Notices by kho (kho@shitposter.club), page 5
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kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:26 JST 
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Northern krill (Meganyctiphanes norvegica) is a species of krill that lives in the North Atlantic Ocean. It is an important component of the zooplankton, providing food for whales, seals, fish and birds. (In the Southern Ocean, Antarctic krill Euphausia superba fills a similar role.) M. norvegica is the only species recognised in the genus Meganyctiphanes.
The morphology of M. norvegica (Northern krill) was first described by M. Sars (1857) as follows:
"Whitish translucent, spotted above with red. Cephalothorax equalling a third to three-eighths of the whole body in length; with the forehead very short and truncated, not reaching the slender stalks of the very large eyes, with the median anterior edge angular (rostrum rudimentary), with a sharp spine on both sides of the triangle….only seven pairs of gills with none on the first pair of feet."
Historically, much of what we have learnt about Northern krill has been obtained through the deployment and analysis of trawled-nets. Net sampling remains the standard method with which to determine the size-structure of krill populations and to obtain specimens for incubation and experimentation. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:24 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Joro spiders are big spiders about the size of the tip of your thumb. Their long skinny legs can reach a span of 3-4 inches. Instead of being all black or all brown like most spiders, their females are very colorful. Their backs are black with yellow stripes and a red splotch, there are red markings on the stomach as well. Joro spiders have striped legs, with bands of yellow and blue. Besides their color what makes them stand out is their giant golden webs. They are part of the orb-weaver family and can weave large intricate 3-D webs.
In 2014 people reported seeing this unusual spider and their enormous webs in Georgia. Scientists confirmed that it was the East Asian Joro spider. It is unlikely they ballooned across the ocean to get here. Scientists think it is most likely that these spiders hitched a ride on a shipping container and started reproducing here. It is likely that they used the ballooning technique to disperse through Georgia and South Carolina.
The majority of ballooning is done by spiderlings. A few days after hatching, large groups of baby spiders will take to the air. Their main purpose is to spread out and find new places to live but they also do it to avoid cannibalism from other spiders and to increase the availability of resources.
Ballooning spiders operate within the planetary electric field. When their silk leaves their bodies, it typically picks up a negative charge. This repels the similar negative charges on the surfaces on which the spiders sit, creating enough force to lift them into the air. And spiders can increase those forces by climbing onto twigs, leaves, or blades of grass. Plants, being earthed, have the same negative charge as the ground that they grow upon, but they protrude into the positively charged air. This creates substantial electric fields between the air around them and the tips of their leaves and branches—and the spiders ballooning from those tips. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:24 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Icerya purchasi (common name: cottony cushion scale) is a scale insect that feeds on more than 80 families of woody plants, most notably on Citrus and Pittosporum. Originally described in 1878 from specimens collected in New Zealand as pests of kangaroo acacia and named by W.M. Maskell "after the Rev. Dr. Purchas who, believed, first found it", it is now found worldwide where citrus crops are grown. The cottony cushion scale originates from Australia.
This scale infests twigs and branches. The mature hermaphrodite is oval in shape, reddish-brown with black hairs, 5 mm long. When mature, the insect remains stationary, attaches itself to the plant by waxy secretions, and produces a white egg sac in grooves, by extrusion, in the body which encases hundreds of red eggs. The egg sac will grow to be two to three times as long as the body. Newly hatched nymphs are the primary dispersal stage, with dispersion known to occur by wind and by crawling.
