#arthropode

[vexwerewolf]

Being autistic is weird because I think I'd be entirely entirely immune to the maddening effects of witnessing an Elder God but learning that barnacles are arthropods rather than molluscs nearly gave me an existential crisis

[mintflavoredart]

[marcelwasp]

This is what trying to get info on insects is like and it pisses me off

[scribblyspaceskeleton]

Speaking up and educating people on why the most hated life forms on the planet are important and meaningful is a thankless task.

How do we reach out and get people to care about insects and spiders when the average reaction is either "EEWW KILL IT WITH FIRE" or blind panic?

Arthropods are crucial to the survival of life as we know it. Yes, even commonly vilified bugs like wasps and mosquitoes have ecological niches that the world CANNOT do without.

I cannot overstate their importance.

[trunswicked]

Bunch of arthropod guys - refs created for OC purposes! ;)

[uncharismatic-fauna]

Uncharismatic Fact of the Day

With Chrysina limbata around, you won’t need a mirror! This species has an especially shiny exoskeleton, reflecting up to 97% of the light that hits it. In the wild, the mirror-like reflective surface may fool potential predators into thinking the beetle is just a drop of water- effectively serving as conspicuous camouflage.

(Image: Close-ups of Chrysina limbata by Michael Farmer)

If you like what I do, consider leaving a tip or buying me a ko-fi!

[tibli]

I love when arthropods have a pseudopupil. It's so whimsical and cute, and they come in so many varieties!!

little kitty cat eyes!!!

bombastic side eyes!!!!

cartoon character eyes!!!!

bigass anime eyes!!!!!

BE NOT AFRAID eyes!!!!!

[avidex]

Aude, 2 septembre 2023

Le Géotrupe des bois est quand même plus à son aise par terre.

[humblegrub]

triops are one of my all-time fave little guys

[futurebird]

Wasps so tiny you will question everything.

Imagine being so teeny tiny that you are an endoparasite on *leafhoppers* Leafhoppers are already in the "so small they go unnoticed" category, and you're just a little pest on a minuscule thing.

Of course the group that's most likely to choose this life? The wasps Wasps are some of the smallest insects. There are "fairy flies" that are parasites of the eggs of certain insects.

They are so small that air is "thick" to them and their wings have feathered edges are are oar shaped.

Some fairly flies are so tiny that their neurons are cells without nuclei. They got rid of them to save space. They can still think though... presumably the tiniest little thoughts.

Photo by Alexey Polilov, 2012

They lay their eggs inside of the eggs of 1-2mm long crop pests.

And... read the article to see what the males are like... they are even smaller somehow, but it's ... disturbing.

[drafthearse]

Grasshopper and Beetles. 1951. Leonard Baskin. Linocut. Plate 23 from A Little Book of Natural History. [source]

[jupiterswasphouse]

[VIDEO TAKEN: SEPTEMBER 15TH, 2023 | Video ID: A video of a black, yellow, white, and red lubber grasshopper on a piece of paper, wriggling its abdomen and opening and closing the dorsal and ventral valves of its ovipositor in a way that makes it look as if the back half of the animal is its own snapping creature /End IDs.]

Encountered this grasshopper and scooped it up with a letter! Which is about when I noticed it exhibiting this fascinating behavior! It's freaky but very interesting!

[vintagewildlife]

The eyes of various animals By: Unknown photographer From: Disney's Wonderful World of Knowledge 1971

[sixteenseveredhands]

Wool-Carder Bees: these solitary bees harvest the soft, downy hairs that grow on certain plants, rolling them into bundles and then using the material to line their nests

Wool-carder bees build their nests in existing cavities, usually finding a hole/crevice in a tree, a plant stem, a piece of rotting wood, or a man-made structure, and then lining the cavity with woolly plant fibers, which are used to form a series of brood cells.

The fibers (known as trichomes) are collected from the leaves and stems of various plants, including lamb’s ear (Stachys byzantina), mulleins, globe thistle, rose campion, and other fuzzy plants.

From the University of Florida's Department of Entomology & Nematology:

The female uses her toothed mandibles to scrape trichomes off fuzzy plants and collects a ball of the material under her abdomen. She transports these soft plant fibers to her selected nest site and uses them to line a brood cell. Next, she collects and deposits a provision of pollen and nectar into the cell, enough pollen to feed a larva until it is ready to pupate. Lastly, she lays a single egg on top of the pollen and nectar supply before sealing the cell. ... She will repeat this process with adjoining cells until the cavity is full.

These are solitary bees, meaning that they do not form colonies or live together in hives. Each female builds her own nest, and the males do not have nests at all.

Female wool-carder bees will sometimes sting if their nest is threatened, but they are generally docile. The males are notoriously aggressive, however; they will often chase, head-butt, and/or wrestle any other insect that invades their territory, and they may defend their territory from intruders up to 70 times per hour. The males do not have stingers, but there are five tiny spikes located on the last segment of their abdomen, and they often use those spikes when fighting. They also have strong, sharp mandibles that can crush other bees.

There are many different types of wool-carder bee, but the most prolific is the European wool-carder (Anthidium manicatum), which is native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa, but has also become established as an invasive species throughout much of North America, most of South America, and New Zealand. It is the most widely distributed unmanaged bee in the world.

A few different species of wool-carder bee: the top row depicts the European wool-carder, A. manicatum (left) and the spotted wool-carder, Anthidium maculosum (right), while the bottom row depicts the reticulated small-woolcarder, Pseudoanthidium reticulatum, and Porter's wool-carder, Anthidium porterae

Sources & More Info:

University of Florida: The Woolcarder Bee

Oregon State University: European Woolcarder Bees

Bohart Museum of Entomology: Facts about the Wool Carder Bee (PDF)

Bumblebee Conservation Trust: A. manicatum

World's Best Gardening Blog: European Wool Carder Bees - Likeable Bullies

Biological Invasions: Global Invasion by Anthidium manicatum

[bedupolker]

Climb time! Feat. @bowelfly's magnificent weevzard, Quercus

[avidex]

Aude, 2 septembre 2023

Voici une bestiole bien pratique vu qu'elle dégrade les bouses de vaches.

Ce n'est pas un bousier "classique", mais un Géotrupe des bois, c'est à dire qu'il ne fait pas rouler de boules de caca mais qu'il creuse des terriers dans la crotte.

On l'a pas mal enquiquiné, il était visiblement moins à l'aise sur ma manche que par terre.