This #planthopper’s thorn-like appearance is an effective camouflage generally but has the wrong kind of spike for this plant. An appropriate metaphor for those feeling a little out of place today.
John Carlson
- 168 Followers
- 270 Following
- 81 Posts
Medical #Entomologist and #Allergist/Immunologist in #NewOrleans interested in education, #insect bite/sting reactions and #macrophotography #medMastodon #MediFedi #Pediaverse
I moved to #NewOrleans for the insects. I learned to love the music, food, architecture and culture over time. But I must admit the year-round availability of interesting insects still gives me a lot of joy. Here is a Platydracus tomentosus Rove #Beetle that was cruising around outside of the hospital. #macrophotography
People tend to develop anaphylactic reactions to social insects and not solitary insects. Eg Honeybee venom allergy is common; carpenter bee venom allergy is unheard of. It’s not just frequency of exposure: mosquito bites are far more common then bee stings but only rarely cause anaphylaxis. Why?
A Wandering Glider #dragonfly (Pantala flavescens) zipps in front of the 17th Street Canal levee wall in New Orleans. Floodwaters from this canal breached the levee in 2005, destroying much the city beyond. I spend a lot of my free time wandering the levees looking for insects to photograph, but seldom make my way to this one. So many people lost so much. It certainly bent the course of my life in unexpected ways.
How can you not love the puss caterpillar? It’s soft fluffy hairs hide venomous spines as a juvenile and then as an adult, looks like a venomous bee but is actually harmless. Perhaps the most disconcerting sting that I’ve experienced. There is beauty in such pain. ❤️
Dragonflies begin life as voracious aquatic larvae and then become voracious predators in the air, being a major force for regulating abundance of prey. 💙
The biology of Metric Paper Wasps is incredible, with a queen building a paper nest and reading larvae in the comb. She will defend the nest from predators (and photographers) until there are daughters to help defend it for her. 🤎
Context for the poll: The Locust Borer Beetle may be the most beautiful insect that I’ve seen over seen this year. 💛
A Banded Cucumber #Beetle (Diabrotica balteata) peers off into the distance next to the Mississippi River levee in New Orleans. Weather is getting cooler here but not so cool that the insects have hidden away for the winter quite yet. #Insect #macrophotography