Hibiscus harlequin bugs are true bugs with sucking and piercing mouth parts and are a common sight in this location. Singularly, or in large groupings, which is quite a sight to behold given the beautiful colours and patterns.
Native to the east of this country. They feed on many species of plants belonging to the family Malvaceae, including hibiscus species and cotton. The males and females are different colours, with the females mostly orange and the males mostly blue/green-red.
I find a lot of them on my Duranta bushes as seen here, but I don't believe the beetles feed on them.
20 mm body length.
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Tags: summer in australia hibiscus harlequin bug harlequin bug true bug hemiptera cotton harlequin bug insect arthropod invertebrate insects of australia fauna jewel bug january summer scutelleridae tectocoris diophthalmus metallic shield bug australia nsw new south wales macro photography insect macro shield-backed bug pattern markings nature's design blue and red insect colourful bug in explore duranta leaf
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Echeveria is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Crassulaceae, native to semi-desert areas of Central America, Mexico and northwestern South America.
This particular silver Echeveria I have has been prolific in its flowering this past 6 months. These were the seventh set of stalks and flowers sent up, and I've had yet another set since the image was taken in August.
Seen here are the buds which will open in to flowers, just 10 mm or so in diameter. Hanging gracefully from tall, slender stalks, much loved by honeyeaters.
Main plant 30 cm diameter. Stalks average 30 to 35 cm in height.
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Tags: delicate pretty artistic photography echeveria echeveria flower buds elegant echeveria crassulaceae stonecrop orpine saxifragales flower photography dof depth of field nature macro photography pink flower buds botany flora succulent plant pink minimal minimalist dreamy soft plant
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On March 15th, the ogre babies hatched! I've been waiting and watching eagerly for this moment since January 11, when I saw that a female Asianopis subrufa had made a beautiful silken egg sac within the sanctuary of my house porch. Each baby is just 2 mm body length and perfect in every way. Image of the mother with sac below.
They stayed together for just under three days before molting and then dispersing. Good luck little ones!
Also commonly known as net-caster spiders.
www.flickr.com/photos/112623317@N03/50924545511/in/photol...
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Tags: deinopidae deinopis subrufa araneae arachnid invertebrate macro photography nature ogre spiderlings australia nsw new south wales spiders of australia net-caster spiderlings spider asianopis subrufa
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I happened to look up and saw an area within the clouds that was colourful and pretty. Like a horizontal line. The area was high in the sky and this lasted around 4 minutes.
I thought initially this phenomenon was irisation by diffraction - but after some research/reading, I believe this to be a circumhorizontal arc segment (common name fire rainbow, although nothing to do with either fire or rainbows). An optical phenomenon that belongs to the family of ice halos formed by the refraction of sun or moonlight in hexagonal plate-shaped ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere, typically in high cirrus or cirrostratus clouds.
The segment seen, has the appearance of a large, brightly spectrum-coloured band (red being the topmost colour) running parallel to the horizon.
I learned that brightly coloured circumhorizontal arcs occur mostly during the summer and between particular latitudes. The sun has to be at an elevation of 58° or greater, (it was at 68 at the time of shot), there must be high altitude cirrus clouds with plate-shaped ice crystals, and sunlight has to enter the ice crystals at a specific angle. This is why circumhorizontal arc is a relatively rare phenomenon.
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Tags: atmospheric optics iridescent cloud colour spectrum meteorology sky clouds photometeor diffraction optics australia nsw new south wales ice halo circumhorizontal arc optical phenomenon circumhorizon arc rare optical phenomenon in explore spring rare optics
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Early morning sunrise over autumnal Canberra - looking west toward Parliament House, seen on the right.
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Tags: mist fog weather scenery autumn fall canberra vista act sunrise morning dawn outside sky trees autumn trees autumn colour parliament house australia urban nature pink sky view australian capital territory scene australian city canberra parliament house early morning in explore
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