dromeoraptor

[dromeoraptor]

This floating alien egg is Octameroceras, they're part of a group of cephalopods called Oncocerids which diverged earlier than the nautiloids and ammonites.

As they reach maturity, their shell opening, the aperture closes in on their face creating these Giger-esque shapes, and we can only speculate what bizarre mangled forms the creature peeping through that opening would have.

[image credit: Stridsberg, S. 1 985 05 09: Silurian oncocerid cephalopods from Gotland. Fossils and Strata, N o. 1 8, pp. 1-65. Oslo ISSN 0300- 9491. ISBN 82- 00- 07575-3.]

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A school of Macroscaphites search for the best plankton-rich current for suspension feeding

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Under the cover of darkness, Nipponites come out to feed. Their shells contorting into Ox-bow bends make them clumsy swimmers

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Why do so many cephalopods die immediately after reproducing?

Okay so the physical reason is that mating triggers a change in their brain chemistry and hormone levels that essentially poisons them and makes them behave strangely and stop eating. If the gland responsible for this change is removed, the cephalopod continues as normal and lives for many months after laying eggs.

But the evolutionary reason is the end-Cretaceous extinction. Cephalopods used to have a pretty huge variation in lifespan, ranging from a few months to over 200 years (https://www.iflscience.com/ancient-paperclipshaped-sea-creature-could-live-for-200-years-57685)

Large, long-lived cephalopods were hit hard by the mass extinction and those who survived did so by being short-lived and reproducing quickly, so they were selected for as cephalopods recovered from the extinction event. The most ancient species, the nautilus, can live for several decades and mate many times, hinting at the high diversity of life strategies that cephalopods used to have.

So yeah, the reason octopuses usually only live a year or two before self-destructing is because of that fucking asteroid.

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Drawing made by Archie Comics to pitch a Super Mario comic (presumably of the same style as their long-running Sonic the Hedgehog comic book series) to Nintendo in 2009. The pitch was rejected.

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Taco night

(alt: Video render of Isoxys minor, Middle cambrian bivalved arthropods shown here in orange with a dark aquarium background)

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The idea just popped in my head suddenly of a flower called a "bludgeon-me Anthony." Now I'm sitting here trying to imagine what could possibly happen for a flower to get that name

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Southern right whales have lifespans that reach well past 100 years, and 10% may live past 130 years, according to our new research published in the journal Science Advances. Some of these whales may live to 150. This lifespan is almost double the 70-80 years they are conventionally believed to live. North Atlantic right whales were also thought to have a maximum lifespan of about 70 years. We found, however, that this critically endangered species' current average lifespan is only 22 years, and they rarely live past 50.

Continue Reading.

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I just wanted to hear this post in real life, and I chased that impulse.

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La creatura.

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Results from the last #paleostream of the year!

Acheronauta, Diatryma, Hadrosteus and Imperobator (wing mobility is rather speculative).

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got my hands on a field guide of californian bugs and i found that there's this one bee species in southern california that looks like this

(Actual bugs under the cut, CW for insects)

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it's everyone's favorite animal, pauropod you love pauropod

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California pink glowworm couple

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Yellowjacket-Mimicking Moth: this is just a harmless moth that mimics the appearance and behavior of a yellowjacket/wasp; its disguise is so convincing that it can even fool actual wasps

This species (Myrmecopsis polistes) may be one of the most impressive wasp-mimics in the world. The moth's narrow waist, teardrop-shaped abdomen, black-and-yellow patterning, transparent wings, smooth appearance, and folded wing position all mimic the features of a wasp. Unlike an actual wasp, however, it does not have any mandibles or biting/chewing mouthparts, because it's equipped with a proboscis instead, and it has noticeably "feathery" antennae.

There are many moths that use hymenopteran mimicry (the mimicry of bees, wasps, yellowjackets, hornets, and/or bumblebees, in particular) as a way to deter predators, and those mimics are often incredibly convincing. Myrmecopsis polistes is one of the best examples, but there are several other moths that have also mastered this form of mimicry.

Above: Pseudosphex laticincta, another moth species that mimics a yellowjacket

These disguises often involve more than just a physical resemblance; in many cases, the moths also engage in behavioral and/or acoustic mimicry, meaning that they can mimic the sounds and behaviors of their hymenopteran models. In some cases, the resemblance is so convincing that it even fools actual wasps/yellowjackets.

Above: Pseudosphex laticincta

Such a detailed and intricate disguise is unusual even among mimics. Researchers believe that it developed partly as a way for the moth to trick actual wasps into treating it like one of their own. Wasps frequently prey upon moths, but they are innately non-aggressive toward their own fellow nest-mates, which are identified by sight -- so if the moth can convincingly impersonate one of those nest-mates, then it can avoid being eaten by wasps.

Above: Pseudosphex laticincta

I gave an overview of the moths that mimic bees, wasps, yellowjackets, hornets, and bumblebees in one of my previous posts, but I felt that these two species (Myrmecopsis polistes and Pseudosphex laticincta) deserved to have their own dedicated post, because these are two of the most convincing mimics I have ever seen.

Above: Pseudosphex sp.

I think that moths in general are probably the most talented mimics in the natural world. They have so many intricate, unique disguises, and they often combine visual, behavioral, and acoustic forms of mimicry in order to produce an uncanny resemblance.

Several of these incredible mimics have already been featured on my blog: moths that mimic jumping spiders, a moth that mimics a broken birch twig, a moth caterpillar that can mimic a snake, a moth that disguises itself as two flies feeding on a pile of bird droppings, a moth that mimics a dried-up leaf, a moth that can mimic a cuckoo bee, and a moth that mimics the leaves of a poplar tree.

Moths are just so much more interesting than people generally realize.

Sources & More Info:

Journal of Ecology and Evolution: A Hypothesis to Explain Accuracy of Wasp Resemblances

Entomology Today: In Enemy Garb: A New Explanation for Wasp Mimicry

iNaturalist: Myrmecopsis polistes and Pseudosphex laticincta

Transactions of the Entomological Society of London: A Few Observations on Mimicry

[dromeoraptor]

entranced by the whole thing the sheldrake brothers have going on

one is an amazing mycologist and ate his own book. the other is an amazing musician with some real bangers. their parents are known for pseudoscience. they have the most fucked up names you could give to your children.

[dromeoraptor]

when i was reading the book entangled life which is about fungi and the author merlin sheldrake said that once he got his first author copies he was going to dampen the pages and use them to grow oyster mushrooms and yeast and then use the yeast to brew beer and then drink the beer with the mushrooms to complete the cycle of fungal knowledge. i was like really and truly this guy gets it