Colin Purrington

nature photography / natural history / misc

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This is a blog with nature photography, biology-related projects, & geeky tips.

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Sweet potato vs yam

Recent posts

Help monarch butterflies by giving away milkweed plants
Spotted lanternfly photographs
15 mosquito-control strategies and devices that don’t work
Spartan Mosquito Eradicator (review)
Eliminate mosquitoes by eliminating stagnant water

Instagram pics

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I just got the memo that today (Oct 10 2019) is International Jumping Spider Day (#SalticiDay ?) so here’s an Eris floridana. Photographed in Florida, as one would expect, but found all over the eastern half of the United States and as far north as Maine. At some point soon I promise to post pics of the amazing nests this species makes on pine trees.
#erisfloridana #whitebandedjumpingspider #salticidae #salticid #jumpingspider #eris #spider #arachnid #zolfosprings #jumpingspiderday

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Boat-like seed of swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), shown here without its fluffy coma. I couldn’t find a test of the buoyancy of this species but wetland-associated Asclepias perennis has a similar architecture and can float for up to 6 months. So my guess is that if wind dispersal (anemochory) carries a swamp milkweed seed onto water, subsequent water dispersal (hydrochory) maximizes the chance the seed will be transported to the soil at the edge of body of water. If you’re bored this winter and have milkweed seeds, put some in a jar of water on your desk.

#asclepiasincarnata #hydrochory #swampmilkweed #milkweed #ascleplias #seed #botany #winddispersal #waterdispersal #monarch #seedcoat

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Group of bald cypress knees in a local swamp. In older trees the knees can reach 14 feet (!). But knees are shorter and sometimes even absent for individuals growing in drier areas. As far as I know their function is still undetermined. I wonder whether knees are a way to uproot nearby competitors — the force they generate can drive up thick concrete slabs. I thought the group looked like a gang of alert meerkats. Taylor Memorial Arboretum, Wallingford, PA.

#baldcypress #cypressknees #swampcypress #taxodiumdistichum

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Peppered jumping spider (Pelegrina galathea) lunching on a golden-backed snipe fly (Chrysopilus thoracicus). This species has also been observed biting plants and then slurping up sap. At Crow’s Nest Preserve, Elverson, PA.

#pelegrinagalathea #pepperedjumper #pepperedjumpingspider #salticidae #salticid #spider #goldenbackedsnipefly #diptera #chrysopilusthoracicus #natlands #arachtober

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Egg mass of a spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula). The current recommendation when you find an egg mass (in North America) is to scrape it off into a fluid (ethanol, hand sanitizer) that can kill the eggs. But before you do that, please examine the surface for small parasitic wasps such as Ooencyrtus kuvanae (Chalcidoidea). If you see anything, take a photograph and send to local extension agents to cheer them up. And post the pic to @inaturalistorg so there is a useful record of your sighting. At @johnheinznwr in Tinicum, PA.

#spottedlanternfly #lycormadelicatula #eggmass #spotclothingwaxcicada #fulgoridae #homoptera #invasive #pest #eggs #johnheinznwr #friendsofheinz

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Tree of life (stickers, etc.)

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