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General Category => Off the Record => Topic started by: Malthus on April 12, 2013, 09:52:05 AM

Title: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on April 12, 2013, 09:52:05 AM
I'm thinking of consolidating all my posts concerning bugs into one thread, entitled The Hive ...  Speaking of which, let's start out with this from Spain.

No trace of the owner of the house has been found ...  :hmm:

http://www.thinkspain.com/news-spain/22603/seven-metre-wasp-nest-found-in-abandoned-house

QuotePOLICE in San Sebastián de la Gomera have cordoned off an abandoned house after finding a seven-metre-long wasp nest.
Officers were called out by worried neighbours of the empty home in the island's capital and say the nest was in an indoor hallway and contained literally millions of wasps.

Experts have examined the nest, which is said to be 21'9" in length, and say the common type of wasp found in gardens would never normally build a nest of this size.

They believe it must be an invasive species of wasp which had migrated from Africa.

The Canary Islands are less than 100 kilometres from Morocco by water.

Authorities have been unable to trace the owner of the house.

Check out the pic in the link!
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on April 12, 2013, 10:01:12 AM
Have they looked.... IN THE NEST!?

*duh-duh-duuuuuuuuuuh*
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on April 12, 2013, 10:04:16 AM
If I was the cop who did the initial investigation - opening the door to find *that* - I'd still be running.  :D
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on April 12, 2013, 01:56:22 PM
Anyway, this could never happen in America. The local HOA would not allow it.

Though come to think of it, most HOAs are controlled by WASPs ...  :ph34r:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Grey Fox on April 12, 2013, 07:22:50 PM
It wouldn't happen in most of America because, well, winter sucks for wasps.

;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on April 12, 2013, 07:28:21 PM
Giant bat hunting centipede

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UROVfmY3NTA
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Ideologue on April 12, 2013, 07:32:17 PM
You stop this right fucking now.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Ideologue on April 12, 2013, 07:35:26 PM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on April 12, 2013, 07:28:21 PM
Giant bat hunting centipede

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UROVfmY3NTA

Quote from: LukeCrux

NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE

AGREED.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on April 12, 2013, 07:43:12 PM
Giant Centipede vs Snake

https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=ooFSFR2s7Ig&feature=endscreen
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on April 14, 2013, 12:22:44 AM
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcdn-www.i-am-bored.com%2Fmedia%2Fndn1n.jpg&hash=cf1bf516723bbab49328fdbcbaab19d92baf0351)

(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcdn-www.i-am-bored.com%2Fmedia%2Fndn2n.jpg&hash=e105db66377e7a8fc41bd55442b6041c2b915bf4)

(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcdn-www.i-am-bored.com%2Fmedia%2Fndn3n.jpg&hash=5ce200d1c9aa927d5a8e4937890b638cd3202081)

I think I'll have nightmares for the next few weeks.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Martinus on April 14, 2013, 01:59:34 AM
This is by far my favourite thread of the various someone's cats/kids/shitty politics threads.

Malthus's bugs > Barrister's kids. :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on April 14, 2013, 03:59:52 AM
Quote from: Syt on April 14, 2013, 12:22:44 AM

I think I'll have nightmares for the next few weeks.
Unless that was your garage I don't see why.

Though one wonders how a tarantula came in contact with a black widow's web. One has to suspect human agency.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: The Brain on April 14, 2013, 04:05:04 AM
Quote from: Martinus on April 14, 2013, 01:59:34 AM

Malthus's bugs > Barrister's kids. :P

Maybe in the Carboniferous, but not these days.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Josquius on April 14, 2013, 05:58:57 AM
Quote from: Caliga on April 12, 2013, 10:01:12 AM
Have they looked.... IN THE NEST!?

*duh-duh-duuuuuuuuuuh*
Superhero origin fail?
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on April 14, 2013, 06:31:05 AM
Quote from: Tyr on April 14, 2013, 05:58:57 AM
Quote from: Caliga on April 12, 2013, 10:01:12 AM
Have they looked.... IN THE NEST!?

*duh-duh-duuuuuuuuuuh*
Superhero origin fail?
The owner is "missing". How do you know it wasn't a success? :ph34r:

On the other hand, why do you think he's a hero?  :menace:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on April 14, 2013, 06:33:32 AM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on April 14, 2013, 03:59:52 AM
Though one wonders how a tarantula came in contact with a black widow's web. One has to suspect human agency.
Tim, that's not a black widow.  They're not even close to that large.  Not sure what species it is, but definitely not a widow.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on April 15, 2013, 08:35:30 AM
Quote from: Syt on April 14, 2013, 12:22:44 AM

I think I'll have nightmares for the next few weeks.

CLEAN OUT YOUR DAMN GARAGE

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on April 15, 2013, 08:37:10 AM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on April 14, 2013, 06:31:05 AM
Quote from: Tyr on April 14, 2013, 05:58:57 AM
Quote from: Caliga on April 12, 2013, 10:01:12 AM
Have they looked.... IN THE NEST!?

*duh-duh-duuuuuuuuuuh*
Superhero origin fail?
The owner is "missing". How do you know it wasn't a success? :ph34r:

On the other hand, why do you think he's a hero?  :menace:

I assume he's still alive, kept paralized inside that hive.  ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on June 24, 2013, 10:28:12 PM
Exterminator takes on a Yellow jacket nest six feet high and eight feet wide, with thousands of queens and millions of workers.

http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nbc-news/52295277/#52295277

Quote
SEE IT: Entomologist films terrifying encounter with giant yellow jacket nest — as tall as a man

'This is the largest nest I've ever seen in my entire life. I've been doing this for over 20 years. They're all over me,' says Jonathan Simkins. Luckily he was wearing a sting-proof suit.
Comments (5)
By Nina Golgowski / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, June 24, 2013, 2:56 PM

Not everything in the South emits southern hospitality as chilling video taken by a death-defying entomologist reveals.

The terrifying encounter between a Central Florida entomologist and a Southern Yellow Jacket nest towering more than 6 feet, five inches tall and 8 feet wide has been captured on film showing the man narrowly escaping with his life.

"I have never seen a nest this large in my entire life," said Jonathan Simkins while harrowingly filming his recent encounter in a protective full-body suit. "This is the prehistoric nest from the dinosaur ages."

In the video obtained by WFLA Simkins estimates he had come upon thousands of queens and millions of workers.

Those workers being Southern Yellow Jackets are at all times poised and ready to attack within 2-3 seconds' of provocation, he explained.


"A provocation can be as simple as a guard smelling the odor of a mammal, or vibrations from walking nearby," Simkins' website All Florida Bee Removal explains.

Once their attack is decided a pheromone is released and in Simkins' case that afternoon, it sent millions of deadly wasps swarming in his direction.

"It looks like they're already coming to check me out," Simkins says in his video before the wasp nest is even in sight.

Within minutes, audio from Simkins' camera captures the millions of wasps pelting the device like a steady stream of hail.


"This is amazing. The size of this nest. The numbers flying around here, this is the largest nest I've ever seen in my entire life. I've been doing this for over 20 years. They're all over me," Simkins enthusiastically belts out from inside his head-to-toe suit.

"OK one sting so far, right in the chin. I just got a little irresponsible here," he admits while huridly turning between the camera and the nest.

The entomologist said he used a spray as well as his own technique to kill the nest.

Later, while recounting the episode from the safety of a parking lot he revealed that there were a few times he had to had to momentarily break away in fear of losing his life.

"I have to be honest with you, I was terrified at one point, and there were several times that I had to pull out and get a breather. My heart rate was racing, I had hundreds of them on my veil," he told WFLA. "I had so many yellowjackets on me, they kept finding a way in."

The nest was reported to Simkins after its discovery on private land used by hunters.

"...if somebody comes across this, you're not going to get away," he chillingly said of the nest.

"You can see in the video, I run a hundred yards away and I still have thousands of yellow jackets chasing me, all over me, trying to kill me."

Following up his video Simkins returned the next day, suit off, to show the result of his pest control.

There the remains of the nest stood, empty, not an audible buzzing or humming heard.

[email protected]

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 08:15:23 AM
That's an awesome video for anyone with a phobia.  :lol:

Not sure that exterminator guy wasn't exaggerating the danger to himself though - if you are wearing a bee suit, there is not much even a million wasps can do.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Maximus on June 25, 2013, 08:21:19 AM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 08:15:23 AM
That's an awesome video for anyone with a phobia.  :lol:

Not sure that exterminator guy wasn't exaggerating the danger to himself though - if you are wearing a bee suit, there is not much even a million wasps can do.

I grew up on a bee farm. My experience is those suits only reduce the number of stings.

It would of course be possible to build a completely bee-proof suit(e.g. a hazmat suit would likely work), but it would be expensive, hot, uncomfortable and probably hard to work in.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 08:28:44 AM
Quote from: Maximus on June 25, 2013, 08:21:19 AM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 08:15:23 AM
That's an awesome video for anyone with a phobia.  :lol:

Not sure that exterminator guy wasn't exaggerating the danger to himself though - if you are wearing a bee suit, there is not much even a million wasps can do.

I grew up on a bee farm. My experience is those suits only reduce the number of stings.

It would of course be possible to build a completely bee-proof suit(e.g. a hazmat suit would likely work), but it would be expensive, hot, uncomfortable and probably hard to work in.

I'd imagine that tackling that particular nest, the drawbacks of hot and uncomfortable would be worth it.  :lol:

The guy in the video says some got in.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: DGuller on June 25, 2013, 08:34:16 AM
Gee, I wonder why bees are disappearing in US.  Could be that they're being exterminated?  :hmm:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Maximus on June 25, 2013, 08:35:32 AM
Those weren't bees
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 08:37:18 AM
Quote from: Maximus on June 25, 2013, 08:35:32 AM
Those weren't bees

Send him out to collect all the sweet, sweet honey from that thing.   :D
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: merithyn on June 25, 2013, 08:40:59 AM
Quote from: DGuller on June 25, 2013, 08:34:16 AM
Gee, I wonder why bees are disappearing in US.  Could be that they're being exterminated?  :hmm:

If I remember correctly, those yellow jacket wasps are one of the reasons that bees are disappearing. The yellow jackets kill the bees.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on June 25, 2013, 09:00:22 AM
I feel like that story is a case where you should just nuke it from orbit.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 09:05:24 AM
Quote from: garbon on June 25, 2013, 09:00:22 AM
I feel like that story is a case where you should just nuke it from orbit.

It's the only way to be sure.

Plus, it's central Florida. No-one would miss it.  :D
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on June 25, 2013, 09:40:29 AM
 :huh:
(https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/media/wdw_nextgen/Site/WDWContent/Media/InternetMediaType/FloridaResidents/walt-disney-world-icons-1000x450.jpg?t=2012-06-25T17:37:01)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on June 25, 2013, 10:03:42 AM
Quote from: Caliga on June 25, 2013, 09:40:29 AM
:huh:

Maybe by no-one he meant me. -_-
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 10:07:11 AM
Sure, you would lose Disneyland, but you would also lose rednecks, swamps, and old people.  :hmm:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on June 25, 2013, 10:08:18 AM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 10:07:11 AM
Sure, you would lose Disneyland, but you would also lose rednecks, swamps, and old people.  :hmm:

Wrong. You'd just have Disneyland, you wouldn't have Disneyworld. Important distinction as the former is in a good state, the latter not so much.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 10:11:22 AM
Quote from: garbon on June 25, 2013, 10:08:18 AM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 10:07:11 AM
Sure, you would lose Disneyland, but you would also lose rednecks, swamps, and old people.  :hmm:

Wrong. You'd just have Disneyland, you wouldn't have Disneyworld. Important distinction as the former is in a good state, the latter not so much.

My mistake.   :(
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Siege on June 25, 2013, 10:23:32 AM
So, are wasps good for anything?
what would happen if we were to kill them all?
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on June 25, 2013, 10:27:16 AM
Quote from: Siege on June 25, 2013, 10:23:32 AM
So, are wasps good for anything?
what would happen if we were to kill them all?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wasp

QuoteParasitic wasps are increasingly used in agricultural pest control as they prey mostly on pest insects and have little impact on crops.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Siege on June 25, 2013, 12:02:46 PM
Dam, I was hoping to ethnic cleanse some WASPs.

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: PDH on June 25, 2013, 12:04:39 PM
Animal (Fuck Like A Beast)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 01:29:17 PM
In the category "wierd parasites", meet ... the tongue zombie.

http://beestingbrose.blogspot.ca/2010/01/cymothoa-exigua-tongue-zombie.html

How do they breed? Oral sex!  :D
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on June 25, 2013, 01:35:16 PM
I think they talked about that parasite on QI once
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Ed Anger on June 25, 2013, 01:36:38 PM
Yellow Jackets exterminated? Good. Bastards can die screaming to hell.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Siege on June 25, 2013, 04:59:48 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on June 25, 2013, 01:36:38 PM
Yellow Jackets exterminated? Good. Bastards can die screaming to hell.

Do you mean these yellow jackets:

(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Finsidelacrosse.com%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fdbernstein_il%2FND11%2520Varsity%2520Champs%2520YJ12Blue.jpg%3F1310045796&hash=27c0d054833d8b995817cdaf3a00d4dd962ec910)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on June 25, 2013, 07:21:30 PM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 01:29:17 PM
In the category "wierd parasites", meet ... the tongue zombie.

http://beestingbrose.blogspot.ca/2010/01/cymothoa-exigua-tongue-zombie.html

How do they breed? Oral sex!  :D

WTF?!
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 26, 2013, 08:18:56 AM
Quote from: lustindarkness on June 25, 2013, 07:21:30 PM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 01:29:17 PM
In the category "wierd parasites", meet ... the tongue zombie.

http://beestingbrose.blogspot.ca/2010/01/cymothoa-exigua-tongue-zombie.html

How do they breed? Oral sex!  :D

WTF?!

Fortunately, people can't get it.  ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: FunkMonk on June 26, 2013, 08:23:53 AM
Quote from: Malthus on June 26, 2013, 08:18:56 AM
Quote from: lustindarkness on June 25, 2013, 07:21:30 PM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 01:29:17 PM
In the category "wierd parasites", meet ... the tongue zombie.

http://beestingbrose.blogspot.ca/2010/01/cymothoa-exigua-tongue-zombie.html

How do they breed? Oral sex!  :D

WTF?!