Males are rare in hermaphroditic species of Icerya. Males are haploid while females are diploid. Females have an ovitestis that is capable of producing both sperm and oocytes which fertilize internally to produce diploid offspring (females) through a form of hermaphroditism. The cells of the ovitestis are haploid and are derived from excess sperm during matings with males. This has been termed as 'parasitic tissue' and theoretical studies have examined this as a form of sexual conflict and have examined the possible fates and fitness consequences since females can produce daughters by mating with males or using their parasitic male cell lines. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:23 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Although it has a ferocious appearance, the hickory horned devil is harmless. This worm starts as a tiny caterpillar after hatching from one of hundreds of eggs laid by a regal moth. Over a matter of weeks, it grows and molts until it reaches its amazing mature size (almost 6 inches!). The fully-grown hickory horned devil has a brown head, dark green body, black prolegs and numerous spines. Each body segment has four or more short, black spines around in a row around it. The two body segments toward the front have four long projections each that are brown at the base, black at the tip and curve back. These are the "horns" that give the caterpillar its ferocious appearance and name. The "horns" are sometimes 3/4 inch long. Mature hickory horned devils crawl to the soil and dig in to form a subterranean cell in which they molt into a pupal stage. The shiny, dark-brown pupa is about two inches long (or even longer) and is somewhat cylindrical. The fall, winter and spring is spent as a pupa in the soil. Next summer, the insect molts into the regal moth. Regal moths are large and have stout bodies. Females (wingspan up to 6 inches) are larger than males. The head and body are orange-red and yellow spots and markings.
One reason that hickory horned devils are such a surprise is that they are actually kind of rare. In spite of their large and forbidding appearance, birds are apparently fond of them for food. Not only that, but parasites and diseases also kill a portion of the population. Consequently, very few of the hundreds of eggs laid by regal moths successfully develop and produce offspring of their own. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:21 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Atrax sutherlandi is a species of Australian funnel-web spider found in forests on the far southern coast of New South Wales and in eastern Victoria. It was named after Struan Sutherland, whose work resulted in a successful funnel-web spider antivenom.
Normally, A. sutherlandi has a glossy black back and chelicerae ("fangs"), as well as a deep-brown or plum-colored underbelly. An adult grows to a length of 2 inches (5 cm).
Its legs are powerful and covered in fine, black hairs, making it an impressive sight to behold. As a funnel-web spider, Atrax sutherlandi constructs a burrow in the ground and waits for prey to wander too close before striking with lightning-fast reflexes.
Despite its venomous bite, Atrax sutherlandi is a fascinating and highly valued species for arachnid collectors. With proper care and attention, this spider can live for several years. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:20 JST
kho
Also known as buffalo gnats because of their humpbacked appearance, black flies (Simuliidae) are small (up to one-eighth of an inch long) dark flies that typically appear in late spring and early summer when they swarm and bite birds and mammals, including domestic animals and people.
Males and females feed on nectar. Male black flies do not bite, but females of most species must feed on blood to produce eggs. Some prefer to bite one type of host. Some species bite people in certain locales, but do not bite in other parts of the species’ range.
Like horse and deer flies, black flies bite using their mouthparts like scissors to cut into skin and lap up the blood. This results in painful bites that can produce bleeding, itching, inflammation and swelling, as well as allergic reactions that can be life-threatening. The flies may enter noses, ears and mouths, causing further discomfort. Domestic animals, especially poultry and exotic birds, can be killed by black fly attacks.
Black flies are aquatic insects that typically prefer clean, fast-running water. Females lay hundreds of triangular eggs in or near the water. Some crawl beneath the surface to deposit eggs on submerged objects such as rocks. The worm-like larvae hatching from these eggs are typically less than half an inch long and shaped like an hourglass. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:18 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Trichonephila clavipes females are among the largest non-tarantula-like spiders in North America and are perhaps the largest orb-weavers in this country. Females range from 24 mm to 40 mm in length. The female color pattern, consisting of silvery carapace, yellow spots on a dull orange to tan cylindrical body, brown and orange banded legs, plus the hair brushes (gaiters) on the tibial segment of legs, I, II, and IV, make this spider one of the most easily recognized. The males, on the other hand, are rather inconspicuous dark brown, slender spiders averaging 6 mm in length which would often go unnoticed if not for the fact that they are often found in the webs of females.
