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Madagascan sunset moth (Chrysiridia rhipheus) wing scales at 50x magnification

Photos by Nicky Bay // Website // Facebook

Shared with permission; do not remove credit or re-post!

The moth itself:

Photos by sympiotr

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miniature paintings by Talula Merriwether (available here)

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My FAVORITE THING is researchers who wholeheartedly embrace the Ms. Frizzle aesthetic and wear their field of study on their literal sleeve. Everyone in the invasive crayfish consortium has tiny lobster-print shorts or socks. All the middle-aged dad scientists here at the lab have shirts with fish and/or fishing tackle patterns on them. My moss specimen and ammonite earrings keep getting noticed by women who are wearing silver fishbone-shaped or native plant-themed earrings themselves. Every single person on the outreach team has at least one shirt with an anchor pattern on it from Old Navy, and almost all the younger researchers have tattoos featuring their research interests – one fisheries biologist has a half-sleeve of native species she literally uses as an outreach tool. We are self-aware and having a blast with it, honestly.

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False crocus geometer (Xanthotype urticaria)

#xanthotype urticaria #false crocus geometer #geometer moths

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Eucyclodes gavissima or, as it’s much more catchily known, the oriental orange banded green geometer moth! A strong contender for my favourite moth.

#moth art #art #eucyclodes #eucyclodes gavissima #geometer moths

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the third backer-requested moth! it's the snowberry clearwing!!

get this moth sticker and more at my Kickstarter project!

#moth art #art #hemaris diffinis #stickers #snowberry clearwing #mothman #hemaris

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Get these sticker sheets and more at the Mothman Sticker kickstarter!

#moths #mothman #moth art #kickstarter #stickers

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This is indeed a tobacco hornworm! The tobacco hornworm or Carolina Sphinx, (Manduca sexta,) has 7 lateral white stripes and red caudal horn, whereas the Tomato Hornworm or Five-Spotted Hawkmoth, (Manduca quinquemaculatus,) has 8 V-shaped markings along the spiracles and a black caudal horn.

A common mnemonic used to remember the distinction is 7 lucky stripes, Lucky Strikes tobacco. 8 Vs, V8 juice.

@thethingything hey here's the upclose picture of the apparent tobacco horn worms, tell me what you think

He's kinda crunched so if you need another picture let me know, beautiful eye spots though 😍

#manduca sexta #carolina sphinx #larvae #tobacco hornworm #manduca #sphingidae

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Carolina Sphinx (Manduca sexta)

green worm

#manduca sexta #carolina sphinx #tobacco hornworm #larvae #manduca #sphingidae

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Hyalophora cecropia

A little moth

#moth art #art #cecropia moth #hyalophora cecropia #awesome art!

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This is the White Lined Sphinx, Hyles lineata. It is colloquially known as the hummingbird moth, though it is not in the same genus as the hummingbird hawk-moth Macroglossum stellatarum or the hummingbird clearwing Hemaris thysbe.

I think I found a hummingbird moth. I had no idea these even lived around me. Dunno what species it is.

#white lined sphinx #hyles lineata #hyles #sphingidae

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It would be very hard to identify beyond family without a general location, but it is likely in the lappet moth family Lasiocampidae.

If you are in Europe, I would guess Dendrolimus pini, the pine-tree lappet moth.

I know this isn’t slime rancher related, but does anyone know what type of caterpillar this is?

#larvae #half id #no location

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Yes! This is indeed the larvae of Orgyia antiqua, known as the Rusty Tussock Moth or The Vapourer. The larvae of this species are extremely variable, but easily distinguished from other tussock moth larvae by the long black hair tufts, or hairpencils at A1, the first abdominal segment, and lateral white to tan tufts on T3, the third thoracic segment.

Saw a very fancy and cute fella making their way through the sidewalk today. Could it be some sub-species of a vapourer? Southern Poland, if that helps.

#orgyia antiqua #orgyia #tussock moths #rusty tussock moth #the vapourer #id

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The only hairy beetles I can think of are the bumblebee scarab beetles in the family Glaphyridae. I am not an expert on them so I wouldn’t know if there is anything with that type of v marking. Possibly Lichnanthe vulpina.

Otherwise I have no idea. A diving beetle, maybe? They have hairy legs. It would be very hard to identify.

BUG TUMBLR, I REALLY NEED YOUR HELP

The search for the MAD BUG.

My friend from New York has a distinct memory of a fuzzy, about an inch big, black and rust bug, that would hang around the water. They were not observed by them doing anything specific, unfortunately.

Wings comment: the person is unsure whether or not it had wings, but they do not remember it flying at all.

Color comment: the color of the mark has been noted to vary between almost red and yellow, most commonly rust.

Fuzz comment: the fuzz has been referred to be similar on texture to a caterpillar or a velvet ant, just short.

Species commentary: things that mad bug is not: a may beetle, a milkweed bug, a boxelder, a velvet ant. They resemble a beetle in shape, with an elongated shieldlike body.

Any and all help is appreciated!

#bugs #beetles #bug identification #insect

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This is Manduca rustica, otherwise known as the Rustic Sphinx. It is characterized by a brown ground color and zigzaging black and white lines at the basal area, antimedial line and below the postmedial line, as well as three pairs of yellow-orange spots on the abdomen that differentiate it from the Pawpaw Sphinx (Dolba hyloeus)

In these photos you can see just a hint of that yellow spot where the hindwing slightly overlaps the abdomen.

This guy jumpscared me on my porch. Anybody know what it is?

Location: North Louisiana

#manduca rustica #rustic sphinx #sphingidae #id

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First time in my life seeing a Hummingbird Moth. Luckily, I was outside taking photos that day and was able to capture one pic.

Nature is amazing

#hemaris thysbe #hummingbird clearwing #hemaris #clearwing moth