Nostr notes by neville park

so yesterday I took a rainy walk in the black oak savannah on the ...

2025-03-31T22:41:36Z

so yesterday I took a rainy walk in the black oak savannah on the eastern edge of High Park…

#BREAKING: the witch hazel flowers are fully unfurled. These ...

2025-03-18T20:47:21Z

#BREAKING: the witch hazel flowers are fully unfurled. These flies are taking advantage—I was surprised to see them out and about!

#bloomscrolling #florespondence #SpringWatch #bugstodon #insects #flies #Diptera

all hail goth snake!!

2025-03-15T00:38:36Z

In reply to nevent1q…fcds
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all hail goth snake!!

New Ant Lab video with a slew of different insects in flight!! ...

2025-03-15T00:36:01Z

New Ant Lab video with a slew of different insects in flight!! https://youtu.be/gDI5g3rd0Ls

#bugstodon #insects #entomology

MORE JUNCOS!!!!

2025-03-03T20:24:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…ntf3
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MORE JUNCOS!!!!

hahahaahaha it's march 😭

2025-03-02T22:18:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…9dk2
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hahahaahaha it's march 😭

since i see we're brassicaposting again, once again i'd ...

2025-03-02T20:46:29Z

since i see we're brassicaposting again, once again i'd like to share this figure from a peer reviewed academic paper

https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icab072 :OpenAccess:

FISH 🐟 DOORBELL 🔔 TIME ⏰ In the Netherlands, spring fish ...

2025-03-01T00:23:20Z

FISH 🐟
DOORBELL 🔔
TIME ⏰

In the Netherlands, spring fish migration has begun! This literal live stream from a manually operated canal lock in Utrecht lets you click a button when you see fish, which sends a screenshot and lets the lock-keeper know to open the lock and let fish through.

The #Visdeurbel returns March 3 and there will be some exciting additions: updates from 4 fishways (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_ladder) across the Netherlands! The latest Visdeurbel news report explains: https://youtu.be/BQNPNQ6Ui2Q

https://visdeurbel.nl/

Was woken up at 3 in the morning by a pair of raccoons trying and ...

2025-02-24T20:56:44Z

Was woken up at 3 in the morning by a pair of raccoons trying and utterly failing to cross the broken part of the chain-link fence behind the building. Couldn't get back to sleep for ages, slept in severely. At least I got photos.

#toronto

#BREAKING: my pet _Larinioides_ orbweaver is almost certainly a ...

2025-02-12T13:51:38Z

#BREAKING: my pet _Larinioides_ orbweaver is almost certainly a juvenile male! The palps are way too bulbous for a female's, I think.

Anyway, here e is chowing down on eir fruit flies.

#DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders #orbweavers #Araneae #Araneidae

Uh, yeah, about Shopify… - ...

2025-02-11T21:04:02Z

In reply to nevent1q…khpj
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Uh, yeah, about Shopify…

- https://www.disconnect.blog/p/the-conservative-tech-alliance-is-coming-to-canada
- https://pressprogress.ca/shopify-executives-right-wing-media-website-rails-against-immigrants-while-defending-a-legally-designated-terrorist-group/

> At a recent public lecture, Yong compared social media and ...

2025-02-10T21:52:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…lkr9
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> At a recent public lecture, Yong compared social media and birding as alternate ways to spend his time.
>
> “I spent a lot of my time and my life on social media [in the past], caring about what people who I don’t actually care about are saying and thinking, and wasting a huge amount of emotional and mental energy,” he says. “And now I spend an equivalent amount of energy trying to work out whether that small probing shorebird is a Western Sandpiper or a Semipalmated Sandpiper. And one of those things is a total waste of my time, and it’s desperately uncool. And it is not the sandpiper thing.”

(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/ed-yong-writer-bird-immersion/)

Via his newsletter, Ed Yong profiled for the Cornell ornithology ...

2025-02-10T21:49:55Z

Via his newsletter, Ed Yong profiled for the Cornell ornithology mag: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/ed-yong-writer-bird-immersion/

> Yong, who describes himself as a “quite restless person,” extols the power of birding and bird photography for mental health.
>
> “I’m always thinking about stuff. I have anxieties. I have a lot of things in my mind. And when I’m out in the field looking through a [camera] lens or binoculars, a lot of that just falls away,” he says. “I’ve described it as being more meditative than actual meditation. It really does focus the mind. … You are putting all of your attention on this other creature, often a very innocuous, honest, unassuming creature. We all joke about like the little brown jobs, right?
>
> “So you focus all of your energy and attention on this tiny brown sparrow, and it is the center of your world, for this fleeting moment.”

Like he writes in his NYT column from last year (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/30/opinion/birding-spring-merlin-ebird.html // https://archive.ph/dlIqZ): "While birding, I seem impervious to heat, cold, hunger and thirst."

