we finally found another Myrmarachne ant mimic, in our bathroom of all places.
I've been itching to get some more photos of these spiders since getting my speedlite, but they're very elusive and almost constantly in motion. thankfully this lady was content to explore a sheet of cardboard while I took a million photos of her like a madman.
special shoutout to my wonderful partner for a) spotting the spider in our house and b) wiggling their fingers in front of her to keep her attention while I got these photos (it seems jumping spiders are the wayward cats of the arthropod world lol).
I'll link my other Myrmarachne post here, as its interesting to compare the colouration of the two individuals. likely the same species, but my previous sighting had a much brighter gold on her abdomen.
In this clip the male is above and the female is below. I didn’t witness the actual mating but I left them together in a larger enclosure and found a spermatophore stalk the next morning, so they most likely mated successfully soon afterwards.
Am I late this time? No way!!!
This is the Gaudy Sphinx Moth!
These fluttery fellas are anything but gaudy, bearing beautiful emerald coloring. As with most Hawkmoths, these moths have a splash of red lining their underwings. That, along with their sharp, angular wings make these moths an absolutely stunning species! These moths can usually be found in North, Central, and South America, but commonly fly long distances, and can occasionally be found in strange places. The larvae of this species have distinct eyespots, meant to resemble that of snake eyes. Their disproportionately large, shiny "eyes" make them look almost like a Pokémon in their larval state. Truly an amazing creature!
"Culinary students will literally have a spaghetti due at 8" "Art students will literally turn in some shapes at the end of the week" Well I have 40 insects due next month. If you even care.
Can we boost this one until it reaches the Oklahoma City Tumblrites? This seems like something this website could rally and solve. Help save all this genetic information? I messaged them to offer to consult with the entymology lab near mine to see if they could store the bugs with us, but they are VERY far away and would have to drive long distance to us.
UPDATE: Based on people's stories in the comments, the guy behind the project is a misogynist wad who has burnt every bridge in the city, and that's why no one will help him. I understand everyone who does not want to help him, but I'm still not sure what to do about the bugs because I hate to give a dumpster fire of a science man a pass to get places in life without being made to character develop, but he also seems to be in charge of resources that if lost, would be a loss to an entire field and not just him. :/
i love you wasps i love you flies i love you beetles i love you moths i love you non-bee pollinators i love you "uncharismatic" organisms who nonetheless carry our ecosystem on your backs