Fortunately, people can't get it.  ;)

Yet.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: katmai on June 26, 2013, 08:24:56 AM
Quote from: FunkMonk on June 26, 2013, 08:23:53 AM
Quote from: Malthus on June 26, 2013, 08:18:56 AM
Quote from: lustindarkness on June 25, 2013, 07:21:30 PM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 01:29:17 PM
In the category "wierd parasites", meet ... the tongue zombie.

http://beestingbrose.blogspot.ca/2010/01/cymothoa-exigua-tongue-zombie.html

How do they breed? Oral sex!  :D

WTF?!

Fortunately, people can't get it.  ;)

Yet.
the brain doesn't count as people.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on June 26, 2013, 08:29:55 AM
Quote from: katmai on June 26, 2013, 08:24:56 AM
Quote from: FunkMonk on June 26, 2013, 08:23:53 AM
Quote from: Malthus on June 26, 2013, 08:18:56 AM
Quote from: lustindarkness on June 25, 2013, 07:21:30 PM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 01:29:17 PM
In the category "wierd parasites", meet ... the tongue zombie.

http://beestingbrose.blogspot.ca/2010/01/cymothoa-exigua-tongue-zombie.html

How do they breed? Oral sex!  :D

WTF?!

Fortunately, people can't get it.  ;)

Yet.
the brain doesn't count as people.

Wasn't his tongue that was affected.  :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on September 03, 2013, 02:09:27 PM
This clip has some classic dialogue.

Actually heard: "We need to find him a female bug"

The bug's reply: "No my dear, I think *you* would do nicely ... "

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Uk6-iiVb0Y&

BTW, I once caught one of those - it's a Giant Water Bug, and allegedly, they can bite (as well as fly)  ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Ideologue on September 03, 2013, 02:26:32 PM
Quote from: Malthus on June 25, 2013, 08:15:23 AM
That's an awesome video for anyone with a phobia.  :lol:

Not sure that exterminator guy wasn't exaggerating the danger to himself though - if you are wearing a bee suit, there is not much even a million wasps can do.

Maybe not wasps, but would honeybees know to swarm a human like they do a hornet?  We can die from overheating just like them, and it wouldn't take close to a million. :hmm: :ph34r:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 02:34:22 PM
Okay, WTF is this thing? No-one knows ...

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/09/weird-weblike-thing/
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on September 10, 2013, 03:14:42 PM
Quote from: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 02:34:22 PM
Okay, WTF is this thing? No-one knows ...

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/09/weird-weblike-thing/

Interesting, maybe they are communication arrays for aliens, real small aliens.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Barrister on September 10, 2013, 03:16:09 PM
Quote from: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 02:34:22 PM
Okay, WTF is this thing? No-one knows ...

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/09/weird-weblike-thing/

This is one of those situations where, inctead of asking experts in North America, perhaps they should ask a few Peruvians...
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 03:21:22 PM
Quote from: Barrister on September 10, 2013, 03:16:09 PM
Quote from: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 02:34:22 PM
Okay, WTF is this thing? No-one knows ...

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/09/weird-weblike-thing/

This is one of those situations where, inctead of asking experts in North America, perhaps they should ask a few Peruvians...

Why would your hypothetical Peruvians have a clue? I mean, how many Canadians are experts on Canadian spider egg-cases, or whatever the hell that thing is?  ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Barrister on September 10, 2013, 03:24:05 PM
Quote from: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 03:21:22 PM
Quote from: Barrister on September 10, 2013, 03:16:09 PM
Quote from: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 02:34:22 PM
Okay, WTF is this thing? No-one knows ...

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/09/weird-weblike-thing/

This is one of those situations where, inctead of asking experts in North America, perhaps they should ask a few Peruvians...

Why would your hypothetical Peruvians have a clue? I mean, how many Canadians are experts on Canadian spider egg-cases, or whatever the hell that thing is?  ;)

Peruvians are hypothetical? :wacko:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 03:25:50 PM
Quote from: Barrister on September 10, 2013, 03:24:05 PM
Quote from: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 03:21:22 PM
Quote from: Barrister on September 10, 2013, 03:16:09 PM
Quote from: Malthus on September 10, 2013, 02:34:22 PM
Okay, WTF is this thing? No-one knows ...

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/09/weird-weblike-thing/

This is one of those situations where, inctead of asking experts in North America, perhaps they should ask a few Peruvians...

Why would your hypothetical Peruvians have a clue? I mean, how many Canadians are experts on Canadian spider egg-cases, or whatever the hell that thing is?  ;)

Peruvians are hypothetical? :wacko:

The ones you are asking about strange egg sacks in their country are.  :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on September 13, 2013, 09:58:35 PM
Cool  :cool:

pics and gifs can be found here
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/the-first-gear-discovered-in-nature-15916433

Quote
Found: The First Mechanical Gear in a Living Creature
U.K. scientists find the first biological gears on a jumping insect half the size of a fire ant.

September 12, 2013 2:00 PM Text Size: A . A . A
With two diminutive legs locked into a leap-ready position, the tiny jumper bends its body taut like an archer drawing a bow. At the top of its legs, a minuscule pair of gears engage—their strange, shark-fin teeth interlocking cleanly like a zipper. And then, faster than you can blink, think, or see with the naked eye, the entire thing is gone. In 2 milliseconds it has bulleted skyward, accelerating at nearly 400 g's—a rate more than 20 times what a human body can withstand. At top speed the jumper breaks 8 mph—quite a feat considering its body is less than one-tenth of an inch long.

This miniature marvel is an adolescent issus, a kind of planthopper insect and one of the fastest accelerators in the animal kingdom. As a duo of researchers in the U.K. report today in the journal Science, the issus also the first living creature ever discovered to sport a functioning gear. "Jumping is one of the most rapid and powerful things an animal can do," says Malcolm Burrows, a zoologist at the University of Cambridge and the lead author of the paper, "and that leads to all sorts of crazy specializations."

The researchers believe that the issus—which lives chiefly on European climbing ivy—evolved its acrobatic prowess because it needs to flee dangerous situations. Although they're not exactly sure if the rapid jump evolved to escape hungry birds, parasitizing wasps, or the careless mouths of large grazing animals, "there's been enormous evolutionary pressure to become faster and faster, and jump further and further away," Burrows says. But gaining this high acceleration has put incredible demands on the reaction time of insect's body parts, and that's where the gears—which "you can imagine being at the top of the thigh bone in a human," Burrows says—come in.

"As the legs unfurl to power the jump," Burrows says, "both have to move at exactly the same time. If they didn't, the animal would start to spiral out of control." Larger animals, whether kangaroos or NBA players, rely on their nervous system to keep their legs in sync when pushing off to jump—using a constant loop of adjustment and feedback. But for the issus, their legs outpace their nervous system. By the time the insect has sent a signal from its legs to its brain and back again, roughly 5 or 6 milliseconds, the launch has long since happened. Instead, the gears, which engage before the jump, let the issus lock its legs together—synchronizing their movements to a precision of 1/300,000 of a second.

The gears themselves are an oddity. With gear teeth shaped like cresting waves, they look nothing like what you'd find in your car or in a fancy watch. (The style that you're most likely familiar with is called an involute gear, and it was designed by the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler in the 18th century.) There could be two reasons for this. Through a mathematical oddity, there is a limitless number of ways to design intermeshing gears. So, either nature evolved one solution at random, or, as Gregory Sutton, coauthor of the paper and insect researcher at the University of Bristol, suspects, the shape of the issus's gear is particularly apt for the job it does. It's built for "high precision and speed in one direction," he says. "It's a prototype for a new type of gear."

Another odd thing about this discovery is that although there are many jumping insects like the issus—including ones that are even faster and better jumpers—the issus is apparently the only one with natural gears. Most other bugs synchronize the quick jolt of their leaping legs through friction, using bumpy or grippy surfaces to press the top of their legs together, says Duke University biomechanics expert Steve Vogel, who was not involved in this study. Like gears, this ensures the legs move at the same rate, but without requiring a complicated interlocking mechanism. "There are a lot of friction pads around, and they accomplish pretty much of the same thing," he says. "So I wonder what extra capacity these gears confer. They're rather specialized, and there are lots of other jumpers that don't have them, so there must be some kind of advantage."

Even stranger is that the issus doesn't keep these gears throughout its life cycle. As the adolescent insect grows, it molts half a dozen times, upgrading its exoskeleton (gears included) for larger and larger versions. But after its final molt into adulthood—poof, the gears are gone. The adult syncs its legs by friction like all the other planthoppers. "I'm gobsmacked," says Sutton. "We have a hypothesis as to why this is the case, but we can't tell you for sure."

Their idea: If one of the gear teeth were to slip and break in an adult (the researchers observed this in adolescent bugs), its jumping ability would be hindered forever. With no more molts, it would have no chance to grow more gears. And with every bound, "the whole system might slip, accelerating damage to the rest of the gear teeth," Sutton says. "Just like if your car has a gear train missing a tooth. Every time you get to that missing tooth, the gear train jerks."

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Eddie Teach on September 13, 2013, 10:39:31 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on June 25, 2013, 01:36:38 PM
Yellow Jackets exterminated? Good. Bastards can die screaming to hell.

Happens most Novembers.  :nelson:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on September 14, 2013, 01:45:03 AM
Quote from: Peter Wiggin on September 13, 2013, 10:39:31 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on June 25, 2013, 01:36:38 PM
Yellow Jackets exterminated? Good. Bastards can die screaming to hell.

Happens most Novembers.  :nelson:
But not in the deep south as much anymore. Otherwise this nest would never have gotten so big.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Eddie Teach on September 14, 2013, 02:08:33 AM
11 of last 12  ^_^
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 01, 2013, 11:19:38 AM
Here's a pic to enjoy ...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/antbbx/6242572228/
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on October 01, 2013, 01:05:19 PM
Uh, no, hell no.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 01, 2013, 02:16:25 PM
Quote from: lustindarkness on October 01, 2013, 01:05:19 PM
Uh, no, hell no.

They are adorable.  :wub:

Well, except that they appear to be dead.  :(
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Ideologue on October 01, 2013, 03:41:29 PM
Quote from: Malthus on October 01, 2013, 11:19:38 AM
Here's a pic to enjoy ...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/antbbx/6242572228/

Ha ha, I like practical effects too.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on October 01, 2013, 06:10:15 PM
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/01/giant-asian-hornets-killing-people-china_n_4023249.html?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=Green

QuoteAccording to The Guardian, at least "28 people have died and hundreds have been injured in a wave of attacks by giant hornets in central China." The hornets, also known as Vespa mandarinia, have reportedly "chased [victims] for hundreds of meters... and stung [them] as many as 200 times."
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Liep on October 01, 2013, 06:49:22 PM
Quote from: garbon on October 01, 2013, 06:10:15 PM
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/01/giant-asian-hornets-killing-people-china_n_4023249.html?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=Green

QuoteAccording to The Guardian, at least "28 people have died and hundreds have been injured in a wave of attacks by giant hornets in central China." The hornets, also known as Vespa mandarinia, have reportedly "chased [victims] for hundreds of meters... and stung [them] as many as 200 times."

Those are pretty fucking scary. They should produce more Japanese bees to fight these, their defense against the giant hornets looks awesome.

(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2Ff%2Ff3%2FHoneybee_thermal_defence01.jpg%2F640px-Honeybee_thermal_defence01.jpg&hash=7c34f7b6b8646f4a88166e5dde1e2ac082efbcf1)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 02, 2013, 08:30:39 AM
Quote from: garbon on October 01, 2013, 06:10:15 PM
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/01/giant-asian-hornets-killing-people-china_n_4023249.html?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=Green

QuoteAccording to The Guardian, at least "28 people have died and hundreds have been injured in a wave of attacks by giant hornets in central China." The hornets, also known as Vespa mandarinia, have reportedly "chased [victims] for hundreds of meters... and stung [them] as many as 200 times."

Heh! Globalization!

QuoteIf humans can live with these pests, then giant Asian hornets shouldn't present too much of a challenge, right? We might soon find out: The hornets were reported in Illinois last year.

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 02, 2013, 08:32:06 AM
Quote from: Liep on October 01, 2013, 06:49:22 PM
Quote from: garbon on October 01, 2013, 06:10:15 PM
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/01/giant-asian-hornets-killing-people-china_n_4023249.html?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=Green

QuoteAccording to The Guardian, at least "28 people have died and hundreds have been injured in a wave of attacks by giant hornets in central China." The hornets, also known as Vespa mandarinia, have reportedly "chased [victims] for hundreds of meters... and stung [them] as many as 200 times."

Those are pretty fucking scary. They should produce more Japanese bees to fight these, their defense against the giant hornets looks awesome.

(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2Ff%2Ff3%2FHoneybee_thermal_defence01.jpg%2F640px-Honeybee_thermal_defence01.jpg&hash=7c34f7b6b8646f4a88166e5dde1e2ac082efbcf1)

I read somewhere that they cook the hornets to death with their body heat. Sort of like teens on Escasy at a rave in the 90s.  ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: HVC on October 02, 2013, 08:35:21 AM
Oh crap, wasp. Quick everybody, orgy!
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: merithyn on October 02, 2013, 11:54:07 AM
Quote from: garbon on October 01, 2013, 06:10:15 PM
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/01/giant-asian-hornets-killing-people-china_n_4023249.html?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=Green

QuoteAccording to The Guardian, at least "28 people have died and hundreds have been injured in a wave of attacks by giant hornets in central China." The hornets, also known as Vespa mandarinia, have reportedly "chased [victims] for hundreds of meters... and stung [them] as many as 200 times."

GET ME OUT OF HERE!! :ultra:

QuoteIf humans can live with these pests, then giant Asian hornets shouldn't present too much of a challenge, right? We might soon find out: The hornets were reported in Illinois last year.

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on October 02, 2013, 11:56:33 AM
We seem to have had an invasion of some sort of stinkbug this year.  I've had one in my office at work for weeks... I keep meaning to catch him and release him outside but never remember to do it when I actually have the time.  I read that these stinkbugs were accidentally introduced from China.  BIG SURPRISE THERE
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on October 02, 2013, 11:58:17 AM
Quote from: merithyn on October 02, 2013, 11:54:07 AM
GET ME OUT OF HERE!! :ultra:
Relax, they won't do much here.  China is one of those countries, like India, where a bizarre amount of people die from seemingly mundane stuff.

Example:

QuoteBus accident in Chicago, six people injured

The same thing in India:

QuoteBus accident in Mumbai, 785 people killed, 129 missing
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 02, 2013, 03:16:21 PM
Quote from: Caliga on October 02, 2013, 11:58:17 AM
Quote from: merithyn on October 02, 2013, 11:54:07 AM
GET ME OUT OF HERE!! :ultra:
Relax, they won't do much here.  China is one of those countries, like India, where a bizarre amount of people die from seemingly mundane stuff.

