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WilliamFisherPhotography

Small Wonders

Insects and spiders (+ some other critters) close up
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Casting a wide net
1346 / 1416

Casting a wide net

ArachnidaAraneaeAraneidaeorb weaverspiderwebSmugMug collection

  • This spider hides among bits of old leaves and other debris in the web.
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  • Close up of a pupa showing the texture of the integument and the sharp spines pointed posteriorly on each segment. The spines may help emergence by preventing the pupal case from slipping backward as the insect moves forward out of the case. check. unknown id
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  • Cast skin of a cicada nymph showing the transluscent area over each compound eye that allows you to look through exuvia and see the leaves on the other side of the insect. check
  • Casting a wide net
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  • Larva of a spice bush swallowtail showing off his huge false "eye" on the enlarged thorax that is effective at creating the illusion to a predator that the larva is much larger than it really is, causing the predator to have "second thoughts" about attacking. The real eyes are just below the yellow band that covers the head. check
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  • The structure, texture, and color of a portion of the elytra from a metallic wood boring beetle. The two "shells" come together inside the parallel lines down the center of the image.
  • The ventral abdominal area of a beetle showing the variety of colors and texture that looks similar to a slightly tarnished piece of metal. The larvae feed in living trees and the chewing noise they make helps a wood pecker locate them. check
  • Recently molted immature bug standing over the exuvia of its' smaller self. When frightened by the camera, the bug did not run and hide under the leaf as I expected. Rather it remained close to, and nearly on top of, the cast skin. Did this behavior make the insect appear larger than it actually was in the face of danger, something that might scare off a potential predator? The fine, white, thread-like structures coming out of the cast skin are tracheae, part of the system that supplies oxygen to the insect. New ones are formed when the insect molts. check
  • Exoskeleton of a last instar leafhopper on the underside of an oak leaf. Similar to other exmples in this gallery, the mouthparts are imbedded into the main vein to anchor the insect to the leaf. In addition, the six legs are grasping the sides of the vein to further improve attachment to the leaf. This makes it easier for the adult to separate from the old skeleton. The split along the head and thorax is where the adult literally walked out of its' own skin. The oval structure lateral on the thorax contained the folded-up wings. The new adult was white, soft, and vulnerable until the body shell hardened and the wings were completely unfolded and ready to support flight. check
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