#bentrollio

[ramtiger]

[onenicebugperday]

Could you elaborate on setae used for thermoregulation? I’d assume since inverts are ectotherms, it wouldn’t trap body heat like fur or hair does, but I’m really not sure! I’d be super interested to learn more about it

It's like insulation to keep warmth in once they have it, either from beating their wings or sitting in the sun.

[squiggl3]

Lace and hornet for the art suggestion? Lace’s design is so cute and fun to draw

Chocolate strawberry milkshake

[pokemon-grooming]

Hello! My delcatty recently had a litter of skitty, and as expected, she grooms them meticulously. Right now I don’t have to groom them myself since she’s taking care of it, but when is the right time to start bringing them to a professional groomer? I’ve heard that getting them used to a groomer young is a good idea, but I’ve also heard that they don’t even need to go until they evolve into delcatty. What’s your advice on the matter?

Your answer’s going to depend on socialization and how long it takes to wean them off their mother. 

Young Pokémon should be getting familiar with people (namely, you) from an early age when they’re not feeding or resting. About half-hour intervals of play and other enrichment should have you set for the first six-to-twelve months of life, so they get comfy being touched by people.

After around one year is about when a Skitty’s coat will require more care than a mother Delcatty can offer, so you should start looking into groomers then!

-D

[onenicebugperday]

I love that you said cows are voracious predators like ladybugs, because while they’re certainly not at all evolved to eat meat, cows will occasionally take a bite out of carrion or a grounded chick (usually because of the nutrients in the bones, and it’s pretty rare). That being said, are there any herbivorous insects that occasionally engage in similar behaviors? Or the other way around, carnivorous insects that on rare occasion take a nibble from plants?

Sure, lots of bugs will supplement their diets with things you wouldn't really think they'd eat. Butterflies, of course known for eating mainly nectar, also LOVE to lick up liquids from decomposing flesh. I think the most interesting example, though, is the jumping spider, Bagheera kiplingi, which feeds almost entirely on protein-rich bulbs on the tips of branches of Mimosoideae trees. But during the dry season when those are harder to find, it'll cannibalize other spiders of the same species. Yum. :)

[onenicebugperday]

Not sure if you’re the right person to ask about this, but I was thinking of raising some mantis nymphs (a species native to the area of course) as a type of natural pest control in my vegetable garden. Do you have any experience or tips for raising and taking care of mantises? (PS your blog really helped me with my fear of wasps, and last year I had a hive near my garden and I often saw them hunting among the flowers and vegetables!! It was lovely and made me really appreciate them more)

I’m glad to hear your wasp fear has subsided a bit!

I’ve never raised mantises, but as far as releasing them into a garden as natural pest control, I can’t really recommend it as particularly useful. Firstly they’re general predators, so they’re just as likely to eat helpful pollinators (and each other) as they are to eat any pests.

Not only that, but unless your garden is fully enclosed, the majority of them are going to either be eaten by other predators as nymphs themselves or wander off due to overpopulation in the garden. Tbh I think it’s wasted money to buy an ootheca just for the purposes of releasing them into your garden.

If you want to raise mantises as pets, though, I know I have followers who raise them who could be helpful and I could point you in the direction of care info depending on which species you’re interested in. :)

[onenicebugperday]

Do you know anything about prehistoric bugs? Like the giant bugs of the Carboniferous? I’m a huge paleontology nerd but I admittedly don’t know much about ancient land invertebrates

I’m afraid I don’t know a whole lot about prehistoric bugs! If anyone has any good resources or perhaps knows of any blogs that post about that kind of thing, feel free to share.

I would recommend the book Planet of the Bugs, though, it talks a lot about the evolutionary origins of bugs :)

[ramtiger]

why did u and ur ex gf have a sword fight im very interested in the story behind that pls

step one: buy shitty swords from earthbound trading company and also the internetstep 2: @bentrollio and i went haha wouldnt it be funny to sword fightstep 2a: see some memes and declare “WE COULD DO IT IN A DENNY’S PARKING LOT”step 3: drive to dennysstep 4: swish swish bitch

and then after that we had lunch in dennys and called the masons like on the mbmbam tv show!