Example:

QuoteBus accident in Chicago, six people injured

The same thing in India:

QuoteBus accident in Mumbai, 785 people killed, 129 missing

I assume the average American is fat enough to absorb the wasp's venom with little harm.  :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on October 02, 2013, 03:54:28 PM
Quote from: merithyn on October 02, 2013, 11:54:07 AM
GET ME OUT OF HERE!! :ultra:
You married a Canadian.  Qui prend mari, prend pays ("who takes husband, takes country"), so time to make it true, before these critters move over here :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: merithyn on October 03, 2013, 02:07:13 PM
Quote from: viper37 on October 02, 2013, 03:54:28 PM
Quote from: merithyn on October 02, 2013, 11:54:07 AM
GET ME OUT OF HERE!! :ultra:
You married a Canadian.  Qui prend mari, prend pays ("who takes husband, takes country"), so time to make it true, before these critters move over here :P

It's on the table. Wild Card: Ex-husband.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on October 03, 2013, 11:21:59 PM
Quote from: merithyn on October 03, 2013, 02:07:13 PM
Quote from: viper37 on October 02, 2013, 03:54:28 PM
Quote from: merithyn on October 02, 2013, 11:54:07 AM
GET ME OUT OF HERE!! :ultra:
You married a Canadian.  Qui prend mari, prend pays ("who takes husband, takes country"), so time to make it true, before these critters move over here :P

It's on the table. Wild Card: Ex-husband.
Well.  It's either facing Malthus' new friends, or your ex-husband.  Pick your poison.  :P

This is why I like living in Quebec.  Despite the global warming thing, winters are still harsh enough to kill most of these critters.  No giant spiders or snakes sneaking into my bedroom. :)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Razgovory on October 04, 2013, 12:19:44 AM
Quote from: Caliga on October 02, 2013, 11:58:17 AM
Quote from: merithyn on October 02, 2013, 11:54:07 AM
GET ME OUT OF HERE!! :ultra:
Relax, they won't do much here.  China is one of those countries, like India, where a bizarre amount of people die from seemingly mundane stuff.

Example:

QuoteBus accident in Chicago, six people injured

The same thing in India:

QuoteBus accident in Mumbai, 785 people killed, 129 missing

:lol:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on October 04, 2013, 12:25:30 AM
Quote from: Caliga on October 02, 2013, 11:58:17 AM

Relax, they won't do much here.  China is one of those countries, like India, where a bizarre amount of people die from seemingly mundane stuff.

Example:

QuoteBus accident in Chicago, six people injured

The same thing in India:

QuoteBus accident in Mumbai, 78 people killed, 12 missing
Much more realistic.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: merithyn on October 04, 2013, 08:05:27 AM
Quote from: viper37 on October 03, 2013, 11:21:59 PM
Well.  It's either facing Malthus' new friends, or your ex-husband.  Pick your poison.  :P

This is why I like living in Quebec.  Despite the global warming thing, winters are still harsh enough to kill most of these critters.  No giant spiders or snakes sneaking into my bedroom. :)

A large part of the reason I really dislike warmer climates. I don't think I could ever feel safe living somewhere where the bugs are bigger than my feet.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 04, 2013, 08:30:04 AM
Quote from: viper37 on October 03, 2013, 11:21:59 PM

This is why I like living in Quebec.  Despite the global warming thing, winters are still harsh enough to kill most of these critters.  No giant spiders or snakes sneaking into my bedroom. :)

I guess you have never encountered the Giant Water Bug, or the Dock Spider - both of which I've found in Quebec ...  ;)

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/artful-amoeba/2013/08/27/the-attack-of-the-giant-water-bug/

I am told that the bite of the 4 inch Giant Water Bug is excruciatingly painful, as it tends to dissolve flesh ...
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on October 04, 2013, 08:43:42 AM
Quote from: merithyn on October 04, 2013, 08:05:27 AM
A large part of the reason I really dislike warmer climates. I don't think I could ever feel safe living somewhere where the bugs are bigger than my feet.
You get used to it.  I still haven't seen a scorpion, but we do apparently have them here. :hmm:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on October 04, 2013, 09:21:54 AM
Quote from: Malthus on October 04, 2013, 08:30:04 AM
Quote from: viper37 on October 03, 2013, 11:21:59 PM

This is why I like living in Quebec.  Despite the global warming thing, winters are still harsh enough to kill most of these critters.  No giant spiders or snakes sneaking into my bedroom. :)

I guess you have never encountered the Giant Water Bug, or the Dock Spider - both of which I've found in Quebec ...  ;)

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/artful-amoeba/2013/08/27/the-attack-of-the-giant-water-bug/

I am told that the bite of the 4 inch Giant Water Bug is excruciatingly painful, as it tends to dissolve flesh ...

The first one is in places humans don't usually go, so not a problem.  The second one is said to be found in small ponds or lakes, again, not a problem for me, I don't swim in these :)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Razgovory on October 04, 2013, 09:26:51 AM
I thought Canada was notorious for it's black flies.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 04, 2013, 09:48:35 AM
Quote from: Razgovory on October 04, 2013, 09:26:51 AM
I thought Canada was notorious for it's black flies.

Black flies and mosquitoes.

The only good thing is that, unlike the tropics, the biters don't carry diseases here.  :D
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on October 07, 2013, 12:36:35 AM
Oh God! :bleeding:

http://www.news.wisc.edu/22176
QuoteUW scientist sniffs out possible new tick species

Oct. 1, 2013

by Nik Hawkins

In June 2012, Tony Goldberg returned from one of his frequent trips to Kibale National Park, an almost 500-square-mile forest in western Uganda where he studies how infectious diseases spread and evolve in the wild. But he didn't return alone.

"When I got back to the U.S., I realized I had a stowaway," says Goldberg, professor of pathobiological sciences at the UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine and associate director for research in the UW-Madison Global Health Institute. "When you first realize you have a tick up your nose, it takes a lot of willpower not to claw your face off."

But Goldberg is an old pro when it comes to nose ticks (this was not his first) and, after all, scientists are trained to be objective and rational. He calmly removed the tick with the aid of a long forceps, flashlight, and mirror, and put it in the freezer in a sealed tube to await further study.

Thankfully, the tick was intact enough post-yanking for DNA sequencing, a process that determines the exact order of nucleotides in a DNA molecule — the genetic signature of a living organism. Goldberg worked with Sarah Hamer, a colleague at Texas A&M University, to sequence the tick's DNA and consulted with Lorenza Beati-Ziegler, curator of the U.S. National Tick Collection at Georgia Southern University, and neither could match the sequence with any species of tick in any database.

"Either it's a species of tick that is known but has never been sequenced, or it's a new species of tick," says Goldberg, who chronicled the discovery with his co-authors in the current (Sept. 30, 2013) online issue of the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Goldberg's stowaway is not the first documented case of a Ugandan nose tick hitching a ride with humans, and others have speculated that these ticks normally infest chimpanzees, which are common in the park. Intrigued, Goldberg enlisted the help of Richard Wrangham, a Harvard University chimp expert, to investigate further. Wrangham and colleagues had just begun using high-resolution digital photography to safely study the timing of molar eruptions in baby chimps from a distance. A closer look at his photos revealed ticks lodged in one-fifth of the chimps' noses.

Digging deeper, Goldberg determined through a review of previously published studies that his international hitchhiking nose tick, and likely those of the chimps, are of the genus Amblyomma. "Amblyomma are known disease carriers, so this could be an underappreciated, indirect, and somewhat weird way in which people and chimps share pathogens," says Goldberg.

And this is why studying the ticks is important. According to Goldberg, given that a tick of this sort can avoid detection through an international flight, coupled with the frequency of global travel, it's possible they could establish exotic tick populations and spread disease to other countries.

Goldberg has spent a large portion of his life in Wisconsin, where wood and deer ticks are abundant, but he has never heard of anyone having a tick up their nose. So why would ticks in the forests of Africa evolve to embed themselves in chimp nostrils? Goldberg surmises that it may have a lot to do with chimp grooming habits.

"Chimps are highly intelligent and social," says Goldberg. "Above all else, grooming is what they use to bond their society. They're absolutely nuts about it."

The ticks may have developed a knack for nostril-diving to better avoid being "groomed off." As a precedent for this behavior, Goldberg points to a species of chimp louse that, when exposed to light, will stiffen, thrusting its front legs straight forward and rear legs back. It may do this to make itself resemble a piece of debris when chimp hair is parted during grooming in an effort to avoid detection, he says.

"Infectious disease and immunology researchers often look at how viruses and other pathogens avoid the complex immune system inside a host," says Goldberg. "This is paralleled on a macro scale with ectoparasites, which have apparently evolved mechanisms to counter external host defenses, such as grooming. So it's not just a tick up my nose — there's a lot of depth to this."

Goldberg is still unsure if his nose tick is a new species. Sadly, the specimen he removed was a nymph, rather than full-fledged adult, so he could not identify it by its morphological features. He also has yet to determine the species of the chimp ticks.

"It's not really practical or safe to pick ticks out of chimps' noses," says Goldberg. "The chimps of Kibale are very well habituated to humans, but they would still object vigorously."

So the next step is attempting to catch ticks on the forest floor with traps, which so far have proven unsuccessful due to chimp interference. While this is disappointing, Goldberg is happy to have at least published his findings up to this point.

"When you get a tick up your nose, you tell the story," says Goldberg.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on April 09, 2014, 03:30:06 PM
Mazda issues car recall - the problem: cars vulnerable to spider attack!  :lol:

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2014/04/07/mazda_issues_recall_because_spiders_invade_fuel_tank_causing_fire_risk.html
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on April 09, 2014, 03:32:42 PM
Tim: Relax. :)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: The Brain on April 09, 2014, 03:35:24 PM
Ahura.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on April 09, 2014, 03:35:56 PM
Quote from: Caliga on April 09, 2014, 03:32:42 PM
Tim: Relax. :)

I doubt he's still stressing this many months later.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on April 09, 2014, 03:36:31 PM
Quote from: The Brain on April 09, 2014, 03:35:24 PM
Ahura.
I got a boner that time she kissed Captain Kirk. :)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Caliga on April 09, 2014, 03:36:58 PM
Quote from: garbon on April 09, 2014, 03:35:56 PM
I doubt he's still stressing this many months later.
You never know with that kid. :bowler:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on April 23, 2014, 01:52:00 AM
:o

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/10774628/Snake-eats-centipede-that-fought-back.html
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.gmanews.tv%2Fv3%2Fwebpics%2Fv3%2F2014%2F04%2F2014_04_18_19_12_11.jpg&hash=686f30e0bc4d4c063d8dcb9f840c1423448de5e1)

QuoteSnake eats centipede that fought back
A snake found by scientists in Macedonia had a meal that bit back as a centipede ate its way through the predator's stomach



By Olivia Yallop

10:08AM BST 18 Apr 2014

Comments10 Comments

Reptile researchers on the island of Golem Grad in Lake Prespa, Macedonia were amazed to discover the remains of a horn-nosed viper which had died when its prey – a huge centipede - clawed its way out of the predator's stomach.

Nose-horned vipers regularly consume small mammals, lizards and birds. The snake, a young female, was about 2 inches longer than the centipede, but "gravely underestimated" the strength of its prey. The centipede, of the Megarian Banded variety, is a highly aggressive species armed with mild venom and found throughout Southen Europe. The arthopod in question weighed 114 per cent of the snake's total body weight.

The two carcasses were found together, with the centipede's head sticking out of the snake's ruptured abdomen.

"All of us were astonished, as nobody has ever seen something like this," said Ljiljana Tomovi, a herpetologist at the University of Belgrade.

"The entire volume of its body was occupied by the centipede."

A study was published in the journal Ecologica Montenegrina.

"In general, this invertebrate is extremely tough: It is very hard to kill a full-grown Scolopendra (personal observation)," the authors of the study wrote. "Therefore, we cannot dismiss the possibility that the snake had swallowed the centipede alive, and that, paradoxically, the prey has eaten its way through the snake, almost reaching its freedom."
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Ideologue on April 23, 2014, 01:58:26 AM
Well, I guess we just have to nuke Macedonia.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on April 25, 2014, 03:15:48 PM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on April 23, 2014, 01:52:00 AM
:o

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/10774628/Snake-eats-centipede-that-fought-back.html
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.gmanews.tv%2Fv3%2Fwebpics%2Fv3%2F2014%2F04%2F2014_04_18_19_12_11.jpg&hash=686f30e0bc4d4c063d8dcb9f840c1423448de5e1)

QuoteSnake eats centipede that fought back
A snake found by scientists in Macedonia had a meal that bit back as a centipede ate its way through the predator's stomach



By Olivia Yallop

10:08AM BST 18 Apr 2014

Comments10 Comments

Reptile researchers on the island of Golem Grad in Lake Prespa, Macedonia were amazed to discover the remains of a horn-nosed viper which had died when its prey – a huge centipede - clawed its way out of the predator's stomach.

Nose-horned vipers regularly consume small mammals, lizards and birds. The snake, a young female, was about 2 inches longer than the centipede, but "gravely underestimated" the strength of its prey. The centipede, of the Megarian Banded variety, is a highly aggressive species armed with mild venom and found throughout Southen Europe. The arthopod in question weighed 114 per cent of the snake's total body weight.

The two carcasses were found together, with the centipede's head sticking out of the snake's ruptured abdomen.

"All of us were astonished, as nobody has ever seen something like this," said Ljiljana Tomovi, a herpetologist at the University of Belgrade.

"The entire volume of its body was occupied by the centipede."

A study was published in the journal Ecologica Montenegrina.

"In general, this invertebrate is extremely tough: It is very hard to kill a full-grown Scolopendra (personal observation)," the authors of the study wrote. "Therefore, we cannot dismiss the possibility that the snake had swallowed the centipede alive, and that, paradoxically, the prey has eaten its way through the snake, almost reaching its freedom."

Okay, now that is gross.  :lol:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on May 06, 2014, 03:04:23 PM
The Argentine Ant "supercolony" is taking over whole continents:

http://beheco.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2012/04/13/beheco.ars043.full?sid=8eb4e726-93bc-48a9-ad8f-bd8c423b0278

QuoteArgentine ants form exceptionally massive colonies—supercolonies. This occurs because the queens stay in their natal colony, so all their progeny add to the colony's population. By budding—when the workers and queens move together to new sites, making colonies extremely polydomous (having multiple nests: Debout et al. 2007)—each colony can expand its territory as far as environmental conditions allow. Examples of limiting conditions include the availability of suitable nest sites and the presence of competing colonies that could hem the colony in. Linepithema humile is native to the region around northern Argentina (Wild 2004), where colonies span just hundreds of meters. But where the Argentine ant has invaded elsewhere by jump dispersal (movements over a distance, invariably piggybacking on human transport), its generalist diet and flexible nest habitats, coupled with a lack of effective competitors, has contributed to its status as one of the most damaging invasive species (Lowe et al. 2004), by permitting single colonies to leapfrog continents and grow across hundreds of square kilometers (Vogel et al. 2010; van Wilgenburg et al. 2010).

