Golden Orb
Category: Insects | Date: May 15 2008 | By: tumaren
I ran into this Golden Orb spider in the door of our camel boma last week. Fortunately i ran into a small strand first and was able to stop before putting my face right through her beautiful web. Golden Orb spiders in New Guinea have such strong webs that they are woven and used locals for catching fish.
Baboon Spider Revealed
Category: Insects | Date: Mar 24 2008 | By: tumaren
You normally only see Baboon Spiders out of their underground funnels when there is rain (or I suppose possibly when breeding). This particular specimen was coaxed from his home with a blade of grass a trick perfected by most young boys in these parts. Baboon Spiders are quite harmless but they will give you a good bite if hassled. This guy we returned to his house after taking his picture.
Monster Centipede
Category: Insects | Date: Mar 24 2008 | By: tumaren
This centipede was found this morning under one of our tent floors. These centipedes evidently give a serious sting and one of my guys said that they can kill a camel (but are only very painful to humans). I don’t know from where the venom comes from. This particular centipede has rather formidable grabbers at its tail but I’m not sure if that is where the venom resides. This guy and a mass of toads as well as some snakes have been around with the beginning of our first rains that started the day before yesterday. hooray for the rains.
A Grasshoper Menagerie
Category: Insects | Date: Feb 05 2008 | By: tumaren
A lot of people think “a grasshopper is just a grasshopper”. Not true. Look at the diversity of shapes and forms that grasshoppers can take in our immediate area:
Insect Identification Help
Category: Insects | Date: Jan 24 2008 | By: tumaren
Parm, one of our rangers pointed out the following larvae the other day while we were walking across a large plain together. the larvae at that time was not exposed and the only indication of his presence was a simple non descript hole. parm said in swahili “watch”. He cut a piece of grass, chewed the tip a bit and then wiggled the end near the entrance to the hole. The larvae attached, pinched the grass and with a smooth motion parm removed him from his hole where i photographed him before returning him to his home.
I reckon this must be some kind of beetle larvae. I have never seen tiger beetles here and he is far too big but he does resemble their larvae. Anyway he is very predatory and I wouldn’t be surprised if he was one of the large nocturnal ground beetles that prowl the savanna in search of prey. ideas welcome.
Assasin in camp
Category: Insects | Date: Jan 09 2008 | By: tumaren
I found the following Assasin bug under some logs today in camp. Evidently they can give a rather severe bite. I wonder what he assasinates for food???
Fishing Spider Found on Ewaso Nyiro River
Category: Insects | Date: Oct 04 2007 | By: tumaren
While swimming down on the river I ran into this interesting fishing spider in a small pool of water in a large rockoutcrop. the pool had mosquito larvae and when i found the spider he was totally submerged trying to hid underneath a rock. his movements under water were identical to a crab and when he emerged to the surface after some coaxing he appeared totally dry. Very Cool.
Harvester Ants with a Spider?
Category: Insects | Date: Aug 26 2007 | By: tumaren
Hi, this is Kerry. We were packing up camp on the Ewaso Nyiro River and noticed Harvester Ants carrying a Spider to their hole. They slowly took off it’s legs and took them down the hold and then finally tried to get the body of the Spider in to the hole. I have only ever seen these ants harvesting vegetable matter and did not know they would have any interest in a Spider?
Rhino Beetle with Whip Scorpion Parasites
Category: Insects | Date: Apr 23 2007 | By: tumaren
We found this Rhino Beetle the other day and as we were examining him we noticed several Whip Scorpions attached to the back of his abdomen. I remember in EO Wilsons book “The Diversity of Life” a description of another Whip Scorpion parasite on another beetle. Interesting, I wonder if this species is described.
- Also see other smaller egg type things near the Whip Scorpion. I don’t know if these are eggs or another parasite.
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Tumaren -
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