I feel exactly the same looking for bugs. One minute I am sweaty, hot, annoyed—then I spot a particularly interesting spider or mite and everything else disappears.

Also this photo—!!! See it full size here: https://buttondown.com/edyong209/archive/the-eds-up-on-doing-something/

#birding #birds #spidering

more snow, more juncos (also feat. chickadees) #birdeing #birding ...

2025-02-09T16:46:46Z

more snow, more juncos

(also feat. chickadees)

#birdeing #birding #birds

oooh. that sounds right up my alley

2025-02-08T21:02:58Z

In reply to nevent1q…2ur5
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oooh. that sounds right up my alley

hey is anyone missing about a gazillion ducks, light grey with ...

2025-01-26T23:28:01Z

hey is anyone missing about a gazillion ducks, light grey with red-brown heads? i think i found them

I think they are redheads (_Aythya americana_). They don't look as pointy as canvasbacks (_A. valisineria_) and based on iNat redheads seem to be more common here.

Several other people out on the waterfront this brisk winter day also stopped to marvel and take photos.

#birdeing #birding #birds #ducks #toronto

I didn't even know that was a thing!!

2025-01-23T21:34:54Z

In reply to nevent1q…uzfz
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I didn't even know that was a thing!!

glad you're doing things that make you happy! the scarf is ...

2025-01-21T00:49:41Z

In reply to nevent1q…m98h
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glad you're doing things that make you happy! the scarf is really gorgeous. i hope the isopods are settling in.

goth squirrel for your timelines ...

2025-01-19T20:26:37Z

goth squirrel for your timelines

Sometimes I worry that people see this account // this server and ...

2025-01-18T01:27:24Z

Sometimes I worry that people see this account // this server and think that I'm posting about lichen and spiders and birds as a way of disengaging from news/the world, or because I have the luxury of not thinking about All This *gestures*, or that I just want to make some kind of politics-free space or whatever. No, I post about lichen and spiders and birds because I will literally die if I don't. No I can't explain it.

#BREAKING: I dumped a bunch of the flightless fruit flies on the ...

2025-01-13T16:38:03Z

#BREAKING: I dumped a bunch of the flightless fruit flies on the windowsill outside (it's cold enough that they're knocked out and they can't wander off) and the dark-eyed juncos are eating them!!!! This solves my perennial problem of having more fruit flies than the spiders can possibly eat.

yeah, I'm in my Renfield phase, so what

david attenborough voice a herd of cherry pickers in their ...

2025-01-03T20:48:55Z

In reply to nevent1q…a6yt
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*david attenborough voice* a herd of cherry pickers in their natural habitat, a lot in an industrial area. their long necks allow them to reach high to reach the most succulent leaves. Normally only found foraging in ones or twos, these vast aggregations are formed when they come home at dusk to rest.

New blog post: my top 10 favourite arachnid observations from ...

2025-01-01T21:09:29Z

New blog post: my top 10 favourite arachnid observations from June onwards! Lifers, rare sightings, and more. Plus, one of my favourite Odyssey passages. https://nevillepark.ca/2025/01/01/arachnid-summer-fall-highlights/

If you missed my earlier post covering January to May 2024, find it here: https://nevillepark.ca/2024/05/15/recent-arachnid-lifers-rarities/

#SpidersOfMastodon #Mitestodon #arachnids #spiders #mites

this page lmfao ...

2024-12-30T16:43:19Z

In reply to nevent1q…qjjk
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this page lmfao https://sites.wustl.edu/meteoritesite/items/some-meteorite-realities/

It reads exactly the same as fed-up arachnologists trying to explain that you did not find a brown recluse in California/Wisconsin/Florida/etc., that sore is not a spider bite, if you wake up with a sore and search the room and find a spider it does not mean the spider bit you, etc.

This reminded me a little of those giant viruses, but at first I ...

2024-12-30T13:38:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…d6j8
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This reminded me a little of those giant viruses, but at first I couldn't remember what they were called so I was searching around, and when I found the Wikipedia page (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_virus) and read this:

> A **giant virus**, sometimes referred to as a **girus**

I immediately said out loud "shut the fuck up"

In "very cool but—this is crucial—wait for follow-up ...

2024-12-30T13:20:38Z

In "very cool but—this is crucial—wait for follow-up papers from other labs before freaking out, I am only sharing this because Science magazine thought it warranted an article" news: obelisks https://www.science.org/content/article/it-s-insane-new-viruslike-entities-found-human-gut-microbes

Published paper: https://www.cell.com/cell/abstract/S0092-8674(24)01091-2

i got exercise and fresh air for NOTHING

2024-12-22T21:17:48Z

In reply to nevent1q…20fy
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i got exercise and fresh air for NOTHING

y'all i was going through my Fanciest Camera photos and was ...

