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Blog Archives
Crypsis Challenge #5 Reveal
At least a few people found the caterpillar outlined below, from the last crypsis challenge.
January 27, 2010 | Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
I like how effectively it blends in. The dorsal markings match up pretty well with the damaged areas on the leaf.
It has spun a sort of silken lair across the entire leaf as well.
Closer view
Posted in Crypsis Challenges
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Pelecinid Wasp
January 28, 2010 | Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Wasps in the family Pelecinidae are distinctive and easily recognized by that long thin abdomen. I’ve see them closer to home as well, but I can’t recall if I’ve ever gotten a decent photo. I do remember chasing after quite a few in vain or watching as one teased me from someplace just out of reach. I got lucky with this one.
What I thought was a red marking turns out to be a small mite.
There’s only one genus, Pelecinus, for this family. There appears to be at least two described species in the tropics.
Posted in Easter Eggs, Featured Photos
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Some Army Ant Observations
January 27, 2010 | Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
That’s the general scene. I encountered these army ants on the side of the trail towards the end of the afternoon. The odd thing is that I didn’t see much more than what’s shown here. There were a couple of holes in the ground, outside the shot above, but roughly in the upper left and lower right. Despite some searching in the nearby vicinity, I didn’t find any other ant trails. But there were ants streaming in and out of the two holes, forming roughly two paths. The bottom path was moving to the right and the top to the left.
Posted in Featured Photos
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Unexplained Beetle Behavior
January 27, 2010
Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
This beetle looks like a buprestid to me. The interesting thing is that it’s splitting this leaf lengthwise. In the second photo, you can see where the cut starts in the upper right. That would seem like an odd way to eat, so I suspect there’s some other purpose. Is anyone familiar with this behavior?
There’s also what appears to be a small wasp hanging out on the elytra.
Posted in Featured Photos
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Velvety Yellow Snout Beetle
January 27, 2010 | Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
I resisted the urge to touch this one. It just looks so soft.
Posted in Featured Photos
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More Bizarre Treehoppers
 January 28, 2010
Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
These treehoppers are probably two species in the genus Cyphonia.
The first one you may recognize from this book cover.
[book:1554073456]
Posted in Featured Photos
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Mating Wasp Mimics
January 28, 2010 | Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Normal disclaimers apply (flies are difficult to identify), but these mating flies might be a Systropus species.
Did you think they might be wasps? They are almost certainly wasp mimics.
Don’t be fooled by what appears to be an extra wing on the one to the right. That’s just a trick of the camera.
Posted in Featured Photos
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Longhorned Beetle Damaging Stem
January 28, 2010 | Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
This longhorned beetle blends in pretty well with these stems.
Some longhorned beetles are known as girdlers and that name might be aptly applied here. See the damage to the stem in the upper right? I didn’t witness it, but I suspect this beetle is responsible. In fact, given the bending of the stem under its head, it may very well have been chewing away when I took this photo. Further evidence is the frass present, indicating it’s been here awhile.
Why girdle? Some beetles that do it deposit an egg in the stem and then effectively kill the stem by chewing a ring into it. The stem beyond the girdle eventually dies and falls to the ground. The stem provides nourishment for the beetle larva and is then well placed for the grub to later escape into the soil where it completes its development.
Posted in Easter Eggs, Featured Photos
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Tick Anatomy Lesson
January 28, 2010 | Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
This tick is one of the largest I’ve ever encountered. I’m happy to say it was the only one I saw.
Ticks often wave around their forelegs while perched like this, hoping to grab on to some passing potential host.
When viewed from the side, there’s an interesting bit of anatomy exposed.
Side view (do you see the smaller mite bringing up the rear?)
I wondered about the purpose of that large hole on the tick’s side so I did some research. It’s called the spiracular plate, and it’s basically a tube into the tick’s breathing system. Calling it breathing might be a stretch though. It’s really more of a passive gas exchange. The shape of spiracular plates are also used by taxonomists as a way of distinguishing various types of ticks.
Posted in Easter Eggs, Featured Photos
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Glittery Micromoth
January 28, 2010 | Caraça Natural Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil
While less noticed and more difficult to identify, the majority of lepidoptera species are small and are collectively referred to as microlepidoptera or micromoths. Though small, this one’s glittery wing scales caught my eye.
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