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More Velvet Worm Photos

Posted on March 20, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

30mm | January 18, 2011 | Gandoca-Manzanillo NWR, Limon Province, Costa Rica

This post is a follow-up to the last identification challenge. There, I challenged readers to identify what turned out to be the velvet worm shown above. As I explained in the reveal, it was no accident that I encountered one of these onychophorans. I had researched ahead of time to increase my chances of finding one. Even prepared, I only found this one individual.

Attempting to wedge into a hiding spot

This post was delayed in part because I went a bit camera crazy when I found it. It took me awhile to sort through all the photos I took. It was shy at first, remaining frozen where it had been exposed beneath a small piece of wood. That didn’t make for a nice photo at all, so I eventually prodded it and got it moving about. Once moving though, it wouldn’t stop! read more

Posted in Featured Photos | 2 Comments

Webspinners

Posted on March 13, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

10mm | January 18, 2011 | Gandoca-Manzanillo NWR, Limon Province, Costa Rica

I don’t think I’ve ever photographed webspinners before, so this represents another first from my most recent trip to Costa Rica. That’s notable to me because they have an order all to themselves, Embioptera.

As I walked the coastal trail leaving Manzanillo, I noticed many trees with webbing on their trunks. I stopped to look at a few, but I didn’t see any movement. I suspected webspinners were responsible, but it was only later when I decided to probe one of the webs that the webspinner above emerged. It didn’t seem very happy with the situation, and moved quickly to try and take refuge within the web again. Eventually it chewed a hole through which it disappeared. read more

Posted in Easter Eggs, Featured Photos | 5 Comments

Identification Challenge #9 Reveal

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

Kudos to all commenters onÂ Identification Challenge #9. They all correctly determined that this was a closeup of an Onychophoran, commonly called a velvet worm.

January 18, 2011 | Gandoca-Manzanillo NWR, Limon Province, Costa Rica

These strange creatures have their own phylum, Onychophora, the name of which literally means “claw bearers”. You should be able to see those claws above, at the tips of their stubby little legs.

Wikipedia tells us there are only two surviving families, Peripatidae and Peripatopsidae, geographically separate. The range for Peripatidae includes Central America and tropical South America, making this a member of that family. read more

Posted in Identification Challenges | 5 Comments

Nogodinid Planthopper

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

13mm | January 18, 2011 | Gandoca-Manzanillo NWR, Limon Province, Costa Rica

I saw these little planthoppers every day of my trip. They are a bit skittish though, and jump/fly away easily.

One of my references has a very similar looking Costa Rican planthopper identified as a Nogodina species. That at least makes me feel comfortable that I’ve gotten the right family here, Nogodinidae.

There doesn’t seem to be a lot known about this family. There’s not even a wikipedia page yet :). According to Marshall, it’s restricted to Central and South America.

Reference: read more

Posted in Featured Photos | 5 Comments

Crypsis Challenge #9 Reveal

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

Looks like all commenters easily spotted the snake in this photo.

January 18, 2011 | Gandoca-Manzanillo NWR, Limon Province, Costa Rica

It’s about a third of the way from the top right. Here’s a closer shot from roughly the same angle.

Closeup of eyelash viper on tree trunk

As Andrea J determined, this is an eyelash viper, Bothriechis schlegelii. It’s difficult to pick up an ecotourism brochure in Costa Rica and not see a picture of the yellow variety of this species.

Look out for a separate post on this individual with many more photos.

Oh, and don’t worry, I kept a respectful distance. This encounter reminded me why I always carry around a teleconverter. read more

Posted in Crypsis Challenges | 2 Comments

Identification Challenge #8 Reveal

Posted on February 5, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

15mm | January 17, 2011 | Cahuita National Park, Limon Province, Costa Rica

I knew the photo above would be difficult to identify, but I was happy that everyone at least figured out it was a spider. As a side note, I hope everyone realizes you can click on the photo to see a larger version.

One commenter, biozcw, ventured that it might be an Argyrodes species. That’s close, because the species I believe I have here, Ariamnes attenuatus, was formerly placed in that genus.

This spider was hiding beneath a large leaf. At only 15mm as shown in the initial photograph, it’s small and virtually disappears when assuming that cryptic position. Here’s a decidedly more spider-like pose. You can just barely see a strand of silk stretching from the spinnerets towards the upper right corner of the image. read more

Posted in Identification Challenges | 1 Comment

Crypsis Challenge #8 Reveal

Posted on February 4, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

January 17, 2011 | Cahuita National Park, Limon Province, Costa Rica

Well, this challenge was certainly more difficult than I anticipated. Nonetheless, several people did find the frog in the image above. Below, I’ve outlined it.

Frog Revealed

Now that you know it’s there, I bet you can’t look at the image without it standing out.

Andrea J. went on to suggest it might be a Leptodactylid. I agree. Here’s a close crop from the photo above.

Overhead crop

I picked up this book while in Costa Rica:

[book:0970567804]

According to that book, all Costa Rican leptodactylids lack webbing between their fingers. In the crop above, I don’t see any webbing. There are only three genera in Costa Rica. One genus has only large species, and this one is small. Another has only a single species, easily dismissed because it has extremely warty skin. So by deduction this must be anÂ Eleutherodactylus species. There are 40 highly variable species in that genus that the book calls a “taxonomic nightmare”, so I won’t speculate further on the species. I might even be wrong about the family :). See comments below… I was fooled by the size. Turns out it’s the first genus I dismissed based on size, and it’s just a baby. read more

Posted in Crypsis Challenges | 3 Comments

Bridal Veil Stinkhorn

Posted on February 1, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

20cm | January 17, 2011

Cahuita NP, Limon Province, Costa Rica

I was thrilled to find this stinkhorn, Phallus indusiatus, growing right on the side of the trail. I’m not sure how long they last, but with frequent foot traffic through the area, I might have been lucky to be the first in the area.

There’s lots of interesting information on the wikipedia page for this species, including a surprising physiological effect on women.

One of my photography resolutions for the year is to use my wide angle lens more. I thought this was a good subject for it, particularly in the first photo, showing the trail in the background.Â Using the wide angle lens required getting quite close for these photos. Being male, and consistent with what’s reported on theÂ wikipedia page I linked to above, I found the smell disgusting. read more

Posted in Featured Photos | 1 Comment

Young Rattlesnake

Posted on December 30, 2010 by Troy Bartlett

January 31, 2010 | Tupaciguara, Minas Gerais, Brazil

I haven’t yet driven MG-223 that leaves Tupaciguara in the direction of Araguari at night without seeing a snake crossing the road. Here’s the most recent one I spotted, which I assume is a young rattlesnake. It’s small, maybe 6 inches or so, and it looks like it has a button at the end of its tail.

My real dilemma when I spot one is whether or not to stop and risk getting hit by another vehicle. At any rate, I’m definitely in a hurry to get a photo and get back up to speed. read more

Posted in Featured Photos | 3 Comments

Crypsis Challenge #7 Reveal

Posted on December 26, 2010 by Troy Bartlett

January 28, 2010 | CaraÃ§a Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Commenters had no trouble finding the cryptic critter circled above on a partially eaten leaf. No one figured out that it was a caterpillar though, and a rather bizarre one at that. Here’s a closer look.

It's a caterpillar

It does a pretty good job, I think, of blending in with the damaged areas of the other leaves. I suspect the brown leaf areas were damaged by an earlier instar that chews away at the surface of the leaf rather than eating the entire thing. It looks formidable and I didn’t risk touching it. Those black structures are unlike anything I’ve seen on a caterpillar. read more