I almost forgot it was #MiteMonday! From under one of my reliable dead logs just a few days ago, a mesostig with its prey, a tiny white springtail; a slug for scale; and a smaller, paler mesostig crossing paths with another springtail (which it did not try to eat).
ONLY THREE HOURS LEFT TO VOTE!
Anyone in the world can vote in the Bug of the Year contest - It's quick and easy! Please go vote for the Giant Springtail RIGHT NOW!
https://www.bugoftheyear.ento.org.nz/vote-here-2025/
If it wins, I'll get one as my first ever tattoo!!
Only 24 hours left to vote for the Giant Springtails to win Bug of the Year!
If I haven't convinced you yet, perhaps this photo I took of one DEFENSIVELY BLEEDING will win you over. So metal.
We need every vote we can get, so please vote now: https://www.bugoftheyear.ento.org.nz/vote-here-2025/
BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!
I know everything is a lot right now, but this is the LAST WEEK of Bug of the Year, and team velvet worm are hot on our heels!
Please VOTE NOW to make Giant Springtails victorious!
https://www.bugoftheyear.ento.org.nz/vote-here-2025/
Here's the announcement:
IF WE WIN, I WILL GET A GIANT SPRINGTAIL TATTOO!!
*DOOMSCROLLING CHECKPOINT*
Okay just stop. Breathe. Take your mind off the rapid collapse of US Democracy for just a few moments.
I'll help you. Here's some baby giant springtails, aren't they cute?
They don't understand human politics, they just eat fungi and logs and go to sleep. That must be nice for them.
Okay, off you go. Come back if you need to.
#MiteMonday: wintertime rock flipping turned up some penthaleids and those iridescent purple springtails, not quite sure what they are. They were about the same size (see third photo).
Less than two weeks left to get your vote in for Giant Springtails in the Bug of the Year contest!
https://www.bugoftheyear.ento.org.nz/vote-here-2025/
It only takes a moment to vote, and you can learn about some amazing critters while doing so. Consider it a nice momentary distraction from everything else that's going on.
Less than 3 weeks left till #BugoftheYear2025 is over!
I'll go back to posting photos of other lovely soil invertebrates when voting closes on 17th Feb... but until then it's gonna step up a notch!
Just look at this little face and go vote Giant Springtail: https://www.bugoftheyear.ento.org.nz/vote-here-2025/
I went out with my camera today for the first time in ages, and (totally non-creepily) watched this cute little sproinglet explore a miniature slime mold forest on a log.
I feel very lucky to get to share so many wonderful, hidden little worlds and creatures through my macrophotography, and eventually through a popular science book I'm currently writing!
#FridayFlyDay
A very tiny woodpecker fly eating a very, very tiny springtail. Woodpecker flies (genus Medetera) get their name because of their upright, woodpecker-like stance. They are predators of soft-bodied arthropods such as this springtail (#collembola).
This weekend I'll be leading a search for giant springtails up in Motueka with the lovely folks at Friends of Flora.
They've promised to throw their weight behind the giant springtail in the NZ Bug of the Year 2025 contest if we're successful, so fingers crossed we find loads!
I'll of course be taking my camera, so stand by for updates...
It's rough out there at the moment, and there's little I can do except to offer a collection of baby springtails to bring a moment of comfort.
No matter what's going on in the world, remember there's always baby springtails near you, oblivious to it all and just living that little sproinglet dream.
Some giant springtail-relatives have specially flattened bodies for squeezing into cracks in their decaying log homes. This is great for evading would-be predators, and, unfortunately for me, macrophotographers!
Ever wonder how big a 'giant' springtail is? Well here you go!
We found this gnarled old Holacanthella duospinosa today at Lewis Pass, measuring a whopping 12 mm in length (most springtails are less than 5 mm).
It's been a rare joy dedicating a weekend to macrophotography in the NZ bush, I've seen so many amazing things - stand by for a flood of soil animal photos over the coming weeks!
ANNOUNCEMENT
I'm delighted to say that my nomination was accepted for Giant Springtails (Holacanthella species) as a contender for New Zealand's Bug of the Year 2025 competition!
Voting opens in early 2025, so stand-by for lots of giant springtail content, as I work to secure your vote for these amazing endemic invertebrates!
Hey, wanna see something NOBODY HAS EVER SEEN BEFORE?
Here's a giant springtail with PURPLE spines!
I recently discovered a number of these amazingly coloured Holacanthella in Kaikoura, NZ (they've normally got red/orange or yellow spines).
Are these a new species? Maybe!
Observation online soon: https://weta.ento.org.nz/index.php/weta/article/view/429
