What is your Favorite Lifer from this week?

Well, that certainly belongs here.
https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/funny-long-or-just-plain-weird-animal-names/3220

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60 lifers in the past week and my favorite is far and away the banana slug: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/325954062

With honorable mention to this awesome Amanita: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/326736474

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Ecuador Week 7 - Alas final week.

13,291 Raw photos processed. Resulting in 1753 observations. Currently sitting on 756 species, but that should go up.

Week 7 was a bit different. Usually I try and spend one week at each place, but due to cost and time contstraints, it was 4 nights at one place and 3 at the next.

As always tricky to get a top five.

Bird of the week Potoo (Great Potoo? Dunno).


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/326578226

Mammal of the week was hard, but probably Miller’s Saki


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/326939276

Honorable mention, this long-tailed porcupine resting in a tree.

Spider of the week - that “silkhenge” species that noone really knows what it is.


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/326882156

Snake of the week was hard. But maybe this what I am guessing might be a Atractus pachacamac though currently uncertain.


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/326430649 (For snake)
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/326430647 (For ant)

Honorable mention - my first anaconda and this Red - Wagler’s Sipo

For frogs it was also tricky. But I will go with the Guacamayo Plump Toad - Osornophryne guacamayo


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/327231778

Honorable mention to these glass frogs which I think are Centrolene?

And number six of my top five, because I always need to pick my fave harvestmen, because its why I travel, so sorry for going so pick strong on this one.

What ever this Prostygnid Harvestmen Family Prostygnidae is. Who knows if it has a genera yet.


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/327090492

and different individual about 30 mins drive away.


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/327231801

For the next year should go back to maybe one lifer a week, if that.

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I found a weird bug that i couldnt identify. it was flightless and looked like a white aphid w/ short legs and no fluff. Idk really, i couldn’t get a picture bc i dropped it, while trying to get a closer look :frowning: (I probally shouldn’t be picking things that i cant id up, but i mean, aphids and beetles aren’t usually dangerus and it was barely a third the size of my pinky nail)

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Whoa! That harvestman! So colorful!

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Could you provide a link? It could potentially be a sigil lady beetle.

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Definitly, and yet at the same time, very well camouflaged.

https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/592503476/large.jpg

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I went out to a farm to buy chicken, stopped at a gas station, and found this opposite leaf-footed bug on one of the concrete-filled pipes that are there to keep cars from running into gas pumps. I checked my previous observations of Heteroptera; most of them are marmorated bugs, and of the ones that aren’t shield or stink bugs, one is an Alydida, and two others are unidentified bugs that have a similar shape but no leaves on their feet.

The dandelion has been identified as a dandelion. The other Cichoriea turned out to be some species, or at least genus, that I’ve observed before.

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Always happy to find a new jewel beetle.

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/327781716

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What camera are you using? :astonished_face: Amazing photos!

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I saw a handful of ‘Oil Beetles’ (Meloe sp.?) for the first time in two different locations - 1, 2, 3,

and I can add this ‘American Gizzard Shad’ (Dorosoma cepedianum) to the freshwater fish list.

Edit: I almost forgot about the ‘Planthopper Parasite Moth’ pupa I saw yesterday (Fulgoraecia exigua)

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Yes! Both for zoom and macro! I need something like that!

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Luckily these days I have a R5II. Its the most I have spent of anything. Certainly more than my old used prius.

The telephoto is a Canon RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS USM Lens

The macro is a bit more entry Laowa 90mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO Lens

The flash is a godox v1, and cygnustech diffuser.

The vast majority of my shots are with the macro.

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https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/328633913


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/328633912

Today: Fire salamander larvae and a palmate newt in a temporary pool on a forest trail!

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Small beetle I found near work the other day. Definitely a lifer. I’m just working out if it’s possible a first photograph of a living specimen or at least first observation on iNaturalist

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/328560056

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You posted this on FB? It looks familiar.

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Yes. On Australasian Beetles page

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https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/328571913

Saw a marsh wren out! I think.

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I saw this Asian ladybug in my kitchen. The next day, the spider had gotten it, and there was nothing left but a shell.

Both obs were identified to species while I was still connecting them together. When I identify, I do at latest the previous day so that observers have time to put them into projects, annotate them, and so on.

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I was on a trip to visit family in Fairbanks, Alaska last week and got about 15 or so new species for my lifelist. My favorite was this spotted cucumber beetle, which actually doesn’t belong in Alaska at all but somehow got up here as a stowaway.
I always get joy from finding stowaways. I know they don’t belong here, but its fun to see a species from elsewhere in the world without having to go elsewhere if you know what I mean.


https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/328412809

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