Images

Chlorion aerarium, Cumberland, Maryland, July 2012

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Chrysidid wasp, species unknown, Maryland 2012, the black wings with the infraction patterns against the span of metallic pits, has to be seen at large full screen to be appreciated, Anne Arundel County

20X Lens Tests. I am posting 3 pictures taken with a "new" 20X Mitutoyo Plan Apo Infinity Corrected Long WD Microscope Objective attached to an old 200mm Pentax lens. This allows me to start getting into some extreme stack territory. That said this lens new is over \$2000.00 U.S. However, I found a scratched one on Ebay for \$300.00.

Chrysochus auratus, dogbane beetle, Beltsvillle, Maryland, 2012

Chrysochus auratus, dogbane beetle, Beltsvillle, Maryland, 2012

Roooooarrrrrr!, Danger, creature from the black lagoon. Or...not. Here we have a close up look at the many interesting features that are left behind when a cicada emerges. This one was in my backyard and left his/her full body suit behind on the shed.

Cicindela tranquebarica, a Tiger Beetle from one of the old sand mines that line the Patuxent River. Thankfully it is a sand mine that never was capped with clay and planted with invasive non-native plants...the standard operation in many parts of the country. Lisa Murray took the photographs. Thanks to Jonathan Mawdsley for the determination.

New Maryland state record. Common Clay Bank Tiger beetle (Cicindella limbalis), or, in this case, the Uncommon Clay Bank Tiger beetle. The specimen and 2 others were found while we were hunting these (with permission) in the yet unopened Wills Mountain State Park in Western Maryland.

Cow Path Tiger Beetle - Cicindella purpurea. Found on Will's Mountain outside of Cumberland Maryland. Found in low numbers in the Piedmont and Mountains of the state, a juicy little bug hunter. Photo by Erick Hernandez.

What a beautiful name, ... an overlooked plant of woodlands, now I am wondering what its pollinators might be...when does it bloom, seems like maybe middle of summer when most of the bees are absent. Specimen and picture by Helen Lowe Metzman.

A series of shots of Citrus Psyllid adults (including a recently emerged white adult) , and larvae of Diaphorina citri which is the transporting agent of citrus greening disease now devastating Florida's orange groves. Pictures taken at Level 3 level quarantine at USDA's Lab at Ft. Detrick, Maryland. Thanks to Tina Paul for fascilitating all of this.

A series of shots of Citrus Psyllid adults (including a recently emerged white adult) , and larvae of Diaphorina citri which is the transporting agent of citrus greening disease now devastating Florida's orange groves. Pictures taken at Level 3 level quarantine at USDA's Lab at Ft. Detrick, Maryland. Thanks to Tina Paul for fascilitating all of this.

A series of shots of Citrus Psyllid adults (including a recently emerged white adult) , and larvae of Diaphorina citri which is the transporting agent of citrus greening disease now devastating Florida's orange groves. Pictures taken at Level 3 level quarantine at USDA's Lab at Ft. Detrick, Maryland. Thanks to Tina Paul for fascilitating all of this.

Spring Beauties...taken by Helen Lowe Metzman...one of the most common and most productive of plants for spring bees. It even has its own species Andrena erigeniae that uses the pink pollen of this plant soley to feed its young.

Cleonus piger, the sluggish weevil, was discovered for the first time, infesting the roots of Pitcher's thistle, in 2013.It typically kills the plant and if it is an adult, the plant is killed before seeds can be produced.

Another tiny tiny leafhopper...this one from Brazil. From the bowels of the National Collection at the Smithsonian.

Interesting and very uncommon bee. Meet Coelioxys banksi. I have only seen a couple, both from NJ, I think. What bee is their host? There are specimens from the East Coast and from the West with a hiatus in the middle. Are they different species or are we simply lousy at finding them? What ever is going on , a pretty slick looking bee.

Coelioxys vigilans, Dominican Republic, male

Coelioxys vigilans, Dominican Republic

Coelioxys coturnix, female, July 2012 along Railroad tracks in Cumberland Maryland