I Went Outside

ellieboskett: Our chick on his/her first adventure on grass...

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 16:12:31 -0400

ellieboskett:

Our chick on his/her first adventure on grass with momma hen… :D

Photo

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 16:12:20 -0400

Tree Crabs @ Anne Kolb Park in Hollywood Florida.

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 17:33:41 -0400

Tree Crabs @ Anne Kolb Park in Hollywood Florida.

sinobug: Weevil Plus One…. (Alternative title: “Who set that...

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 12:39:37 -0400

sinobug:

Weevil Plus One….

(Alternative title: “Who set that horse on fire?”)

This unfortunate weevil has been attacked by an entomopathogenic fungus.

An entomopathogenic fungus is a fungus that can act as a parasite of insects and kills or seriously disables them.

These fungi usually attach to the external body surface of insects in the form of microscopic spores (usually asexual, mitosporic spores also called conidia). Under permissive conditions of temperature and (usually high) moisture, these spores germinate, grow as hyphae and colonize the insect’s cuticle; eventually they bore through it and reach the insects’ body cavity. Then, the fungal cells proliferate in the host body cavity, usually as walled hyphae or in the form of wall-less protoplasts (depending on the fungus involved). After some time the insect is usually killed (sometimes by fungal toxins) and new propagules (spores) are formed in/on the insect if environmental conditions are again permissive.

Although still outwardly active and mobile (it flew away immediately this shot was taken), this weevil’s fate is sealed. It has been infected by the fungus which will eventually penetrate its exoskeleton and cause its demise.

But this is not the first time I have seen this phenomenon and in the same species. I caught the image below exactly one year earlier in identical circumstances probably suggesting that there is a direct relationship between this species of beetle and the fungus…..

by Sinobug (itchydogimages) on Flickr.
Pu’er, Yunnan, China

See more Chinese insects and spiders on my Flickr site HERE……

videre-licet: Red

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 12:35:06 -0400

videre-licet:

Red

suicideslurpee: tibets: i just fucking spat all over my...

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 22:22:08 -0400

suicideslurpee:

tibets:

i just fucking spat all over my computer laughing

OMFG.

oldie but goodie.

Macro-fucking-tastic!!

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 22:08:42 -0400

Macro-fucking-tastic!!

cluckyeschickens: Devoted mom.

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 20:14:30 -0400

cluckyeschickens:

Devoted mom.

Photo

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 20:14:19 -0400

rubeo: Ron Finley: A guerilla gardener in South Central LA Ron...

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 16:10:14 -0400

rubeo:

Ron Finley: A guerilla gardener in South Central LA

Ron Finley plants vegetable gardens in South Central LA — in abandoned lots, traffic medians, along the curbs. Why? For fun, for defiance, for beauty and to offer some alternative to fast food in a community where “the drive-thrus are killing more people than the drive-bys.”

Ron Finley grows a nourishing food culture in South Central L.A.’s food desert by planting the seeds and tools for healthy eating.

Photo

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 15:58:18 -0400

Anne Kolb Park - June 4 2013 We went on a short hike...

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 08:01:34 -0400

Anne Kolb Park - June 4 2013

We went on a short hike through Anne Kolb Park in Hollywood, FL a few days back and witnessed the dynamic mangrove forests. I had never viewed a swamp so closely before! Here’s some info on what the ecosystem is like:

http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/mangroves.html

http://www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal/habitats/mangroves.htm

http://water.epa.gov/type/wetlands/mangrove.cfm

sinobug: Tessaratomid Giant Shield Bug Nymphs (Tessaratomidae,...

Sat, 08 Jun 2013 01:30:11 -0400

Tessaratomid Shield Bug Nymph (Tessaratomidae)

Tessaratomid Shield Bug Nymph (Tessaratomidae)

Tessaratomid Shield Bug Nymph (Tessaratomidae)

Lychee Stink Bug Nymph (Tessaratoma papillosa, Tessaratomidae)

Tessaratomid Shield Bug Nymph (Tessaratomidae)

Tessaratomid Giant Shield Bug Nymph (Tessaratomidae)

Tessaratomid Shield Bug Nymph (Tessaratomidae)

sinobug:

Tessaratomid Giant Shield Bug Nymphs (Tessaratomidae, Hemiptera)

Tessaratomidae is a family of true bugs, similar in appearance to the more common shield/stink bugs of the family Pentatomidae. Larger species are known informally as giant shield bugs or giant stink bugs and are sometimes quite colourful. Their nymphal forms are often very colourful also and usually bear little resemblance to the adult.