2024-12-22T21:13:09Z

y'all i was going through my Fanciest Camera photos and was like "oh hey this squirrel pic turned out nice, i should go out for a walk just to take pictures of squirrels." reader, there were NO squirrels. NONE. they apparently took the day off. it's not even super cold. it's just regular winter cold. like -10°C. anyway here's the pic, taken a couple weeks ago.

imagine being small enough to walk through this landscape like a ...

2024-12-22T15:48:55Z

In reply to nevent1q…770v
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imagine being small enough to walk through this landscape like a forest…

Solstice is the holiday that the most hard-nosed scientific ...

2024-12-21T17:40:11Z

Solstice is the holiday that the most hard-nosed scientific types, the most mystical pagans, and the extremely seasonal affective disorder dead inside can all agree on and i think that's beautiful

oh shit it's #WeevilWednesday BEHOLD: this majestic ...

2024-12-18T17:24:57Z

oh shit it's #WeevilWednesday

BEHOLD: this majestic _Poteriophorus imperatrix_ observed in the Philippines by Claude Chavand: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/38706476 :inaturalist: :cc_by: :cc_nc_us:

#iNaturalist #bugstodon #insects #beetles #weevils • #Coleoptera #Curculionidae #Dryophthorinae

i don't think i ever actually posted these pictures of a goth ...

2024-12-17T15:45:17Z

i don't think i ever actually posted these pictures of a goth squirrel snacking on a leftover halloween pumpkin on my street

update: the chickadees stopped by again! they are among the ...

2024-12-16T16:11:21Z

In reply to nevent1q…px9m
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update: the chickadees stopped by again!

they are among the boldest birds, despite being so tiny!

#birdeing

The cellar spider (_Pholcus_) under the radiator in my bedroom, ...

2024-12-16T01:53:23Z

The cellar spider (_Pholcus_) under the radiator in my bedroom, enjoying a hand-delivered flightless fruit fly (with a second course wrapped up nearby). Note the distinctive eye arrangement: ( ∵ .. ∵ )

I'm simply amazed by how well these spiders can survive in very dry environments with extremely little food!

#SpiderSunday #DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Pholcidae

oh my fucking god a pair of chickadees have stopped by the ...

2024-12-15T19:19:18Z

oh my fucking god a pair of chickadees have stopped by the windowsill to go "mee-mee-mee-meep", grab a sunflower seed, and leave

#birdeing

Hieronymus Posh

2024-12-14T16:27:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…8su7
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Hieronymus Posh

A large crop of fruit flies (_Drosophila hydei_) hatched today. ...

2024-12-13T04:31:47Z

A large crop of fruit flies (_Drosophila hydei_) hatched today. Coincidentally I noticed a tiny orbweaver, barely more than a spiderling, had made a web on the inside of my window, so I carefully used a paintbrush to hold a fruit fly in the web, which it promptly took.

I had also found a smallish cellar spider under the shelves I use as a nightstand, so I moved it into the large jar I had used for the black widow, and, after giving it some time to acclimate, put in several fruit flies. It has already caught and wrapped up three. (Cellar spiders are well known to be impressive hunters.)

Neither are large enough to eat more than a few fruit flies a week, so if I want to make a dent in the flies I must search the apartment for more spiders…

#DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Araneidae #Pholcidae

Update: I think @npub1wkj…alqv got it; American goldfinch, ...

2024-12-11T17:36:06Z

In reply to nevent1q…nrs3
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Update: I think Tallastro 🇺🇦 (npub1wkj…alqv) got it; American goldfinch, _Spinus tristis_! At first I was like "nah" because I've seen them and they're very bright yellow—but it turns out their winter colouring is much more drab!

Comparison #iNaturalist observations:

- https://inaturalist.ca/observations/142809698
- https://inaturalist.ca/observations/38644789
- https://inaturalist.ca/observations/102120860

#birdeing

I think you got it!

2024-12-11T17:33:30Z

In reply to nevent1q…480t
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I think you got it!

new birds in the vacant lot behind my building!!! a little bigger ...

2024-12-11T16:49:38Z

new birds in the vacant lot behind my building!!!

a little bigger than sparrows I think, hopping around perching on dead goldenrod/sapling stems close to the ground, seemingly eating seeds.

light brown, faces kind of reminded me of house sparrows?, dark wing-tips with bright yellow/white markings, stripes near the top and smaller markings towards the bottom.

Toronto, ON, CA 🇨🇦 , seen today. Any ideas, fedi?

#birdeing #birding

I also got the best chickadee pic of my life (second, inferior ...

