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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

Now that we've taken our measurements we can measure the specimen, we've gone through the key and measured the entire specimen. We can compare this to what was originally written in 1920. The end result is an image of our measurements here, cleaned up, showing it's Hydrogamasus giardi and male.

Annotated microscope photo titled Hydrogamasus giardi, male. The amber mite lies diagonally across a yellow background. A white line along the body reads length 0.58 mm and a second line across it reads breadth 0.32 mm. A circle and label mark the curved spur on leg II, which shows it is a male. A scale bar in the lower left reads 0.2 mm. Text above the photo says the body is 0.58 mm long without the mouthparts and 0.32 mm broad, and that Halbert (1920) gives 0.56 mm for the male of giardi and 0.92 mm for the male of littoralis.

Higher magnification microscope photo of the front end of the mite, pointing down. The dark, pointed mouthparts are in the middle with a short, blunt palp on each side. Jointed, bristly legs run down the left and right. The thick leg on the far left carries a large curved spur, like a claw.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

Then we have to calibrate our microscope measurements using a tiny ruler, add a picture, then use software to extrapolate the size based on the measurements. Given that the Pugh thesis and the 1920 paper separate species out by size this is the most important thing we need.

Annotated microscope photo titled Eyepiece circle read against the 0.01 mm stage scale. A thin circle engraved in the eyepiece sits over a cross shaped ruler with fine tick marks. Blue tags mark where the circle crosses each arm of the ruler: 21.5 divisions left of the middle, 19.5 right, 21.1 above and 19.9 below. Blue arrows across the circle in both directions read 41.0 divisions = 0.41 mm.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

Sometimes a description from the olden days is the way to go. This one is from Halbert in 1920 "The Acarina of the Seashore", where he wrote about seaside mites back in the day. This is where I find the description of the lost mite that's on my website: rosariolebronentomology.com/thinozercon/

Scanned paragraph from page 121 of Halbert's 1920 paper The Acarina of the Seashore, under the heading Hydrogamasus Giardi (Berl. et Trouess.). It says the species is found from the Pelvetia down to the Serratus zones at Malahide, often with H. littoralis, and that the two are structurally very much alike but may be separated as follows. Hydrogamasus littoralis: larger; length of female about 940 microns; breadth 560; length of male 922; colour paler; form more oval; hairs of dorsum relatively longer; fissure separating dorsum from anal shield reaching the end margin of body. Hydrogamasus Giardi: smaller; length of female 640 microns; breadth 312; length of male 563; colour much darker; body hairs shorter; fissure not reaching end margin of body.

Plate XXI from Halbert 1920: a page of fine line drawings of shore mites on cream paper, headed Proc. R. I. Acad., Vol. XXXV, Sect. B. More than twenty numbered figures show whole mites from above and below, alongside enlarged legs, shields and mouthparts. Figure 3, upper right, is a young stage of Hydrogamasus littoralis seen from above. Figure 4, on the left, shows the toothed pincers (chelicerae) of a male Hydrogamasus giardi.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

As a fun aside, I'll will add that I found P. J. A. Pugh's PhD thesis from Wales at the library at the Swansea University Library. He created an entire key to seaside mites. His description shows a certain size range and some plates that don't seem to reflect reality. This is kinda common.

Screenshot of a typed key from a PhD thesis, headed (m10) Family: Cyrtolaelapidae Cooreman, 1943. A note says the family was resurrected by Evans in a personal communication, splits off from the Rhodacaridae and includes the genus Hydrogamasus. Two species in Britain. 1a: Idiosoma over 700 microns long, and uniformly ovoid (Fig. 1), leads to Hydrogamasus salinus (Laboulbene, 1851). 1b: Idiosoma under 650 microns long, with straight lateral margins converging posteriorly from the shoulders, leads to Hydrogamasus giardi (Berlese & Trouessart, 1889). Notes on H. giardi follow: mostly in crevices, also under stones and under algal cover on rock, with older records from Ireland, Anglesey, Devon and the Mediterranean, and new records from Cumbrae, Northumberland, Pembrokeshire, Gower, Ogmore by Sea, Cornwall, Devon and Dorset.

Plate of four hand drawn line figures labelled Fig. 1, from the same thesis. 1.1: a mite from above, with a broad egg shaped body covered in short setae and the mouthparts and four legs drawn. 1.2: a mite from below, with three round leg sockets on each side and a large rounded shield over the rear half. 1.3: the mouthparts enlarged, with the palp segments lettered. 1.4: a second view from below with the parts lettered, including a separate genital shield marked g and a large rear shield marked va.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

Then, once it gets us to Hydrogamasus, we do a kind of sanity check, a reality check. We check and we see: okay, does this make sense given the images we see there? Have we made a terrible mistake? The key tells us this organism should be found by the seashore, just where we found it.

Line drawing, labelled (b), of the underside of a Hydrogamasus body with the legs removed. At the top are the stumps of the first legs with a small forked organ between them. Three round leg sockets run down each side. Between them lie a broad sternal shield and a smaller genital shield, both with pairs of fine setae. A large rounded shield covers the rear half, dotted with pairs of setae, with the anal opening at its tip. Along its rear edge it merges with the body margin.