Special behaviors and body features have evolved in Trichonephila to protect against overheating. The silvery carapace reflects sunlight, while the long, cylindrical body may be pointed directly at the sun, thus reducing the area of exposed body surface. Force evaporative cooling may be employed by manipulating a drop of fluid with the chelicerae. Cooling responses generally occur above 35°C. The web does not have to be perpendicular to the sun in order for the spider to employ orientation; in fact, webs are generally placed so as to capture the most insects regardless of the sun's position, and the spider's orientation movements can be quite complex. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:16 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Christmas beetle is a name commonly applied to the Australian beetle genus Anoplognathus, which belongs to the subfamily Rutelinae. They are known as Christmas beetles because they are abundant in both urban and rural areas close to Christmas. Christmas beetles are large (20–30 mm long) members of the scarab family that are noisy and clumsy fliers, similar to the cockchafers of Europe. They typically have elytra that are dark or light brown, or green, while some species have a green-yellow iridescence.
The genus includes 35 species, several of which have been implicated in dieback of eucalypts. Anoplognathus pallidicollis is the species most commonly observed and associated with the name of Christmas beetle. However, there is a tendency for the name Christmas beetle to be used more ambiguously to refer to other metallic beetles not in this family, such as the stag beetle genus Lamprima. The smaller Argentine lawn beetle, Cyclocephala signaticollis, is prevalent in December and may also be referred to as a "Christmas beetle", labelled by the Australian Museum as an "impostor". -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:14 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
The name, cellar spider, comes from the location where they are often found: damp cellars, basements, and crawl spaces. They have very long, thin legs and are often confused with the harvestmen or daddylonglegs.
The origin of tinsel on Christmas trees comes from an old folk legend about common house spider webs:
A poor but hardworking widow once lived in a small hut with her children. One summer day, a pine cone fell on the earthen floor of the hut and took root. The widow's children cared for the tree, excited at the prospect of having a Christmas tree by winter. The tree grew, but when Christmas Eve arrived, they could not afford to decorate it. The children sadly went to bed and fell asleep. Early the next morning, they woke up and saw the tree covered with cobwebs. When they opened the windows, the first rays of sunlight touched the webs and turned them into gold and silver. The widow and her children were overjoyed. From then on, they never lived in poverty again. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:10 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
The mature pinktoe tarantula has a dark-colored body and pinkish feet, hence its name. Juvenile specimens, however, have pinkish bodies and dark-colored feet and undergo a reversal in their coloration as they approach adulthood at 4–5 years. A fully grown Pinktoe tarantula can grow up to six inches in length. They have a short lifespan, with males living 2–3 years, and females living between 6–9 years.
Dimorphism has been shown in the mature stages of males and females, with males having uniformly barbed urticating hairs, while females are found only at the proximal end. Mature males also exhibit a pair of hooks on the last segment of the pedipalps, used during construction of "sperm webs" and courtship behaviors.
They are an ambush predator, using webbing as a trap and to sense movement from prey. With an enriched environment, they can display an array of behaviors such as active hunting, foraging, and even construction such as nest and tunnel building with nearby debris. The pinktoe tarantula consumes mostly insect prey and is an aggressive feeder. Some of its prey includes crickets, wax moths, grasshoppers, cockroaches and small tree frogs. They sometimes consume small lizards such as Anolis, but vertebrates usually are not a major contributor to its diet. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:09 JST
kho
Oh shit almost forgot today!
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
This species of bug (Pselliopus barberi) is identified by its mostly orange body. Its round elongated body has black lines and black stripes across its legs. These bugs may appear slightly amber in certain regions.
Orange Assassin Bugs are part of a few hundred types of species of assassin bugs found in the US.
It’s often found around trees, especially on the bark where it may not be as easy to spot by its prey. Orange Assassin bugs consume a wide range of insects that come in their range. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:06 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
The tarantula hawk, scientifically known as Pepsis, is a formidable wasp species found in the Southwestern United States, distinguished by its striking metallic blue or black body and vibrant orange wings.
