so ,again, yes in England. Add to that the fact that as natural beds in various countries became depleted, OYSTERS WERE COMMONLY TRANSPLANTED from one area to another, one country to another. See Mark Kerlansky,'The Big Oyster'. Blue points, so prized by NY and Conn., we're originally from the Chesapeake, once the oysters in this area depleted to near exterpation, spat and shell base were dredged and hauled north to replace them. Try telling that to some people. I now have a seafood house and an oysterman friend on the lookout. And some recipes. Where I am from, Annapolis, oysters WERE a way of life.
Hope you found this informative. New subject for me, I'll share as I learn.
Bill
BBurns wrote:
And now for something completely different...
Gives away age and sense of humour, of both of us.😀Bill
Thanks
EnglishBrenda wrote:
Eek! I had better stay in the UK to keep safe.
No such luck. There are at least 14 families of moths that share this trait. In 05 oak processionary moths(Thaumetopoea processionary) appeared in London. You have Gypsy moths. Not to alarm you, but that is just two. And, the trait is exhibited in many ADULT moths. If it is a bland, nondescript moth the chance is good. This is shared with tarantulas. When they feel threat, they kick abdominal hair at threat. I can say first hand, works with small mice, too small the mouse gets eaten. Not much on this subject. Just getting the public eye.
P. S. Found another oyster crab. This time in a Bluepoint oyster(another story there) tonight. Wonder how many I have eaten and not noticed????
There really is a world of macro opportunity out there. Just have to be open to it.
Thanks, Brenda, and night all.
Bill
EnglishBrenda wrote:
Nice shot, looks quite cuddly
Not if it is a puss moth. Urticating hairs. Voted N.A.'s most toxic caterpillar.
Bill
EnglishBrenda wrote:
That is a nice change of subject to see here and interesting that it is not normally found in Mussels.. Nice shots, well done. I was just wondering why you posed it with an oyster and not with the mussel where you found it.
The mussels , being cooked, did not look 'natural'. Crab was loose in pot. More to come on this.
Thanks for looking.
Bill
Most of the posts here are insects. Here is a rarely seen arthropod. This was In a batch of Maine mussels. Pinnotheres ostreum, the oyster crab. They are known to live in oysters and clams. Is this a first in mussels??? It got steamed with the mussels, so was quite dead. I dehydrated it with alcohol and posed it till dry. Then posed it in an oyster. T2I,. 40mm pancake,no tubes, 20mm tubes, 36mm tubes. A twin arm LED flash.
Thanks for looking. Note, the claws are minute. They are also missing. There are two healed scars where they were. They may have grown back, given enough time
Bill
GCS1946 wrote:
Just registered after lurking and looking at the photos made by very talented photographers for about a year. I have been taking photography classes for most of the year. I have a lot of work to do.
After the Fall colors comes the clean-up. It rained a lot here and I didn't clear the leave off the patio in time. The tannin from the leaves did a number on the concrete. It caught my eye, so here's a shot.
Bill here. Eastport(Annapolis). Welcome,try macro section.