Indeed, the invasive colonies of Argentine ants are the largest recorded societies of multicellular organisms. Among the supercolonies of this species spreading globally, Large Supercolony (as it is known in California, where it might contain a trillion individuals: Moffett 2010) is the champion, spanning 1000 km from San Francisco to the Mexican border in California, 6000 km in Europe, 2800 km in Australia, 900 km on the North Island of New Zealand, and ever-widening regions of Hawaii and Japan (Giraud et al. 2002; Vogel et al. 2010; van Wilgenburg et al. 2010). Carry an Argentine ant worker, queen, or male within or between any of these regions and it merges with the ants living there with at most a subtle initial pause to inspect them (Björkman-Chiswell et al. 2008). It joins the local labor force without a hitch because it is still home, in a sense—Large Supercolony controls the entire expanse.

Three other Argentine ant colonies vie with the Large Supercolony for the land near San Diego, however. They collide along centimeters-wide borders that extend for kilometers: each month, more than a million ants die in battles between 2 of the colonies alone (Thomas et al. 2007). It is a death sentence for an ant to move just beyond its colony's territory onto ground controlled by one of these competitors (Figure 1). The same would be true if that ant came upon a fledgling Argentine ant colony offloaded from a ship from Argentina. In short, at no stage in colony growth is there ambiguity as to the limits of the colony unit. The ants show a universal lack of social strain or dysfunction toward other colony members, and a clear attack response to outsiders, even after their colony range has expanded across continents.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: The Brain on May 06, 2014, 03:10:06 PM
There is much to be learnt from beasts.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on July 23, 2014, 10:59:16 AM
Largest ever aquatic insect discovered:

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/running-ponies/2014/07/22/largest-aquatic-insect-in-the-world-found-in-china/

Check out the mandibles on that one!  :lol:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Berkut on July 23, 2014, 11:26:26 AM
Quote from: Malthus on May 06, 2014, 03:04:23 PM
The Argentine Ant "supercolony" is taking over whole continents:

http://beheco.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2012/04/13/beheco.ars043.full?sid=8eb4e726-93bc-48a9-ad8f-bd8c423b0278

QuoteArgentine ants form exceptionally massive colonies—supercolonies. This occurs because the queens stay in their natal colony, so all their progeny add to the colony's population. By budding—when the workers and queens move together to new sites, making colonies extremely polydomous (having multiple nests: Debout et al. 2007)—each colony can expand its territory as far as environmental conditions allow. Examples of limiting conditions include the availability of suitable nest sites and the presence of competing colonies that could hem the colony in. Linepithema humile is native to the region around northern Argentina (Wild 2004), where colonies span just hundreds of meters. But where the Argentine ant has invaded elsewhere by jump dispersal (movements over a distance, invariably piggybacking on human transport), its generalist diet and flexible nest habitats, coupled with a lack of effective competitors, has contributed to its status as one of the most damaging invasive species (Lowe et al. 2004), by permitting single colonies to leapfrog continents and grow across hundreds of square kilometers (Vogel et al. 2010; van Wilgenburg et al. 2010).

Indeed, the invasive colonies of Argentine ants are the largest recorded societies of multicellular organisms. Among the supercolonies of this species spreading globally, Large Supercolony (as it is known in California, where it might contain a trillion individuals: Moffett 2010) is the champion, spanning 1000 km from San Francisco to the Mexican border in California, 6000 km in Europe, 2800 km in Australia, 900 km on the North Island of New Zealand, and ever-widening regions of Hawaii and Japan (Giraud et al. 2002; Vogel et al. 2010; van Wilgenburg et al. 2010). Carry an Argentine ant worker, queen, or male within or between any of these regions and it merges with the ants living there with at most a subtle initial pause to inspect them (Björkman-Chiswell et al. 2008). It joins the local labor force without a hitch because it is still home, in a sense—Large Supercolony controls the entire expanse.

Three other Argentine ant colonies vie with the Large Supercolony for the land near San Diego, however. They collide along centimeters-wide borders that extend for kilometers: each month, more than a million ants die in battles between 2 of the colonies alone (Thomas et al. 2007). It is a death sentence for an ant to move just beyond its colony's territory onto ground controlled by one of these competitors (Figure 1). The same would be true if that ant came upon a fledgling Argentine ant colony offloaded from a ship from Argentina. In short, at no stage in colony growth is there ambiguity as to the limits of the colony unit. The ants show a universal lack of social strain or dysfunction toward other colony members, and a clear attack response to outsiders, even after their colony range has expanded across continents.


That is just fucking cool.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: PRC on July 23, 2014, 11:32:55 AM
And the ants shall inherit the earth.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 08, 2014, 03:07:50 PM
Okay this is the grossest:

http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/doctors-pull-live-cricket-out-mans-ear#
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Martinus on October 08, 2014, 03:28:03 PM
QuoteLinepithema humile

Means "humble ant" in Latin. Perhaps that's what Jesus meant when he said the meek and humble shall inherit the earth.  :ph34r:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on October 11, 2014, 10:46:47 AM
http://abcnews.go.com/Weird/wireStory/spiders-force-family-upscale-missouri-home-26106285

QuoteThousands of Venomous Spiders Force Family from Home

A family was driven from their suburban St. Louis home by thousands of venomous spiders that fell from the ceiling and oozed from the walls.

Brian and Susan Trost bought the $450,000 home overlooking two golf holes at Whitmoor Country Club in Weldon Spring in October 2007 and soon afterward started seeing brown recluse spiders everywhere, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported . Once when showering, Susan Trost dodged a spider as it fell from the ceiling and washed down the drain.

She told St. Louis television station KMOV-TV in 2012 the spiders "started bleeding out of the walls," and at least two pest control companies were unable to eradicate the infestation.

The couple filed a claim in 2008 with their insurance company, State Farm, and a lawsuit against the home's previous owners for not disclosing the brown recluse problem.

At a civil trial in St. Charles County in October 2011, University of Kansas biology professor Jamel Sandidge — considered one of the nation's leading brown recluse researchers — estimated there were between 4,500 and 6,000 spiders in the home. Making matters worse, he said, those calculations were made in the winter when the spiders are least active.

The jury awarded the couple slightly more than $472,000, but the former owners declared bankruptcy, the insurance company still didn't pay anything and the couple moved out two years ago.

The home, now owned by the Federal National Mortgage Association, was covered with nine tarps this week and workers filled it with a gas that permeated the walls to kill the spiders and their eggs.

"There'll be nothing alive in there after this," said Tim McCarthy, president of the company hired to fix the problem once and for all.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on October 11, 2014, 10:54:52 AM
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fen%2F9%2F92%2FKingdomofthespiders.png&hash=bf10984e787172d00ef9bfcc83507eb43a021f77)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on October 11, 2014, 11:09:42 AM
Quote from: garbon on October 11, 2014, 10:46:47 AM
http://abcnews.go.com/Weird/wireStory/spiders-force-family-upscale-missouri-home-26106285

Quote

The jury awarded the couple slightly more than $472,000, but the former owners declared bankruptcy, the insurance company still didn't pay anything and the couple moved out two years ago.

:mad:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on October 11, 2014, 11:14:24 AM
A different article noted insurance company claimed house wasn't insured for this sort of issue so they didn't have to pay.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 16, 2014, 02:57:19 PM
Quote from: garbon on October 11, 2014, 11:14:24 AM
A different article noted insurance company claimed house wasn't insured for this sort of issue so they didn't have to pay.

My guess is that "house invaded by hordes of poisionous spiders" insurance is pretty uncommon.  :lol:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on October 21, 2014, 12:42:40 PM
Not bugs but here is fun companion. House infested with garter snakes. That would be rather annoying but I don't imagine it would skeeve me out.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/102-snakes-seeking-sanctuary-slither-into-home-near-regina-1.2806795?cmp=rss
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 21, 2014, 12:50:08 PM
Quote from: garbon on October 21, 2014, 12:42:40 PM
Not bugs but here is fun companion. House infested with garter snakes. That would be rather annoying but I don't imagine it would skeeve me out.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/102-snakes-seeking-sanctuary-slither-into-home-near-regina-1.2806795?cmp=rss

Snakes. Why'd it have to be snakes?
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 21, 2014, 12:51:15 PM
Which reminds me ...   ;)

http://news.yahoo.com/goliath-encounter-puppy-sized-spider-surprises-scientist-rainforest-125720953.html
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Maximus on October 21, 2014, 12:54:12 PM
Quote from: garbon on October 21, 2014, 12:42:40 PM
Not bugs but here is fun companion. House infested with garter snakes. That would be rather annoying but I don't imagine it would skeeve me out.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/102-snakes-seeking-sanctuary-slither-into-home-near-regina-1.2806795?cmp=rss
The house my brother currently owns in Saskatchewan had a similar problem. The previous occupants, who were friends of his, had snakes coming out of the drains, toilet etc. Turns out the people who had built the house had inadvertently placed the septic tank in a snake pit. The community got together and cleared the place out. They killed and carried out many hundreds of garter snakes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNVNipoEUrY
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on October 21, 2014, 12:57:04 PM
Quote from: Malthus on October 21, 2014, 12:51:15 PM
Which reminds me ...   ;)

http://news.yahoo.com/goliath-encounter-puppy-sized-spider-surprises-scientist-rainforest-125720953.html

Oh hell no.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 21, 2014, 01:00:55 PM
Quote from: garbon on October 21, 2014, 12:57:04 PM
Quote from: Malthus on October 21, 2014, 12:51:15 PM
Which reminds me ...   ;)

http://news.yahoo.com/goliath-encounter-puppy-sized-spider-surprises-scientist-rainforest-125720953.html

Oh hell no.

The article misses out mentioning one of the spider's defensive mechanisms: "Its sheer size and grossness causes those afraid of spiders to run away, screaming".  ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on October 21, 2014, 01:07:03 PM
Actually I think they likely fall dead from fright. -_-
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 21, 2014, 03:26:51 PM
Seriously though - somehow, I don't have the same instinctive reaction of fear for plus-sized critters as for their smaller creepy-crawly relations. Maybe, because they look more like the larger animals - like lobsters or crabs.

When I was in Malaysia, some locals caught a giant centepede and removed its poision fangs and kept it as a (temporary) pet. I let it run over my arm - no reaction at all; it was simply too large to be a creepy-crawly. My wife, on the other hand, wouldn't even look at it.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on October 21, 2014, 03:38:03 PM
Well I'm not generally a fan of any size spider but at least if they are small, easy enough for me to ignore. Not sure how I'd ignore and/or have the courage to kill such a beast.

Side note, I once had soft shell crab tempura. I could barely eat it as when it came out it looked to me like a fried spider.

Snakes though? No problem with snakes at all. :cool:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on February 06, 2015, 04:46:44 PM
Haven't had a Hive entry for a while - I'm sure you have all been waiting anxiously.  :D

How about this tuna can "find":

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/british-mom-finds-tongue-eating-parasite-tuna-article-1.2105693

Turns out to be a small one of these:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_twFXQlXtIu4/S2PGkIu2QrI/AAAAAAAAAtA/O_GNqzatCYA/s1600-h/cymothoa_exigua.jpg

Umm-umm good.  :lol:

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Monoriu on February 06, 2015, 06:58:46 PM
There is a really popular anime that is literally called Master of Bugs.  I hate bugs, and I am not watching it :yuk:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on February 06, 2015, 11:12:04 PM
Quote from: Malthus on February 06, 2015, 04:46:44 PM
Haven't had a Hive entry for a while - I'm sure you have all been waiting anxiously.  :D

How about this tuna can "find":

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/british-mom-finds-tongue-eating-parasite-tuna-article-1.2105693

Turns out to be a small one of these:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_twFXQlXtIu4/S2PGkIu2QrI/AAAAAAAAAtA/O_GNqzatCYA/s1600-h/cymothoa_exigua.jpg

Umm-umm good.  :lol:



What I've learned in the past year is that I can expect a lot of added protein from British goods.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on February 09, 2015, 09:19:25 AM
Quote from: Monoriu on February 06, 2015, 06:58:46 PM
There is a really popular anime that is literally called Master of Bugs.  I hate bugs, and I am not watching it :yuk:

I assume that the "bugs" are actually cute little girls, rather than tounge-eating monstrosities.  ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on May 19, 2015, 01:58:00 AM
Spider Rain! :punk:

Click the link for pics!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/05/19/the-science-behind-australias-spooky-spider-rain/

QuoteThe science behind Australia's spooky 'spider rain'

By Sarah Kaplan May 19 at 1:09 AM

Residents of Goulburn, Australia woke this month to find their town shrouded in eerie, silken webs, while millions of tiny spiders rained down from above, local news reported.

"The whole place was covered in these little black spiderlings and when I looked up at the sun it was like this tunnel of webs going up for a couple of hundred meters into the sky," resident Ian Watson told the Sydney Morning Herald. His house looked like it had been "abandoned and taken over by spiders," he added.

Mystified by the phenomenon — and frustrated by the tiny arachnids getting caught in his beard — Watson did what anyone in his situation would do: He turned to the Internet.

"Anyone else experiencing ... millions of spiders falling from the sky right now?" he wrote on Goulburn's community Facebook page, according to the Morning Herald. "I'm 10 minutes out of town and you can clearly see hundreds of little spiders floating along with their webs and my home is covered in them. Someone call a scientist!"

It's not clear if anyone did pick up their phone, but if they had, scientists could have assured the people of Goulburn that their predicament is fairly common. Similar incidents have been documented recently in Texas and Brazil and nearby Wagga Wagga, another Australian town.

"Spider rain" happens when large groups of arachnids migrate all at once, using a technique called "ballooning." According to a 2001 study in the Journal of Arachnology, the spiders will spin out dozens of silk strands at once so that they fan out and form a triangular parachute, allowing the clever critters to catch a breeze toward new ground.

Rick Vetter, an entomologist at the University of California Riverside, told Live Science that many spiders use ballooning — usually just not all at once.

"This is going on all around us all the time. We just don't notice it, he said.