Microscope photo of the whole mite on a slide against a pale background. The body is a translucent amber oval, with the pointed mouthparts at the bottom and eight jointed, bristly legs spread out. Round leg bases show through along both sides of the body, and dark curved bands show in the rear half. One thick leg beside the mouthparts carries a curved spur.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

The key starts asking us about the general shape of the body, whether or not the dorsal and ventral shields are fused (the body is made up of a shell of sorts), the general structure of it. After that come the three ventral setae on tibia I. The higher magnification is to show them.

Screenshot of a printed identification key headed Key to genera (adults). Couplet 1: With holodorsal shield in both sexes, go to 3. With discrete podonotal and opisthonotal shields in both sexes, go to 2. Couplet 2: Tibia I with 3 ventral setae (total 13 setae); both sexes with the ventro anal shield fused with the holodorsal shield posteriorly (Fig. 40(b)). This leads to Hydrogamasus Berlese, 1892. Type species: Gamasus littoralis G. & R. Can., 1881.

High magnification microscope photo of one leg segment of the mite, titled Tibia I: three ventral setae. The amber segment runs diagonally across a pale background, with stout, curved, pointed bristles sticking out on both sides. Three white circles numbered 1 to 3 mark the three setae. Numbers 1 and 2 sit on the face of the segment, each a small round socket with the seta rising from it. Number 3 is a curved seta at the lower right edge of the segment.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

Only now, almost two weeks later, my specimen is ready to be identified! Now you need literature... books and papers possibly from decades ago, as this stuff isn't updated often. The first step was to find a key to the mites of the UK generally. Thankfully there's one compendium for UK mites.

Title page of a scientific monograph. At the top: Trans. zool. Soc. Lond. (1979) 35, pages 139 to 270. The title reads Mesostigmatic mites of Britain and Ireland (Chelicerata: Acari Parasitiformes). An introduction to their external morphology and classification. The authors are G. O. Evans, University College, Dublin, and W. M. Till, North East London Polytechnic, London. Accepted 10 October 1978, with 56 figures in the text. Published for the Zoological Society of London by Academic Press.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

That was allowed to dry for two weeks before putting some enamel paint around the coverslip to seal the specimen under the glass permanently. I messed up a bit and added too much. That's all the red you see there. The blue dots are paper towel divots because I didn't want to dirty my table.

A glass microscope slide lying on a white paper towel covered in blue dots. A round coverslip in the middle is sealed with a thick, messy ring of bright red enamel paint. Under the glass, to the right of the middle, the mite is a tiny reddish brown speck, smaller than one of the blue dots.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

The specimen was then transferred to a drop of a mounting medium. I am using a mixture that can be made using stuff off of Amazon. It's yellow because it has iodine to stain the cuticle of the specimen. The mounting medium is nice because it's a mixture of sugar, iodine and lactic acid.

A large, round drop of bright yellow mounting medium on a white surface. A single small brown mite lies in the drop, left of the middle, with its oval body and eight legs spread out. The lamp makes a bright white reflection on the drop at the upper right.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

These were then transferred to a solution of lactic acid and glycerol so that their insides are digested by the acid. You can see in the image here three of them floating in the lactic acid as they are digested. A few days later and the specimens' insides are largely gone.

View down a microscope: a bright white circle surrounded by black. Three tiny orange brown mites float in clear liquid in a small dish. Two sit close together near the middle and a third, slightly out of focus, is at the lower right. Each has an oval body with its legs spread out.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

After taking the photo, we acquired the mites using an aspirator. Basically a little suction device. Those little critters went directly into alcohol. So as not to affect the population, only three were collected from the hundreds on the beach.

View of the estuary from collection site, the rocks were flipped for the aspirator

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

For fun, today I will walk through how acarology works, and how I got this mite I found by the Welsh shores down to species. This also applies to many insects. When someone says "Can you tell me what species this is?" is often a hard question to answer. #bugsky #inverts #entomology #ukwildlife 🧪🌿

Close up photo of a tiny mite walking across a wet, muddy brown surface on the shore. This was the underside of a rock near LLanelli. Its body is a smooth, glossy, orange brown oval, longer than it is wide, that shines in the light. Paler orange legs and mouthparts reach forward to the left.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 09/10/2026

An entomobryid springtail enjoying a drying flower head. Needed a break and took this outside of my office. Ended up giving a tour of the tiny things people ignore. #bugsky #inverts

Macro photograph of a tiny pale yellow springtail walking across a drying flower head. The springtail is elongate and soft bodied, covered in fine pale hairs that catch the light, with a small dark eye patch and long segmented antennae, one raised upward and the other stretched forward. Its legs grip the tips of dark maroon, nearly black florets that are stiff, pointed, and covered in a glossy pebbled texture. The springtail is brightly lit and seems to glow against the dark background, while the surrounding florets fade into soft blur toward the edges of the frame.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 07/10/2026

This is a wasp. Specifically a sawfly larva, Diprion pini I think. I love sawflies like this because they really challenge what people think of as a "wasp". Beautiful animal. #entomology #hymenoptera #bugsky #ukwildlife

Extreme macro close up of a sawfly larva's head and front body against a black background. The larva looks like a caterpillar. Its head is a glossy, rounded, orange brown capsule with a darker patch on top and a scattering of fine short hairs. A single round black eye sits inside a black patch on the side of the head, with a small pale antenna stub just below it. Dark mouthparts point down and to the right. Behind the head the body is soft, wrinkled and pale creamy yellow, slightly translucent, with two bold matte black spots and rows of tiny black bristles. Black and white banded legs grip a twig at the bottom of the frame. A blurred brown stem runs out of focus to the right.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 25/09/2026

I'm not one to air my family issues online. I lost my cousin George to fentanyl. He was as smart and capable as I was, but the troubles of life led him to drugs instead of a career. If life had treated him differently, he would have accomplished something great. We weren't different. I was lucky.

