I would not have been able to fly cross country 4 weeks out. I was absolutely still healing from bad tearing and definitely would have needed a wheelchair to deal with airports…not even taking into account hauling a baby around while doing all that. She’s one strong person!

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The call they make can be described as a rattle…which means, of course, a group of these is called a rattle! (Also used are concentration and kerfluffle.)
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#birds #aves #kingfishers #alcedinidae #BeltedKingfisher #MegaceryleAlcyon

The tunnels are long and usually slope up, likely to keep the babies safe if flooding happens. Both adults take part in nest building, incubating, and feeding, with the males getting quite territorial around the nest. Teamwork!

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This bird is native to North America and a year-round resident here in Colorado. Since bugs are scarce in the winter, I’ve been learning more about birds this winter. This bird creates tunnels for their nests, on river and sand banks.

…(this is a female…females have a rusty colored belt below the dark necklace. Males only have the necklace) dive down and catch a fish in the new beaver pond below! It was very cool and I thanked my dog for being very patient with me while I was taking photos.

A female belted kingfisher sits on a branch against a blue sky. The head and wings are black and there is a black necklace and rust-colored belt over the white body. The beak is thick and long.

A belted kingfisher is diving down against blue sky and branches. The tail feathers are pointed up while the rest of the body is streamlined.

#DailyBugFacts, February 4, 2025
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We interrupt your Daily Bug Fact to bring you the Belted Kingfisher, Megaceryle alcyon! It’s tangentially related because it does eat insects. But I’m posting it because I got to watch this lovely lady…

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Hosts are most commonly butterflies/moths, beetles, and ants/bees/wasps. Some in this family are hyperparasitoids and parasitize other ichneumon wasps (see, fascinating!). It’s ichneumonception.
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#WaspsBeesAndAnts #hymenoptera #IchneumonWasps #ichneumonidae

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They’ve been the focus of recent biological control research for invasive species, as they are specialists and their survival hinges on their host. Host dies out, they do as well, meaning they can’t become invasive themselves.

They pretty much focus on insects and spiders that go through complete metamorphosis (four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and imago - aka adult, and a trivia question I missed ages ago), during the immature stages.

Side view of a wasp (ichneumon wasp) with black head and thorax and red abdomen on glass with a blurred background. Legs are black and red.

#DailyBugFacts, February 3, 2025
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This stunning ichneumon wasp is from June 7, 2023. These wasps are parasitoid wasps (one reason why wasps are my favorite…they’re so fascinating and diverse!).

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#beetles #coleoptera #ladybugs #LadyBirdBeetles #LadyBeetles #coccinellidae #SevenSpottedLadybug #SevenSpotLadybird #CommonLadybug #CoccinellaSeptempunctata

Despite being an introduced species (for aphid control) & really established here only starting in the early 70s, this species is the state insect of 5 states: Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Ohio, & Tennessee. (Colroado’s is the Colorado Hairstreak, Hypaurotis crysalu, a native butterfly.)

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The Seven-Spotted Ladybug is an introduced species. It’s the most common species in Europe and can be found throughout North America now. It is true to its name and actually does have 7 spots!
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A ladybug (seven-spotted ladybug) on an informational sign that is a black background. Head is black with two white spots on the sides at the front. The elytra (hard wings) are red. Only one black spot is really visible, at the top of the elytra where they meet the head.

#DailyBugFacts, February 2, 2025
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Happy Groundhog Day! This is a Seven-Spotted Ladybug, Coccinella septempunctata. I actually saw it today! It was over 60°F today and I went to the @denverbotanic gardens to see their orchids and walk around. Saw a few arthropods, inside and out!

#TrueBugs #hemiptera #ScentlessPlantBugs #rhopalidae #SoapberryBugs #boisea #EasternBoxelderBug #BoiseaTrivittata

Funnily enough, the family they belong to, Rhopalidae, is known as Scentless Plant Bugs…!
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They often get confused with milkweed bugs (in a different genus, Lygaeus) because they look similar. Confession: I am one of the confused…I often have to double-check myself!
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…surprise surprise…boxelder trees, other maples (I just learned that boxelder trees are a type of maple!), and ash trees.
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These bugs are completely harmless to both people and pets (and generally not an issue for plants, either). They can release a bad smelling and tasting compound when bothered.

#DailyBugFacts, January 31, 2025
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A bug (an actual, true, real bug in the entomology definition of the word!) on the very last day of Jan! It was quite warm. I walked the dogs in leggings and a tank top.
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There were two of these Eastern Boxelder Bugs, Boisea trivittata. They are mostly found on…

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#arachnids #arachnida #spiders #araneae #LongleggedSacSpider #cheiracanthium

The species is nocturnal, so despite having 8 eyes, it more relies on its palps for hunting. While they don’t make webs, they do make good use of their silk to create bridges between foliage, balloon around, and move up and down on silken fireman poles (aka moving up and down on their strands).

While most in this genus are Old World spiders, we do have one native to the Americas (all three!).
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Our native species is the black-footed yellow sac spider (or American yellow sac spider…different from the European yellow sac spider), Cheiracanthium inclusum.

A species of longlegged sac spider, a translucent yellow with black “boots” on the end of the legs. On a white wall.

#DailyBugFacts, January 31, 2025
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Throwback to my birthday, January 19, 2023, when I was #blessed by the Spider Gods with this birthday gift!
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This is a Longlegged Sac Spider, Cheiracanthium sp. This one could be a native species or an introduced one.

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Their common name comes from the fact that they can scurry sideways like a crab!
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#arachnids #arachnida #spiders #araneae #HuntsmanSpider #sparassidae #olios #GiantCrabSpider #OliosGiganteus

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This is definitely one of the largest spiders I have seen! It was quite hard to take a photo because the ceilings were quite high and sadly ladders are not common in campground bathrooms.
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I may or may not have tried to jump and take photos. (Spoiler: it does not work well)

These spiders hunt their prey; they do not make webs. They are harmless to humans, but can help keep other insect populations down (though they generally work outside…not often are they indoors!).

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This is a huntsman spider, family Sparassidae. Most people associate huntsman spiders with Australia, but we do have some here in the US! This species is found in the SW US and Mexico (not sure on specifics of that, but from the iNaturalist map, the northern half).

Large spider (Giant Crab Spider, a type of huntsman spider) on a bathroom ceiling next to a recessed light fixture. In Utah, US, at Kodachrome Basin State Park.

#DailyBugFacts, January 29, 2025
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I picked this beauty b/c I just saw some large spider hate. :( This is a Giant Crab Spider, Olios giganteus. I saw this one in the bathroom at Kodachrome Basin State Park in Utah, US, at the end of Nov 2021. I may or may not have checked in every day we were there…

I do a DailyBugFacts over on Instagram. I should copy those here!

Ladybug (Convergent Ladybug) on dirt ground with green grass and brown dead grass around it. The head and thorax are black with yellow markings instead of the usual white. The body is orange with faint black spots (6 are visible in this image).

Closeup of a ladybug (Convergent Ladybug) head and thorax, framed by two pieces of dead brown grass. The head and thorax are black with yellow markings instead of the usual white. The abdomen is orange with faint black spots (5 visible in this image).

Hello, world!

Posting so I don’t have an empty profile! This is a Convergent #Ladybug, Hippodamia convergens. One of Colorado’s 89 species of ladybugs and also one of the native ladybugs. I spotted it technically yesterday (Nov 20) and noticed it had an unusually yellow face. Very cool!