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Photo#81135
round fungus beetle - Anisotoma

round fungus beetle - Anisotoma
Ithaca, Tompkins County, New York, USA
June 26, 2006
Size: 1.8 mm

Images of this individual: tag all
round fungus beetle - Anisotoma round fungus beetle - Anisotoma

Moved
Moved from Leiodinae.

Covered
with moth wing scales?

 
probably not
but I'm not sure what that stuff is. It was raining when I was digging through the wood pile, and my hands were filthy and everything was wet and sticking to things. I actually got 2 of these beetles in the same spot -- apparently mating. I put them both (along with some accidental dirt) into an empty, clean container to bring to the house. I tried to rinse the other beetle off but had only partial success. It's hard to tell what's going on when they are so small, until I see their photos. I was also afraid of washing them down the drain. I probably should use a spray bottle (I think that's what you do?) but that would mean lugging yet more gear with me everywhere... and then I still might have to go through many cycles of spray - photograph - find dirt - spray - photograph - find dirt - spray -

It's a hard life having to worry about dust on your beetles. :)

 
Plug the drain :-)
I collect in narrow-mouth plastic bottles so I often run some water in there so I can swirl it around and pour it out in my bathroom sink. Then I fish the beetles out of the water and put them in a hopefully clean container.

If I'm shooting beetles in studio and notice one is covered with dirt, I place it in my cupped palm, put a few drops of water on it, stir it around with my finger or a fine-tipped paintbrush, blow most of the water off it, and return it to my light arena where it dries off in short order. Even so, I normally spend several minutes in PhotoShop clone-stamping dirt off the beetles in my photos before posting to bugguide.

Another approach I've tried is to blast a firmly held beetle with canned air. This works for loose particles but not caked grime. Warning: a full-force blast can rip off heads/elytra/wings.

 
natural dirt
sounds like this was "natural dirt" which could be considered part of showing the beetle in its "natural state" ;) But in any case, I've found a fine artist's brush dipped in water works pretty well on these small ones, although many of my subjects are no longer moving. However, too much water and these little subjects can get stuck within the surface tension of a water drop. And too little water and they get stuck to the brush (which is desirable if you wish to relocate the subject, but not for a quick wash and photo)
Dirt or not, these are still great shots, ones I wish I could replicate this well, with lots of detail to help w/ the ID.

 
fine artist's brush -- good idea
I have to try that -- a brush wouldn't add much bulk to my pile of bug gear.

Leiodidae: Leiodinae: Anisotoma sp.
Looks like an Anisotoma to me.

 
Anisotoma
Thanks Don!

Great images Joyce!
may I ask what lens set-up you used to capture this very little one with such sharpness? your MP-E 65mm?

envious,
Tim

 
yes
I used the MP-E 65mm, hand-held with my hands braced on the table. This little guy was quite cooperative (no running around at high speeds, curling into a ball, or flying away) straight off the wood pile.

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