A vintage studio portrait of George as a young boy, smiling at the camera. He has light brown hair with a fringe and wears a maroon knit shirt with a pink collar and buttons, against a plain brown backdrop.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 15/09/2026

You'll see the first results here of my mounting media testing. It's a laelapid mite. I am not satisfied with how dark the specimen is. Even after slide mounting, under the microscope the specimen is not clear and not really quite visible. It's a bit disappointing. #bugsky #inverts 🌿🧪

Transmitted light microscope image of a laelapid mite mounted on a slide, dorsal view. The body is a deep orange brown and heavily sclerotised, so dark that internal structure obscures the dorsal shield outline. Long, sparsely spined legs radiate from the body. The specimen is not fully cleared and detail is hard to resolve.

A small orange brown mite suspended in a bright yellow droplet of mounting medium on top of a cover slip viewed at low magnification. The mite is pale and semi transparent here, with all eight legs spread out and visible against the yellow field. A few flecks of debris sit in the medium.

A microscope stage seen from above, with a slide bearing a single domed droplet of yellow mounting medium under a round coverslip. The objective is out of focus above it. A red box labelled Microscope Slides Frosted sits in the background.

Three small orange brown mites before transferring to mounting media in lactic acid on a white background seen through a microscope eyepiece, the circular field of view surrounded by black. Two mites sit close together at upper left, a third smaller one at lower right. Legs and body outlines are clear against the pale background.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 14/09/2026

Give it a try and see if it works. I highly recommend clearing oribatidae for many days before mounting. Also not crushing them, smallest coverslips possible. This is how I ended up with this;

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 14/09/2026

First step in using the Thinozercon Project to bring people into the world of mites: I have been testing a way to democratise mite ID. What if I could make a slide mounting medium out of relatively non toxic cosmetic chemicals off Amazon? These images are the first results. #entomology #bugsky 🧪🌿

High magnification view of an oribatid mite through a circular microscope field, the dark edge of the eyepiece framing the image. The rear of the amber notogaster sits at upper left and the gnathosoma fills the centre, with the chelicerae extended and their toothed chelae visible. Legs radiate to the right and lower left, individual segments, claws and long fine setae resolved sharply against the pale background.

Whole mite mounted on a microscope slide, photographed down the eyepiece. The body is a translucent amber oval roughly egg shaped, with eight legs splayed out around it and the mouthparts and chelicerae projecting forward at the top. Paired rounded coxal plates show through the cuticle in the front half of the body. A clump of granular yellow gut content or debris sits beside the right hand legs. The background is pale grey with scattered specks of dust and air bubbles in the medium.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 06/09/2026

New Thinozercon trip in Wales. This time a very successful trip with LOTS of amazing little critters. Everything from Crustaceans, Hemiptera and velvet mites in one location. Wales has such amazing #ukwildlife 🌿🧪 #inverts #bugsky #entomology Blog here: rosariolebronentomology.com/thinozercon/...

A pale, translucent Corophium amphipod in side view, walking across wet grey estuarine mud on its long banded antennae and front legs, with glistening sediment in the background.

A bright red velvet mite, plush and densely furred, walking over coarse damp sand mixed with tiny shell fragments and strands of green algae.

A small orange-brown predatory mesostigmatid mite with a smooth, glossy oval body, standing on rippled wet mud, its pale forelegs extended ahead like feelers.

A slate-blue sea springtail, Anurida maritima, its plump segmented body covered in fine white hairs, crawling across shiny waterlogged mud, with a much smaller pale springtail visible below.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 30/08/2026

Bracelet Bay / Mumbles "expedition" in #Wales. I couldn't pass up posting these additional photos. Amphipods, a crab, more of the lovely Anurida springtails in magnification, and one of my favourite inverts, a great photo of a chiton! Best mollusc ever. #inverts #bugsky #invertefest #ukwildlife

A Lepidochitona chiton on damp, pale grey rock at low tide. The oval mollusc is seen from above, showing its eight overlapping shell plates in mottled green, olive and brown, ringed by a speckled girdle with a finely fringed edge. Coarse sand grains, shell fragments and a small piece of red seaweed lie scattered on the rock around it, with a few grains resting on its back.

A European green crab, Carcinus maenas, facing the camera on sunlit pale rock, seen from slightly above and in front. Its carapace is glossy olive green and brown with a toothed front edge, and its dark stalked eyes are raised. It holds a bright red, branching scrap of seaweed up to its mouthparts with one claw, and its walking legs are braced against the rough rock surface.

