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Tom Astle

@tjalamont.bsky.social

Writer & nature photographer, especially macro photography of arthropods. Board member, Desert Tortoise Preserve Committee (conservation nonprofit). Fan of California, Montana, the rest of the planet. Photo website: https://www.tomastlephotography.com/

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Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 18h ago

Mama pseudoscorpion & her cute baby high in the mountains of Montana. Mama is half the size of a grain of rice. These harmless micro arachnids have no stinger, but can deliver venom to prey via their pincers. Also, they can walk backward. Also, you probably have them in your house. #BugSky 🐙🌿

A macro photo looking down at a mother pseudoscorpion and her baby. They're on a patch of pebbly, sandy substrate. These arachnids look kind of like regular scorpions but without a tail and stinger, which means they are to regular scorpions what corgis are to collies. The mama is dark orange with reddish-orange pincers, while the tiny baby facing her is translucent, with a bluish white cephalothorax and pale yellow abdomen.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 24h ago

A little brown bat (both a description, and possibly the actual species) on the deck yesterday. It was also under a wooden bench, so it was slightly sheltered, but it was still odd place to roost, which made me wonder if it was rabid or otherwise unwell. I didn’t touch. Cute critter.🦇

A photo looking down at the back of a small fuzzy brown bat resting on a wooden deck, with some green house siding to the left.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 2d ago

Here's very nice beetle to start off your week. It's a red turnip beetle, Entomoscelis americana. I found it above timberline on Montana's Beartooth Plateau, where as far as I can tell there are no turnips, but the beetle is the expert, not me. 🐙🌿 #BugSky

A macro photo, ground level, of a vibrant red and black beetle posing nicely next to a bit of dried stick.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 3d ago

Fly no fly (killed by entomopathogenic fungus, I'd guess Entomophthora muscae, known for attacking flies). The fungus controls the fly's behavior, making it climb atop a stem or flower stalk and open its wings, to better allow the spores to disperse. 🐙🌿🪰💀

A macro photo of a fly, seen from the side, its head inside a cluster of white and green flowers, with a blue sky background. The fly is dead, its abdomen coated in white fungus; the fungus has "zombified" the fly, controlling its behavior and making it climb to a high point before dying, so that the fungal spores disperse more widely.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 4d ago

Look at this little lump. It's a barely 2 mm. springtail (class Collembola), which are hexapods (6 legs) but not insects. This one was at almost ten thousand feet in the mountains of Montana, living its best gummi life under a rock. #BugSky 🌿🐙

A macro photo looking down at a dark blue-gray creature called a springtail, on the surface of a pale brownish-yellow rock. The springtail is oval shaped, kinda squishy looking, with multiple body segments and a few sparse, short hairs. It has two short thick antennae.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 5d ago

Red-shouldered pine borer (Stictoleptura canadensis), Montana. The larvae of these attractive beetles eat dead or decaying wood; adults feed in flowers. I like the fancy antennae, and that the pitted texture of the elytra make the red "shoulders" look like the surface of a strawberry. 🐙🌿📷 #BugSky

A closeup photo, vertical orientation, of a beetle seen from the side, clinging head-down to a piece orange-brown wood. The beetle is called a red-shouldered pine borer, and is elongated, black with red "shoulders" on the forward corners of its elytra. The elytra are shiny with a pitted texture. The antennae are long and curved, and banded yellow and black. The background is out of focus blue sky with a blur of yellowish dry vegetation below.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 6d ago

Blue milkweed beetle (Chrysochus cobaltinus) on dogbane. It was a warm day, but a sprinkle of rain from a brief afternoon thunderstorm cooled things off, plus gave the beetle a few droplets for decoration. (Montana) #BugSky 🌿🐙📷

A macro photo, elevated front 3/4 view, of an oval-shaped, beautiful, metallic lapis-blue beetle on a green leaf. There are several tiny drops of water on the beetle's back, and there is an out of focus pink flower in the background.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 6d ago

Another Phymata sp. ambush bug, because they are awesome. This one had a touch of green on the abdomen and legs, and this angle shows the mantis-like raptorial forelegs, for giving its dinner guests a final hug. (Montana) #BugSky 🐙🌿📷