It's a useful skill to have if you're a tiny arachnid — far faster than walking on your own eight legs. According to Martyn Robinson, a naturalist at the Australian Museum, spiders can travel for miles this way.

"[Balooning] is why every continent has spiders. Even in Antarctica they regularly turn up but just die," he told the Sydney Morning Herald. "That's also why the first land animals to arrive on new islands formed by volcanic activity are usually spiders."

When the aerial arachnids land, their silk balloons wind up draped over the landscape. This effect, sometimes called "angel hair," also happens after heavy rains or floods, Robinson said. Spiders that live in the ground will throw silk "snag lines" into the air and use them to haul themselves up out of the waterlogged earth. When huge numbers of spiders escape drowning this way, their criss-crossing "silk roads" weave a shroud over trees, grass and sometimes buildings.

The effect rarely lasts long, but it gives ordinary buildings and fields a distinctly haunted look. Which means that lots of people are ready to forgo the scientific explanation for an otherworldly one. People who believe in UFOs often cite "angel hair" incidents as evidence.

Last fall, Roberto Pinotti, the president of Italy's National UFO Center, spoke to the BBC about his own angel hair sighting, a 1954 incident in Florence.

"I remember, in broad daylight, seeing the roofs of the houses in Florence covered in this white substance for one hour and, like snow, it just evaporated," he said. The substance appeared at the same time that spectators at a local soccer game spotted several strange objects in the sky above the stadium, and Pinotti is not convinced that spiders were to blame.

"Of course I know about the migrating spiders hypothesis — it's pure nonsense. It's an old story and also a stupid story," Pinotti told the BBC.

But astronomer James McGaha, who works at the Center for Inquiry's Grassland Observatory and works to debunk paranormal theories, said much the same thing about Pinotti's beliefs.

"It's an absolutely silly idea. Science totally rejects this idea," he said of the UFO explanation.

"This was actually caused by young spiders spinning webs, very, very thin webs," he told the BBC. "As some of this stuff breaks off and falls to the ground, this all seems magical of course. ... But I'm fairly confident that's what happened that day."
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Eddie Teach on May 19, 2015, 02:12:04 AM
It's Charlotte's babies.  :)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on July 05, 2015, 01:41:39 AM
https://i.imgur.com/781U61Y.gifv

(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.kinja-img.com%2Fgawker-media%2Fimage%2Fupload%2Fv57u3nh0yv8vq6lkhgtu.gif&hash=249ef87a31f157adab963dfc08d60a7d3ea6c7cb)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on September 16, 2015, 09:35:22 PM
The horror...  :wacko:


http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2015/09/arctic-mosquitoes-and-the-chaos-of-climate-change/405322/

Quote
Arctic Mosquito Swarms Large Enough to Kill a Baby Caribou
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on September 17, 2015, 08:06:35 AM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on September 16, 2015, 09:35:22 PM
The horror...  :wacko:


http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2015/09/arctic-mosquitoes-and-the-chaos-of-climate-change/405322/

Quote
Arctic Mosquito Swarms Large Enough to Kill a Baby Caribou

I've experienced true killing swarms, in northern Quebec. It wasn't pretty.  :lol: When the weather and breeding conditions are "just right" (or "just wrong"), the sheer number of mosquitoes you can get is awe inspiring.

I remember one time I was sitting with my wife on the (screened) porch at the far northern cottage ("cabin" for you Yanks  :P ), in early June, when night started falling. We heard what sounded like a motorboat starting up on the lake nearby and comming close. I shined my flashlight out at the water to see who it was - it wasn't a motor, it was the buzz of literally millions of mosquitoes swarming the cottage like something out of a horror movie. The screen was solid black with them - you couldn't actually see out.

We had to use a chamber pot that night - I wasn't opening that door for any reason whatsoever.  :lol: I can well believe that swarm would, quite literally, kill any animal unable to take cover or swat. 
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on October 01, 2015, 10:01:41 AM
http://www.fox32chicago.com/news/dont-miss/26928439-story

Quote'Scratching noise' in woman's ear caused by spider weaving web

A woman who sought medical attention for noises that only she could hear had to have a live spider removed from her left ear canal.

Li Meng had put off calling the doctor at first because she was afraid that the "scratching noise" that she heard at night was possibly evil spirits, Central European News (CEN) reported. Eventually, the pain became so great that medicine stopped helping, and she consulted doctors at the Xiamen Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the report said.

An ear, nose and throat specialist discovered that a spider had been weaving a web in her ear canal. The spider was resting on her eardrum. Each attempt doctors made to remove the spider caused it to react violently, resulting in more pain for Meng.

Eventually doctors subdued the spider with medicine and pulled it out with tweezers, CEN reported. Meng said she had been hiking with her boyfriend and it's likely the spider crawled into her ear while she was climbing a tree

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CQEdmiNWcAAlH49.jpg)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 01, 2015, 10:08:19 AM
Okay, that's pretty gross.  :lol:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 07, 2015, 08:31:06 AM
Flooding in South Carolina just got added terrors - Fire Ant Rafts!

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2015/10/06/floating-fire-ant-islands-south-carolina-floods/73448778/?siteID=je6NUbpObpQ-wnfHHXGrK5YQqe8jY.QpiA

QuoteDavis said it's not uncommon to come across the rafts of floating ants, and said they have even been found indoors after a flooding event. He said it's important for people to stay out of the flood waters and avoid the masses of ants at all cost.

"If one of those rafts comes in contact with you, or you try to break it apart, it will likely disperse and crawl up you," he said.

Awesome!  :lol:

Nuke it from orbit ...
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on October 07, 2015, 09:14:30 AM
That's awesome.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on October 15, 2015, 07:25:20 PM
Neat! :nerd:

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20151014-superpowers-of-the-near-invincible-velvet-ant

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on November 12, 2015, 09:37:35 PM
Creepy  :yucky:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/11990229/Cockroaches-bite-with-50-times-more-force-than-their-body-weight.html

Quote


The shudder you feel when you spy a cockroach will only be intensified by the results of a new study.


A cockroach can bite with 50 times more force than its body weight, and with five times the relative force of a human being, according to the study, published in the Plos One scientific journal.


The startlingly powerful bite is generated by a "force boost" activated when the insects chew hard materials such as wood, say researchers from Cambridge and three German universities.


Even for a species that is believed to predate dinosaurs and can live up to two weeks after being decapitated, a bite of that force is an impressive attribute.


The finding was part of an effort to catalogue the bite strengths of insects, rather than just large animals.


"Ours is the first study to measure the bite forces of ordinary insects, and we found that the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana, can generate a bite force around 50 times stronger than its own body weight," said lead author Tom Weihmann from the University of Cambridge's zoology department.

In order to determine the bite strength, the researchers strapped the cockroaches to miniature guillotine-like devices, with the insects laying on their backs and their heads secured in place. They then chomped down on a sensor, which recorded their jaw-dropping jaw strength.

The team of researchers is unsure how the cockroach can withstand such repeated force over its lifetime.

Mr Weihmann said experiments like this one would pay dividends in the future.

"With increasing miniaturisation, such designs will become increasingly important," he said. "Recent technical implementations in this direction are for instance micro-probes inserted into blood vessels or micro-surgical instruments."
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on December 15, 2015, 04:49:12 PM
Okay, this is the grossest thing ever.  :yuk:

Click at your own risk:

http://journals.lww.com/neurosurgery/pages/videogallery.aspx?videoId=178&autoPlay=false
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on February 17, 2016, 02:48:53 PM
The amazing story of the Tree Lobsters, and how they came back from the brink of extinction!

http://www.npr.org/sections/krulwich/2012/02/24/147367644/six-legged-giant-finds-secret-hideaway-hides-for-80-years

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/02/11/465781993/love-giant-insects-meet-the-tree-lobster-back-from-the-brink

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 03:02:03 PM
Quote from: Malthus on February 17, 2016, 02:48:53 PM
The amazing story of the Tree Lobsters, and how they came back from the brink of extinction!

http://www.npr.org/sections/krulwich/2012/02/24/147367644/six-legged-giant-finds-secret-hideaway-hides-for-80-years

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/02/11/465781993/love-giant-insects-meet-the-tree-lobster-back-from-the-brink



Ah yes, the Lord Howe Island stick insect, cute bug  :P. Interesting story, hope they finally decide to get rid of the rats so their unique insects and birds have a chance.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on February 17, 2016, 03:04:25 PM
Also, "Ball's Pyramid" looks freaking insane. Sounds like the sort of climbing destination Dorsey could be interested in!  ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 03:10:43 PM
Quote from: Malthus on February 17, 2016, 03:04:25 PM
Also, "Ball's Pyramid" looks freaking insane. Sounds like the sort of climbing destination Dorsey could be interested in!  ;)

Oh yeah, that would be awesome. Maybe some scientific team needs an asshole to carry their equipment or something, otherwise he is shit out of luck.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Admiral Yi on February 17, 2016, 03:15:35 PM
Quote from: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 03:10:43 PM
Maybe some scientific team needs an asshole to carry their equipment or something

I don't think you're doing it right.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 03:29:27 PM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on February 17, 2016, 03:15:35 PM
Quote from: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 03:10:43 PM
Maybe some scientific team needs an asshole to carry their equipment or something

I don't think you're doing it right.
:unsure:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Admiral Yi on February 17, 2016, 03:49:10 PM
It's a joke based on a purposeful misunderstanding that scientists are carrying stuff around in their assholes.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 03:51:09 PM
Swoosh.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Liep on February 17, 2016, 03:53:46 PM
Quote from: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 03:51:09 PM
Swoosh.

The joke was a stretch, but not that big of a stretch.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on February 17, 2016, 03:54:11 PM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on February 17, 2016, 03:49:10 PM
It's a joke based on a purposeful misunderstanding that scientists are carrying stuff around in their assholes.

Those Tree Lobsters sure have specialized requirements for transportation!  :hmm:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 04:05:18 PM
Quote from: Liep on February 17, 2016, 03:53:46 PM
Quote from: lustindarkness on February 17, 2016, 03:51:09 PM
Swoosh.

The joke was a stretch, but not that big of a stretch.

Depends on the equipment they carry in the ass that is.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on July 18, 2016, 11:37:48 PM
Huge Yelllow Jacket nest in an arm chair.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9I2hSQRTMQ
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Razgovory on July 19, 2016, 12:09:21 AM
I was expecting a bee the size of a dog. :mad:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on July 19, 2016, 12:37:54 AM
Quote from: Razgovory on July 19, 2016, 12:09:21 AM
I was expecting a bee the size of a dog. :mad:


:lol:

Forgot to say nest there.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on July 19, 2016, 08:08:05 AM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on July 18, 2016, 11:37:48 PM
Huge Yelllow Jacket nest in an arm chair.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9I2hSQRTMQ

That chair does not look very inviting somehow.  :hmm:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on July 19, 2016, 08:12:12 AM
I would rate bald-faced hornets as significantly worse than yellowjackets in the aggression department though. They are much larger with a more potent sting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_znYyh7t63E

As you may have read in the OT thread, I had to remove a nest of these suckers this weekend - I managed it without getting stung.  :)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on July 19, 2016, 01:14:24 PM
Now, THAT's a yellowjacket hive ... !

Check this out: hive with literally millions of wasps. And they are pissed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9ynSPtTa9c
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on July 20, 2016, 04:50:59 PM
Everyone knows that the coolest way of destroying a wasp nest is with a flamethrower - but only the Chinese military has actually done it.  :lol:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_Bo2ro60ro
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Ed Anger on July 20, 2016, 06:01:41 PM
I just gas the fuckers.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on July 20, 2016, 07:24:17 PM
Quote from: Malthus on July 19, 2016, 01:14:24 PM
Now, THAT's a yellowjacket hive ... !

Check this out: hive with literally millions of wasps. And they are pissed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9ynSPtTa9c

I posted about that way back on the first page. :contract:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: lustindarkness on July 20, 2016, 07:53:44 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on July 20, 2016, 06:01:41 PM
I just gas the fuckers.

Can I keep their flame thrower after we do?
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: HVC on October 06, 2016, 12:36:04 AM
Who knew there were blue bees. Below is the the blue carpenter bee.

(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thebiologistapprentice.com%2Fuploads%2F2%2F1%2F8%2F0%2F21804038%2F4729540_orig.jpg&hash=3d49674d32d009eeffc8b360c0ff8493fde7b8c7)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on October 25, 2016, 02:14:44 PM
Thinking of Malthus and his love for spiders :P

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/oct/24/australia-giant-spider-mouse-carry-horrifying-impressive
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 25, 2016, 02:29:10 PM
Quote from: viper37 on October 25, 2016, 02:14:44 PM
Thinking of Malthus and his love for spiders :P

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/oct/24/australia-giant-spider-mouse-carry-horrifying-impressive

Holy shit!  :lol:

I bet that spider would vote Liberal. Invite him to immigrate, perhaps in a box of Australian Kiwi fruit.  :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: HVC on October 25, 2016, 02:47:42 PM
One of the good thing about cold winters is that our insects are sane. Sure we have a few things like dock spiders, but they're in the hinterlands and harmless.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on October 25, 2016, 10:53:15 PM
Quote from: Malthus on October 25, 2016, 02:29:10 PM
I bet that spider would vote Liberal.
See, even you recognize the most demonic creatures are attracted by the Liberal Party!
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on October 26, 2016, 02:02:23 AM
Quote from: HVC on October 25, 2016, 02:47:42 PM
One of the good thing about cold winters is that our insects are sane. Sure we have a few things like dock spiders, but they're in the hinterlands and harmless.

California ain't all that crazy and you get to avoid the cold.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 26, 2016, 08:40:59 AM
Quote from: HVC on October 25, 2016, 02:47:42 PM
One of the good thing about cold winters is that our insects are sane. Sure we have a few things like dock spiders, but they're in the hinterlands and harmless.

Speaking of dock spiders, there was an article about them in the Economist this week!  :D

(They call them "Dark Fishing Spiders", but it is the same species: Dolomedes tenebrosus ).

Apparently, their males have sexual habits that would do a Languishite proud.   :P

http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21709003-male-dark-fishing-spiders-sacrifice-themselves-good-their

QuoteNature's cruellest one-night stand

ANIMAL mating can be a cruel and unusual process. Male bedbugs inseminate females by piercing their bellies and depositing sperm inside their paramours' body cavities. Male chimpanzees and lions kill the suckling infants of females before mating with them, as this brings those females more rapidly into oestrus. Male dolphins routinely engage in rape. Nor are aggressive mating practices perpetrated solely by males against females. In many species of insects and spiders, females eat their partners after sex.