2024-12-10T21:06:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…qzxk
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I also got the best chickadee pic of my life (second, inferior one is for comparison)

#WorstBirdPic #birdeing

As promised. (Re: #ThickTrunkTuesday, does the trunk have to be ...

2024-12-10T19:06:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…mnrz
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As promised.

(Re: #ThickTrunkTuesday, does the trunk have to be living and vertical?)

Update: it's the black oak savannah! OFF WE GO. (For any ...

2024-12-10T16:51:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…q3f2
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Update: it's the black oak savannah! OFF WE GO.

(For any curious, the E Y E is the Oculus: https://www.heritagetoronto.org/programs/heritage-toronto-awards/2022-built-heritage-nominees/the-oculus/ )

it is FOGGY out, choose nev's adventure (am going to get ...

2024-12-10T16:03:50Z

it is FOGGY out, choose nev's adventure

(am going to get coffee then check on results)

more fat squirrel ...

2024-12-05T19:25:04Z

more fat squirrel

what's their album name ...

2024-12-05T19:22:24Z

what's their album name

#MiteMonday × #LichenSubscribe: we got some flurries today, but ...

2024-12-02T22:04:49Z

#MiteMonday × #LichenSubscribe: we got some flurries today, but at a few degrees above zero the clover mites (_Bryobia_) are still out and about. Here's one climbing over a tiny crumb of lichen.

#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #CloverMites • #Acari #Acariformes #Tetranychidae #Bryobiinae

Comfort listening to old TMA, as you do. > And then I noticed ...

2024-11-29T02:40:24Z

Comfort listening to old TMA, as you do.

> And then I noticed the crack.
>
> It seemed to split the floor right down the middle; it was jagged, vicious, like something had torn out the ground with a hook. It was maybe a foot across at its widest, and so dark inside it made my teeth ache. I’m not sure how I saw it. Thinking now I know that there wasn’t any light down there, but… that horrid gap was clear as day, darker than just the simple lack of light that surrounded it. And then I was at the edge looking down, and those eight spindly arms reaching up to pull me in. I couldn’t have screamed even if I wanted to.

Me: _Segestria florentina_.

The Archivist: …Are you *sure*?

Me: South of England, lives in a crack, waits for prey with legs hanging out? _S. florentina_.

The Archivist: It's just, it sounds like it was rather la—

Me: That's how you can rule out _Segestria senoculata_. Way smaller.

Comparison images:
- https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/44374986
- https://srs.britishspiders.org.uk/portal.php/p/Picture/r/view/s/Segestria+florentinas+waiting+for+prey
- https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/28929555

More info (PDF): https://britishspiders.org.uk/sites/default/files/2020-08/Segestria_online.pdf

Transcript and links: https://snarp.github.io/magnus_archives_transcripts/episode/114.html

#TheMagnusArchives #tma #spiders (cc [@Alice_Swaggen](https://flipping.rocks/@Alice_Swaggen ) as always)

Thrilling moment today. I had flipped a log and was trying (with ...

2024-11-27T04:47:27Z

Thrilling moment today. I had flipped a log and was trying (with limited success) to get in-focus photos of this mesostigmatid mite when a tiny springtail ran directly into its path. To my surprise the mite seized it immediately and then, antenniform front legs aloft, hurried off looking for somewhere safe to consume its prize.

I knew, of course, that mesostigs like this were predatory; I'd just never witnessed the actual predating!

#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites • #Acari #Parasitiformes #Mesostigmata

an immediate solution presents itself ...

2024-11-19T13:28:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…ax36
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an immediate solution presents itself

I should add that most arachnids do not have aedeagi/penises. ...

2024-11-17T02:53:25Z

In reply to nevent1q…qvu6
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I should add that most arachnids do not have aedeagi/penises. Astigmata (the broader group of mites these belong to) and Opiliones are, as far as I know, the only ones.

I can't even wait for #MiteMonday, this is too exciting, I ...

2024-11-17T02:47:41Z

I can't even wait for #MiteMonday, this is too exciting, I have to share it now!!!

In Walter & Proctor's _Mites: Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour: Life at a Microscale_, there's this great image of mites in the family Acaridae mating, with the male facing backwards and his aedeagus (dick) inserted into the female's dorsal copulatory opening (bussy [back pussy]), so he is carried along on her back, a bit like a wheelbarrow race, but backwards.

Anyway this evening I was idly taking macro of the mites in the fruit fly culture when I SAW IT. It's easier to make out with video.

marked nsfw for graphic photos and videos of mite sex, you were warned

#Mitestodon #DailyMiteVid #arachnids #mites #MiteBehaviour • #Acari #Acariformes #Acaridae

I wasn't expecting to find something for #FridayFlyDay, but ...

