Just Made The Worst Pizza Ever

another ant mimic jumping spider from Singapore. this one might have been the most antlike out of any spider I’ve ever seen, with a little crease on its opisthosoma to look like an ant’s segmented abdomen and posterior lateral eyes set to look like an ant’s angular head!

Myrmaplata sp.

Exclamation marks, but instead of a huge line of them, we do like Roman numerals of them.

You know. To save space.

The hard truth about autism acceptance that a lot of people don't want to hear is that autism acceptance also inherently requires acceptance of people who are just weird.

And yes, I mean Those TM people. Middle schoolers who growl and bark and naruto run in the halls. Thirtysomethings who live with their parents. Furries. Fourteen-year-olds who identify as stargender and use neopronouns. Picky eaters. Adults in fandoms. People who talk weird. People who dress weird.

Because autistic people shouldn't have to disclose a medical diagnosis to you to avoid being mocked and ostracized for stuff that, at absolute worst, is annoying. Ruthlessly deriding people for this stuff then tacking on a "oh, but it's okay if they're autistic" does absolutely nothing to help autistic people! Especially when undiagnosed autistic people exist.

Like it or not, if you want to be an ally to autistic people, you're going to have to take the L and leave eccentric, weird people alone. Even if you don't know them to be autistic. You shouldn't be looking for Acceptable Reasons to be mean to people in the first place. Being respectful should be the default.

banned from the clock app for making too many alarms. you set too many alarms girl! banned from clock app.

The spinybacked orbweaver (Gasteracantha cancriformis) is a small species of spider found throughout South America, Central America, the Caribbean islands, and the southern part of North America. They can reside in a variety of habitats, but their main home is in woodlands and dense brush. They are mainly solitary, but will sometimes coexist with other colonial orbweaver spiders.

G. cancriformis is notable for its striking appearance. The head and thorax are small and , while the thorax is quite large and lined with six sharp spines. The coloration can vary throughout the spider's distribution; generally the head and thorax are black, while the abdomen can be white, black, orange, yellow, or even blue, and the spines can be red or black. Females tend to be between 5–9 mm (0.20–0.35 in) long, while males are much smaller at only 2 to 3 mm (0.1 in) long.

As an orbweaver, spinybacked orbweavers build large webs to catch their prey-- mainly small insects. Every evening, a female builds a new web and a male hangs by a single thread close by. The following morning, after consuming any insects she has caught, the female will either take down or eat the web so that a new one can be constructed the following evening. Depending on the size of her prey, she may either paralyze it with a mild venom or wrap it in webbing before consumption. There are few known predators of adult spinybacked orbweavers, due to their small size and prickly defense, but the eggs are known to be parasitized by wasps.

Spiny orbweavers only live for one year, and only mate once during that period. In the spring, males court females first by drumming on her web. If she does not become aggressive, he approaches and allows her to strap him down with silk. Following copulation, the female lays an egg sac with 100 to 260 eggs on the underside of a nearby leaf, and then dies. The male typically dies several days later; it is unknown whether he mates with other females during this period. Incubation takes 2-5 weeks, and the young mature quickly over the summer.

Conservation status: The IUCN has not evaluated the spinybacked orbweaver. However, the species has a large, widespread population, and is highly adaptable to living in urban areas, and so is generally considered stable.

Photos

Scott Nelson

Judy Gallagher

Kimberlie Sasan

:3 feels happier than :) But not as genuine as :]