Its notoriety extends beyond its appearance to its unique and somewhat macabre reproductive strategy. Females seek out tarantulas, engaging in fierce battles to paralyze the spiders with potent venom. Subdued tarantulas are then dragged to burrows, where the wasp lays an egg. The hatching larva feeds on the still-living host, strategically avoiding vital organs. While tarantula hawks play a crucial role in ecosystem balance by controlling tarantula populations, their sting is infamous for its intensity, ranking among the most painful insect stings.
Despite their formidable appearance, tarantula hawks are generally non-aggressive unless provoked, offering a fascinating glimpse into the intricate dynamics of predator-prey relationships and a reminder of their potential danger to humans. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:04 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Eumastacidae are a family of grasshoppers sometimes known as monkey- or matchstick grasshoppers. They usually have thin legs that are held folded at right angles to the body, sometimes close to the horizontal plane. Many species are wingless and the head is at an angle with the top of the head often jutting above the line of the thorax and abdomen. They have three segmented tarsi and have a short antenna with a knobby organ at the tip. They do not have a prosternal spine or tympanum. Most species are tropical and the diversity is greater in the Old World. They are considered primitive within the Orthoptera and feed on algae, ferns and gymnosperms, the more ancient plant groups.
This colorful Monkey Grasshopper with the scientific name Eumastax vittata napoana in the family Eumastacidae is common in the Amazon rainforest of Ecuador. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:02 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Known by various names, including Pacific cleaner shrimp, scarlet cleaner shrimp, and skunk cleaner shrimp, these shrimp play a vital role in coral reef ecosystems. Their common name is derived from the fact that a large portion of their diet is made up of dead tissue and parasites they remove from fish. They will set up a cleaning station on coral or a rock and wait for fish to stop by to be cleaned of dead tissue and parasites. These brightly colored shrimp have a red band on each side of their body separated by a white band down the middle of the back. As with members of the Order Decapoda, they have ten legs.
Pacific cleaner shrimp have developed a symbiotic relationship with many marine fish, being compensated for their cleaning services with edible parasites and dead tissue from the mouths of their patients.
Some scuba divers return to spots with cleaner shrimp to have their teeth cleaned by them regularly. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:21:00 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
The Vampire Crab (Geosesarma dennerle) is a small, very colorful, semi-terrestrial species that is native to Java, Indonesia. It inhabits forest areas near streams, rivers, and ponds. It spends most of its time on land, but also often submerges in freshwater, including when it molts. It is communal with its own species, and males typically are larger than females, and also have much larger claws.
Like most crabs, the Vampire Crab is an omnivorous scavenger and an opportunistic hunter on occasion. It feeds on filamentous algae and detritus in the paludarium and will also readily accept high-quality dry foods that are rich in plant matter. Fresh and dried vegetables are also excellent food sources, as are insects, worms, and other invertebrates.
Like most Geosesarma species, Vampire crabs are nocturnal and shy. However, from time to time you will also see them at dusk or even during the day.
Their spectacular colors (bright purple claws, yellow eyes and violet purple to purplish- brown carapace with cream to yellowish-white spot on the back) explain their attraction to aquarists.
Vampire crabs do not live long. They usually achieve a life expectancy of 2 years or slightly more. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:20:58 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
The goliath beetles consist of 6 separate species, all found in Africa. Though the species differ slightly in size and diet, they are all generally large and sturdy beetles, with some form of black and white striped colouration across their body.
Though the adult beetles are not particularly massive they can grow up to around 12cms (4.5 inches), and their larvae are considered the heaviest insect by weight in the world. Goliath beetle larvae can reach weights of up to 100 grams (3.5 oz) and grow up to 10 inches (250mm) in length.
