The A to Z of Amazing Zoology

sinobug:

Murder Most Foul…..

A few days ago I was witness to a most brutal predator/prey interaction.

I was alerted by a rustling in the leaf litter where I found this adult stick insect (about 25cm in length) furiously trying to escape the large wasp taking huge chomps out of its back. I presume this is a Polistes sp. paper wasp but a large one at around 25mm in length. The obvious aim of the wasp was to debilitate its prey by the swiftest means possible - by severing through the entire abdomen, wings and all, and cleaving the stick insect into two. It achieved this with ease and the hapless stick insect, now minus its abdomen and incapable of flight, took to frantic climbing and clambering to escape. The wasp however clawed its way further along towards the head making deep incisions as it went. After about five minutes the stick insect succumbed to this relentless mutilation.

I thought the choice of prey by this wasp was unusual but in hindsight, the stick insect is an easy target as it has little defence against such an onslaught other than the ability to avoid it in the first place by concealment. It is perhaps that helplessness on the part of a large, gentle victim that makes it seem so cruel.

So…..a one-off observation? Two days later and I was witness to the exact same scenario in a similar location between another adult phasmid and a paper wasp. The chain of events and strategy was precisely the same.

Is anyone else aware of similar wasp/stick insect predator/prey relationships or this a regional evolutionary adaption of a predatory species to what is available?

by Sinobug (itchydogimages) on Flickr.
Pu’er, Yunnan, China

See more Chinese insects and spiders on my Flickr site HERE……

(via somuchscience)

bogleech:

IT’S A HUMMINGBEE

These are BEE FLIES!

Harmless to everything else, these precious little cutie pies sneak their eggs into beehives, where their larvae can parasitize bee larvae and eat their food reserves!

(via justaquickquestion)

astronomy-to-zoology:

Pelican Spiders (Family Archaeidae)

Also known as assassin spiders or spidsnuck, pelican spiders are a unique family of spiders native to Madagascar, southern Africa and parts of Australia. These spiders get the name pelican from their uniquely long necks and elongated jaws. The spider uses these two weird features to prey exclusively on other spiders, which earns them the name assassin. With a long neck and jaws this spider specialist can safely avoid its opponents venomous jaws, and kill/eat it with ease.

Phylogeny

Animalia-Arthropoda-Arachnida-Araneae-Araneomorphae-Arachaeoidea-Arachaeidae

Image Source(s)

(via somuchscience)

moldykins:

SO APPARENTLY WHEN TWO LARGE WHALES DO THE NASTY THERE’S  SOMETIMES THIS ONE BRO WHO JUST SORT OF HOLDS THEM UP SO THEY DON’T FLOAT OFF

NATURE IS BEAUTIFUL

(via enteryourdreams)

rhamphotheca:

2 Cases of Caudal growth at the site of limb loss in Spiny-tailed Iguana (Ctenosaura quinquecarinata).

Basically, these lizard lost legs, and generated a tail at the site of limb loss.

(via: Herpetological Insights) 

headlikeanorange:

A rock hyrax, whose closest living relative is the African elephant. (Wild Arabia - BBC)

(via theanimalblog)

earthfix:

Jellyfish always steal the show.

m0iety:

The Immortal Jellyfish

While the humans have been looking for the elixir of life throughout every period of history, it appears that there is one species of jellyfish that are actually immortal. Turritopsis nutricula is able to transform its cells from mature state back to immaturity, in other words – back to youth. The medusa leads a regular cycle of life, but after maturing and mating, it reverts back to its initial state – a polyp colony.

The process is referred to as “transdifferentiation”, and it basically makes the jellyfish unable to die. The bell-shaped immortal jellyfish measures up to a maximum of about 4.5 millimeters (0.18 in) and is about the same in its length and width. Originating in the Caribbean, it has now spread worldwide, and the discovery of its unique ability has heated up many discussions among the scientists. Some claim that their mystery is soon to be solved and applied to humans, while others only expect it to improve the quality of life at our final stages.

(Source:  Wikipedia and NY Times)

(Image source:  Takashi Murai)

astronomy-to-zoology:

Common Purple Snail (Janthina janthina)

Also known as the violet snail or purple storm snail, the purple snail is a species of marine snail found in tropical/temperate waters worldwide. Unlike most sea snails this species is pelagic and is often found drifting on the surface. They are able to do this due to a bubble raft that the gastropod secretes, this raft allows them to stay on the surface in the water. They spend their entire adults life at the surface where they feed. Being at the surface makes them easy targets and they are common prey for other pelagic animals like the Velella and Man o’ War.

Phylogeny

Animalia-Mollusca-Gastropoda-Epitonioidea-Janthinidae-Janthina-janthina

Image Source(s)

(via thevices)

drueisms:

Whales Sleep One-Half Of Their Brain At A Time

Considering the inherent difficulty of sleeping underwater as an air-breather, some cetaceans seem to be able to take quick “whale naps” to compensate. They rest only part of their brain at a time, remaining semi-aware. Sperm whales, like the sleeping pod above, have been observed to sleep in a distinct pattern. They fall asleep and begin to drift head down toward the ocean floor, flipping over roughly halfway through, and then drifting to the surface to breathe again. They have been timed to take these naps for roughly 12.7 minutes between 12-6am.

Next time you take a nap in the tub, give it a try!

(via scishow)

theecolologist:

Strange Squeakcies: This Frog’s Call Ain’t No Croak…

Recorded by wildlife enthusiast and photographer Dean Boshoff among the sand dunes of Port Nolloth in South Africa’s Northern Cope province, this first YouTube video of his went viral within a matter of days - and it’s easy to see why. Or, rather, hear why. You’d be forgiven for suspecting that this is nothing more than the result of some doggy-chew-toy-dub-over of a hoax. However this is the real deal folks. Yup, that sound is actually coming out of that animal!

This little sandy ball of hilarious squeaky cuteness is a Namaqua rain frog (Breviceps namaquensis). Although it has elsewhere been reported to be a mating call, the sound it’s so ardently emitting is actually a warning call, triggered by the presence of a threat such as a predator (or in this case, most likely the perceived threat of big bad Dean and his camera). Other species of frog are also known to make this type of warning call and a quick search of YouTube will bring up more examples of it, however I’ve yet been able to find one that’s quite as cute as this lil’ guy!

The Namaqua rain frog spends almost its entire life buried under the sand hiding from predators (hence the state of our new celebrity) and only surfaces after heavy rain to feed. Its eggs are laid in underground chambers and are covered in a thick, viscous, jelly-like substance. Once the eggs hit tadpole stage, the jelly softens into a fluid in which they live until they fully metamorphose into frogs (absorbing nutrients from the egg yolk as they grow). This lack of dependence on water for the tadpole stage is what makes this dumpy dude particularly and uniquely suited to life in an arid environment. 

So there you have it; the Namaqua rain frog; sandy, silly, squeaky and all together supersauce, No go press play again. You know you want to, tee hee…