![“BOOK SCORPION”Chelifer cancroides©Erling Ólafsson
There are more than 3,300 species of pseudoscorpions recorded in more than 430 genera, with more being discovered on a regular basis. They range worldwide, even in temperate to cold regions like Northern Ontario and above timberline in Wyoming’s Rocky Mountains in the United States and the Jenolan Caves of Australia, but have their most dense and diverse populations in the tropics and subtropics. Species have been found under tree bark, in leaf and pine litter, in soil, in tree hollows, under stones, in caves, at the seashore in the intertidal zone, and within fractured rocks.
Chelifer cancroides is the species most commonly found in homes, where they are often observed in rooms with dusty books. [YIKES!] There the tiny animals (2.5–4.5 mm or 0.10–0.18 in) can find their food like booklice and house dust mites. They enter homes by “riding along” with larger insects (known as phoresy), or are brought in with firewood.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudoscorpion
Other posts:
Stag Beetle
Malaysian Orchid Mantis - 1st (red) instar
Mexican Plateau Lizard (shoots blood from its eye)](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lts9luByKF1qeeqk5o1_500.jpg)
“BOOK SCORPION”
Chelifer cancroides
©Erling Ólafsson
There are more than 3,300 species of pseudoscorpions recorded in more than 430 genera, with more being discovered on a regular basis. They range worldwide, even in temperate to cold regions like Northern Ontario and above timberline in Wyoming’s Rocky Mountains in the United States and the Jenolan Caves of Australia, but have their most dense and diverse populations in the tropics and subtropics. Species have been found under tree bark, in leaf and pine litter, in soil, in tree hollows, under stones, in caves, at the seashore in the intertidal zone, and within fractured rocks.
Chelifer cancroides is the species most commonly found in homes, where they are often observed in rooms with dusty books. [YIKES!] There the tiny animals (2.5–4.5 mm or 0.10–0.18 in) can find their food like booklice and house dust mites. They enter homes by “riding along” with larger insects (known as phoresy), or are brought in with firewood.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudoscorpion
Other posts:
CORBETT’S or INDOCHINESE TIGER
Panthera tigris corbetti
©Ashley Vincent/ Barcroft USA
A Corbett’s tiger, or Indochinese tiger. dries off after diving into the water at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi, Thailand. Only 200 Corbett’s tiger’s are thought to exist in the wild. They are found in Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand, and Vietnam - and formerly in China. The last known wild Indochinese tiger in China was killed and eaten by people from a village called Mengla in 2009.
Picture: Ashley Vincent/ Barcroft USA
RUDDY DAGGERWING CATERPILLAR or TAILED FLAMBEAU
Marpesia petreus
Family Nymphalidae
©Joe on Whatisthatbug.com
Description:
bright orangy with red, yellow, black. Blue spots/stripes and blue spikes!
Location:
Saint Lucia
This handsome caterpillar is a Ruddy Daggerwing, Marpesia petreus . It ranges from the southern USA to South America, including the West Indies where it is also called the Tailed Flambeau (I like that). Here is another look.
Source:
http://www.whatsthatbug.com/2010/10/10/unknown-caterpillar-from-santa-lucia/
Other posts:
Also:
FRINGED LEAF FROG
Cruziohyla craspedopus
©Murray Cooper/hardrainproject.com
Cruziohyla craspedopus is a species of frog in the Hylidae family. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and possibly Bolivia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and intermittent freshwater marshes.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cruziohyla_craspedopus
Other posts:
COMMERSON’S DOLPHIN
Cephalorhynchus commersonii
©mthalen
Commerson’s Dolphin is one of four dolphins in the Cephalorhynchus genus. The species has also the common names Skunk Dolphin, Piebald Dolphin and Panda Dolphin. The dolphin is named for Philibert Commerson, who first described them in 1767 after he sighted them in the Strait of Magellan.
The dolphin is found in two geographically disparate areas:
The Commerson’s Dolphin is very active. It is often seen swimming rapidly on the surface and leaping from the water. It also spins and twists as it swims and may surf on breaking waves when very close to the shore. It will bow-ride and swim behind fast-moving boats. They are also known to enjoy swimming upside-down, which is thought to improve the visibility of its prey.
This dolphin feeds on a mix of coastal and pelagic fish and squid. Those in the South American sub-population supplement their diet with crustaceans.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commerson%27s_dolphin
Other posts:
Commerson’s Dolphin - Side view
Man and SPERM WHALE
Physeter macrocephalus
Frommers 2010 Favorite Travel Moments Photo Contest Winner
Shot in Rousseau, Dominica
©Peter Allinson M.D.
