Tag Archives: nature

Brazil Bugs #5 – Lagartixa

On my third night here in Campinas last week, I went out to check the building lights around the hotel grounds.  Surely a fantastical assortment of gaudy, tropical insects would be awaiting me on this hot, humid, summer night in … Continue reading

Posted in Reptilia, Vertebrata | Tagged , , , | 14 Comments

Brazil Bugs #4 – Mais dos percevejos

I found mais dos percevejos (more of the leaf-footed bugs) on the still-unnamed pink flowering shrub in back of the hotel in Campinas, Brazil.  Not only am I convinced that they truly do belong to the family Coreidae (for the reasons mentioned in … Continue reading

Posted in Coreidae, Hemiptera | Tagged , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Brazil Bugs #3 – Gorgulho Enorme!

The second night at the hotel on the outskirts of Campinas (São Paulo, Brazil), I found this enormous weevil laying on the ground underneath some windows.  It was dead but completely relaxed and in perfect shape.  I wondered if it … Continue reading

Posted in Coleoptera, Curculionidae | Tagged , , , , , , , | 20 Comments

Brazil Bugs #2

A few more photographs from this past week in Campinas, Brazil.  It rained during the afternoon but stopped by the time I arrived back at the hotel, allowing me to stroll the lavishly landscaped grounds during the mild evening hours.  There … Continue reading

Posted in Cicadidae, Coccinelidae, Coleoptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae, Sarcophagidae, Vespidae | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Rush skeletonplant pea gall wasp

The Loess Hills landform along the western edge of Iowa and extreme northwestern Missouri is home to a unique assemblage of plants and animals.  The majority of these are associated with loess hilltop prairies – grassland remnants that have their origins in the … Continue reading

Posted in Asteraceae, Cynipidae, Hymenoptera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Brazil Bugs #1

ID Challenge #3 update: I knew this would be a hard one, and so far nobody has figured this one out (only one commenter got the right order!).  I’ve released the comments gotten so far so you can see where things stand, and … Continue reading

Posted in Coreidae, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, Noctuidae | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

ID Challenge #3

A straight-up identification challenge – see ID Challenge #2 for a detailed explanation of the rules: Photograph taken June 27, 2010 in northwestern Missouri.  Good luck! Copyright © Ted C. MacRae 2011

Posted in [No taxon] | Tagged , , , | 23 Comments

Calm waters, frenzied beetles

The North Fork River in south-central Missouri, like most Ozark rivers and streams, flows clear and cold over gravelled bottoms. Sustained year-round by the numerous seeps and springs that result from the region’s unique Karst geology, it meanders through a mix of … Continue reading

Posted in Coleoptera, Gyrinidae | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 20 Comments