112
votes
A new species of small bird?
Great picture and great find. But unfortunately I don't think that is a new species of bird...or even a bird at all!
It looks like a hummingbird hawk-moth, Macroglossum stellatarum.
Here you can ...
- 2,046
63
votes
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Insect identification - Is this a bedbug?
Unfortunately, you're the first I've seen on here actually to have a bed bug.
See this picture from University of Kentucky for comparison:
Here is one moving (more footage & info here):
Below ...
- 29.7k
61
votes
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I just saw this bird outside my apartment. Anyone know what it is? (Texas, US)
It is American Woodcock, Scolopax minor.
Superbly camouflaged against the leaf litter, the brown-mottled American Woodcock walks slowly along the forest floor, probing the soil with its long bill ...
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59
votes
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Help identifying leaf-like bone
Those are isolated turtle bones:
Specifically, they are part of the carapace, or upper shell. The projections would articulate with the backbone. The "toothlike" structure at the other end projects ...
- 12.2k
45
votes
What kind of creature is this?
This actually looks like a Gaudy Sphinx caterpillar (Eumorpha labruscae). It only mimics the appearance of a snake!
You can find more information about this species here.
Range: Argentina north ...
- 29.7k
45
votes
I am trying to identify this bone I found on the beach at the Delaware Bay in Delaware. It is 2 1/2 inches wide and 1 1/2 tall
It's a pharyngeal tooth from a large fish like a drum or a parrot fish.
The pharyngeal jaws are for grinding and also contain a pharyngeal mill, where larger and smaller teeth grind coarser and finer ...
- 10.3k
43
votes
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Are these microscopic star-like structures on a dead leaf some sort of organism? If so, which one?
These are stellate ("star-shaped") [and possibly peltate ("borne on a stalk")] hairs ("trichomes") of the leaf itself.
From Harris & Harris's (2001) ""...
- 29.7k
42
votes
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What is this wasp killing insect?
Given the large eyes, the almost non-existent antennae, the humped back, elongated abdomen and the wings, I'd say it is a robber fly.
It is one of many insects known to prey on wasps.
Note the ...
- 24.7k
39
votes
I just saw this bird outside my apartment. Anyone know what it is? (Texas, US)
I've found whatbird.com to be pretty good for identifying American birds. Asking it for grey and brown medium-sized birds that are commonly found in Texas gives 14 options, of which the best match is ...
- 837
37
votes
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What is this bizarre looking animal we found in the forest? Bug identification
That is the caterpillar of a lobster moth (Stauropus fagi), family Notodotidae. It is mimicking a scorpion to help protect it from predation. An amazing insect.
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37
votes
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What is this strange sea creature we found on the beach?
You have a Dosima: Also known as a Buoy Barnacle. A gallery of observations of these can be found here:
https://inaturalist.ca/taxa/462188-Dosima/browse_photos
They are found in the coastal UK and ...
- 1,856
32
votes
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What is this yellowish insect?
It is the larva of Harmonia axyridis (Asian lady beetle).
The image posted by timbernasley is more accurate because the larva you have shown is in its late instar ,a stage not an early as this one.
...
- 8,784
32
votes
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What is the name of this red plant?
This is the "Acer palmatum" or Japanese maple, which shows a wide variety of different leaf forms (from here):
Specically you found "Acer palmatum dissectum 'Red Dragon'", for more information look ...
- 51.5k
30
votes
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What is this animal looking like an Axolotl?
Based on the size and location that appears to be a Common mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus). (Photo © Brian Gratwicke — CC BY)
The four toes visible on the front foot are also consistent with this ...
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29
votes
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Identification: Creepy 'nope'
That's some kind of mole cricket (Gryllotalpidae).
According to this website there's only three species found so far in Romania:
Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa
Gryllotalpa stepposa
Gryllotalpa unispina
It'...
- 736
28
votes
A weird-looking fish with a shield
This is a species in the Peristediidae family, commonly called armored searobins or armored gurnards.
found in deep waters around the world, with most species in tropical regions. They are related to ...
- 29.7k
28
votes
Accepted
What is this little owl-like bird?
This looks a lot like a double-barred finch (Taeniopygia bichenovii). Your note about this being an "owl-like" bird is supported by it's less common name, the "owl finch", so named for the dark ring ...
- 29.7k
28
votes
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Is this a hornet?
This is not a hornet, this is an Ichneumonidea wasp, which is a superfamily of parasitoid wasps with about 100,000 species. I would go so far as to think it is within the Ichneumonidae family and ...
- 11.2k
26
votes
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Identify blue/translucent jelly-like animal on beach
By-the-wind sailors
This appears to be Velella (a monospecific genus), commonly referred to as by-the-wind sailor.
More specifically, this is Velella velella, and is also less commonly referred to ...
- 29.7k
24
votes
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What is Growing on These Tree Leaves? (Image)
This is actually not a gall as other answers have suggested.
This is likely a fungus called Cedar-apple rust (Gymnosporangium juniperi-virginianae).
The fungus only thrives in the presence of both ...
- 29.7k
24
votes
Accepted
What is the name of this biting bug?
It's a larva of a green lacewing (Family Chrysopidae). Yes, they can bite hard but you're not its intended victim and they're not only harmless but beneficial as they're aggressive predators of aphids ...
- 1,136
22
votes
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Does this recording sound like the pulses emitted by bats?
Though I cannot be 100% sure from the sound quality, it certainly does sound/seem like bats are making the calls you are hearing/seeing. I spent a number of years as a bat bioacoustics researcher and ...
- 29.7k
22
votes
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What is this crawling next to my house?
It looks as though it has a keel along it's back (the area behind the mantle shield.)
If so (and I think it is), it would be a keelback slug, the coloration strongly suggesting a leopard slug (Limax ...
- 24.7k
21
votes
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What strange jelly-like thing is shown in the photo?
I agree with @Gerardo-Furtado's comment that what you most likely have here is a colonial tunicate (or sea squirt) from the genus Botrylloides.
According to images and information available via the ...
- 29.7k
21
votes
Accepted
Which organism built this 2 cm long sandy tube?
This is the nest of a Mud dauber, also known as Mud wasp. This was possibly made by a Black and Yellow Mud dauber based on the following information.
The nest of the black and yellow mud dauber is a ...
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Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible