Ambush bug
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- rjlittlefield
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Ambush bug
This little fellow was just finishing up some small meal when I started shooting.
The eating was done by the time I moved in for a closer view.
You can see the empty husk of the victim underneath the bug in the second image.
--Rik
Technical: Canon 300D, Sigma 105 mm f/2.8 macro. Natural light, shaded with occasional direct backlight. Image #1, ISO 100, f/2.8 at 1/100 sec. Image #2, ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/50 sec. Shot in a garden at White Bear Lake, Minnesota.
Edit: fix image URL's.
Last edited by rjlittlefield on Mon Jul 28, 2008 10:20 am, edited 1 time in total.
That rostrum does a really good job and it is amazing that you can see the prey, in that the Ambush bug is quite small as it is. Only once have I seen one that was of any good size, maybe about 10mm and even then it was only by chance that I spotted it, they blend in so well to their surroundings. Quite a nice set of shots here Rik , those powerful forearms are really eye catchers when it comes to these bugs, insects or whatever one may call them.
- rjlittlefield
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Thanks for the comments, Ken.
This critter is right at 7 mm head to tail (obtained by measuring in the second raw image and knowing I had the lens set just shy of 1:1).
The subject is still a nymph, but judging from the size of the wingpads, it must be getting close to adult. I've seen some flashy black and yellow jobs around here a bit later in the summer. They are surprisingly hard to see, even considering that they like to hang out on yellow flowers. But I don't know whether this is the same kind.
--Rik
This critter is right at 7 mm head to tail (obtained by measuring in the second raw image and knowing I had the lens set just shy of 1:1).
The subject is still a nymph, but judging from the size of the wingpads, it must be getting close to adult. I've seen some flashy black and yellow jobs around here a bit later in the summer. They are surprisingly hard to see, even considering that they like to hang out on yellow flowers. But I don't know whether this is the same kind.
--Rik