Siafu Party

Photograph of a large Leaf-curling Spider, a medium-sized orbweaver in brown and red with cream, black, yellow and brown patterns on its abdomen. It is spanning the edges of a dry brown leaf that it is pulling together with many fine lines of silk.

As before, but a wider angle and with the spider on the outside of the leaf, manipulating some of the thread.

As before, but angled so that the egg purse inside the leaf is visible (a large flat white mound). The spider is facing away and producing silk from its abdomen as it continues to work.

As before but the spider has made more progress and the two sides of the leaf are drawing closer together. The lines silk spanning the leaf make it look like an exotic stringed instrument, such as a harp or lyre.

It was a privilege and a joy to watch this Leaf Curling Spider (Phonognatha graeffei) building a shelter for her egg purse in my garden last night. 1/2
#spiders #invertebrates

13.03.2025 02:48 — 👍 84    🔁 15    💬 3    📌 0

I was pretty blown away by the size of this Square-legged Camel Cricket (Tropidischia xanthostoma). Must be up there for the largest insects we get on Vancouver Island. It seemed to be living in the space between large boulders beside a river.

#iNaturalist #Orthoptera

12.03.2025 21:42 — 👍 149    🔁 31    💬 6    📌 1

A macro photo of a pale pinkish-orange scorpion on desert sand. The photo is at ground level, looking at the scorpion from a front three-quarter view; the eyes, mouthparts, and one foreground pincer are in focus.

Sawfinger Scorpion, Serradigitus sp., Joshua Tree NP. This wee one was only 1 cm. long, or less than half an inch. They're called "sawfinger" scorpions not because they saw fingers off, but because of the structure of their elongated pincers, with regular-sized, sawtooth-like "denticles." 🐙🌿🦂

12.03.2025 16:59 — 👍 64    🔁 8    💬 1    📌 0

毎年この時期に同じ倒木で見ているヨロイエダヒゲムシたち
マットな質感の背面装甲の重なり合いや揺れ動く触角の動き、短い脚…と良さが詰まっている生き物のひとつ。
警戒すると触角や脚をしまってぺたんとなる仕草がとても良い。

11.03.2025 10:07 — 👍 112    🔁 20    💬 1    📌 3

A macro photo at ground level, on orange-ish sand, looking into the face of a beetle. The beetle is flat black and covered in fine orange hairs, which have trapped a layer of fine sand on top of its body. The face widens like a shovel just below the small black compound eyes, creating what look sort of like jowls.

Here is your Tuesday Tenebrionid. (For beetles in the family Tenebrionidae, aka darkling beetles.) I found this hirsute little nugget in Joshua Tree NP. I love the "jowls," and how the coating of hairs traps sand, perhaps to disguise it? iNat suggests Craniotus pubescens. 🐙🌿 #insects #TenebTuesday

11.03.2025 16:40 — 👍 109    🔁 8    💬 0    📌 0

A little test shape-key animation with a more comic-accurate "Varmints, Ink" Mickey model, very much in-progress. No sound!

10.03.2025 20:38 — 👍 9    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0

Soft grey burrowing wolf spider, just her domed head and eyes and large chelicerae and a few legs poking out of her burrow in the sand, which is bordered in detritus like a bird nest

Ms Geolycosa (burrowing wolf) politely waiting at her door for the takeout she ordered 🩶
#EmotionalSupportSpood

10.03.2025 00:29 — 👍 563    🔁 78    💬 18    📌 4

Food.

09.03.2025 19:32 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Three studies of insects in ink on a toned paper

A study of a fly (ink on toned paper)

Two studies of spiders and two studies of beetles (ink on a toned paper)

A study of a spider (ink on toned paper)

Studies of various insects and arachnids 🎨 🕷️ 🪰 🐜 🪲 #wildlifeart #sciart #insect

08.03.2025 10:35 — 👍 142    🔁 26    💬 2    📌 0

If I hadn't strayed off the path to have a good view of a rookery on Critchell estate just before I got back to my car, I wouldn't have seen what I have been looking for all day. A black oil beetle, Meloe proscarabaeus, and this one has the strongly kinked antennae of the male

06.03.2025 17:48 — 👍 42    🔁 8    💬 1    📌 0

05.03.2025 07:17 — 👍 186    🔁 34    💬 5    📌 5

Hoffman's earth snake (Geophis hoffmanni) ✨

04.03.2025 18:08 — 👍 177    🔁 10    💬 8    📌 1

Is this a Trans-X reference I spy?

04.03.2025 16:35 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

A closeup photo of a mostly green mantis on green leaves, with black in the background. The mantis is seen in side to three-quarter view, but has its head turned to face the camera. It has dark antennae with a yellow band about halfway along the length, black and tan forelegs, a yellow "lip," and brown and yellow compound eyes. There is a dark spot on the forehead between the compound eyes which looks a little like a third eye.

Here is your Monday Midday Mantis. This was a small, quick species, only 2-2.5 cm. long. I like the dark spot on the head, which I thought made it look 3-eyed. (Borneo) 🐙🌿👁️👁️👁️

03.03.2025 21:33 — 👍 304    🔁 44    💬 6    📌 4

My apologies to anyone who didn't expect me to share insects/arachnids/their ilk here.

03.03.2025 16:45 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Microneta viaria male OM System OM-5 OM SYSTEM M.Zuiko Digital ED 90mm f3.5 Macro IS PRO Godox V680-O

Microneta viaria male palp OM System OM-5 OM SYSTEM M.Zuiko Digital ED 90mm f3.5 Macro IS PRO Godox V680-O

Still plenty of Microneta viaria out there in what remains of the leaf litter.

#Arachnids #Spiders #VC55 #UKWildlife #macrophotography #macro #OMSystem

03.03.2025 15:57 — 👍 53    🔁 7    💬 0    📌 0

I had the pleasure of painting some insects and arachnids for Dungeons & Dragons recent releases!

2024 Wizards of the Coast
AD: Emi Tanji
@wotc-news.bsky.social
@dndbeyond.com

#dungeonsanddragons #dndartist #fantasyart #michelegiorgiart #insects #scorpions #illustration #dnd #arachnids

02.03.2025 17:54 — 👍 165    🔁 27    💬 5    📌 0

Hello! This will serve as my first post here. I never had a Twitter, or Instagram, or any interest in such things, but several people vowed I would never hear from them again if I didn't join so here I am!

Please be kind as I learn how all this works. :)

02.03.2025 11:21 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0