Even More Peacock Spiders

Back in February I interviewed the Peacock Spiderman: Jurgen Otto (can be read here). Today I'm going to revisit Peacock Spiders (Maratus sp.)and show you the photos of the many other species discovered in Australia. The majority of these spiders have only been recently discovered and photographed. Some species still don't have names.

Maratus volans

Source: Jurgen's Flickr

This was the first peacock spider which Jurgen captured it's courtship dance on video. 

This species is found in Sydney.

Alland Dharmawan Photography Feature

 Alland Dharmawan is an amateur photographer from Indonesia. He is currently still a student but takes joy in photography as a hobby. On Deviantart, he was able to capture the attention of a Daily Deviation with one of his amazing photos showing insights into the small world of ants and their daily dilemmas. Although he is an overall photographer, his macro photography it still intricate and shows the behaviors of a few insects. However, not all of his photography is showcased on his Deviantart page: allanddharmawan, most of his photography is stored on his online portfolio: www.allanddharmawanphotography.co.cc.

I hope you enjoy this feature.

Alland's Daily Deviation given this year: Trying Hard

#17 Transforming Owl

There is an owl in Africa that the Japanese are fascinated with. It is the Northern White Faced Owl.

Source: commons.wikimedia.org

This owl is fairly small and so, to ward off enemies (larger owls) it 'transforms' itself. This amazing ability was showcased in a Japanese tv show.

Tamyl91 Interview - Bugs Show a Playful Side

With 3 Daily Deviations (DD), Tamyl91 is doing pretty well as a amateur hobbyist photographer on Devintart. Tamyl91's real name is Kamil. He lives in Poland where he apparently has "easy access" to the little creatures he captures with his camera. Take a look at his photos and interview!

Dressage - Given a DD in 2010

The Schmidt Sting Pain Index - What Sting Hurts the Most?

Today when I was reading mX, I came across an interesting article about an entomologist from the University of Arizona. This man is Justin Schmidt. His area of expertise is Hymenoptera, the family of insects which includes wasps, bees and ants, so it's no surprised he's been stung over 100 times.

Throughout his career, he conducted personal research and "unintentionally" came up with the The Schmidt Sting Pain Index, a system developed to compare the relative intensity of Hymenoptera stings. This "research" involved provoking the insects to the point of rage, when they would attack/defend themselves. Each sting is on a rank between 1 to 4. Here is a sample from Wikipedia which includes their rank number and a description of the sting by Schmidt:

1.0 Sweat bee: 

Source: public-domain-photos.com

"Light, ephemeral, almost fruity. A tiny spark has singed a single hair on your arm."

#16 Sheriff Shrimp

Pistol shrimps may look like beautiful small helpless crustaceans, but they have a deadly weapon.

Source: piratefx.hubpages.com

 All Pistol shrimp have one oversized claw and with one snap of this oversized claw and a loud "pop", a supersonic bubble can be shot at the shrimp's enemy or prey. This bubble, can reach temperatures approaching that of the sun, about 4700 degrees Celsius. In the video below, the amazing skills of the pistol shrimp are displayed.