2024-11-16T03:59:15Z

I wasn't expecting to find something for #FridayFlyDay, but then I stumbled across this adorable hoverfly in Trinity-Bellwoods on a mint-type plant that was still flowering in the garden! Due to the cold and the rather late hour it was placid and let me get lots of photos.

#FlyFriday #bugstodon #insects #flies #hoverflies • #Diptera #Syrphidae

FISH TUBE #KnuckleTats

2024-11-13T15:41:03Z

FISH TUBE

#KnuckleTats

there's a couple stores nearby that have selections! I really ...

2024-11-12T17:19:18Z

In reply to nevent1q…u06a
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there's a couple stores nearby that have selections! I really prefer shopping in person for things like this, no matter how convenient online shopping is

I'm thinking of getting a fountain pen. Previously just used ...

2024-11-11T19:38:02Z

I'm thinking of getting a fountain pen. Previously just used those disposable Pilot ones. Maybe one of the very cheapest Lamy ones?

Yes, I know this is a slippery slope

I blame Tallastro 🇺🇦 (npub1wkj…alqv)

more fall goth squirrels. MORE ...

2024-11-10T01:19:10Z

more fall goth squirrels. MORE

I've really fallen behind with contributing to ...

2024-11-09T13:21:51Z

I've really fallen behind with contributing to #LichenSubscribe and #sporespondence, but I promise it's just because I haven't been posting, I do have quite the backlog of photos. Seen on a damp morning the other week in Trinity-Bellwoods.

#iNaturalist observation if anyone can ID: https://www.inaturalist.ca/observations/250972364 :inaturalist:

#fungi

I'd take it to the park twice a week and let it grab a pigeon

2024-11-08T02:23:27Z

In reply to nevent1q…quxj
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I'd take it to the park twice a week and let it grab a pigeon

a giant jumping spider would be nice, but I'm afraid there ...

2024-11-08T01:30:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…g8nf
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a giant jumping spider would be nice, but I'm afraid there might be overlap between "too big for the cat to consider prey" and "big enough to actually take out the cat".

Today, more than ever, you deserve a weevil. That's right, ...

2024-11-06T15:52:31Z

Today, more than ever, you deserve a weevil. That's right, it's #WeevilWednesday. Post 'em if you got 'em.

Found this striking little metallic blue weevil yesterday in High Park near oak savannah. Likely _Aulacobaris lepidii_ (https://bugguide.net/node/view/945003), an introduced species from Eurasia.

#bugstodon #insects #beetles #weevils • #Coleoptera #Curculionidae #Baridinae

ran off to woods today, saw a number of wondrous things #HighPark ...

2024-11-06T00:14:06Z

ran off to woods today, saw a number of wondrous things

#HighPark #toronto #ThickTrunkTuesday

The striking @npub12zy…hwpy have asked people not to play ...

2024-11-05T15:05:32Z

The striking NYT Tech Guild (npub12zy…hwpy) have asked people not to play Wordle or other NYT games (https://www.polygon.com/news/474209/new-york-times-strike-wordle-connections). Instead, may I suggest #Metazooa? It's an animal guessing game where the clues are the taxonomic group containing both your guess and the animal of the day!

https://metazooa.com

P. S. like Wordle, the sharing message includes a lot of emoji, so use a CW so you don't barrage screenreader users lol

i don't have any new weevils of my own to show off this ...

2024-10-30T19:18:12Z

i don't have any new weevils of my own to show off this #WeevilWednesday, but may I present for your consideration…the milkweed stem weevil, _Rhyssomatus lineaticollis_. Seriously just look at this fucking weevil. Isn't it the most ridiculous thing you've ever seen

#iNaturalist observations :inaturalist:
- pinemartyn https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/88714626
- cheryl394 https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/170058954
- entomike https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/125379609

#bugstodon #insects #beetles #weevils • #Coleoptera #Curculionidae #Molytinae

Took the fancy camera to High Park today. Still not great ...

2024-10-28T22:25:27Z

Took the *fancy* camera to High Park today. Still not great results, but practice is practice.

look

2024-10-27T18:28:13Z

In reply to nevent1q…fpm5
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look

Autumnal goth squirrel ...

2024-10-25T21:47:39Z

Autumnal goth squirrel

You deserve a weevil. Happy #WeevilWednesday. (_Polydrusus_ sp., ...

2024-10-24T01:53:26Z

You deserve a weevil. Happy #WeevilWednesday.

(_Polydrusus_ sp., one of the most common weevils I find—I'm certainly not complaining!)

#bugstodon #insects #beetles #weevils • #Coleoptera #Curculionidae #Entiminae

when a squirrel is finishing burying a nut and it pats the earth ...

2024-10-22T14:15:44Z

when a squirrel is finishing burying a nut and it pats the earth down with its little hands, boost if you agree

I love everything about this

2024-10-22T14:09:19Z

In reply to nevent1q…zhrz
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I love everything about this

Female (right) and male (left) _Zygiella_ missing-sector ...

