I hacked these darkling beetle larvae out of sapwood of a deciduous tree that had died some years earlier, probably from having its roots drowned in a former beaver pond. Apparently the beavers had inundated it before they had a chance to gnaw it down. (Or else it was a species they didn't like.) The bark was loose, missing, or else encrusted with tree fungi.

I am attempting to rear these larvae to see what they become. Other species new to me in this same tree were a horn*tail larva and a weird-looking Pityo*bius clic*k beetle larva. I'm hoping they will mature as well. I also found some uropo*did mit*es that I have yet to process and post.

I would not have checked this tree and found species I hadn't seen before if I hadn't worn my rubber boots. This underscores my thought that new material is likeliest to be found in habitats, seasons and circumstances we typically pass over for sake of convenience or lack of imagination.

It was with this thought in mind that I bought some rubber waders last year, which I have yet to use in the field. I'm sure there are species out there beyond the depth of my rubber boot tops. (Tree tops are another undersearched habitat but that's a possibility to explore some other time.)