Such cannibalism clearly brings advantage to the female, who gets an easy snack. But the benefits (if any) for the male are less obvious. That there might sometimes be such benefits, though, is an idea that intrigues zoologists—and so, from time to time, some of them look into the matter.


The latest to do so are Steven Schwartz of Gonzaga University, in the American state of Washington, and Eileen Hebets of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dr Schwartz and Dr Hebets note that, after mating, the males of one species of arachnid, the dark fishing spider, spontaneously die and thus ensure that they get eaten. This is in contradistinction to the behaviour of most male spiders, who usually attempt at least some sort of a getaway, even if it is futile. And, as the two researchers report in a forthcoming paper in Current Biology, there is, indeed, method in the male fishing spider's suicidal madness.

Dr Schwartz and Dr Hebets came to this conclusion by collecting male and female dark fishing spiders and subjecting them to an experiment. In one group of the animals, females were allowed, as per normal, to eat their deceased partners after mating. In a second, the males' bodies were removed and the females ate nothing. And, in a third, the males' bodies were substituted by a cricket of about the same weight as a male spider.

Not surprisingly, the offspring of females in the first group—those allowed to cannibalise their partners—were bigger, more numerous and longer-lived than those of females in the second. But they were also bigger, more numerous and longer-lived than those of females in the third, cricket-fed group. In fact, the offspring of the third group did no better than those whose mothers had received no extra nutrients at all. Evidently, something in male fishing-spider flesh is particularly advantageous for the production and development of young.

Exactly what this something is, Dr Schwartz and Dr Hebets cannot yet say. But they do have a theory about what is going on. The fact that the male spider dies after mating, and thus makes sure his body is available as a feast for his mate, suggests the mysterious extra nutritional value of that body has evolved specifically for the purpose of nurturing the eggs that will turn into his offspring. Possibly, in the past, females have been so good at catching males that few survived to father a second brood anyway. In that case, any adaptation which enhanced the number and fitness of a male's firstborn clutch, even at the expense of his life, would be favoured by natural selection. Whatever the truth, though, the fate of the poor male dark fishing spider is surely the cruellest and most unusual one-night stand of all.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on April 02, 2017, 07:20:39 PM
Freaky  :ph34r:

Click to see some disturbing spider gifs

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/03/28/spiders-could-theoretically-eat-every-human-on-earth-in-one-year/?utm_term=.4d1f70007c65
Quote

Spiders could theoretically eat every human on Earth in one year

By Christopher Ingraham 
March 28  

Spiders are quite literally all around us. A recent entomological survey of North Carolina homes turned up spiders in 100 percent of them, including 68 percent of bathrooms and more than three-quarters of bedrooms. There's a good chance at least one spider is staring at you right now, sizing you up from a darkened corner of the room, eight eyes glistening in the shadows.

Spiders mostly eat insects, although some of the larger species have been known to snack on lizards, birds and even small mammals. Given their abundance and the voraciousness of their appetites, two European biologists recently wondered: If you were to tally up all the food eaten by the world's entire spider population in a single year, how much would it be?

Martin Nyffeler and Klaus Birkhofer published their estimate in the journal the Science of Nature earlier this month, and the number they arrived at is frankly shocking: The world's spiders consume somewhere between 400 million and 800 million tons of prey in any given year. That means that spiders eat at least as much meat as all 7 billion humans on the planet combined, who the authors note consume about 400 million tons of meat and fish each year.

Or, for a slightly more disturbing comparison: The total biomass of all adult humans on Earth is estimated to be 287 million tons. Even if you tack on another 70 million-ish tons to account for the weight of kids, it's still not equal to the total amount of food eaten by spiders in a given year, exceeding the total weight of humanity.

In other words, spiders could eat all of us and still be hungry.

To arrive at this number Nyffler and Birkhofer did a lot of sophisticated estimation based on existing research into A) how many spiders live in a square meter of land for all the main habitat types on Earth, and B) the average amount of food consumed by spiders of different sizes in a given year.

These numbers yielded some interesting factoids on their own. For instance, one study estimated that global average spider density stands at about 131 spiders per square meter. Some habitats, like deserts and tundra, are home to fewer spiders. On the other hand, spider densities of 1,000 or more individuals per square meter have been observed under certain "favorable" conditions — since Nyffler and Birkhofer don't define what "favorable" means in this context, I'm going to assume it refers to dark, dusty places like the area under my bed.

If you gathered up all the spiders on the planet and placed them on a very large scale, together they'd weigh about 25 million tons, according to Nyffler and Birkhofer. For comparison, the Titanic weighed about 52,000 tons. The mass of every spider on Earth today, in other words, is equivalent to 478 Titanics.

Spider biologists have also generally found that spiders consume approximately 10 percent of their body weight in food per day. That's equivalent to a 200-pound man eating 20 pounds of meat each day.

Conversely, it would take approximately 2,000 pounds of spiders to consume a 200-pound man in one day.

In the end, spiders' voracity actually works out to mankind's benefit. Since they primarily feast on bugs, their hunger means fewer pests in the garden, fewer mosquitoes in the yard and fewer flies in the house.

The Washington Post reached out to a spider for comment on this story. Its reply:

gif
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on July 20, 2017, 07:14:17 AM
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2017/jul/20/bees-under-the-macro-lens-in-pictures

These bees close up look really cool.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on July 20, 2017, 07:27:14 AM
Quote from: garbon on July 20, 2017, 07:14:17 AM
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2017/jul/20/bees-under-the-macro-lens-in-pictures

These bees close up look really cool.

I love the bee hairdos.  :lol:

But seriously - they do look awesome.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Valmy on July 20, 2017, 08:24:20 AM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on April 02, 2017, 07:20:39 PM
Freaky  :ph34r:

It looks like spiders are the world's last hope.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tonitrus on August 30, 2017, 11:41:48 PM
The recent Texas flooding has forced the resident fire ants to form a navy...

(https://fsmedia.imgix.net/47/ac/b5/3f/309b/4bee/a8f0/ff43666fe247/floating-rafts-of-solenopsis-invicta-fire-ants-are-even-more-venomous-than-usual.jpeg?auto=format%2Ccompress&w=700)

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DIP5BtdV4AI6-UO.jpg)

https://twitter.com/Mike_Hixenbaugh/status/901912379470077952

(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fmedia2.intoday.in%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fstories%2Ffloating-fire-ants-houston-hurricane-harvey-647_083017073231.jpg&hash=4623e4dd68ccf7ba5474463fa6463ab72f4c6ccc)

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/08/fire-ants-flooding-hurricane-harvey/538365/

No scribes allowed.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on July 16, 2018, 09:23:34 AM
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jul/16/brazilian-bird-eating-tarantulas-spider-found-in-derbyshire-car-park

QuoteTwo tarantulas may be on loose after babies found in Derbyshire car park
Baby spiders were abandoned in pots and RSPCA says witness saw parents scuttling away

Two tarantulas may be on the loose in a village after three of their babies were found abandoned in a car park.

The RSPCA said it had rescued the baby Brazilian bird-eating spiders after they were found discarded in pots in Derbyshire.

Inspectors said the containers were run over by a vehicle in the village of Somercotes but the driver believes he saw two "larger spiders" possibly the parents – scuttling away.

The tarantula is thought to be the Brazilian salmon pink bird-eater, one of the world's largest of the species with a leg span of up to 25cm.

The spiders are partially pink and usually live on the forest floor in Brazil and eat insects, lizards, mice and the occasional small bird.

Experts said the missing tarantulas may not survive long in English weather. Yet the unseasonably warm climate has led to concerns they may roam for longer than expected.

Kristy Ludlam, an RSPCA inspector, said an "understandably shaken" woman had found the baby spiders in Bateman's Yard livery stable's car park in Somercotes last Thursday and contacted the RSPCA as she is terrified of them.

"It appears someone ran over two of the pots and the driver told the woman who called us he thought he saw two larger spiders. No bodies were found, so it is assumed they may have escaped," she said.

"We collected all the pots and took them to a specialist who found three baby arachnids in them, which he believes are bird-eating spiders – when he opened one pot a spider ran up his arm.

"He is keeping all the pots warm and secure as there is a possibility more eggs may hatch."

It is an offence under the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act to release or allow any non-native species to escape into the wild.

The owner of a nearby kennels and cattery said she was very worried. "Two of the workers ran around the kennels screaming when they heard the news," said Sarah Towndrow from Birchwood boarding kennels and cattery in Birchwood Lane, near where the pots were found.

"We are getting a vet out so they can take a good look and advise us on what we need to do. We're also all going to be searching the area to make sure they're not here and then report it if they're here.

"They could cause real harm to the animals here, so we will be keeping a very close eye on them. There's a lot of places they could hide and keep out of the way so the search will be very thorough. People feel frightened and it makes the animals vulnerable."

The rescued spiders have been taken to Arnold and Carlton veterinary centre in Nottingham where they will be cared for until they are ready to be rehomed, the RSPCA said.

(https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3dbce668c0c2acf7723f7ec56100f58b0159210d/0_213_2833_1700/master/2833.jpg?w=620&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&fit=max&s=695bbb4cbe56be9e073b98e26f7a8771)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on July 16, 2018, 09:38:03 AM
Amusingly, they are supposed to make good pets because they are considered very docile.  :D

They can bite, of course, but will do so only as a total last resort; their bites are supposed to be painful but not dangerous. They can also flick irritating hairs into your eyes, if you hold them up to your face and they feel threatened that you will eat their soft, juicy abdomen.

The real danger is that someone will see one and have a heart attack, due to their truly ginormous size (for a spider). Their threat to humans or wildlife is basically non-existent; one cold snap and they are dead.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tamas on July 16, 2018, 09:43:07 AM
Good thing they are far away.

Shit. Even giant house spiders freak me the hell out.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on August 22, 2018, 07:19:23 AM
I found a Masked Hunter Bug:

(https://i.imgur.com/efDsCRU.jpg)

They are the immature form of a species of assassin bug - they glue bits of dust all over their bodies for camouflage.

I thought it was neat, let it crawl on my hand - but later, I read about them: apparently they can give a horribly painful bite, worse than a wasp sting. I escaped without the bite.

So if you see one - don't pick it up.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on October 22, 2018, 09:25:04 AM
Another interesting find:

(https://i.imgur.com/C1KYKD5.jpg)

I was our for a weekend walk in the local cemetery with the family, and we came across thousands of these large (more than 2 inch) bugs crawling along the ground; there were so many, that hundreds were crushed on the cemetery roads - even though there were very few cars.

My son and I kidded each other about picking them up, but they were so large and ugly we weren't seriously tempted. I had no idea what they were ...

Turns out not picking them up was a good idea - they are American Oil Beetles, one of the "Blister Beetles", and they are highly toxic; they exude an oil (hence the name) from their limbs, which creates big, painful skin blisters if handled.

So if you see one - don't touch it. And definitely do not eat it, they are very poisonous.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on November 19, 2018, 11:08:26 AM
I was out skiing at Hardwood Hills when I noticed a piece of what appeared to be a leaf falling from a tree - turned out it was a moth, for some reason not in hibernation, flying about. It landed nearby on the snow and I took a picture of it.

Reminded me of the fragility of life:

(https://i.imgur.com/3fQNWHn.jpg)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Savonarola on February 08, 2019, 10:07:33 AM
I thought you might appreciate this, Malthus:

VR Therapy Makes Arachnophobes Braver Around Real Spiders (https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/spider-video-therapy)

(Although I don't know if that's good news or bad news for you.)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on February 08, 2019, 10:37:34 AM
Quote from: Savonarola on February 08, 2019, 10:07:33 AM
I thought you might appreciate this, Malthus:

VR Therapy Makes Arachnophobes Braver Around Real Spiders (https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/spider-video-therapy)

(Although I don't know if that's good news or bad news for you.)

Room 101 therapy!  :D

This part really caught my attention:

Quote"Say you have a room full of [computer generated] people listening to you for social anxiety. If they're not quite humanlike, but they're close, you might end up focusing on that, and that weirding you out in a way that's not necessarily helpful for treatment."

Go in with one phobia, come out with another.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on March 02, 2019, 12:45:57 AM
Eight Legged Freaks! :o

https://www.foxnews.com/science/huge-spider-drags-opossum-across-amazon-rainforest-floor-in-haunting-footage

QuoteHuge spider drags opossum across Amazon rainforest floor in haunting footage
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on March 02, 2019, 11:00:33 PM
damn!  Beaten by Tim!
I was just gonna post this here :)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on March 04, 2019, 10:16:16 AM
A very worthy addition!
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on March 04, 2019, 08:17:32 PM
Malthus is obviously in tune with the Lord

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/04/parasitic-wasps-dominate-the-animal-kingdom/557348/
QuoteAn Inordinate Fondness for Wasps
There are probably more species of them than any other animal group.

ED YONG
APR 6, 2018
When talking about whether theology has anything to learn from science, the British biologist J. B. S. Haldane used to quip that God must have "an inordinate fondness for beetles."

He had a point. Around 380,000 species of beetle have been described, which accounts for a quarter of all known animal species. There are more species of ladybugs than mammals, of longhorn beetles than birds, of weevils than fish. Textbooks and scientific papers regularly state that beetles are the most speciose group of animals; that is, there are more of them than there are of anything else.

But Andrew Forbes, from the University of Iowa, thinks that this factoid cannot possibly be right.

In a new paper, published online as a pre-print, Forbes and his colleagues argue that nature's apparent beetlemania is more a reflection of historical bias than biological reality. Beetles are often conspicuous, shiny, beautiful, and varied—qualities which meant that 19th-century naturalists like Charles Darwin collected them for sport, and eagerly compared the size of their collections. Thanks to their inordinate fondness for beetles, we have a disproportionately thorough picture of the group's diversity. The same can't be said of other groups of insects that are smaller on average, harder to study, and less charismatic.

Forbes studies parasitoid wasps. These creatures use their stingers to lay eggs in (or on) the bodies of insects and other hosts. The grubs, upon hatching, devour their hosts alive, sometimes commandeering their minds and changing their behavior, and sometimes bursting out of their desiccated carcasses. There's a wasp that takes cockroaches for walks after turning them into docile zombies, a wasp that forces spiders to spin a protective cocoon all while sucking them dry, a wasp that turns caterpillars into half-dead, head-banging bodyguards, a wasp that conscripts ladybirds into acting as babysitters.

Their lives are grisly and sinister, but their abilities are incredible.