Thought to be one of the strongest insects in the world, goliath beetles can lift and move over 800 times their own body weight.
Male goliath beetles use their fork shaped horns to wrestle one another, especially during the breeding season.
Females lack these horns, and have more of a wedge shaped head which helps when burrowing to lay eggs. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:20:55 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Ichneumonoidea Anomaloninae have slender bodies with the thorax generally coarsely punctate and the areolet of the forewing absent. Their faces are usually at least in part yellow. Anomaloninae characteristically fly with antennae forward, the gaster slightly raised, and back legs outstretched. Tasmanian species are medium to large-sized. Female Trichomma have noticeably hairy eyes and the ovipositor at near to, or around, the length of the hind tibiae. In other genera the ovipositor is around half the length. All Tasmanian species are internal parasites of lepidopterous larvae including some orchard pests.
Ichneumon wasps differ from the wasps that sting in defense (Aculeata: Vespoidea and Apoidea) in that the antennae have more segments; typically 16 or more, whereas the others have 13 or fewer. Their abdomen is characteristically very elongated, unlike in their relatives the braconids.
Simply but ambiguously, these insects are commonly called "ichneumons," which is also a term for the Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon); ichneumonids is often encountered as a less ambiguous alternative. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:20:53 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Found in three subspecies, the Fiery Skipper butterfly has a unique look in the sense that they are often mistaken for having only two wings, instead of four, because of their posture of sitting on their host flowers. These are small creatures with a body length of only about an inch or so.
The mature larva is about 0.5 inches in size, with a white body marked with black spots and long spines. The orange head has two black horns, while there is also a yellow anal plate. They remain solitary or form small groups of 2 to 3 individuals.
When the wings are open, the males show orange or yellow wings having dark spots all over, while the females have a dark brown base with yellow to orange spots. When the wings are closed, the same patterns are displayed, but in a much fainter contrast.
These are common lawn pests: As a caterpillar, the fiery skipper creates brown spots in lawns that are about 2 inches long. Infestations may occur, showing multiple spots that link together in an irregular patch. Eggs are laid under grass leaves. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:20:52 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
Lots of fly species are from the Midwest. One of these is the blue bottle fly, a fly that we commonly find inhabiting our home.
The Blue Bottle Fly (Calliphora vomitoria) is an oval-shaped insect with a distinctive metallic blue or green hue. Colonizing both urban and rural areas, it is commonly found near decaying matter. They play a crucial role in decomposition as they lay their eggs in rotting organic matter. Blue Bottle Flies are often used in forensic entomology to estimate time of death.
Adaptively, they have a strong sense of smell to locate carrion from a distance. Their larvae, or maggots, exhibit resistance to a wide range of temperatures, ensuring their development in various conditions. -
kho (kho@shitposter.club)'s status on Monday, 12-Feb-2024 13:20:50 JST
kho
🚨 ARTHROPOD OF THE DAY 🚨
The Six Eyed Sand Spider (Sicarius hahni) is a medium-sized spider found in deserts and other sandy places in southern Africa. It is a member of the Sicariidae family and close relatives of this spider are sometimes found in both Africa and in South America. Its nearest relatives are the Recluse spiders (Loxosceles) which are found worldwide.
The Six Eyed Sand Spider is also known as the six-eyed crab spider due to its flattened stance and laterigrade legs. The venom of this spiders bite is said to be the most dangerous on record.
The Six Eyed Sand Spider is covered in small hairs, called setae (a stiff hair, bristle or bristle-like process or part of an organism), which serve to hold particles of sand. This provides effective camouflage even when the spider is not buried.
The Six Eyed Sand Spider does not roam in search of prey, it simply lies in wait for an insect or scorpion to pass by. When one does, it seizes the prey with its front legs, kills it with venom and eats it. The Six Eyed Sand Spiders do not need to feed very often, an adult Six Eyed Sand Spider can live without food or water for a very long time.
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