Nature
awild | December 4, 2008
A deer flea hangs from a hair, California
I don't ordinarily hang around animal carcasses. But every now and again I'll brave a fresh roadkill to shoot the parasites as they jump ship from the cooling body. Fleas and lice are fascinating creatures, and as they are hardly ever photographed alive I can capture some unique images just by staking out a common subject that most people would not think to shoot.
photo details: Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x macro lens on a Canon EOS D60
ISO 100, f/13, 1/200 sec, flash diffused through tracing paper
grrlscientist | December 3, 2008tags: sunset, Hawaii, landscape, nature, image of the day
Sunset, Wailea, Maui.
Image: John del Rio [larger view].
awild | December 3, 2008
Linepithema flavescens, last seen in 1934
Linepithema flavescens, a small yellow ant from Haiti, is one of the species I re-described as part of my Ph.D. dissertation. All we know about this ant, apart from the brief notes on the specimen labels, is the external appearance of a few workers. Queens and males haven't been collected. No one has studied its ecology or behavior. The few existing museum specimens- gathered from two different field sites- may be too valuable to attempt DNA extraction.
A 1934 collection is the last time anyone has ever seen L. flavescens. As the natural…
grrlscientist | December 3, 2008tags: Indonesian Mimetic Octopus, invertebrates, behavior, streaming video
This fascinating creature was discovered in 1998 off the coast of Sulawesi in Indonesia, the mimic octopus is the first known species to take on the characteristics of multiple species. This octopus is able to copy the physical likeness and movement of more than fifteen different species, including sea snakes, lionfish, flatfish, brittle stars, giant crabs, sea shells, stingrays, jellyfish, sea anemones, and mantis shrimp. This animal is so intelligent that it is able to discern which dangerous sea creature to…
awild | December 1, 2008...as judged by an utterly impartial panel of one here at Myrmecos Blog. These are photographs that caught my eye and my imagination over the past year. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
Globular Springtail, by Brian Valentine
Horsefly, by Igor Siwanowicz
Angry Queen, by Piotr Naskrecki
Bee in Natural Light, by Dalantech
Tenhave Woods, by Rick Lieder
Painted Grasshopper, by Mundo Poco
Dragonfly, by Necip Perver
Untitled, by Martin Amm
Gotcha!, by Marsel van Oosten
grrlscientist | November 30, 2008tags: Etu-Töölö, Helsinki, Finland, nature, image of the day
Walking through Helsinki after the snowstorm.
Etu-Töölö, Helsinki, Finland, 24 November 2008.
Image: GrrlScientist, 24 November 2008 [larger view].
grrlscientist | November 29, 2008tags: Etu-Töölö, Helsinki, Finland, nature, image of the day
Walking through Helsinki after the snowstorm.
Etu-Töölö, Helsinki, Finland, 24 November 2008.
Image: GrrlScientist, 24 November 2008 [larger view].
grrlscientist | November 28, 2008tags: Hietakannas, Helsinki, Finland, nature, image of the day
Walking through Helsinki after the snowstorm.
Hietakannas, Helsinki, Finland, 24 November 2008.
Image: GrrlScientist, 24 November 2008 [larger view].
Read and learn more about Hietakannas.
grrlscientist | November 27, 2008tags: Etu-Töölö, Helsinki, Finland, nature, image of the day
Walking through Helsinki after the snowstorm.
Etu-Töölö, Helsinki, Finland, 24 November 2008.
Image: GrrlScientist, 24 November 2008 [larger view].
grrlscientist | November 26, 2008tags: south Kirkkonummi, Finland, nature, image of the day
Birding in south Kirkkonummi, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist 22 November 2008 [larger view].
Thanks to two of my readers, the snowflakes on my camera lens were removed from this image. This image was improved by a reader named Brandon, who removed the snowflakes and also "bumped up the color a bit" to accentuate the gold in the vegetation.
grrlscientist | November 25, 2008tags: south Kirkkonummi, Finland, nature, image of the day
Birding in south Kirkkonummi, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist 22 November 2008 [larger view].
This reminds me of Bev Doolittle's early paintings.
awild | November 25, 2008
Rhagoletis fruit flies mating, Arizona
photo details: Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x macro lens on a Canon EOS 20D
ISO 200, f/11, 1/200 sec, backlit by handheld strobe.
grrlscientist | November 24, 2008tags: south Kirkkonummi, Finland, nature, image of the day
Birding in south Kirkkonummi, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist 22 November 2008 [larger view].
Can anyone out there get rid of the snowflakes that were on my camera lens when I took this image?
grrlscientist | November 23, 2008tags: south Kirkkonummi, Finland, nature, image of the day
Birding in south Kirkkonummi, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist 22 November 2008 [larger view].
grrlscientist | November 22, 2008tags: south Kirkkonummi, Finland, nature, image of the day
Birding in south Kirkkonummi, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist 22 November 2008 [larger view].
grrlscientist | November 21, 2008tags: Helsinki, Finland, nature, image of the day
Unidentified plants, mosses, and lichens in Munkkivuori (Helsinki).
Image: GrrlScientist, 18 November 2008 [larger view].
grrlscientist | November 19, 2008tags: TetonCam Sunset, Teton Valley, Idaho, nature, image of the day
TetonCam Sunset, 2008.
Photographer comment: I'm not sure if I can take credit for this image! It was taken by a webcam I operate in Teton Valley, Idaho, on the west side of the Tetons. I recently upgraded the webcam with a 3.1 megapixel camera. The view is usually very nice but this one was particularly special so I had to share it.
Image: James Neeley, Grand Teton Imaging [larger view].
grrlscientist | November 18, 2008tags: Swiftcurrent Lake, Glacier National Park, nature, image of the day
A morning view across Swiftcurrent Lake in Glacier National Park, 2007.
Photographer comment: This was taken about a year ago on a memorable trip where my wife and I celebrated our 30th anniversary.
Image: James Neeley, Grand Teton Imaging [larger view].
awild | November 18, 2008
A young adult Comperia merceti, a parasitoid wasp in the family Encyrtidae, emerges from the egg case of its cockroach host.
photo details: Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x macro lens on a Canon EOS 20D
ISO 100, f/11, 1/200 sec, flash diffused through tracing paper
grrlscientist | November 17, 2008tags: Delicate Arch, nature, image of the day
Delicate Arch in Arches National Park, Utah.
Image: James Neeley, Grand Teton Imaging [larger view].