Thin-Spined Jumping Spider (Tutelina Elegans), Female, Family Salticidae, Illinois, USA

Here’s a ⭐️ tutorial ⭐️ on my approach to drawing armor!

Flashlight Fish Appreciation Post

Anomalopidae (lanterneye fishes or flashlight fishes) are a family of fish distinguished by bioluminescent organs located underneath their eyes, for which they are named.

These light organs contain luminous bacteria and can be "shut off" by the fish using either a dark lid or by being drawn into a pouch. They are used to communicate, attract prey, and evade predators.

These rarely seen fish are nocturnal and found in the Indo-Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea.

Rob Garren posted a beautiful cockerel from his purple poultry project the other day, though i think this bird is from his general iridescent breeding pen. The bird is beautiful and looks like an oil slick. There isnt a "gene" that causes this, this is Rob selecting for more and more iridescence over time.

He also got some up close pictures of the feathers and they are breathtaking

You can follow Rob's project at the purple poultry facebook group but none of these birds (or eggs) are for sale yet so do not bother him.

chickums

i used to work at a used bookstore and there was an insect anatomy book for sale that was over $8000 im not even kidding. and i just found it at my school library. its mine for the month.

The Common Green Lacewing: these tiny insects pupate within loosely-woven cocoons that measure just 3-6mm (about 1/8 to 1/4 inch) in diameter

The lacewing will spend about 5 days maturing within its cacoon, before it cuts an opening in the top and emerges as a fully-developed adult.

The larvae of the green lacewing (family Chrysopidae) are also known as "aphid lions," due to their skill/appetite when it comes to hunting aphids. They're widely used in agricultural contexts to help eradicate pests, because they are voracious predators that also commonly prey upon caterpillars, leafhoppers, planthoppers, thrips, spiders, mites, and insect eggs.

As it nears the end of its larval stage, a lacewing will spin a small cacoon out of silk and then tuck itself inside, allowing the pupal phase to begin; its tiny green body is often partially visible through the thin, loosely-woven walls of the cacoon.

These breathtaking photos of a lacewing climbing out of its cacoon were taken by a Danish photographer named Frederik Leck Fischer.

When a lacewing first emerges from a cacoon, its wings are still compactly folded down against its body; the wings then gradually begin to expand until they have reached their full size, which usually takes about an hour or two.

Fischer's photographs provide an excellent account of this entire process.

Here are just a few other images of the common green lacewing:

Sources & More Info

University of California's Integrated Pest Management Program: The Green Lacewing

Texas A&M's Field Guide to the Insects of Texas: Green Lacewings

Washington State University: Lacewings

Tennessee State University: Fact Sheet on the Green Lacewing (PDF download)

Pacific Pests & Pathogens: Green Lacewings/Biocontrol

Closet cosplay of Arthur Lester!!

Marine snail (Bulina sp.) By: Dr. Jonathan P. Green From: The Science of Zoology 1966

Image IDs: all of the images are photographs of the same subject matter, which is a close-up of a very small saptha beryllitis moth on even smaller bright pink and white flowers. The moth is cone-shaped, with its head being the point. It has two long, thin antennae that are all black except for one white stripe near the top of each. Its eyes are comically large compared to the rest of its head. Only 4 of its legs are visible, which are black with 3 white stripes on their lower sections. Its wings are iridescent green/teal on top, followed by an iridescent black/gold stripe, a stripe of teal, then two thin pink stripes, then the bottom half is all iridescent black/gold. It’s so tiny you can see all the little scales that make up its wings. The background is mostly just green, likely the out-of-focus leaves of the plant.

ID1: the moth balancing poorly on one of the flowers, it’s thin, barely visible pink proboscis curving into the flower. One of its legs is blurred in movement. It’s photographed from the top.

ID2: the moth balancing much better on one of the flowers. This one is also photographed from the top.

ID3: a photo of the moth from the side and further back than the others. To the right of it there is some sort of bee or wasp also feeding on the same plant. It is mostly dull yellow and black, with alternating neon green and black stripes on its abdomen.

ID4: a photo of the moth from the side, also balancing on a flower but with its antennae touching the flower.

ID5: a photo of the moth from the front. It’s sitting on some flower buds while feeding from an open flower. Its antennae are slightly out of focus and blurred with movement.

/End IDs