Writes Allinson: “Dominica is a magical island in the Caribbean that is full of wonders on the island and below the offshore waters. On this trip my friends and I wanted to swim and photograph some of the local population of Sperm whales that live offshore. We obtained a permit from the fisheries department and chartered a boat captained by Andrew Armour, known as the ‘whale whisperer’ for his special relationship with the whales. We located the whales and were able to swim, photograph and play with them on multiple days during that week. This is a photo of my friend Jeff thanking one of the whales for posing with us. Interacting with and making eye contact with these huge gentle intelligent creatures was the most memorable moment of my life. May the whale population of the world flourish.”
Sperm Whale Quick Facts:
Historically, the sperm whale was also known as the common cachalot; “cachalot” is derived from an archaic French word for “tooth”. Over most of the period from the early 18th century until the late 20th century, the sperm whale was hunted to obtain spermaceti and other products, such as sperm oil and ambergris. Spermaceti found many important uses, such as candles, soap, cosmetics and machine oil. Due to its size, the sperm whale could sometimes defend itself effectively against whalers. In the most famous example, a sperm whale attacked and sank the American whaleship Essex in 1820. As a result of whaling, the sperm whale is currently listed as vulnerable by the IUCN.
Source:
http://www.nydailynews.com/travel/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sperm_whale
Other posts:
SPANISH ANDALUSIAN - by request
Beautiful shot of UFO, an Andalusian Stallion
Equus ferus caballus
© Wojtek Kwiatkowski
The Andulusian is the noblest horse in the world, the most beautiful that can be. He is of great spirit and of great courage and docile; hath the proudest trot and the best action in his trot, the loftiest gallop, and is the lovingest and gentlest horse, and fittest of all for a king in his day of triumph. —William Cavendish, the Duke of Newcastle, 1667
Facts:
Throughout its history, the Andalusian has been known for its prowess as a war horse, and was prized by the nobility.
The breed was used as a tool of diplomacy by the Spanish government, and kings across Europe rode and owned Spanish horses.
Plain Horse Facts:
Horses can sleep standing up. This is so that in the wild, if they were woken up by a predator they would be able to get away quicker.
You might sometimes see one horse asleep in the field whilst the others are eating. This is because that horse guards’ the herd during the night, so sleeps during the day and eats at night.
The oldest horse on record died at age 48
Horses and ponies are measured in hands. A hand is the length of an average adult’s palm, or four inches. The height is written as a number followed by the letters ‘hh’.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andalusian_horse
http://www.helium.com/items/1099767-horse-facts-for-kids?
Other posts:
IO MOTH CATERPILLAR
Automeris metzli
©AniSuperNova83/ Anna Maria Rincon
This large and colorful caterpillar becomess a moth of the Saturniidae family. It is found from Mexico to Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador. Its hairs can cause painful skin eruption (dermatitis) when handled. IO larvae possess many venomous spines (urticarial hairs) on their body and must be handled with care
Another photo here
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automeris_io
Other Posts
LONG-WATTLED UMBRELLABIRD
Cephalopterus penduliger
©Murray Cooper
The Long-wattled Umbrellabird, is a bird found in the humid forests of the Chocó of western Colombia and Ecuador. It is sensitive to habitat destruction, and its large size make it easy to hunt. Furthermore, only a few of the populations live within protected areas, so the bird is now considered vulnerable.
The bird’s common name comes from the a long, inflatable wattle on the neck of the male, which is up to 35 cm long and covered in short, scaly feathers. The females, by contrast, have a reduced wattle and are only about half the size of the males.
Their diet is of insects and fruit. Their nest was first seen by scientists in 2003. In breeding season, the males shout a loud call.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-wattled_Umbrellabird
Other posts:
CRESTED COUA
Coua cristata
©giuss95
The Crested Coua, Coua cristata, is a medium-sized, approximately 44cm long, greenish-grey coua with grey crest, blue bare orbital skin, rufous breast, brown iris, black bill and legs, white belly and long white-tipped purplish-blue tail feathers. They are very attractive birds.
The Crested Coua is distributed and endemic to forests, savanna and brushland of Madagascar. It is found from sea-level to altitude of 900 metres. The diet consists mainly of various insects, fruits, berries, seeds, snails and chameleons. The female usually lays two white eggs in nest made from twigs.
