Ben S
twizzt@sauropods.win
<p>I am naturalist and macro photography enthusiast. I want to share how I see the tiny things in this world that make life livable. I have a MS in biology which focused on the ecology of plants, their insect herbivores, and the parasitoids that preyed on them.</p><p>I may occasionally toot about <a href="https://sauropods.win/tags/chronicPain" class="mention hashtag" rel="tag">#<span>chronicPain</span></a> or <a href="https://sauropods.win/tags/dyslexia" class="mention hashtag" rel="tag">#<span>dyslexia</span></a> but generally only to commiserate with others. You needn't notify my about misspellings as I just don't care anymore...</p>
Posts
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Post #3607117
I was flipping rocks today and came across more of the bright red springtails. I think they were under 90% of my landscape rocks today. I took these at higher magnification, and to my surprise, I seemed to get great depth of field. These guys are so tiny, but I took these at over 5x. There were a couple of the even tinier translucent white entomobryiods but I didn't really capture them. They actually spring! #Nature #Photography #Arthropods #Insects #Collembola #SriLanka #Springtail #Macro
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Post #1959585
Shhh! I&#39;m hiding. This beetle is trying to hide with its hitch hiking friends. #Nature #Photography #Two-horned #Powder-post #Beetle #Lichenophanes #bicornis #Oklahoma
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Post #1754714
Gathering at the starfruit. #Ceratina #Insects #Ghost #Ants #Starfruit #Averrhoa #carambola #Nature #Photography
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Post #1695599
I found this winged queen surrounded by dozens of workers at the base of a tree. I wish I would have stayed and watched how this played out. Some workers were threatening while others seemed to be feeding her. After one ant nipped at her, another nipped at that ant. Did the established colony take in this young queen? When I returned a short time later, they were gone? So many questions... #Formicidae #SriLanka #Ants #Insects #InsectInteraction #Oecophylla #smaragdina #Photography #Nature
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Post #1042028
This wasp was ovipositing in some insect hidden behind the curl of the petal (sepal) on a heliconia plant. This chalcid is like a 1/4 the size of a grain of rice. If I have this ID&#39;ed correctly, this is an aphid parasitoid, but it looked like it was ovipositing in a mealybug. #Proctotrupomorph #Chalcid #Pteromalidae #Pachyneurinae #Photography #Nature #Insects #SriLanka #Insects #InsectInteraction
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Post #732391
Spring in #SriLanka brings one of my biggest joys of the island. May I present to you the weaver ants. First, we have a huge queen. Many have green gasters, but this one is solid orange. She has a good start to her brood. These will eventually be her workers that will build her a nest and feed her. You will often find a few founding queens together on one leaf. One of the few species I know of that seem to do better with multiple queens. #SalticidSunday #Formicidae #Ants #Photography #Nature
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Post #660501
Since its what mastadon seems to care about, here&#39;s an ant. I thought it was a destroyer ant when I was taking its picture, but it is actually a sneaking ant which is closely related. Please correct me if I&#39;m wrong on the ID. This one was on a guava leaf. My flash is dying so I can&#39;t get consistent enough light to stack and I&#39;ve reverted to my thinner diffuser... Taken at ~1:3.5x #Nature #Photography #Macro #Insects #Ants #Formicidae #Myrmicine #Cardiocondyla...
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Post #660497
A super tiny parasitoid wasp investigating some possible host scale insects. #nature #Photography #Wasp #Insects #Parasitoid #Chalcid #SriLanka #InsectInteraction