2024-10-21T17:54:08Z

Female (right) and male (left) _Zygiella_ missing-sector orbweavers courting, from a few nights ago, with the traffic on the Gardiner in the background.

This time of year you can regularly find male _Zygiella_ hanging out near female webs, often on special "mating threads", plucking rhythmically.

#HopeYouLikeBokeh #DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Araneidae

💯

2024-10-19T00:49:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…3jmy
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💯

Between the light pollution, clouds, and everything in the way, I ...

2024-10-18T23:22:32Z

Between the light pollution, clouds, and everything in the way, I don't think I'll be able to see the comet…but at least it's a nice sunset.

#Arachtober 16: since it's #WeevilWednesday, here's an ...

2024-10-16T19:43:21Z

In reply to nevent1q…3slk
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#Arachtober 16: since it's #WeevilWednesday, here's an older photo of mine (posted here: https://flipping.rocks/@nev/110585316967094045), a little red long-legged velvet mite (family Erythraeidae) that in its frantic scurrying about ended up climbing over this slower-moving weevil a few times. I think the weevil is one of the billbugs, genus _Sphenophorus_ (https://inaturalist.ca/taxa/211468-Sphenophorus).

Mites are well known for phoresy (riding on other animals), but this was clearly an accidental and temporary case.

#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #insects #beetles #weevils • #Acari #Acariformes #Erythraeidae #Coleoptera #Curculionidae

#Arachtober 15: an _Allothrombium_ red velvet mite I found ...

2024-10-15T14:41:25Z

In reply to nevent1q…w8jn
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#Arachtober 15: an _Allothrombium_ red velvet mite I found recently. I'd never noticed one missing legs before. This one is missing the front two left legs!

This is an adult. I wonder if mites can regenerate legs between molts like spiders? It's complicated by the fact that many mites have distinct life stages and can change a lot in both body and lifestyle between molts, they don't just get bigger. Should look this up…

#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites • #Acari #Acariformes #Trombidiidae

#Arachtober 14: #RIP Sabella the black widow. I had her for ten ...

2024-10-15T01:21:57Z

In reply to nevent1q…3jla
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#Arachtober 14: #RIP Sabella the black widow.

I had her for ten months exactly (https://flipping.rocks/@nev/11157397654673256). Her last molt was about six months ago.

I have added her to my collection.

I didn't have the sort of attachment to her that one has with a pet that, you know, can perceive you are a human being and interact with you and that you can handle and whatnot, but I will miss the bumbling little murderess. :blobsad:

#DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Theridiidae

#Arachtober 13: while I was in the grass taking the photos I ...

2024-10-13T18:01:05Z

In reply to nevent1q…hesr
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#Arachtober 13: while I was in the grass taking the photos I posted yesterday, every movement would send little leafhoppers (family Cicadellidae) springing away. This one leaped right into the web of a tiny _Theridula_ cobweb spider, who quickly seized it.

(At least, I think it's a leafhopper, but true bugs aren't my wheelhouse so please correct me if I'm wrong!)

edit: accidentally the date

#DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Theridiidae

#Arachtober 12: In some interestingly fungus-covered grass in the ...

2024-10-12T18:11:07Z

In reply to nevent1q…79lu
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#Arachtober 12: In some interestingly fungus-covered grass in the swampy meadow by the creek just past the Oculus, I saw lots of _Pardosa_ thin-legged wolf spiders, but they were as jumpy as, well, jumping spiders and it was hard to photograph any. Here's a couple I did get!

These cute little spiders, getting up to ~1cm body length, put the lie to the common misconception that a "wolf spider" is necessarily big, hairy, and bulky. In fact the family Lycosidae has thousands of species all over the world, as varied as their habitats, from large desert burrow-dwellers to these lithe little denizens of marshy undergrowth and rocky shore.

#ArthroBeauty #DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #WolfSpiders #spiders • #Araneae #Lycosidae

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS SPIDER Last known location: my shoulder Where ...

2024-10-11T21:30:54Z

In reply to nevent1q…pg0x
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HAVE YOU SEEN THIS SPIDER

Last known location: my shoulder

Where the fuck did it go

I hope you're okay little buddy and I didn't accidentally squish you or step on you

#DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #JumpingSpiders #spiders • #Araneae #Salticidae

i have once again lost track of a jumping spider while it was on ...

2024-10-11T20:34:24Z

i have once again lost track of a jumping spider while it was on my person

it probably jumped off

but the last time this happened it later came out of my sleeve, so…i'm prepared for anything i guess

#Arachtober 11: in the same plant where I found a bunch of young ...

