Images

Exoneura species, Two-tone Reed Bee, specimen collected in AustraliaLong: Reed Bees are found only on the continent of Australia and it is likely that most of the 41 species nest in the pithy centers of plant stems, similar to the Small Carpenter Bees (Ceratina).

Spodoptera frugiperda - Fall Armyworm, another defoliating moth species, slightly different from the previous series on the Southern Armyworm.

Corn Destructor! Not the beautiful form pictured here, but her rapacious teenagers, who tresspass, and just trash fields of corn, hide as pupae and repeat the whole cycle. Oh BTW this is the Fall Armyworm. Spodoptera frugiperda. Quite pretty really.

Cicindela scutellaris - the Festive Tiger Beetle, found on top of a butte in Badlands National Park that had ancient windblown sand at its crest, very different from the rest of the gumbo soils of the park. Here this sand specialist can build its long burrows. Experimenting with using Black Velvet as a background ...

I love bird feet...Here is the curved, plated, semi-reptilian presentation of a lost dinosaur in the form of a Field Sparrow that lost its life running into a window at night in Washington D.C. during migration.

Yellow-shafted Flicker - Died in downtown Washington D.C. in the fall or spring of 2012 from striking a building at night. Retrieved by the Lights out DC program

An uncommon specialist on Pontedaria (Pickerelweed) in this case trapped by Matt Greenstone at the US National Arboretum and a first record for the city.

Calopteryx maculata, Ebony Jewelwing, Beltsville, Maryland Stream, Female June 2013

Calopteryx maculata, Ebony Jewelwing, Beltsville, Maryland Stream, Male June 2013

Calopteryx maculata, Ebony Jewelwing, Beltsville, Maryland Stream, Male June 2013

Echinocactus polycephalus - Cotton Top Cactus seed, Lovely surface sculpturing despite the cracks from being crushed in the mail. Seed supplied by Desert Botanical Garden.

A lovely stinkbug found in my house trying to pretend it was a Brown Marmorated Stinkbug, but instead it is a primarily southern species native to the region. Stinkbugs are so cool.

The first set in a long series of pictures to come out of a visit to Laurence Packer's lab, where we are picking out all sorts of lovely world wide bees to photograph. This dandy (yes it is tomato colored) is common in the temperate areas of Chile and Argentina, this bad girl is from Chile.

Not 100% sure about this one, but seems likely that it is Cimbex americana, the elm sawfly, but in any case, quite the boss sawfly. There is something interesting going on here. If you meet some insects at a party and ask the question: Insect, show me your fluorescent orange parts they will only show you their antennae and their tarsal segments. Why?

Destroyer of Ash, this is Agrilus planipennis an invasive Buprestid that has invaded North America where it feeds on Ash. trees. At this point all ash trees in North America are threatened and could ecologically eliminate them from North American forests. On the other hand it is a beautiful Buprestid beetle that simply was brought to the wrong place.

Entylia carinata, arrayed in pits and prominances, the Keeled Treehopper is a mighty beast up close. Collected in Upper Marlboro, Maryland

Unknown Haltichellinae, Hawaii, Oahu, March 2012, Determined by Michael Gates

Another Chrysidid wasp (cuckoo wasp) from the Hart-Miller Dredge Spoil site in Baltimore Harbor, collected by Eugene Scarpulla, photographed by Brooke Alexander Identification by Lynn KimseyCanon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200, link to a .pdf of o

A small hole nesting bee related to Osmia, beatifully arrayed in dark black pitting and short, prone, white bands of hair. Found at Wolf Trap National Park for the Perfoming Arts in Virginia

A small hole nesting bee related to Osmia, beatifully arrayed in dark black pitting and short, prone, white bands of hair. Found at Wolf Trap National Park for the Perfoming Arts in Virginia

A small thin well armored bee. Just so to fit in the abandoned burrows of powder post beetles and the like. Obliquely related to Mason bees, the females carry pollen and are notable for their use of plant resins to plug their nest holes. This one from Prince George's County. Photograph by Elizabeth Garcia.