A macro photo, front three-quarter angle, of an ambush bug in a flower. The bug is mostly yellow, with a few orange-brown blotches and a hint of mint green on its abdomen and hind legs. The flower has yellow petals and a green center, visible left, and the rest of the background is clear blue sky.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 7d ago

I love spotting these tiny, armored-robot-looking ambush bugs. No bigger than a lentil, they can take down insects much larger than themselves with that venom-injecting switchblade of proboscis (here tucked under the chin). Amazing textures and A+ camo. (Phymata sp., Montana) #BugSky 🐙🌿📷

A macro photo looking up at a yellow ambush bug well-hidden in a yellow flower.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · last wk.

At first glance, this little katydid nymph might look like he's blushing, but in fact he's got a parasitic mite attached to him. Imagine having a tick on you the size of a grapefruit. I don't think one mite will kill the katydid, but it's gotta be annoying. #BugSky 🐙🌿📷

A macro photo, vertical orientation, of a green katydid nymph clinging to a green grass stem, against a green out of focus background. The katydid has an oval, bright red-orange parasitic mite attached to it just below the eye.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 2w ago

Our queen of the night cactus had a dozen flowers open on the same night this week. It was quite a show, worth staying up to see, plus the scent of so many flowers at once was incredible.

A close up phone pic of two large, white epiphytic cactus flowers blooming at night. The one in the foreground is resting lightly on the ground. A picture of a green epiphytic cactus plant against a wooden fence at night. Six large white flowers are blooming on the plant.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 2w ago

One of my favorite finds last week in Nebraska was this Bassaniana sp. crab spider. It was maybe 1/3 inch, and extremely well camouflaged on a tree. It's a new-to-me genus. I love finding cryptic creatures; it always feels like solving a puzzle to spot one of nature's "where's-Waldos." 🐙🌿 #BugSky

A macro photo vertical orientation, of a crab spider facing head-down on lichen-covered tree bark. The spider is dark brown and is well camouflaged as a bit of bark even though the lichens are mostly different shades of green.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 2w ago

I wouldn’t quote post like this, but I wanted to share info and was unable to reply to or message them - when asked about the artists, they replied they didn’t know. But I know the lower right “rise” piece is by @toosphexy.bsky.social and perhaps they could learn the others after an image search.

A screenshot of a skeet showing four orca-themed art works.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 2w ago

Most bees are solitary, a few famous ones (like honeybees and bumblebees) are eusocial, and others fall in between – this green sweat bee was one of a couple dozen that were hanging out together, coming and going from a low-growing plant. Basically, it was an airport lounge for bees. 🐙🌿🐝 #Bugsky

A macro photo, side view, of a metallic green sweat bee perched atop a green leaf.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 2w ago

Photuris sp. firefly, grooming its antenna. Females in this genus are known for "aggressive mimicry," meaning they mimic the flash pattern of other species' females, to lure in males of the other species and eat them. You go. 🌿🐙📷💡🍽️💀

A macro photo, side view, of a firefly during the daytime in green grass. The firefly is overall brownish with pale yellow stripes on its wing covers, a red patch on top of the thorax, and arge round dark eyes. It is grooming one antenna, holding the tip curled back in its mouth.
Tom Astle@tjalamont.bsky.social · 2w ago

🌿🐙 I got back Friday after 5 days in Lincoln, NE, at the American Arachnological Society annual meeting. It was my first scientific conference. I have had a not-great 2026, and while some might not think a week full of spiders & scorpions would be good for the soul, it healed mine. To a person--

A macro photo of a bright yellow crab spider in a yellow-petaled black-eyed Susan flower, with greenery and blue sky in the background.
Bea Leiderman@bealeiderman.bsky.social · 3w ago

These two are the same insect, 26 minutes apart. The picture on the left is the regular appearance. The one on the right is what the insect looks like after it is scared and produces a chemical that spreads between its body and its elytra. 🌿🌱 #beetle #insect

A side by side composite image of a beetle. The image on the left shows a gold beetle with some reddish iridescence. The one on the right looks blue with a gold spot in the middle. These are tortoise beetles so they have clear elytra that extend well beyond the shape of its body like a helmet.