flypocalypse

THE PICTURES ARE SO BLURRY MY HAND WAS SHAKING LIKE CRAZY :((((

Credits: photo 1, photo 2

This brightly colored blockhead digs its nest in loose sandy ground and then packs it in to form little cells for each of its eggs. Then it's grocery time! While this genus of wasps are often called "weevil wasps", they also seek out other beetles. In fact, weevils are often not even their first choice and instead just what they'll settle for if a juicier beetle can't be found.

Bonus:

Today's wasp of the day is the emerald cockroach wasp (Ampulex compressa)!

Credits: photo 1, photo 2

How do you solve the issue of your food staying fresh? Keep it alive! But if it's alive how do you keep it in place? Paralyze it— but its too heavy to move by yourself, so no, full paralysis won't cut it. So what else can you do? Perform a lobotomy of course!

South African bont tick, Amblyomma hebraeum, Ixodidae

Photos 1-3 (males) by ryanvanhuyssteen, spidamn8, and jaheymans. Photos 4-5 (females) by henk_v_h and jaheymans, and photo 6 (engorged female) by alexanderr

i really like old species descriptions

the species in question

“melancholy ferocity”? Yeah that’s fair

The Criorhina ranunculi is a large and very convincing bumblebee mimic. Its dense, shaggy coat and somewhat rounded shape make it easy to mistake at first glance for a small bumblebee, but its hovering flight and large fly-like eyes reveal that it is in fact a hoverfly.

It appears in early spring and is often seen visiting flowering willow, where it feeds on nectar and pollen. The flight period is short, and encounters with the species are therefore easy to miss.

The larvae develop in decaying wood inside rot holes in mature broad-leaved trees, which means the species is closely associated with older woodland and traditional landscapes where such trees are allowed to remain.

Although the species occurs across much of Europe, it has long been considered rare in Sweden and is strongly linked to habitats rich in old hollow trees. In Värmland it has historically been very seldom recorded. The individual shown in these photographs, taken in spring 2025 while visiting flowering willow, was the first I have ever observed here.

Giant Blue Mantis, alternatively known as the Blue Asian Mantis

Take this funky sawfly hugging a leaf as an apology: