Christian Photographers Community

Quote from: Pat on August 25, 2006, 08:06:30 PM
Smokey, I've never seen a brown praying mantis.  Most I've seen are green.  They CAN bite too although I've never been bitten but my kids have.

Great! Now I find out they bite!
I wonder if I should tell my wife... Probably next time it happens.

I haven't got a clue what the English name of this moth is, but the other evening I had camera in hand as this insect hummed by, enjoying Mrs. Soileau's flowers.

In His Grip,
Kevin



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interesting moth Kevin

Great Garden Critter photos, guys.   Nita

The insects with the flattened legs are true bugs.   They belong to the order Hemiptera, the true bugs.  Look like cone-nosed bugs to me.  They belong to the family Reduviidae.

Here's a relative, a wheel bug, so named for the coglike "wheel" on it's back.



   This one brushed against my arm as I was steadying myself on a utility pole while doing a soccer game.   Fortunately, it was cold, and he was just trying to get around to the sunny side to warm up; they have a nasty bite, like all reduviids.   The family are commonly known as "assassin bugs" due to their stabbing mouthparts and fierce disposition.

Texas Spider.

Now, if that bug had brushed against my arm, the game I was watching would have stopped!  I would have been screaming and running around the field.!  Ohh, it does look fierce.


Now, the Texas spider...is that poisonous?


Thanks so much for sharing these.

Quote from: tolovemoon on June 07, 2006, 11:33:30 PM



Hello, nice to meet you too...


Will you just pose right there for a few?
May I take some pictures of you?
This will only take a minute or two.
So how do you do?
Such lovely weather here, how is it over there with your view?
You aren't a carrier of a virus or flu..
Ya know, I almost stepped on you with my shoe..
In some countries you are a delicatessen and may be in a stew.
Some may even dip you into chocolate fondue...
I would like to say what kind of bug you are but if only I knew..

The clouds are rolling away, I think I see some blue.

Well since you won't say, I will say thank you...

Tracy, loved your poem!

QuoteNow, the Texas spider...is that poisonous?

Surprisingly, their bite is almost nothing at all for humans.  And they are very good natured, and have to be annoyed repeatedly to get them to bite.  Spiders are a good deal more intelligent than most other arthropods, and can be trained.   

I had a small jumping spider on one of my plants, and I used to bring it insects just to watch it hunt.   Because they can see about as well as we can, it could see when I was coming, and clearly was excited, having associated me with the arrival of prey.  It was sort of spooky, going up to the Sheffleria, and having a spider turn and look me in the eyes.

How interesting. 

That was really something the one waiting for you to bring it food. 

Here's a slimy little guy I found under a rock in my back yard:





And here's a bug I found on an oleander bush. It didn't come out as clear as I'd have liked, but I love the leaf edge that has been eaten away by some other bug:

Interesting Deb.

Do you have a tripod?  Sometimes this will help with your photos if they aren't in focus.  Or maybe you zoomed in too close?

That edge is very interesting where another insect chewed.

Nope, no tripod here. Just tried to steady it as best as I could. With the bug, it was very small (maybe 1/4 - 1/2 inch long) and almost transparent, so I think that was part of my problem as well.

I took some pics today and tried to really concentrate on holding the camera still. I had a few shots that were perfectly clear, so I think I'll get there eventually.

Oh, and I tried some macro shots with manual zoom for the first time too.

Deb, sometimes if you don't have a tripod, you can use a bean bag.  Put your camera on the bean bag and focus it on what you are going to try to capture and then if you have a time setting, set it for 10 seconds and then get your hands away from it and in 10 seconds, the camera will shoot.  On my camera you can set it for maybe only 3 seconds.  It's sure made a difference with my pictures as I just don't have a steady hand.

Thanks for the tip Pat. I'll have to give that a try.

Beautiful Pictures.

We'll have to add more to this topic, folks!

How do I post a photo here? I have a couple of insects I'd like to share with you all.

I will pass this on to Pat and she can help you with the technical stuff.  I have no tech knowledge at all.  She will get back to you soon.