Widespread and a common species throughout its large habitat range, the Crested Coua is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crested_Coua
Other posts:
Parasitized SEVEN-SPOT LADYBIRD
Coccinella septempunctata
©pbertner
The ladybird pictured has been stung and partially paralyzed (probably by the wasp Perilitus coccinellae). The wasp laid an egg inside the beetle. The grub hatched developed within, eating many of the ladybird’s internal organs. When developed the grub ate its way out of the ladybird’s body. Usually the parasite’s relationship ends there, however, in this case, the ladybird stands guard for a week or more without any food or water while protecting the pupating wasp! When the wasp emerges, it flies away. Even with all of this, when the paralytic wears off a quarter of the ladybirds still survive.
A lot of parasitic wasps sting insects and leave their offspring to feed to adulthood on their host, but the coccinellae takes the process one step further.
The grub emerges from the still partially paralyzed ladybird and spins a silken cocoon between the ladybird’s legs (shown above). Since the ladybird can’t move, it remains in place and unwittingly protects the cocoon (for a week or so), as it transforms into an adult.
The ladybirds warning colors, of red and black, help to deter would-be predators, and it twitches erratically if threats draw near.
The drama ends when the adult wasp emerges from the cocoon and flies away leaving its host to die of starvation—or not.
Fact Source: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com
Other photos you may enjoy:
Lacewing Larvae - canny camouflage and Australian Lacewing Larvae
LONG EARED JERBOA -by request for iinfamouzj
Euchoreutes naso
©Getty
Jerboas are small jumping rodents that resemble mice with long tufted tails and very long hindlegs. The long-eared jerboa can be distinguished from other jerboas by its enormous ears, which are about a third larger than its head. Very little is known about this species. Other jerboas are primarily nocturnal, spending the hours of daylight in underground burrows, which they dig themselves. The species is thought to be declining as a result of human disturbance of its habitat.
More about Long Eared Jerboa’s here:
www.edgeofexistence.org/species/species_info.asp?id=81
Footage and more about the recent research here:
www.edgeofexistence.org/edgeblog/
Other posts:
INDIA BLUE PEACOCK in flight
Pavo cristatus
©Burnred
You rarely see this view, but it gives you a good idea of how a peacock is put together. Though peafowl roost in trees most of us only ever see them on the ground.
Other posts:
White Peacock - leucistic morph, not albino
TURTLE FROG
Myobatrachus gouldii
© Julian Bentley/frogs.org.au
NOT A TURTLE, NOT A FROG - this is a mash-up of both - turtle and frog with a little alien thrown in for good measure. It’s a real animal the aptly named Turtle Frog and is endemic to Southwestern Australia.
A very peculiar frog with a body shape resembling a small turtle with its shell removed. The head is very small, with reduced eyes, and quite distinct from the body, unlike most other frogs. The limbs are short but muscular. This species burrows forward through the sand, unlike most of arid-adapted burrowing frogs that use their hind feet and descend backwards in to the soil. The back color ranges from pink to a uniform light to dark brown.
Lays up to 50 eggs. There is no tadpole stage as the embryo goes through its entire development in the egg capsule and emerges as a small but fully formed frog.
Source: http://frogwatch.museum.wa.gov.au/Southwest/SouthwestForests/434.aspx
Other Australian Animal posts:
DANCING DROPWING
Trithemis pallidinervis
Botanic Garden, Singapore Macro
©InSectHunter
Trithemis pallidinervis is normally found at grassland and open marshes. It likes to perch high at grass blade with wing slightly pointing up. The male and female have similar marking. However, the face of male is metallic purple but rather yellow white in female.
Dragonflies have strongly biting mouthparts and are active and aggressive carnivores, preying mostly on other insects. They catch insects on the wing. The adults have massively large eyes. These eyes may each contain as many as 30 000 individual lenses or ommatidia. Because of this Dragonflies have exceptionally good eyesight and have been known to respond to stimuli from more than 40 feet away. They have very small and poorly developed antennae though.
They have two pairs of almost equally sized long thin membranous wings. Unlike most insects, which either flap both pairs of wings in unison (i.e. Bees and Butterflies), or only flap the hind pair (i.e. Beetles), or only have one pair (i.e. Flies), Dragonflies can flap or beat their wings independently. This means the front wings can be going down while the back ones are coming up. Dragonflies are excellent fliers, hover and fly backwards quite easily.
Dragonflies are a very ancient order of insects and fossils exist from more than 300 million years ago. Dragonflies are also relatively large insects, even now, but in they past they were much larger.
Source: http://www.greenunity.net/odonata/intro.asp
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