This week on Wednesday on one of the Korean Chrysanthemums in the conservatory Garden in Central Park, I found what turned out to be a new-to-me genus of flies, Discomyza (considered to be probably that genus or something similar). It is a shore fly. Shore flies are found near seashores, but also near ponds (like the Harlem Meer I assume, which is very near where I found this fly.)
The fly is small but strange-looking because the wings are overall a little smaller than the body is, both in terms of length, and in terms of width.
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/140101393
This was a new genus record for NYC, and only the 6th occurrence recorded in the extreme northeast of North America. There are only 140 iNat records of the genus worldwide.
Thank you @specerpote and @chrisangell for ID-ing this fly.
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OMY! What an extreme way to encounter a lifer! I hope your bites are healing fast.
(Almost every time i explore under live oaks, I get a couple of nasty bites (probably from nearly invisible oak leaf mites). Also really horrible and last for weeks. It’s better since I got an Rx for a steroid ointment, but still no fun.)
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That is an especially pretty photo.
Thanks – just about all the photos that I take at this time of year of flying insects on the Korean Chrysanthemums tend to come out great because each flower makes such a beautiful background.
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https://youtu.be/qjLBXb1kgMo
(different fly, but if you ever go up there during their season… best of luck!)
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I went out on the trails yesterday for a bit. As expected, not a lot of macro-sized action. But I was surprised to find a spider, a moth caterpillar, a new fly, and my first super-tiny mushroom along with a beautiful, tiny new moss. I wish I could remember who recommended checking out mosses and thank them. I think I could get in to more little gems like this:
And although beautifully intense in color, you probably wouldn’t want to try and make an omelette with these guys:
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This Yellowline Arrow Crab (Stenorhynchus seticornis) in Riviera Beach, FL, USA
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I saw a Wood Duck for the second time. Though this time I was able get photos!
https://inaturalist.ca/observations/140935608
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Got this one this afternoon in my backgarden. I haven’t even identified it, but in the process of shooting it, it made me smile.
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Not a lifer lifer but turns out I’ve been hiking past a bunch of
Magnolia virginiana all year without realizing it, with basically every other tree totally done for the season only now am I realizing how many of them are in the woods near me, first time seeing this species in NJ, though I’ve seen a couple down in Florida growing in tandem with longleaf pine and loblolly bay
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This wasp I found inside and glued on a pin for my lifer of the week
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/140674920
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We were out today looking for Vandenboschia, Crepidomanes and Vittaria (ferns that grow on the underside of dark cliff overhangs) - but instead of cool plants there was a small bat hanging there. And unlike the plants - the bat is a lifer for me!
edit: Someone just identified it as Perimyotis subflavus: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/141295653
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Amazing I’ve had such a great year inatting that I forgot I made this thread! Loving looking through these!
Guess I need to share some of mine from this year in payment:
iNat first plant + the first existing photos of the flowers of this species:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/123063130
iNat first Utah endemic cricket:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/122621964
Rare Colorado endemic plants:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/118475186
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/119956540
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/116047640
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/132756110
Rare Wyoming endemic plants:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/121841386
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/121935430 Also an iNat first
This is just the tip of the iceberg of my year too I got an insane amount of new stuff! Did trips to various parts of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Florida, New Mexico, and Texas this year. First snow has fallen for the year which means the start of photo backlog season.
Happy inatting everyone get those lifers!
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I observed the striped killifish for the first time, I’ve been wondering what those little fish swimming next to the shoreline were.
Not a true lifer, but I finally observed some rockpool prawn.
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Nice find! A very cool species!
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