No one really knows how many of them there are. There aren't many scientists who specialize in studying them. They can spend much of their lives hidden inside the bodies of other insects. And since they specialize in body-snatching, they can be incredibly small. The smallest of them, the fairy wasps, parasitize millimeter-long insects, and are themselves no bigger than a single-celled amoeba. This means that when scientists try to catalog the number of insects in a given area, they often ignore all but the biggest and most conspicuous parasitic wasps.

Other insects, however, do not ignore them. It seems that every species of insect is targeted by at least one species of parasitic wasp—if not several. There are even parasitic wasps that exclusively target other parasitic wasps—they're called hyperparasites. (They include the crypt-keeper wasp that was newly identified last year.) To Forbes's knowledge, no insects have escaped these parasites. Even those that live under water have their own particular wasp nemeses.

The beetles certainly aren't immune. "When we collect a species of beetle in large numbers, we'll rear out 10, 20, maybe 30 different wasp species," Forbes says. Surely then, he argues, parasitic wasps must outnumber beetles in terms of species?

The only way that wouldn't be true is if these parasites were mostly generalists, and the same wasps were targeting many species of beetle. In their paper, Forbes and colleagues argue that this is unlikely. They focused on four different genera of North American insects that have been very well studied: Rhagolettis fruit flies, Malacosoma tent caterpillars, Dendroctonus bark beetles, and Neodiprion sawflies. They then tallied the parasitic wasps that are known to specifically target these groups and these alone.

By extrapolating this conservative figure out to other insect groups, they estimated that the parasitic wasps probably outnumber the beetles by somewhere between 2.5 and 3.2 times. It's hard to say for sure without a full count of either group, but Forbes makes a compelling case.

"It's certainly preaching to the choir," says Josephine Rodriguez, an entomologist from the University of Virginia's College at Wise. "It doesn't surprise me at all. I really think the only people that would disagree would be the fly people."



"Look at it this way," says Lynn Kimsey, from UC Davis. "Beetles have never been very good at parasitism. Wasps, on the other hand, are all about parasitism. So for each beetle species there are probably at least two wasp parasitoids: One [that targets] the eggs and one [that targets] the larvae." Kimsey recently surveyed the insects that live in Southern California's sand dunes, and found that wasps—and other hymenopterans, like ants and bees—accounted for 42 percent of all the insects present, and outnumbered the beetles by two to three times.

There are a few other animal groups that could potentially be more speciose than the wasps. For example, insects also harbor bloodsucking mites and parasitic nematode worms. The same argument that Forbes makes for the wasps could also be made for these other groups, which are studied even less. "We don't have the knowledge," Forbes says. "The best thing that can happen is that other folks try to prove us wrong and we learn a lot more about mites and nematodes."

In the meantime, the wasps are the ones to beat, and the implications of their supremacy are unsettling. It's easy to see parasites as niche and unsavory creatures, but they're actually practicing the most successful lifestyles around. The defining innovation of the animal kingdom is not the stone tool of the ape nor the flight-capable feather of the bird, nor the hive mind of the ant, but the egg-laying stinger of the parasitic wasp.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on March 05, 2019, 10:21:15 AM
QuoteThey include the crypt-keeper wasp that was newly identified last year.

New favorite name.  :lol:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on March 05, 2019, 10:22:46 AM
Another one for Malthus' collection ;)
New 'astonishing' tarantula has strange horn on its back (https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2019/02/new-tarantula-species-horn-on-back/?cmpid=org%3DNGP%3A%3Amc%3Dsocial%3A%3Asrc%3Dfacebook%3A%3Acmp%3Dnews%3A%3Aadd%3Dwild20190305tarantulahorn%3A%3Arid%3D)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on March 05, 2019, 06:38:51 PM
Quote from: Malthus on March 05, 2019, 10:21:15 AM
QuoteThey include the crypt-keeper wasp that was newly identified last year.

New favorite name.  :lol:

Pretty interesting story on that one.

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/01/inception-but-with-parasites/514211/

QuoteThe Parasite That Compels Other Parasites to Shove Their Heads Into Holes
... and then eats them

ED YONG
JAN 24, 2017

In 2015, Scott Egan was walking along a Florida beach when he noticed some oak trees with distinctive swellings on their branches. He recognized them as the work of gall wasps—parasitic insects that lay their eggs in plants. From within, the larvae manipulate trees into creating chambers full of nutritious tissues. Tucked away in these crypts, the young wasps can eat their fill in safety. Once they turn into adults, they chew their way out and fly away. 

Egan, being a keen naturalist and an expert on gall wasps, snipped off some of the branches, took them back to his lab, and kept them in a container on his desk. After a couple of months, he noticed that a few orange insects had fallen to the bottom. Those were the gall wasps—an orange species called Basettia pallida, which had finally chewed their way out of their crypts. But not all of them made it. Egan noticed that some were stuck, their heads wedged in their own escape holes.


BASSETTIA PALLIDA IN ITS CRYPT.
To find out why, Egan teamed up with Kelly Weinersmith, a parasitologist and a colleague at Rice University. They cut open the branches and realized that every stuck wasp had a companion inside its crypt—a second wasp, half the size of the first, and iridescent blue. And in every case, the blue wasp was eating the orange one.

The blue wasp was a completely new species, and Weinersmith and Egan named it the crypt-keeper wasp. It's a stunning example of a hyperparasite—a parasite whose host is also a parasite. This lifestyle is surprisingly common, especially among wasps. Many species lay eggs in the bodies of other insects, only to have other wasps lay eggs in their young. And sometimes, hyperparasites can be parasitized by other hyperparasites, creating hierarchies of bodysnatching that can grow to four tiers.

Even by these standards, the crypt-keeper wasp is special. Parasites are incredibly common, but only some manipulate the behavior of their hosts. There are fungi that turn ants into zombies, hairworms that compel crickets to jump into water, and tapeworms that force shrimp to swarm in groups—all to help the parasites spread to their next hosts. The crypt-keeper wasp does this too, but as Weinersmith and Egan have shown, it's one of the few known hypermanipulator­­s—parasites that manipulate the behavior of other manipulative parasites.

Somehow, the crypt-keeper wasp can find an oak tree that already contains the larva of a crypt gall wasp, and then lays an egg inside the crypt. Once hatched, its larva manipulates its orange crypt-mate into chewing an escape hole that's smaller than usual. The orange victim then plugs the small hole with its own head, while the crypt-keeper larva devours it alive. Eventually, the crypt-keeper turns into an adult and chews its way to freedom, through the head of its roommate/larder/wall-plug.

Because of its behavior, Weinersmith and Egan gave the wasp the formal name of Eudurus set, after Set, the Ancient Egyptian god. "Set was the god of chaos and evil, and he was said to control other evil beings," says Weinersmith. "He also locked his brother Osiris in a crypt for him to die. It kind of blew our minds how many cool connections we could find."

After discovering the crypt-keeper, Egan went to the American Museum of Natural History and looked at old collections of gall wasps that had been gathered by Alfred Kinsey. (Yes, that Kinsey; before becoming synonymous with human sexuality, he was a prolific gall-wasp aficionado, who collected millions of the insects.) In some of the stored branches, Egan saw little heads plugging holes. We've found several such samples in museums around the country, going back 100 years." 

"This is the type of science I love; it leaves us hungrily asking more questions," says David Hughes from Pennsylvania State University, who studies manipulative parasites. For example, "how does this wasp get its egg into its soon-to-be excavator? And how does it do that so precisely to stop the activity at a stage where the hole is large enough just for a head to block, but not for the body of the manipulatee to emerge?" It might secrete some kind of mind-addling chemical. Alternatively, it might just eat its host to the point when it still has enough energy to make an escape hole, but not enough to make a big one.



Whatever the method, it's clear that the crypt-keeper benefits. It can't effectively chew its way out of the crypt on its own; if Weinersmith and Egan resealed those head-plugged holes with fresh bark, the crypt-keepers were three times more likely to die trapped in their crypts. "This make a strong case for the adaptive significance of the manipulated host behavior," says Shelley Adamo from Dalhousie University, who also studies parasites.

But why would the crypt-keeper force its host to plug the escape hole? It's not clear, but Weinersmith and Egan found an enticing clue. In some cases, they saw that a third type of wasp—a fairy wasp—would emerge from infected branches. Fairy wasps are among the smallest animals alive, and some of them are hyperparasites of the family that includes the crypt-keeper.

So, perhaps the crypt-keeper uses its host to plug the crypt, so it can't get parasitized itself by an intruding fairy wasp. Or maybe the fairy wasp uses the presence of a head-plugged hole to find a crypt-keeper wasp to target.  "We're hoping to catch the fairy wasp this year, and get the whole system into the lab," says Weinersmith. "It blows our minds that there could be yet another layer to all of this."

The writer Jonathan Swift, of Gulliver's Travels fame, said it best:

"So nat'ralists observe, a flea

Has smaller fleas that on him prey;

And these have smaller fleas to bite 'em.

And so proceeds Ad infinitum."
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on March 22, 2019, 06:31:49 AM
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D2Lfx5-XQAAkvi0?format=jpg&name=360x360)

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D2LfyViWsAArPjX?format=jpg&name=360x360)

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D2LfzIiW0AAAdaL?format=jpg&name=360x360)

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D2LfzxbXQAEfkdl?format=jpg&name=small)

(https://66.media.tumblr.com/6067f9d9f405a7beeb83a3af742843b9/tumblr_odkj0hCOWv1txu1kho1_400.gif)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on March 22, 2019, 07:47:32 AM
AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  :yucky: :yucky: :yucky::bleeding::bleeding::bleeding::bleeding::bleeding:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Grey Fox on March 22, 2019, 08:06:48 AM
Now, that's some high level white privilege.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on March 22, 2019, 08:25:11 AM
Quote from: Grey Fox on March 22, 2019, 08:06:48 AM
Now, that's some high level white privilege.

I'll gladly give that privilege to others.  :lol:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on March 22, 2019, 08:33:44 AM
Why would a person want a botfly?
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on April 01, 2019, 02:02:17 PM
Star Wars characters and vehicles reimagined as insects: http://richard-wilkinson.com/mainsite/portfolio/arthropoda-iconicus/
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on May 08, 2019, 12:53:51 PM
Old but good: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHzdsFiBbFc
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on May 09, 2019, 03:00:44 PM
I can't remember if this was posted here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuKfAFI19pg
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on May 15, 2019, 06:29:18 PM
There's a charming new fellow visiting Vancouver!
https://globalnews.ca/video/5271365/giant-japanese-hornet-discovered-in-vancouver

The asian giant hornet has been spotted in a Vancouver home.

Malthus will have to rethink his summer vacation.  A visit to Vancouver seems in order now, to investigage the matter! :D
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on May 16, 2019, 07:37:29 AM
Quote from: viper37 on May 15, 2019, 06:29:18 PM
There's a charming new fellow visiting Vancouver!
https://globalnews.ca/video/5271365/giant-japanese-hornet-discovered-in-vancouver

The asian giant hornet has been spotted in a Vancouver home.

Malthus will have to rethink his summer vacation.  A visit to Vancouver seems in order now, to investigage the matter! :D

I think I'll stay safely far away from that thing.  :lol:

One oddity - why does this woman keep the bug under a glass in her house? I mean, she's been in touch with the university - why not have them take it.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on May 16, 2019, 07:55:57 AM
Quote from: Malthus on May 16, 2019, 07:37:29 AM
Quote from: viper37 on May 15, 2019, 06:29:18 PM
There's a charming new fellow visiting Vancouver!
https://globalnews.ca/video/5271365/giant-japanese-hornet-discovered-in-vancouver

The asian giant hornet has been spotted in a Vancouver home.

Malthus will have to rethink his summer vacation.  A visit to Vancouver seems in order now, to investigage the matter! :D

I think I'll stay safely far away from that thing.  :lol:

One oddity - why does this woman keep the bug under a glass in her house? I mean, she's been in touch with the university - why not have them take it.

They aren't.  Since contacting the university, they followed the university's guidance and froze it to death so as to preserve the specimen until they can deliver it.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on August 31, 2020, 01:01:08 PM
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EghHgFCUYAEsweG?format=jpg&name=small)

:unsure:
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tamas on August 31, 2020, 01:04:53 PM
The Giant House Spiders which are fucking freakishly huge have their mating season between August and October and the males are roaming around looking for females. They are fucking quick and disgustingly brown and can be ljke up to 14 cms big which is about 28 times more than I can handle íja spider without the urge to kill it.

I have already seen and killed 4 of these fuckers over my 7 years in this country. I know that it is only a matter of time beofe my mex encounter with them, but that's something I will just have to learn to live with.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Valmy on August 31, 2020, 01:32:12 PM
Usually you want to let spiders be because they eat insects :hmm:

But I guess if they are giant sex spiders things might change :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: HisMajestyBOB on August 31, 2020, 01:51:29 PM
Quote from: Tamas on August 31, 2020, 01:04:53 PM
The Giant House Spiders which are fucking freakishly huge have their mating season between August and October and the males are roaming around looking for females. They are fucking quick and disgustingly brown and can be ljke up to 14 cms big which is about 28 times more than I can handle íja spider without the urge to kill it.

I have already seen and killed 4 of these fuckers over my 7 years in this country. I know that it is only a matter of time beofe my mex encounter with them, but that's something I will just have to learn to live with.

Eventually you'll have a spider that will buy you dinner first.  :)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tamas on August 31, 2020, 02:34:56 PM
 :lol:

I live by simple rules. If a spider enters my lair, it is dead.

At our current flat, they also die if they set up shop at our windows. There are a LOT of effin' bloody spiders around here. There are plenty left even with me culling their numbers.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tonitrus on September 01, 2020, 12:57:37 PM
I've actually managed to live in my place for nearly two years, and had never seen one of the legit GHSs.  Just lots of the daddy-long legs-looking frail spiders.

But saw the first one today after coming back from a run.  It was in the bedroom, so it broke "the deal"* and had to die.





*out in the kitchen/living room, I might have mercy and capture/release...but the bedrooms are their forbidden zone.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tamas on September 01, 2020, 03:26:10 PM
Told ya it was time for these fuckers to run amok. They should be back to hiding in about a month or so. Disgusting SOBs.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on September 02, 2020, 02:00:17 AM
Quote from: Valmy on August 31, 2020, 01:32:12 PM
Usually you want to let spiders be because they eat insects :hmm:

But I guess if they are giant sex spiders things might change :P

A bug that eats other bus is still a bug
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on September 02, 2020, 03:06:18 AM
Quote from: garbon on September 02, 2020, 02:00:17 AM
Quote from: Valmy on August 31, 2020, 01:32:12 PM
Usually you want to let spiders be because they eat insects :hmm:

But I guess if they are giant sex spiders things might change :P

A bug that eats other bus is still a bug
spiders aren't bugs :P
Anyway, at that size, they'll run out of insects soon enough:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhoPtDprVU8
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: HisMajestyBOB on September 02, 2020, 09:44:12 AM
Quote from: Tamas on September 01, 2020, 03:26:10 PM
Told ya it was time for these fuckers to run amok. They should be back to hiding in about a month or so. Disgusting SOBs.