Close up of a loose group of about eight translucent amphipods on wet brown sediment. The small shrimp like crustaceans lie in the typical curled, side lying posture, their segmented bodies and pale legs visible through the transparent shell. Bits of shell and dark debris are scattered across the wet surface around them.

Extreme close up of a single slate blue springtail, Anurida, on wet sand, viewed from above and behind. Its plump, segmented body is covered in short pale hairs, and its stubby antennae and short legs are visible at the front. It sits among rounded quartz sand grains in shades of amber, white and grey, with pale shell fragments nearby.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 30/08/2026

Another fun day searching for my cryptid mite. I don't think this is the right kind of habitat, but maybe the springtails are a clue towards what we are looking for? Could they unlock what we are trying to find? 🌿🧪 #bugsky #inverts Full blog here: rosariolebronentomology.com/thinozercon/...

A wide rocky shore at low tide under a broken grey sky. Dark, deeply fissured rock stretches to a calm sea, cut by narrow channels and pools holding clear water and fringes of brown wrack. A lone bird flies high at upper right.

A long, narrow tide pool running between pale limestone weathered into honeycomb shapes. The still water reflects the sky, and its floor is carpeted in bright green seaweed with tufts of dark red wrack along the left edge.

A chiton resting in a thin film of water on wet, algae stained rock. The oval mollusc shows eight ribbed, grey green shell plates with a dark reddish brown flank, surrounded by scattered shell fragments and a small snail at its edge.

Extreme close up of a slate blue springtail on pale, water covered shell fragments and quartz like sand grains. Its plump, segmented body bristles with fine pale hairs, and its thick, stubby antennae reach forward mid stride.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 24/08/2026

Almost at MiteOS v1, a compact, cheap data recorder at around £100/$140. It captures GPS and sensor state, adds written or voice notes, then saves the record and a spreadsheet. Made for the Thinozercon Project to test ideas for my larger Wales PhD work.🧪 rosariolebronentomology.com/miteos/ #inverts

A compact white M5Stack Cardputer ADV running MiteOS on a wooden table. A waterproof metal temperature probe, coloured sensor wires, GNSS and LoRa module, and USB cable are connected. The small screen displays the MiteOS readiness menu.

Close view of MiteOS running on a white M5Stack Cardputer ADV with a miniature physical keyboard. The screen shows readiness checks for the SD card, probe, GPS, system, and charging mode. A GNSS and LoRa module sits above the screen, with an M5 Stamp S3 board connected on the right.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 19/08/2026

A mite last seen 39 years ago. We will be walking the Welsh shore looking for it, and posting as we go. The site now has a live blog, a map of everywhere we have searched, and a Welsh option. I can't speak Welsh, but this is Wales. It needed a Welsh option. Thinozercon is out there. #inverts 🧪

Screenshot of the Lost Mite of the Irish Sea website on a phone, styled like a page from an old book: cream paper, a brown double ruled border, antique serif type. A bar across the top holds a Contents button, a CY button for Welsh, and an Aa button for text size. The title reads The Lost Mite of the Irish Sea, above the line Ireland, 1915 · Wales, 1987 · Then the record goes silent. The italic paragraph below reads: The hunt for one of the strangest and most mysterious arachnids of the Irish Sea shore. First found on Irish shores in 1915, then recorded once more in Wales in 1987 by Swansea researchers working in Milford Haven on a study part funded by the oil industry. Thinozercon has not been seen since. The Hunt for Thinozercon intends to change that.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 17/08/2026

I shall tempt you with photos from this weekend's trip.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 05/08/2026

When people think of insects, we often picture relatively large animals wandering about. In reality, most ecosystems are dominated by tiny organisms like these thrips (family Phlaeothripidae), and it's these overlooked creatures that make up the bulk of biodiversity. #entomology #bugsky 🧪🌿

Macro photo of two slender, dark thrips (family Phlaeothripidae) on the decaying, crumbly surface of a rotting log. Their narrow, elongated bodies show segmented abdomens tapering to the tube-like tip characteristic of the family. The scene is rich brown, scattered with soil, wood fibre and fungal debris, with a tiny reddish millipede blurred in the top-right corner.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 15/07/2026

HAH! People tell me all the time, "you need to go to fancy tropical places to find cool #hemiptera." Nay I say, Nay. This common froghopper (Cercopis vulnerata) was from a random park in Wales. Wales and the UK have cool bugs too. You just have to look. #entomology #bugsky

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 14/07/2026

I really wish I remembered what exactly this was. I photographed it when I was invited to the Natural History Museum (@nhm-london.bsky.social), London, and it became one of the many collection images I never properly labelled. Remember, folks: labelling is important. #hemiptera #entomology #bugsky 🌿

Close up macro photograph of an unidentified insect specimen facing the camera on a white surface. It has very large dark compound eyes, long thin antennae, a dark segmented abdomen, and wings spread on either side. The right forewing is patterned with mottled cream and dark brown markings, while the other wings fade into the shallow focus of the background. One long orange and black leg extends towards the upper right corner.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 13/07/2026

Ah, my old arch nemesis. The Scymnus genus beetle larva. See, people will swear up and down this is a mealybug or a pseudococcidae. It is not! It is a tiny predatory ladybird. This one is on the way to the peak of Vesuvius in Italy. #bugsky #entomology #coleoptera

