mecopteron_bouillon's Favorites

Lots of fun solo bioblitzing at Catoctin Mountain Park from around 7:30AM-4:00PM
All of my observations from this day:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2023-07-31&order=asc&place_id=any&user_id=joemdo

Photographing what I think was a southern quahog clam and found several organisms on the underside... two bright red mites, several beetles (?) and also some amphipods, not to mention the encrusting organism underneath! I wish I would've taken out my DSLR camera with macro lens but the weather was bad so I had to settle with my little point-and-shoot.

Stopped for a break on my way to East Cape. Light to heavy rain.

Seen on a three day solo camping trip to East Cape in Everglades National Park (Cape Sable). I was particularly excited to go shelling on the beach (did not collect any shells, as that is prohibited in ENP) and also try some blacklighting out there.

All of my observations from this trip: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?d1=2022-11-21&d2=2022-11-23&order=asc&place_id=any&user_id=joemdo

My mollusk observations from this trip: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?d1=2022-11-21&d2=2022-11-23&order=asc&place_id=any&taxon_id=47115&user_id=joemdo

My blacklighting observations from this trip: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?d1=2022-11-21&d2=2022-11-23&order=asc&place_id=any&project_id=blacklighting-florida&user_id=joemdo

Gonna be a while before I finish posting everything and before I finish writing up this journal post summing up the trip but eventually there will be more info here: https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/joemdo/72888-nov-21-nov-23-2022-east-cape-sable-camping

I am also planning on posting some videos to youtube over the next week or so but I'm prioritizing adding my observations first! Here's a link to my channel in case you want to see subscribe to see some videos about this trip: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1Exy70GX48bo6JCDqqRrtw

Seems to be a small colony of these little bark lice in a lichen sample I'd collected (20210714.144500.c). They appear to have spun a protective layer of webbing or silk, and they crawl around eating the lichen underneath it. Can see 2 segments on each tarsus, antennae have 13 segments, and maxillary palps have 4 segments. No mature adults present, but compound microscope photos show late-stage instar with rudimentary wing stubs.