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Exploring natural history one itsy bitsy spider at a time...

Exploring natural history one itsy bitsy spider at a time...

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Lacewing Larvae

I'm admiring the gorgeous bark of a tree and looking at the ants running up and down the bark terrain when I notice a tiny lump of lichen.  Moving.  




The poor thing took a vacation from it's tree for my team of naturalists to stare at it under a microscope, take a thousand pictures, and throw out random theories of what this could possibly be.


When scared they curl up like pill bugs. 







After a while, I just google lichen covered insect and figure out it's a lacewing larvae.  Some do even cuter things than this one!  Like attach mini snail shells and ant body parts to their debris pile!  If you are having a cute attack, we should be friends, if we're not already.  Cutest insect I've ever seen. 


Monday, April 2, 2012