A tiny Scymnus ladybird larva rests on a slender green flower stem, its body cloaked in a dense coat of pale blue-grey waxy filaments that give it a woolly, mealybug-like appearance. Segmentation shows through the wax as a series of raised ridges along its back, with darker legs just visible beneath. The stem belongs to a flowering dock (Rumex), whose winged red and yellow-green fruiting valves surround the larva in soft focus. The background is a warm, blurred wash of tan and olive, with sunlight catching the fine dew on the stems

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 06/07/2026

A hoverfly (syrphidae) I found on my windowsill after its demise. Never going to pass up an opportunity to pin and take a closeup of a critter face. #entomology #bugsky #diptera 🌿 #ukwildlife

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 26/06/2026

A tiny weevil in Wales for your Friday. Look at that little snout. 🌿 #bugsky #weevils #coleoptera #entomology #ukwildlife

Macro photograph of a small weevil perched on a reddish green plant bud. The weevil has a long curved snout, dark rounded body, black legs, and dense cream and black scales across its head and thorax, giving it a patterned, almost furry appearance. One front leg is raised as if it is stepping forward. The plant surface is glossy and uneven, with burgundy and green tones. The background is a soft blurred green, making the weevil stand out clearly in the center of the image.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 02/06/2026

I have never seen this many anystids (whirligig mites) in my life. These fast reddish predators climb plant stems and tree trunks. Not much else looks like a red ball with legs. Zoom in and check out the eyes. Keep an eye out next time you're in nature. #bugsky #entomology ,🌿 #invert #ukwildlife

Macro photo of a bright red mite on a strand of green moss. The mite has a rounded, glossy red body and slender reddish legs spread out around it, with fine pale hairs on its body and legs. Behind it is soft, blurred green moss lit by sunlight

Close-up macro photo of a reddish mite on a green leaf. It has a dark, almost maroon rounded body and long orange-red legs, with scattered fine bristles. A pale green plant stem runs down the left side of the frame, and the leaf surface shows fine hairs.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 31/05/2026

Hoverfly larvae on a grass stem outside a pub in Wales. At this scale they always look rather... alien. Fear not, these are UK natives and friends, eating pests in your garden 🌿 #entomology #bugsky #diptera

Extreme macro photograph against a black background showing pale, fringed hoverfly larvae draped over the crossing point of two slender plant stems. The stems are bright green with tiny whitish stipples and a sparse fringe of fine erect hairs, deepening to purplish-brown at the junction. The larvae are translucent cream-yellow and roughly oval, their bodies ringed by a continuous fringe of short, fleshy, spine-like projections that give a cogwheel or sunflower silhouette. The upper surfaces are densely peppered with tiny dark dots, the bases of minute setae, arranged in faint concentric patterns. At the left, two small fused orange-brown structures sit close together: these are the posterior respiratory process, the larva's breathing apparatus, where the paired spiracular openings are carried at the tail end. To the right, pronounced transverse segmentation runs along the flank as a series of rippled rings, with a smaller, more translucent posterior lobe trailing downward. A small flake of white waxy material rests on the stem nearby. The dark background isolates the subject sharply, giving the shot a flash-lit, portrait quality.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 28/05/2026

It's spring in Wales and a massive aphid colony overhead keeps coating my car in honeydew, their sugary phloem excretion. Looks like weird sticky glue all over the windows. Don't worry, it's just sugar. It's also aphid poop. Kind of. 🌿 #entomology #bugsky

Extreme macro photograph of a dense aphid colony carpeting the surface of a green leaf. The frame is almost entirely filled with dozens of small, plump, oval aphids in pale lime-yellow, packed shoulder to shoulder with very little leaf showing between them. Most are wingless individuals (nymphs and apterous adults) of varying sizes, the smallest barely formed. Many trail delicate, hair-like white waxy filaments that drift across the colony like fine threads, and a faint white waxy bloom dusts parts of the cluster. Scattered through the mass are tiny dark specks and the occasional pale, shed cast skin.
Two larger winged adults (alates) stand out sharply against the yellow throng. The one on the left lies horizontally across the center of the image, facing right; it has a glossy black head and thorax, a darker greenish-black abdomen, long slender legs, and two pairs of clear, faintly smoky membranous wings folded back over its body, traced with dark brown veins and a prominent dark stigma along the leading edge. A reddish compound eye and thread-like antennae are visible. The second alate sits in the upper-right corner, oriented diagonally with its head down, similar in form, its dark body and veined wings catching a slight sheen.
The background leaf is rich green with a softly textured, hairy surface, and a thicker vein runs along the lower-right edge of the frame.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 11/04/2026

A Rhizophagus beetle from under a log in Wales. Sometimes the added rain in the wood really adds a nice detail to some pictures. Like this one. #bugsky #entomology #coleoptera 🌿

A small Rhizophagus beetle fills the center of an extreme close up macro photograph, rendered in sharp detail against a warmly blurred background of amber and sienna tones. The beetle faces toward the lower right of the frame, its beaded moniliform antennae reaching outward like a delicate string of dark pearls.