Thought this was the thread o Trump supporters for a second.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tamas on September 16, 2020, 05:13:48 PM
First sighting a GHS in this flat. The fucker managed to hide between kitchen furniture before I could kill it too. Unnerving.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: crazy canuck on September 17, 2020, 09:20:07 AM
Quote from: viper37 on September 02, 2020, 03:06:18 AM
Quote from: garbon on September 02, 2020, 02:00:17 AM
Quote from: Valmy on August 31, 2020, 01:32:12 PM
Usually you want to let spiders be because they eat insects :hmm:

But I guess if they are giant sex spiders things might change :P

A bug that eats other bus is still a bug
spiders aren't bugs :P
Anyway, at that size, they'll run out of insects soon enough:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhoPtDprVU8

On the other hand a bug that can eat a bus is a real nuisance.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tonitrus on September 17, 2020, 12:15:31 PM
Good thing they're all in Brest-Litovsk.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on November 30, 2020, 01:33:57 AM
Super interesting, especially since this is one of the most well studied insect there is. Just goes to show, we don't know a lot about them.

Decent length, so click here to read.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2020/11/leaf-cutter-ants-have-strong-mineral-armor/
Quote
...

A new study shows that one Central American leaf-cutter ant species has natural armor that covers its exoskeleton. This shield-like coating is made of calcite with high levels of magnesium, a type found only in one other biological structure: sea urchin teeth, which can grind limestone.

....
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on March 14, 2021, 04:38:11 AM
Bee evacuation! https://twitter.com/nori_reed/status/1370582209921482754
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on March 14, 2021, 05:39:27 PM
Quote from: Syt on March 14, 2021, 04:38:11 AM
Bee evacuation! https://twitter.com/nori_reed/status/1370582209921482754

I know making smoke calms bees, but I still find it hard to understand how someone can be so free from worry that they scoop up wild bees with their bare hands!

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on March 14, 2021, 07:30:43 PM
They smoked the ceremonial pipe before she moved them :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on March 23, 2021, 11:23:25 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.

I would be too - those poor spiders!
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 11:33:48 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.

How do you manage with all the big-ass spiders in this country? :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on March 23, 2021, 11:39:23 AM
Quote from: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 11:33:48 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.

How do you manage with all the big-ass spiders in this country? :P

The thought of spiders with big asses is indeed particularly horrifying.  :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on March 23, 2021, 02:20:12 PM
Quote from: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 11:33:48 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.

How do you manage with all the big-ass spiders in this country? :P

Knock on endless wood but so far I've not dealt with many. Only ones I recall creeping in legs first under my front door, well I was drunk at the time and smashed it with an empty wine bottle and dealt with it when I woke up the next day. -_-
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: mongers on March 23, 2021, 05:02:49 PM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 02:20:12 PM
Quote from: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 11:33:48 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.

How do you manage with all the big-ass spiders in this country? :P

Knock on endless wood but so far I've not dealt with many. Only ones I recall creeping in legs first under my front door, well I was drunk at the time and smashed it with an empty wine bottle and dealt with it when I woke up the next day. -_-

You prefer to give flies and bluebottles free reign during Summer?
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 05:38:53 PM
Quote from: mongers on March 23, 2021, 05:02:49 PM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 02:20:12 PM
Quote from: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 11:33:48 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.

How do you manage with all the big-ass spiders in this country? :P

Knock on endless wood but so far I've not dealt with many. Only ones I recall creeping in legs first under my front door, well I was drunk at the time and smashed it with an empty wine bottle and dealt with it when I woke up the next day. -_-

You prefer to give flies and bluebottles free reign during Summer?

Oh don't give me that. :P Where we live, an admittedly quite green area, various breeds of spiders are EVERYWHERE. Everything is fucking covered in cobwebs, they are all over the common areas of the building, the cars parked outside etc. It is perfectly fine to cull their bloody numbers.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: garbon on March 23, 2021, 06:05:29 PM
Quote from: mongers on March 23, 2021, 05:02:49 PM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 02:20:12 PM
Quote from: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 11:33:48 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.

How do you manage with all the big-ass spiders in this country? :P

Knock on endless wood but so far I've not dealt with many. Only ones I recall creeping in legs first under my front door, well I was drunk at the time and smashed it with an empty wine bottle and dealt with it when I woke up the next day. -_-

You prefer to give flies and bluebottles free reign during Summer?

That's what screens are for. Oh and fly swatters.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 06:07:12 PM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 06:05:29 PM
Quote from: mongers on March 23, 2021, 05:02:49 PM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 02:20:12 PM
Quote from: Tamas on March 23, 2021, 11:33:48 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.

How do you manage with all the big-ass spiders in this country? :P

Knock on endless wood but so far I've not dealt with many. Only ones I recall creeping in legs first under my front door, well I was drunk at the time and smashed it with an empty wine bottle and dealt with it when I woke up the next day. -_-

You prefer to give flies and bluebottles free reign during Summer?

That's what screens are for. Oh and fly swatters.

To be fair, here the windows open outside (as if that makes any sense :P ) so good luck using screens.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on March 24, 2021, 03:13:05 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.
Wow, how are there enough insects to sustain them?

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-56489807
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on March 24, 2021, 02:07:54 PM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on March 24, 2021, 03:13:05 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.
Wow, how are there enough insects to sustain them?
Not anymore, no. ;)
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on March 24, 2021, 03:07:43 PM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on March 24, 2021, 03:13:05 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.
Wow, how are there enough insects to sustain them?

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-56489807

Going to be forced to eat people now.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: PDH on March 24, 2021, 05:54:16 PM
Quote from: Malthus on March 24, 2021, 03:07:43 PM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on March 24, 2021, 03:13:05 AM
Quote from: garbon on March 23, 2021, 07:27:30 AM
I briefly looked at the spiders escaping the Australian floods but then had to quickly look away before I became a quivering mess.
Wow, how are there enough insects to sustain them?

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-56489807

Going to be forced to eat people now.

It's Australia, that is their preferred meat.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: crazy canuck on March 24, 2021, 07:24:45 PM
Australia -  where everything wants to kill you.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on March 24, 2021, 09:27:12 PM
Quote from: crazy canuck on March 24, 2021, 07:24:45 PM
Australia -  where everything wants to kill you.
I feel Canada has the right risks.  At least, you can usually see a bear charging at you, unlike the croc and the spiders and the snakes.  And we don't have so many mass shootings like our neighbour.  Yep, it may just be a great country after all! ;) :P
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Syt on November 24, 2021, 01:02:58 AM
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/11/carnivorous-vulture-bees-have-acidic-microbiomes-to-better-digest-their-carrion/

Quote"Vulture bees" evolved a taste for flesh—and their microbiomes reflect that

"The only bees... that have evolved to use food sources not produced by plants."

(https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/vulturebee1CROP-800x531.jpg)
University of California, Riverside scientists suspended fresh pieces of raw chicken from branches to attract carrion-feeding "vulture bees" in Costa Rica.

Ask a random person to picture a bee, and they'll likely conjure up the familiar black-and-yellow striped creature buzzing from flower to flower collecting pollen to bring back to the hive. But a more unusual group of bees can be found "slicing chunks of meat from carcasses in tropical rainforests," according to the authors of a new paper published in the journal mBio. As a result, these bees have gut microbiomes that are markedly different from their fellow buzzers, with populations more common to carrion-loving hyenas and vultures. So they are commonly known as "vulture bees" (or "carrion bees").

According to the authors—entomologists who hail from the University of California, Riverside (UCR), the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Columbia University, and the American Museum of Natural History—most bees are essentially "wasps that switched to a vegetarian lifestyle." But there are two recorded examples of bumblebees feeding on carrion dating back to 1758 and 1837, and some species are known to occasionally feed on carrion in addition to foraging for nectar and pollen. (They are considered "facultatively necrophages," as opposed to vulture bees, which are deemed "obligate necrophages" because they only eat meat.)

An entomologist named Filippo Silvestri identified the first "vulture bee" in 1902 while analyzing a group of pinned specimens, although nobody called it that since they didn't know at the time that this species fed on carrion. Silvestri dubbed it Trigona hypogea, and he also described their nests as being used for honey and pollen, although later researchers noted a surprising absence of pollen. Rather, biochemical analysis revealed the presence of secretions similar to those fed to queen bees in the nests of honeybees.

Then, in 1982, entomologist David Roubik of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama reported some surprising findings from his observations of Trigona hypogea colonies. Rather than gathering pollen from flowers, this species ingested the flesh of dead animals: lizards, monkeys, snakes, fish, and birds. Bees that stumbled on a tasty bit of rotting flesh deposited a trail of pheromones to call its nest mates, who typically converged en masse on the corpse within eight hours.

The vulture bees often entered a carcass via the eyes, similar to maggots, and Roubik made particular note of just how efficiently they could consume a carcass. A large lizard was reduced to a skeleton over two days, while the bees took just eight hours to remove all feathers and flesh from the head of a dead passerine. They reduced two frogs to skeletons in six hours. Because they fed on carrion rather than collecting pollen, this species had a distinctive hind leg, with a drastically reduced pollen basket compared to "vegetarian" bees.

The bees consumed the flesh on-site, storing a kind of "meat slurry" in their crops to bring back to the hive. Roubik hypothesized that, once at the hive, the bees converted that slurry into some kind of glandular substance, which they then stored in wax pots. "Considering animal flesh rots and would be unsuitable as stored food, its metabolic conversion is essential to allow storage," he wrote. Another hypothesis, proposed in 1996, suggests that the actual flesh is what's stored in the wax pots.

We now know of three distinct groups of vulture bees that exclusively get their protein from carcasses: the aforementioned Trigona hypogea, Trigona crassipes, and Trigona necrophages. These are stingless bees, but they have five large, pointed teeth, and they have been known to bite. Some excrete substances with their bites that can cause painful blisters and sores.

"These are the only bees in the world that have evolved to use food sources not produced by plants, which is a pretty remarkable change in dietary habits," said Doug Yanega, a UCR entomologist who co-authored the new study. He and his colleagues wondered whether these vulture bees, given their radical shift in diet, had also evolved distinct microbiomes, and they conducted a series of experiments to find out.

The adult bees used in the experiments were collected at field stations in La Selva and Las Cruces, Costa Rica, in April 2019. Each site featured 16 "bait stations" with large chunks of fresh chicken suspended from branches with string. The string was coated with petroleum jelly to ward off ants, although a few particularly intrepid bullet ants managed to overcome that barrier. For comparison, the team also collected bees that fed on both meat and flowers as well as bees who fed exclusively on pollen.

Each bee was stored in a sterile tube filled with 95 percent ethanol. Because the specimens were so tiny, the entire abdomens were used for the microbiome analysis, except in the case of larger Melipona bees, whose guts were carefully dissected. That analysis revealed that the most extreme microbiome changes were found in the vulture bees that fed exclusively on meat. Those microbiomes had a lot of Lactobacillus bacteria, commonly found in fermented foods like sourdough, as well as Carnobacterium, known to help digest flesh.

"The vulture bee microbiome is enriched in acid-loving bacteria, which are novel bacteria that their relatives don't have," said UCR entomologist and co-author Quinn McFrederick. "These bacteria are similar to ones found in actual vultures, as well as hyenas and other carrion-feeders, presumably to help protect them from pathogens that show up on carrion." The next step will be to learn more about the bacterial genomes, as well was those of the various fungi and viruses found in the vulture bees.

Even though the vulture bees had much smaller baskets on their hind legs, the authors noted, they were nonetheless able to use them to collect pieces of masticated chicken, much like their vegetarian cousins collect pollen. "They had little chicken baskets," said McFrederick.

McFrederick, Yanega, and their colleagues suggest two hypothetical scenarios to explain their findings, noting that the two are not mutually exclusive. "The diet shift may have led to symbiont extinction and replacement of microbes that can break down carrion, or the core stingless bee microbiome may persist, suggesting that these microbes evolved along with the bee over its diet shift and are adapted to a new protein source," they wrote.

Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Jacob on November 24, 2021, 04:38:48 PM
What a pretty raw-chicken flower.
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on December 17, 2021, 06:54:33 AM
:cthulu:
https://www.cnet.com/news/scientists-discover-worlds-first-true-millipede-with-over-1000-legs/?ftag=CAD090e536&bhid=21042645440360258023038323851944&mid=13624920&cid=535042237
Quote
World's first 'true' millipede with over 1,000 legs discovered deep below Earth's surface
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: HVC on May 11, 2022, 06:44:30 PM
New bugs for malthus. Palm sized asian spiders set to invade ontario. As a plus their babies fly through the sky on silk strings.

https://www.blogto.com/city/2022/05/invasive-spiders-parachute-ontario/
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: Malthus on May 11, 2022, 09:03:30 PM
Quote from: HVC on May 11, 2022, 06:44:30 PMNew bugs for malthus. Palm sized asian spiders set to invade ontario. As a plus their babies fly through the sky on silk strings.

https://www.blogto.com/city/2022/05/invasive-spiders-parachute-ontario/

Okay, who had gigantic invasive parachuting spiders on their 2022 bingo cards? 😄
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: jimmy olsen on July 23, 2022, 06:45:15 PM
Quote from: jimmy olsen on March 05, 2019, 06:38:51 PM
Quote from: Malthus on March 05, 2019, 10:21:15 AM
QuoteThey include the crypt-keeper wasp that was newly identified last year.

New favorite name.  :lol:

Pretty interesting story on that one.

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/01/inception-but-with-parasites/514211/


The Crypt Keeper is more powerful than we thought

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/27/science/crypt-keeper-wasps-parasitic.html
Title: Re: The Hive: The Malthus Bug Thread
Post by: viper37 on November 20, 2022, 04:22:38 PM
 (https://img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AA13jgCV.img?w=800&h=415&q=60&m=2&f=jpg)




The terrifying face of the ant has been revealed up close (https://www.msn.com/en-ca/lifestyle/other/the-terrifying-face-of-the-ant-has-been-revealed-up-close/ss-AA14iHJ7?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=ef737d583ac9432bc8b5370c2e4e982b#image=1)