Sunday, February 24, 2013

broad-faced sac spider (Trachelas sp.) - Montezuma, Costa Rica

Mariposario Montezuma Gardens





sternum

endites and fangs



tarsal claw tuft
Epigyne






Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Monday, February 18, 2013

non-native invasive spider (Cithaeron praedonius) - Winter Springs, FL

Thanks to /u/neuralphreak for an outstanding job of collection/curation.
Winter Springs, FL, 17 Jan 2013

This spider has translucent patches on her legs, a dark spot behind her anteromedial eyes, and featherlike hairs on her legs. Her tarsi end in long, tentacular pseudosegments, which can grasp projections in the environment and pull the spider around. Her native range is vast, from Tripoli to Taman Negara, and she readily thrives in urban environments, eating the pests that thrive in filth. Like Indo-European languages, she has become established in Brazil, Florida, and Australia.





She has some kind of caked gel on her mouth-hairs



Note the pigment dot behind the AME, and the evident roundness of those eyes.

Epigynum 




Clarified epigynum


Translucent femur and pseudosegmented tarsus 






Sunday, February 10, 2013

toe-winged beetle (Ptilodactylidae) - Montezuma, Costa Rica

Mariposario Montezuma Gardens, Costa Rica

ID thanks to /u/masterswordsman






Saturday, February 9, 2013

Monday, February 4, 2013

shining fungus beetle (Scaphidiinae) - Montezuma, Costa Rica

Mariposario Montezuma Gardens, CR

ID thanks to /u/Joseph_P_Brenner




Sunday, February 3, 2013

bee (Lasioglossum titusi) - The Palouse, ID

Latah County Bee










Metasoma I noticeably more punctate and metallic than M2




Area between lateral ocellus and median eye margin noticeably smoother and less punctate than frons





Mesoscutellum sparsely punctate with large and small punctures