The elytra are a striking bluish black, smooth and domed, catching the light with a subtle steely sheen. Fine rows of punctures are visible across their surface, giving the wing covers a lightly textured appearance despite their overall glossiness. The pronotum and head are a deep reddish mahogany brown, similarly punctured, and the junction between the darker elytra and the reddish thorax creates a clean and visually dramatic color boundary.

The beetle stands on what appears to be freshly exposed wood or bark saturated with sap or resin, the surface glistening with wet amber streaks that pool and flow across the grain. Tiny fragments of frass or wood fiber cluster around the beetle's feet, suggesting active feeding or burrowing activity beneath the bark, consistent with the genus's predatory lifestyle in bark beetle galleries.

The legs are slender and reddish brown, partially tucked beneath the body. The overall body form is elongated and compact, characteristic of Rhizophagus, built for moving through the tight confines of subcortical spaces. The lighting is warm and raking, emphasizing surface texture and making the cool blue gray of the elytra pop dramatically against the rich burnt orange environment surrounding the animal.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 19/03/2026

Eyeless oribatid on a 5 pence coin, about dime sized for US folks. Something about the way these tiny mites move makes them feel almost xenomorph, all glossy, eyeless, alien-esque. 🌿🪲🪳 #Invert #nature #macrophotography

Extreme macro photo of a tiny reddish brown oribatid mite standing on the face of a British 5 pence coin. The mite is incredibly small compared with the raised letters and engraved portrait on the coin, emphasizing its minute size. Its body is smooth, glossy, and almost spherical, like a dark translucent bead with tiny legs tucked beneath it. Most of the coin is softly out of focus, creating a dramatic shallow depth of field that draws attention to the mite and the metallic texture around it.

Extreme macro side view of a tiny glossy reddish brown oribatid mite perched on the ridged edge of a British 5 pence coin. The coin edge looks like a rough silver cliff above a warm tan background. The mite’s rounded body shines like polished glass, with faint reflections on its surface, while its delicate legs grip the metal edge. The huge scale contrast makes the mite look both jewel like and otherworldly.

Head on macro view of a tiny reddish brown oribatid mite walking across a piece of dry leaf litter. Its glossy rounded back dominates the frame like a dark polished dome, while its small legs and front appendages reach forward over the rough orange brown surface. Bits of soil and decomposing plant matter surround it, and the shallow focus makes the mite stand out sharply against a softly blurred background. The perspective makes it look like a miniature alien creature exploring a rugged landscape.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 14/03/2026

An oribatid mite from the woods today. I photographed it on a log, then on a 5 pence coin to show just how tiny it is. Mites like these are the tiny machines helping decompose organic material in our ecosystems. It still boggles the mind most people don't know they exist. 🌿 #bugsky #invert #nature

Extreme macro photo of a tiny reddish brown oribatid mite standing on the broken edge of pale, crumbly bark over dark rotting wood. The mite has a rounded, glossy, dome like body that looks almost translucent in the light, with short legs tucked underneath and tiny bristles visible near the front. The background is softly blurred in warm tan and gold tones, making the mite look jewel like against the rough texture of the log.

Close macro image of the same tiny oribatid mite on a flat piece of bark. Its body is smooth, oval, and highly polished, glowing amber brown with a glassy sheen. The mite is viewed from the side, showing its small head and legs tucked low beneath the body. The bark surface is cracked and speckled in cream, tan, and brown, with the shallow depth of field fading everything beyond the mite into a soft blur.

Another scale comparison photo of the oribatid mite on the surface of a British 5 pence coin. The coin is photographed at an angle, with raised lettering and the portrait design visible in soft focus. Near the lower left area of the coin, the mite appears as a very small amber brown dot with a rounded glossy body and tiny legs. Fine scratches and wear marks on the metal surface make the mite’s size even more striking.

$Macro comparison photo showing the minute size of the oribatid mite next to a small splinter of dark wood on a British 5 pence coin. The coin fills most of the frame, with part of the lettering visible upside down. The mite appears incredibly small, only a tiny reddish brown speck with legs beside the wood fragment. The image emphasizes scale, showing that the animal is only a fraction of the width of a single letter on the coin.$

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 11/03/2026

Got to visit the Prague National Museum annex and poke around their psyllid collection. Very kind of them to walk me through it. #entomology

Front entrance of the Depozitář Národního Muzea in Prague. A broad gray stone stairway leads up to a modern white building with two tall blocklike upper sections. At ground level, a yellow revolving door sits beneath a large angular glass canopy, with benches and tall windows on either side. Bare trees frame the building under a pale blue sky.

Interior view of the Coleoptera storage stacks at the Depozitář Národního Muzea. A long white aisle runs between tall rows of compact white shelving with black wheel handles used to move the cabinets. Papers are posted on many doors, and fluorescent strip lights line the ceiling. A cart and worktables in the middle of the corridor emphasize the active collections space.

