Welcome to the 15th edition of Circus of the Spineless. Appropriately enough, we have 15 contributors offering a diverse selection of posts about invertebrate fauna.
As ever, insects are the most popular subjects. Photographer Samuel Yung took this amazing head-on shot of a dragonfly in Hong Kong. Does anyone recognise the species?
The Neurophilosopher offers two posts. Definitely not for the squeamish, Brainwashed By A Parasite describes the dramatic impact of Cordyceps fungi on ants and other insects. The Glasswing Butterfly features some beautiful images of Greta oto.
Bev at The Burning Silo has been very busy. She serves up no fewer than five posts:
The Annotated Budak also has a quintet of posts:
On the Invasive Species Weblog, Jenn reports on a moth which is able to bypass its host plant's defences: It's Elemental. She also presents a photo from her Flickr photostream: bug of the day - bonus!
Pam at Tortoise Trail writes about an encounter with the Western Pygmy Blue Butterfly.
Susannah of Wanderin' Weeta has two posts about tardigrades:
On his photoblog, David Nelson presents three posts:
Over at Walking the Berkshires, Tim says "Waiter, There's an Armored Ground Cricket in my Soup!"
In a post called Mussel Shows, Snail of A Snail's Eye View writes about dispersal and mimicry in freshwater molluscs.
Continuing the molluscan theme, Aydin of Snail's Tales presents: An operculate snail far from the sea: Hendersonia occulta.
In Who's that on the kitchen floor?, Pamela of Thomasburg Walks tells of a visit from a sexton beetle.
Mike of 10,000 Birds trains his binoculars on a "jet-powered maggot" in Wonderful Whitetail.
Evolgen offers some handy hints for identifying fruit flies by their racing stripes and fancy coloured testicles: Drosophila Pictures (Part 2).
Over at Walking Prescott, Granny J wites about some of Insects & Arachnids she has photographed around her Arizona home.
Let's finish with another insect mugshot from Samuel Yung. This time it's a butterfly, Graphium cloanthus kuge.
The Butterfly Eyes by Samuel Yung
I nearly forgot to mention my own contribution: a collection of cuddly critters who are looking for a home this Christmas.
The next edition of Circus of the Spineless is due to be hosted by The force that through... in mid December.
Tardigrades! Yum!!
Posted by: budak | Thursday, 07 December 2006 at 10:32 AM
Top job!
Posted by: Snail | Thursday, 07 December 2006 at 10:46 AM
Good show!
Posted by: Pamela | Thursday, 07 December 2006 at 11:57 AM
Wonder collection of photos and essays. Thanks for assembling this month's COTT, Roger!
Posted by: bev | Thursday, 07 December 2006 at 01:39 PM
Roger, these are brilliant. Again I am jealous of the photographic talent on display
Posted by: jamsodonnell | Thursday, 07 December 2006 at 07:04 PM
Yay!! I've been reading off this post for hours, literally, and avoiding a case study that I now must do!
Roger, you're the best!
Posted by: Jess | Friday, 08 December 2006 at 05:52 PM
Bravo, Roger! Thank you! Wonderful collection nicely described. Love those mug shots.
Posted by: Pam in Tucson | Saturday, 09 December 2006 at 06:21 PM