Treehopper, Alchisme grossa by Ecuador Megadiverso on Flickr.
An amazing couple of treehopper (Alchisme grossa) images by Andreas Kay. Wow!!
Poppy face on Flickr.
In celebration of today’s rain, a poppy face from a sunny day–feels like happiness. =)
Rare oarfish creates a buzz in New Zealand
hm… not sure how this is going to turn out, but SUPER exciting find in New Zealand of an oarfish (washed up) in GREAT condition. Just gorgeous. I’m a total nut job for oarfish. =)
black-necked stilt at Merced NWR on Flickr.
On a lovely weekend in March.
This Humidity-Powered Seed Plants Itself by Drilling into the Ground
Oh, MAN, I am SO grateful for this. Keep trying to explain it, now there’s no need. =) BTW those seeds feel like STEEL NEEDLES stabbing through your socks & shoes.
(via itscolossal)
Eurasian Wren ~ Zaunkönig ~ Troglodytes troglodytes
Something very small, brown and mouse-like is working its way through the undergrowth - the wren (more poetically called “King of Fences” in German)! As soon as the tiny beak opens, loud (!) and melodic sound waves drift through the woods.
Sadly, the third smallest bird in Europe (just a little larger than Goldcrest and Firecrest) has been treated horribly by humans - check out the cruel tradition of Wren Day in various countries. Luckily, the live bird seems to have been replaced by a puppet in recent years.
Und wenn du dich darüber freust wie ein Schneekönig, hat auch das mit dem Zaunkönig zu tun, denn er wurde, weil er auch im Winter so laut singt, lange Zeit Schneekönig genannt. :-)
Germany
2015 © Jesse Alveo ~ All rights reserved
(via dendroica)
Sickle-billed vanga (Falculea palliata)
The sickle-billed vanga is a species of bird in the vanga family Vangidae. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitats are tropical dry forests and tropical dry shrubland. The sickle-billed vanga is the largest of the vangas, measuring 32 cm in length.It is a social species, particularly in the tiding flea season when it can travel in groups of up to thirty birds while foraging for food and form roosting groups of over fifty birds The species feeds on a wide range of terrestrial invertebrates, including spiders, cockroaches, crickets, beetles, and worms.
photo credits: wiki, Dubi Shapiro, Jacques Erard, lynxeds
(via somuchscience)
Hanging fly, Bittacus chlorostigma, the only genus representative on Pacific coast. LOVE that horsey face. Not a true fly ‘cause has 4 wings v. 2 (tho’ you can’t tell from my photos).
See http://bugguide.net/node/view/164221 for more info on these cool bugs. =)
More lovely hygroscopic earthstars unfurled from the rains we just received. LOVE these things.
Rare Sierra Nevada Red Fox Sighted In Yosemite National Park - capradio.org
Super exciting, this is the NATIVE red fox. Note GIANT tail: they’re adapted to high elevation, deep snow-land. SO cool. =)