A museum specimen box filled with pinned psyllid specimens is held open in both hands inside the collection storage area. The insects are arranged in dense, orderly rows, each with tiny labels beneath them, creating a grid of carefully curated specimens. In the background are archival binders labeled Homoptera, reinforcing the scientific and archival setting.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 07/03/2026

I don't think I've ever found such a good collection of entomology supplies. Amazing show in Prague. #entomology

Wide view of a busy entomology exhibition hall in Prague, with long rows of tables covered in glass topped display cases filled with pinned insects. In the foreground, large specimens such as moths, cicadas, beetles, and other insects are neatly arranged in black framed cases, while cardboard boxes and storage trays sit underneath and beside the tables. In the background, many visitors stand closely together, leaning over the displays and browsing the collection in a bright, modern room with white walls and a high ceiling.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 05/03/2026

Some kind of really delicate Psychodidae (moth fly) I found on a flower. Shame the picture quality wasn't there to identify it well. #bugsky #entomology #diptera #invert🌿

A detailed macro photograph of a tiny, dark moth fly perched perfectly on the sweeping, velvety fold of a vivid, deep red flower petal. The fly's body and rounded, translucent wings are densely covered in thick, bristly grey and brown hairs. It is gripping the edge of the petal with delicate dark legs, and its long, strongly segmented antennae curve forward. The smooth, glowing red surface of the petal behind and around the insect is lightly dusted with microscopic, bright yellow specks of pollen.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 04/03/2026

I will be attending Vladislav Maly´s exhibition in Prague this weekend. Say hello if you're around. A carabid (ground) beetle in the meantime. #coleoptera #entomology #bugsky 🌿

A highly magnified, front-facing macro photograph of a large, glossy black ground beetle resting on rough, crumbly brown soil. The camera is at the beetle's eye level, highlighting its prominent, downward-pointing curved jaws, which are surrounded by tiny, reddish-brown sensory palps. The insect features a solid head with small dark eyes, a broad and smooth shield-like thorax, and a rear section covered by hard wing cases that have deep, parallel, lengthwise grooves. Two long, beaded antennae sweep forward and outward from its head, while its jointed, reddish-brown legs grip the earthy background.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 04/03/2026

The amount of springtails on everything in Wales is unlike anything I've ever seen. It seems like every surface has SOME springtails on them. I'm assuming due to all the moss and humidity. The diversity is enormous out here. #inverts #entomology #bugsky 🌿

A close-up macro photograph of a tiny springtail perched on dark, wet, rotting wood. The springtail has an elongated, pale yellow-green body marked with dark, mottled bands across its back. It is densely covered in long, fine, bristly hairs. Two long, segmented antennae extend upward and forward from its head, and its delicate legs grip the lumpy, glistening surface of the wood. The background is dark and smoothly blurred, keeping the intricate details of the small creature in sharp focus.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 01/03/2026

A Black Snail Beetle I found under some moss. Beautiful shiny black animal. It's incredible what you'll find in Wales if you look hard enough. #coleoptera #entomology #bugsky 🌿

A macro closeup of a black carrion beetle, Phosphuga atrata, standing on the broken edge of decaying wood. The beetle faces the viewer, so its head, textured shield behind the head, and front legs are most prominent. Its surface is glossy black with dense, fine pitting that makes it look armored. One antenna reaches forward toward the right side of the frame, ending in several thicker, bead like segments. The beetle’s legs grip the crumbly, fibrous wood, which is torn into splinters and soft flakes in tan, rust, and dark brown tones. The background is strongly blurred, olive green on the left fading into deep shadow on the right.

A macro view from above of Phosphuga atrata moving through dark, moist soil or decomposing organic matter. The beetle’s back and the rounded shield behind the head fill much of the image, showing a hammered metal texture made of tiny dimples and pits. Light catches the shield, creating a silvery highlight, with a faint greenish sheen on parts of the black surface. The head is mostly tucked under the front shield, and the legs are partly obscured by the substrate. Around it, the ground is lumpy and wet, made of irregular clods and pellets of dark brown material with scattered plant fragments, forming a rough terrain the beetle is pushing through.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 26/02/2026

It's warming up in Wales and now the Sminthuridae are out and about. 🌿 #bugsky #invert #entomology

Axtreme close-up (macro) photograph of a tiny, globular springtail (a member of the Sminthuridae family) viewed from the side, facing the left of the frame.

The Subject: The springtail has a plump, rounded body, resembling a tiny, semi-translucent balloon. Its coloration is a warm amber-yellow, and it is heavily speckled with irregular dark brown and black dots across its back and sides. It has a distinct, dark eye patch on the side of its head and thin, segmented, dark antennae curving forward and down. Sparse, very fine hairs are barely visible along its back. Its tiny, pale yellow legs are delicate, gripping the surface below.

The Environment: The creature is resting on a highly textured leaf. The leaf surface is a mottled mix of deep green veins and pale, yellowish-white raised cellular bumps, giving it a bumpy, almost reptilian scale-like appearance. The depth of field is very shallow, so only the springtail and the immediate leaf surface beneath it are in sharp focus, while the rest of the leaf blurs into the background. There are a few tiny, unidentifiable dark specks on the leaf near the springtail's feet.

This is another extreme close-up of the same springtail, but this time it is photographed head-on, looking directly toward the camera.

The Subject: Because of the frontal angle, the springtail's face is the focal point. It has a rounded face with two very distinct, dark eye patches on either side, giving it a somewhat cartoonish appearance. The two dark antennae extend outward and slightly downward toward the viewer. You can see its front legs bracing against the leaf. Behind its head, its plump, amber-yellow, black-speckled body stretches back, slightly out of focus due to the macro lens.

