2. Invertebrate Aliens of the Natural World

Invertebrate Aliens of the Natural World

Yep, bugs and spiders- Just give them the chance to mesmerize you with their from-another-world morphological adaptations and amazing colors (be it vibrant or cryptic). Even if they give you the creeps, with an open mind it's hard not to be in awe of these members of the smaller majority.
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Golden-silk Orb Weavers (<I>Nephila clavipes</i>) produce one of the strongest natural fibers found on this planet.
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Golden-silk Orb Weavers (Nephila clavipes) produce one of the strongest natural fibers found on this planet.

Costa RicaEl PlasticoRara Avis Rainforest Reservenephila silkspider silkstrongstickygolden orb weaver spidernephila clavipesbanana spider

  • This species of dead leaf mimicking praying mantis was seen several times during one of the two week expeditions to Rara Avis (foothills of Costa Rica's North Caribbean slope).
  • Often, my macro photos can be misleading as to the size of the subject... This is the same mantis from the previous photo, posed on the tip of my finger for a size comparison.
  • Golden-silk Orb Weavers (<I>Nephila clavipes</i>) produce one of the strongest natural fibers found on this planet.
  • Halloween Pennant (<i>Celithemis eponina</i>) Everglades National Park April 2013
  • Halloween Pennant (<i>Celithemis eponina</i>) Everglades National Park April 2013
  • Ox Beetle (<I>Strategus antaeus</I>) Ocala Natiional Forest, Florida October 2013
  • Eastern Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes)
  • Moss-mimicking orthopteran from the Caribbean foothills of Costa Rica<br /> Rara Avis, Costa Rica
  • Praying mantis (Mantodea) from Fisheating Creek, Florida
  • This katydid (member of the cricket/grasshopper family) does a stellar job at mimicking a dead leaf, even down to its pseudoveination.
  • The Regal Jumping Spider (<i>Phidippus regius</i>) displays a beautiful iridescence on its chelicerae (jaws).
  • An amazing leaf-mimicking katydid from El Valle, Panama.
  • <i>Argiope argentata</i> Rara Avis Rainforest Reserve, Costa Rica
  • These Tropical Orbweavers (<i>Eriophora ravilla</i>) grow quite large and can have just the orb portion of their web be a meter across. This species can be common in the Florida Everglades.
  • Tropical Orbweaver (Eriophora ravilla)
  • Praying mantis (Mantodea) from Fisheating Creek, Florida
  • One of the dead leaf-mimicking katydids found by Project O (orthoptera) on our last expedition (March 2013).<br /> Rara Avis Rainforest Reserve, Costa Rica
  • Two-striped Walking Stick (<i>Anisomorpha buprestoides</i>) Endemic black and white color morph found in Ocala National Forest, Florida October 2013
  • Leaf or Flag-footed Bug (<i>Anisocelis flavolineata</i>) from Gamboa, Panama
  • I'm normally not arachnophobic... Wandering Spider (<i>Cupiennius coccineus</i>) Rara Avis Rainforest Reserve, Costa Rica
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