2024-10-11T18:02:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…cf3d
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#Arachtober 11: in the same plant where I found a bunch of young _Mangora_, I also found this pirate spider (family Mimetidae)! Note the distinctive row of forward-pointing spines on its front legs, which you won't see with similar spiders like _Platnickina_ (family Theridiidae). These are spider-eating spiders who lure their targets out by, as the family name suggests, mimicking prey. More about them: <https://spiderbytes.org/2015/10/26/pirate-spiders/>;

I suspect at least a few of the _Mangora_ will fall prey to this specialized hunter.

#ArthroBeauty #DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders #SpiderBehaviour #mimicry • #Araneae #Mimetidae

#Arachtober 10: a tiny juvenile _Mangora_ orbweaver. At this time ...

2024-10-10T18:33:59Z

In reply to nevent1q…rnxh
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#Arachtober 10: a tiny juvenile _Mangora_ orbweaver. At this time of year you can find orbweavers at their biggest, but also plenty of little spiders that will be overwintering.

#ArthroBeauty #DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Araneidae

#Arachtober 9: freshly molted _Mecaphesa_ flower crab spider. ...

2024-10-09T18:21:25Z

In reply to nevent1q…0ecy
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#Arachtober 9: freshly molted _Mecaphesa_ flower crab spider. Wait…

🎶 Freshly molted _Mecaphesa_
Freshly molted _Mecaphesa_
Freshly molted _Mecaphesa_
Right next to its old skin 🎶

#DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Thomisidae

#Arachtober 8: a beautiful arabesque orbweaver (_Neoscona ...

2024-10-08T12:20:23Z

In reply to nevent1q…ypf3
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#Arachtober 8: a beautiful arabesque orbweaver (_Neoscona arabesca_), found along the Humber Trail near the Oculus. It's an excellent spidering spot I return to a few times a year; here's an earlier blog post about it: <https://nevillepark.ca/2022/09/19/field-journal-spiders-of-the-oculus/>;

I hope you can see why I will bike 20 minutes and up, even across town, to look for such dazzling beauties!

#DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Araneidae

#Arachtober 7: this mesostig's bristly, pointy face kind of ...

2024-10-07T21:00:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…pcz5
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#Arachtober 7: this mesostig's bristly, pointy face kind of reminds me of a hedgehog. Although similar in colour and body shape, it seems a bit more…rugged than the ones I normally see? More matte and spiky.

#MiteMonday #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites • #Acari #Parasitiformes #Mesostigmata

Merlin needs to have a "city dweller" setting that limits ...

2024-10-07T15:29:40Z

Merlin needs to have a "city dweller" setting that limits Bird of the Day suggestions to house sparrows, pigeons, and seagulls because sometimes this shit gets depressing :blobneutral:

#birdeing

It was being very cute so I took some video. WARNING: extremely ...

2024-10-07T02:59:02Z

In reply to nevent1q…4hdt
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It was being very cute so I took some video.

WARNING: extremely cute!!!!

#DailySpiderVid #SpidersOfMastodon #JumpingSpiders #spiders • #Araneae #Salticidae

I was supposed to get stuff done today but instead I went down to ...

2024-10-07T02:49:00Z

I was supposed to get stuff done today but instead I went down to the lake and made friends with a jumping spider, sorry everyone, I hope you understand

#DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #JumpingSpiders #spiders • #Araneae #Salticidae

#Arachtober 6: Here's an anystid. They seem to experience a ...

2024-10-06T14:22:35Z

In reply to nevent1q…lq2w
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#Arachtober 6: Here's an anystid. They seem to experience a burst of population growth in the fall, not nearly as much as Peak Anystid around June but still noticeable.

#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites • #Acari #Acariformes #Prostigmata #Anystidae

Belated #Arachtober 5: this absolutely minute, delicately pink ...

2024-10-06T14:12:11Z

In reply to nevent1q…mnp0
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Belated #Arachtober 5: this absolutely minute, delicately pink cobweb spider (perhaps a young _Steatoda triangulosa_?) I found under a leaf in the garden while I was looking for anystids. It is so small it could easily be a mite! It has already captured an ant, likely one of the _Prenolepis imparis_ so common in the garden.

#ArthroBeauty #DailySpiderPic #SpidersOfMastodon #spiders • #Araneae #Theridiidae

#Arachtober 4: a representative from the other mite order, ...

2024-10-05T01:32:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…9mjs
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#Arachtober 4: a representative from the other mite order, Parasitiformes! The parasitiform group Mesostigmata does contain some infamous parasites, but many—like this one here—are soil-dwelling predators.

(Acariformes and Parasitiformes have traditionally been grouped together under Acari, "mites", but in fact they are probably not each other's closest relatives and deserve to be treated as separate groups. Don't look too closely at higher mite classification or you will go mad.)

#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites • #Acari #Parasitiformes #Mesostigmata

oh it's quite small, like ~1-2cm tall.

2024-10-03T19:24:37Z

In reply to nevent1q…qpqt
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oh it's quite small, like ~1-2cm tall.

forbidden chocolate Pocky (_Stemonitis_ slime mold found the ...

2024-10-03T17:59:45Z

forbidden chocolate Pocky

(_Stemonitis_ slime mold found the other day on my favourite stump. Not fungus, despite the name.)

#SlimeMolds #SlimeMold #Myxogastria #Stemonitidaceae

#Arachtober 3: spider mites (family Tetranychidae)! These tiny ...

2024-10-03T17:51:21Z

In reply to nevent1q…wmds
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#Arachtober 3: spider mites (family Tetranychidae)! These tiny herbivorous mites are the bane of gardeners and farmers the world over. Spider mites in the subfamily Tetranychinae leave sheets of a very fine silk they produce, finer than spider silk, over heavily infested plants.

This plant in a nearby park showed the telltale "stippled" look of spider mite feeding on its leaves, and tiny mites could be seen especially on the leaf undersides.

I cannot stress how tiny they are. If you can get a good phone picture of individual mites without magnification, they're probably not spider mites.

#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #SpiderMites • #Acari #Acariformes #Tetranychidae #Tetranychinae

It's also #WeevilWednesday! I finally have a new pic to ...

2024-10-02T16:57:26Z

It's also #WeevilWednesday! I finally have a new pic to share. I encountered this handsome beast just past the Oculus on the Humber trail. Subfamily #Baridinae perhaps?

#bugstodon #insects #beetles #weevils • #Coleoptera #Curculionidae

#Arachtober 2: I wonder how long I can go without posting a ...

2024-10-02T16:52:40Z

In reply to nevent1q…ua4v
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#Arachtober 2: I wonder how long I can go without posting a spider? This is a pseudoscorpion from my yard. These bizarre-looking but harmless arachnids live all over the world, but unless you're looking for them you might never see them. They live in caves and under rocks and leaf litter and tree bark and such, and the largest in the world is only about a centimetre long.

#ArthroBeauty #arachnids #pseudoscorpions • #Pseudoscorpiones #Chthoniidae

But perhaps I was too harsh. Perhaps he was new in town and ...

2024-10-01T23:45:05Z

In reply to nevent1q…h4qq
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But perhaps I was too harsh. Perhaps he was new in town and didn't know that before they rebuilt this stretch, the shoreline was so eroded that the asphalt path by the pool was crumbling into the lake. Perhaps he wasn't here for the floods in mid-July, or the even bigger floods in 2013. Perhaps he's from, like, BC and didn't know about Hurricane Hazel in 1954 and that hurricanes can absolutely get far enough inland to affect Toronto. Perhaps he hasn't been following the news about Helene. Perhaps he just fucking dropped fully formed out of the sky at that exact point like Ibn Sina's famous "flying man" thought experiment so he didn't notice how the shoreline immediately to the east had been so washed out by the rains that even the ground on the other side of the boardwalk was eroded and the City was putting in a similar big and small limestone block system just below the ground so the entire fucking beach doesn't wash away. No on second thought I'm still mad

Went down to the lake for a walk to find to my great annoyance ...

2024-10-01T23:32:32Z

Went down to the lake for a walk to find to my great annoyance that some motherfucker had stacked rocks all along this newly rebuilt shoreline by the Sunnyside pool.

I went about knocking all the rocks down into the gaps again, with some effort. Some passersby asked why. I explained that the smaller rocks are not just for decoration, they help keep the ground from being washed into the lake by torrential rains, and besides are valuable habitat for invertebrates. Some random guy: "Well that's just your opinion."

Me: "It happens to be the correct one."

Guy: "It's art."

Me: "There are plenty of things you can make art with that aren't"—I was going to say "public property" but am not, in principle, opposed to a little destruction—"important for the environment."

Guy: "I've never seen a tsunami around here."

Me: "There will be a hurricane, one day. Besides"—fuck it, weirdo time—"I think the spiders that live in the rocks are greater works of art than anything humans can produce."

It's the time of year when people cut down and get rid of the ...

2024-10-01T15:28:20Z

It's the time of year when people cut down and get rid of the fallen leaves and dead plants in their pollinator gardens… :blobfacepalm:

Dead plants and leaf litter are vital habitat for insects, including pollinators! You don't need to "clean up" anything!! Spread the word.

Happy #Arachtober! Kicking things off with this opilionid I ...

2024-10-01T15:21:56Z

Happy #Arachtober! Kicking things off with this opilionid I recently met in a nearby park. Note the one apparent body segment and the two eyes in a little tubercle.

#arachnids #Opiliones (and #bloomscrolling I guess?)