The Environment: It sits on the same textured leaf, with the pale, raised bumps and green veins clearly visible in the foreground. The background softly blurs into a pattern of light and dark green spots.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 11/02/2026

While I can't really speak with certainty about what the impacts will be long term (my research is just getting started). I can say the following paragraph about why the EMA did not require further testing of say, soil organisms to be disappointing. It mirrors what you're talking about. Attached

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 11/02/2026

As I’ve been researching how common pet flea & tick treatments are affecting the UK, I am genuinely shocked by the lack of testing some of these compounds went through. There are so many pathways to accumulation in our environment it's mind boggling. www.imperial.ac.uk/grantham/pub... #science 🧪

An infographic illustrating the pathways of chemical pollution from urban and agricultural sources into the environment.

The diagram is divided into human sources on the left (red buildings) and natural environments on the right (blue water and green forests). Arrows track the flow of chemicals:

Sources: Chemicals move from "Vets & Retail" to "Domestic" homes, which depict dogs, cats, and washing machines. "Industry & Agriculture" is also shown at the bottom left.

Waterways: An arrow labeled "Direct exposure from pets & wastewater" points from the domestic homes straight into a body of water at the top right labeled "Freshwater Ecosystems," which shows ducks swimming.

Soil & Runoff: Another arrow from domestic homes shows chemicals "Leaching into soils." From the soil, the chemicals take two paths: one goes via "Subsurface flow runoff" into a second "Freshwater Ecosystem" at the bottom right.

Plants & Insects: The other path from the soil shows chemicals being "Absorbed into plants," leading to a patch of trees and flowers where bees are buzzing, labeled "Pollinator Exposure."

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 11/02/2026

Finally back to macro photography, It’s amazing how the tiniest critters reveal a hidden world. I was exploring with someone who has walked this beach for years, and today was the very first time they stopped to notice the incredible details right beneath us. #invert 🌿

A close-up, macro photograph of a dense cluster of small barnacles firmly attached to a wet, dark, textured rock. The barnacles have conical, pale-brown shells, many with their diamond-shaped center plates tightly closed, while a few are empty, leaving deep, dark circular holes. Small patches of green algae are visible in the damp crevices between the shells.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 26/01/2026

The sunsets really never get old around here in Wales. 🌿 #nature #wales

A wide view of the Gower coast in Wales at sunset. Rocky limestone cliffs curve out into the sea, their faces lit with warm golden light beneath a partly cloudy blue sky. Low green shrubs and grass cover the foreground, leading the eye toward the cliffs and the shoreline below. The ocean stretches across the right side of the image, with small white waves rolling toward the coast. A few houses sit far in the distance on the clifftop, emphasizing the scale and openness of the coastal landscape.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 16/01/2026

Finally heading back to London. Delayed due to an incident with an air strike and Venezuela that closed the airspace I needed to get home.

Queensboro bridge looking over the Manhattan skyline. Full daylight. The sun shining on the buildings over the east river

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 12/01/2026

Another successful Octavitas charity fundraiser in Washington DC. Thank you to everyone who donated. Your generosity helps us continue advancing our charitable mission throughout the DC region. #Puertorico For more info circulodepr.org We would definitely welcome some volunteers in the DC area!

The image shows a lively group gathered inside an event space, standing close together as if posing during a social moment at the fundraiser. The room appears modern and functional, with neutral colored walls and large windows behind the group. The windows have horizontal blinds that are partially lowered, suggesting the event is taking place in the evening or after daylight hours. Overhead lighting provides an even, warm illumination across the room without dramatic shadows.
The people are arranged in a tight cluster, filling most of the frame, which gives the impression of a crowded and well attended gathering. Their attire ranges from elegant dresses to dark suits, indicating a formal or semi formal occasion. Each person wears a tall woven straw hat with textured fibers extending upward, adding a strong visual theme that feels cultural and celebratory. The hats are substantial in size and draw attention upward, creating a sense of unity and shared purpose among the group.
Body language throughout the group is open and affectionate. Several people have their arms around one another’s shoulders or backs, and everyone is smiling. This closeness suggests community, support, and shared enjoyment of the event. The background remains simple and uncluttered, keeping the focus on the people and their expressions. Overall, the event space feels welcoming and organized, serving as a comfortable setting for a cultural fundraiser centered on connection, pride, and collective support.

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Armando Rosario-Lebrón @rosariolebronentomology.com · 07/12/2025

Can't pass up a chance to talk about mites in a pub! It's been a whirlwind. Edinburgh, Reading, London and Cardiff talks in one month! I feel like an Acari and Hemiptera evangelist at this point. Thank you to everyone in the UK for making me feel at home.

A cozy pub interior with warm yellow lighting and stone walls. At the front of the room a speaker stands near a doorway. The speaker is a person with shoulder length hair and glasses. They wear a burgundy sweater and hold their hands together while addressing the audience. Above them a large screen shows a slide titled “Mites Everywhere: A Fun Walk Through the Mite World.” The slide displays four highly detailed and brightly colored mite illustrations in red, green, and orange. Each mite has distinct textures such as bristled legs, segmented bodies, and fine hair like structures. Below the screen is a chalkboard style menu with cocktail names and drawings in various colors. Patrons sit in the foreground listening to the presentation.

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