Shown is a selection of local Yunnan Tessaratomid nymphs of varying species and instar stages.

by Sinobug (itchydogimages) on Flickr.
Pu’er, Yunnan, China

See more Chinese true bugs and hoppers on my Flickr site HERE…..

Photo

Sat, 08 Jun 2013 00:48:05 -0400

leekfixer: Help me

Fri, 07 Jun 2013 01:55:08 -0400

leekfixer:

Help me

Photo

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 00:55:29 -0400

readyset-grow: I’ve grown corn, beans, and sunflowers in this...

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 00:54:49 -0400

readyset-grow:

I’ve grown corn, beans, and sunflowers in this long strip the past two years.

the soil sucks, heavy clay that just hasn’t turned around for me yet.

I had that wishbone tree limb and based a raised bed off its shape.

dug out the ground beneath.

filled it up with layered branches, yard debris, turned soil, and compost.

grass mulched the top.

its about a foot of organic matter in varies stages of decomposition.

tossed in a hodgepodge of seeds I had laying around.

nasturtium, pak choy, kale, poppies.. anything to get it started.

it is about 5 ft wide at the end, and tapers back 12 or so feet.

it should provide habitat for carpenter bees, spiders, toads, and whatever else.

experimenting…

mrrscience: The Giant Gippsland Earthworm averages 3 feet in...

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 00:54:01 -0400

mrrscience:

The Giant Gippsland Earthworm averages 3 feet in length, but has been seen as long as 9 feet. It is native to the clay soil along streams in Victoria, Australia. The worms take 5 years to mature and live for about 10, surprisingly long for invertebrates. Unlike other types of worm, the Giant Gippsland rarely, if ever, comes to the surface, but its location can be detected by the audible gurgling that their bodies make as the slither through their labyrinthine burrows. Click photo for more.

I went out with the hubs yesterday, getting three good hours of...

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 00:35:39 -0400

I went out with the hubs yesterday, getting three good hours of walking in and some picture taking in between. Absolutely wonderful. We saw many creatures, yet didn’t capture them all on the camera, including: tree crabs, fiddler crabs, raccoons, a manta ray, fish of all kinds, butterflies, and birds. Also, a few lovely flowers, Here is one, though I am unsure of its name. Having fun in SoFla and will update with more photos of our adventures tomorrow or so!

danoninterweb: Fighting Chickens of the Civil War Overlooked...

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 00:25:37 -0400

danoninterweb:

Fighting Chickens of the Civil War

Overlooked by most historians, the Union Army developed and implemented a highly controversial, top secret program to train chickens to serve in the Union Army. Although the program had some early success, particularly at First Manassas, where several chickens were awarded commendations for valor, the fighting chicken brigade ultimately failed.

Military leaders cited hygiene, failure to follow orders, the increasing incidents of fratricide as human soldiers slaughtered great numbers of chickens for food in the field, the fact that their hats routinely fell off and the overall obtuse nature of the chickens as primary reasons for the program failing.

In what was his last letter home, Captain Eugene Franks of the 29^th Illinois, sums up the challenges in training the chickens:

“I have not sufficient paper to express in detail the pause and great fear I have for our dubious endeavor to arm the wild game that now sleep in coops not ten paces from my tent. After weeks of training and drilling the unit is still without discipline or the steel one would expect from a professional soldier. In many ways they are no better than the flood of volunteer soldiers we have received from the west.

But I submit to you now in the most private of manner that lately I have begun to grow fearful for my own safety as a number of the feathered creatures have banded together and appear to be in the midst of planning a great coup (not coop). The way they set their eyes to me is unsettling to say the least. I was even the object of an impromptu attack last week when one of them took to pecking at the heel of my boot.

I should hope to write you again soon. If anything should happen to me in the meantime, please know that my love for you continues to grow as my heart aches to be near you again one day soon. Also know that my untimely demise was likely at the hands of a traitorous fowl.”

The program was dissolved in the fall of 1862.