Damn Nature, You scary

coz animal shit is muthafuckin SWEEEEET*Icon by http://skulldog.deviantart.com * main blog @ sableyethescienceguy.tumblr.com

[geometrymatters]

Structures from Nature

Image Gallery by David Walker, UK

source: microscopy-uk.org.uk

[cutebiology]

tiny bauble monsters

[typhlonectes]

Micro Cthulhu Zooplankton:

Actinotroch larva of a phoronid - Arrowhead Worm

photo via: Anita Slotwinski, Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute, University of Tasmania

[cutebiology]

ｄｏ　ｎｏｔ　ａｎｇｅｒ　ｔｈｅ　ｌａｒｖａ

[dimetrodone]

All I want right now is one of these fleshy soil goblins

[correctdichotomy]

(image credit to Dan Hoare on twitter)

I ONLY JUST LEARNED ABOUT THE EXISTENCE OF THIS MUSHROOM????? WHICH ERUPTS FROM AN EGG BEFORE UNCURLING HELLISH ARMS, EXPOSING ITS STICKY MASS OF SPORES TO BE SPREAD BY FLIES ATTRACTED BY THE SCENT OF ROTTING FLESH???

Admittedly, I am easily won over by all organisms that attract flies with the scent of rotting flesh. But the octopus stinkhorn (Clathrus archeri) also has tentacles, a freaky egg stage, and blackish goop, so it’s my favorite now.

[nope-deactivated20161202]

i want to die

[practicallyeffected]

It’s literally me

[strangersivefollowed]

This some real alien shit

[todropscience]

The pink whipray (Himantura fai) is the only species of stingray know to engage in this sort of piggybacking behavior. In fact, multiples pink whiprays piggyback on others rays of the same species, and this is unexpected, elasmobranch, in general only interact when they try to eat each other.

The pink whipray is a large ray that occurs in coastal soft-sediment habitats in the Indian Ocean.

But apparently they love it, and pink whipray piggyback in another species. Pictures don’t lie.

The reasons for this behaviour are unknown, one possibility is that piggybacking is a predator defence strategy that allows the smaller rays to appear larger than they actually are and breaks up silhouettes on which predators can focus. There may also be some hydrodynamic or foraging advantage to the smaller rays in travelling with larger species in this manner, although this does not explain why these rays piggyback on other rays resting on the seabed or at cleaning stations. 

Photo b)  Pink whiprays piggybacking on a blotched fantail ray (Taeniurops meyeni) at a cleaning station.

Reference: Meekan et al. 2016. The piggybacking stingray Coral Reef

[todropscience]

these sea pancake know how to party

[astronomy-to-zoology]

Hey!

what kind of fish is this :D

Hi, this is a larval fish of some sort, probably in one of its later stages. The dorsal fin with both hard and soft spines leads me to believe its a Perciform fish of some sort (which doesn’t really narrow it down). However, its body shape and fins are reminiscent of a Boarfish (Caporidae) or a Moonfish (Selene spp.) so it could be one of those, but without an older fish and a location i can’t really be sure. 

[arachnofacts-blog]

gifs / source

The Six-Eyed Sand Spider (Sicarius hahni) is one of the few arachnid species that the internet seems to have generally taken a liking to, against widespread misinformation about the potency of spider bites. Ironically, S. hahni is also one of the handful of spiders whose venom is potentially lethal, or at least extremely painful! There is, however, no solid evidence of a bite to any human. In fact, it is also a fairly popular (if somewhat hard to find) pet species.

[cool-critters]

Check out this amazing photo of a tiny Flamboyant cuttlefish (Metasepia pfefferi) still inside its egg. Looking pretty extraterrestrial, eh?

Photo credits: Daniel Geary

[bundyspooks]

8 of the world’s most bizarre flowers:

1.) Swaddled Babies

2.) Flying Duck Orchid

3.) Hooker’s Lips Orchid

4.) Ballerina Orchid

5.) Monkey Orchid

6.) Naked Man Orchid

7.) Laughing Bumblebee Orchid

8.) White Egret Orchid

[revretch]

Orchids are weird as fuck and I love them

[sourcedumal]

All I see are grass pokemon

[bogleech]

So for centuries we’ve thought that all spiders - except for just one recently discovered species - were 100% carnivorous with zero interest in or ability to digest anything else.

We JUST NOW suddenly figure out that many spiders, maybe even most or all spiders, will supplement their diet with leaf matter, pollen, nectar, sap or seeds. Just like that our perception of an everyday animal is turned completely on its head.

It seems to be jumping spiders that enjoy snacking on vegetables the most!

[awwww-cute]

[rotking]

@ra9ers

[sixpenceee]

Up close butterflies look like they have feathers. Their scales made of chitin, like the exoskeleton of a crustacean.

[anxiousmidwesterner]

THIS PROVES THAT THEY ARE ALIENS FROM OUTER SPACE

[madsciences]

Mycena interrupta (pixie’s parasol)

Mycena Interrupta, also known as Pixie’s Parasol, is a small non-bioluminescent mushroom found in and around Australia. It’s very fragile and grows in small colonies on rotting wood, primarily in temperate, rainy areas. It is the only blue Mycena.

[sweaterfemme-deactivated2025081]

*sees two women kissing* idk what this is from but i support it

[cobbled-crane]

“You suck at drawing hands.”

[outcastmv-archive]

what a turn of events

[coolthingoftheday]

The family of sea slugs known as Sacoglossans are actually - unlike any other animal on Earth - capable of producing their own food through photosynthesis.

Juveniles of the species are born as herbivores, consuming plant matter as food to survive. As they age, however, the sea slugs’ digestive tract begins to break down only most of the plant matter, while leaving the chloroplasts - the part of the plant that allows it to produce its own food via the process of photosynthesis - intact. Eventually, the intact chloroplasts become incorporated into the body of the sea slug, where its branched digestive tract allows the animal to spread them throughout its body evenly, permitting the animal to produce its own food using only sunlight. 

After this process is complete, the sea slug never has to eat again.

(Source)