Ayyyy~

Lloyd, they/he, *1997 | Germany | Postdoctoral Scientist (Physical Oceanography) | Mostly Birding & Arthropods, sometimes plants and other stuff...

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Different color morphs of Idothea baltica (Baltic Isopod). Idk, I think they’re pretty :)

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Two specimen of Platyrhinus resinosus (GER: Großer Breitrüssler). I love them! (sorry about the mites in the first picture though)

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Beautiful male of Pamponerus germanicus (GER: Alabasterfliege), a species of robber fly that is listed as vulnerable (RL3) on the German Red List.

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HELLO! It is time for my annual (or so) re-emergence from the dead.

Anyways, I found the coolest thing ever last week. This is a pseudoscorpion hitching a ride on Rhagium bifasciatum (two-banded longhorn beetle; GER: Gelbbindiger Zangenbock).

Pseudoscorpions are known for doing that - it's no parasitism, they just ride along for a little bit without harming their taxi. It's called phoresis. I've known about that for a while, but I never would have hoped to witness this myself. I'm so so so happy!!!

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*gathers all of the people in the world who write the number 7 with a little dash in the center of it so I can study them like little critters and find out what makes them do that*

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There’s actually a lot of history regarding the development writing systems and why there are different visual representations of numerals, but the short answer is: it’s regional, and you probably picked up how to make your numbers look based on your parents or your primary school teachers

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I do it out of spite because in grade school a kids detective story identified the culprit by saying NO American wrote their sevens with a line and I thought that was super flimsy evidence and it made me so mad I started putting a line through my sevens so the fictional detective would be wrong and then kept doing it for several decades since.

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Merry Last Days of 2025! Got a little UV light for Christmas, mainly to use on the search for fluorescent caterpillars and some other invertebrates, but until it's spring again, it'll have to be used for other things. So, I ran around the house checking everything I could find for fluorescence and then taking some photos of the items under white light and the UV/black light torch. Because why not?

This is a two-parter; I took way too many pictures haha. Next part will come whenever.

More info (on what is what, etc.) under the cut:

1st row: I don't know what the big banded one is, but the red ones (bottom left in what is probably fuchsite?, bottom center) are rubys and the bottom right one is amber, which shows a green-ish fluorescence.

2nd row: Egg cases of the small-spotted catshark (Scyliorhinus canicula); only the light one showed green fluorescence while the dark one (hard to see, I admit) did not. It is a known fact that at least some catsharks are fluorescent, and apparently that somewhat includes the eggs!

3rd row: 25 Canadian cents; no idea what the colouring consists of, though. But something that was used in the process is clearly fluorescent :D. Also, I do feel the need to point out that as far as I know, no one in our family has ever been to Canada. I do not know where that coin came from.

4th row: Chlorophyll shows red fluorescence, making the leaf appear somewhat reddish-brown.

I wish I'd had a more diffuse / soft white light source for the white light pictures, but alas, the entire photo setup was very much improvised since I don't usually do studio photography (too much work).

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Not an animal for once. Just bad weather at sea!

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Not my first time posting four-spot orb-weavers (Araneus quadratus, GER: Vierfleck-Kreuzspinne) and probably not the last time either. I just love them so much!! Look at this beautiful lady hiding in the grass!

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An unidentified geometer moth that I will not try to ID beyond this very unspecific term... but I liked the look of it on this rusty background :).

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Whoopsie, did not mean to disappear again, but I was very busy. Anyways, have some Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis, GER: Eissturmvogel)!

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Charagmus gressorius (GER: Lupinen-Blattrandkäfer)

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Male Anthidium manicatum (European Wool Carder Bee, GER: Garten-Wollbiene). One of my favourite wild bee species!

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Pictures from a couple days ago :).

Top: Male of Chrysochraon dispar (GER: Große Goldschrecke), Center: An artistically challenging Northern Dune Tiger Beetle Cicindela hybrida (GER: Dünen-Sandlaufkäfer), Bottom: A female Black Mining Bee, Andrena pilipes (GER: Kohlschwarze Sandbiene), feeding on fennel flowers.

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A lovely immature specimen of Dolomedes fimbriatus, the Raft Spider (GER: Gerandete Jagdspinne) that I found recently :). Hoping to find an adult one, too! They are easily a 5/5 in terms of Spider Shape (tm) to me.

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Yes hello I am alive And I'm bringing two small(ish) beetles from the family Lucanidae (stag beetles):

Top is Sinodendron cylindricum, the Rhinoceros Stag Beetle (GER: Kopfhornschröter).

Bottom is Dorcus parallelipipedus, the Lesser Stag Beetle (GER: Balkenschröter).

Enjoy!

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Bitis caudalis, Horned Adder. Sessriem Canyon, Namibia.

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Chamaeleo dilepis, Flap-necked Chameleon. Etosha National Park, Namibia.