I'm heading back to Ecuador and one of the species I'm hoping to see again is Hapalopus planetearth, a small tarantula that was only formally described last year and we know very little of. This species is now commonly called Ecuadorian crowned tarantula, a name that does its beauty justice!

The thing is, I've been struggling to identify this beetle. It's a fairly large and colorful species so I am sure it is known, although the exciting possibility of it being something undocumented certainly exists. If anyone has a lead that can send me in the right direction, I'd appreciate the help!

This mysterious beetle showed up at our light trap in the Brazilian Amazon near Manaus. It's a beautiful representative of the shining leaf chafers, the Rutelinae, a group of scarab beetles that are often found feeding on leaves and flower petals. Many species are round and have metallic colors.

Here's a phone pic of a female bess beetle with her 5 children in a gallery under a log. Note that some of her larvae are bigger than her! This is normal for beetles, larvae typically gain weight during their development and then lose it right before turning into adults. If only we could do that 😄

I got some questions after my post about bess beetles, so I thought I'd share this clip from Brazil showing a male Odontotaenius guarding his tunnel under the bark of a fallen tree.

Bess beetles live in dead wood, and once found pairs will establish territories and defend them ferociously against intruders. They create a system of tunnels, where they chew the wood to make it easier for their larvae to consume. The beetles stay with the larvae until they mature to "leave home."

I was excited to find this Odontotaenius bess beetle under bark at our camp in Brazil. These are very friendly and often make cute squeaky sounds when handled by rubbing their abdomen against the hindwings. However, beneath the harmless appearance lies a story of collaboration, effort, and devotion.

Tiger-striped tree frog (Callimedusa tomopterna) from Ecuador. They easily blend in with the plants they are sitting on: The white markings on the frog's back are nearly identical to the lichen splotches on the leaf, and even the frog's bright orange fingers look just like the reddish stem nodes!

Both lantern bugs and lizards sit on tree trunks. Predators attack the wing tip specifically, giving the hemipteran a chance to escape. Many times I've found this species with signs of bite marks on the wing margins, and the fact that they were still alive tells me this strategy works well for them!

Another cool find from the light trap in Brazil. This cute lantern bug (Odontoptera carrenoi) is one of those unique species that look like they're constantly "flipping the bird" 🤣 But wait. ☝ THERE'S MORE Its wing shape and color pattern mimic the head of an anole lizard. can you see it?

That being said, have you ever looked at an animal and thought - damn girl, those are some attractive lashes!

Um. Is it still considered macrophotography when you photograph a bird with a macro lens?.. If you look closely you'll see that she is guarding a ping-pong ball that some players left behind. Don't worry, Patricia - I'm sure those players are coming back! (what? what do you mean it's not a ball)

This common potoo (Nyctibius griseus) made a perch on a post at our site in Ecuador. Because she was right on the trail, we saw her every single day. To be honest, the fact that this bird was just sitting there silently watching and judging us every time we walked past kind of freaks me out...

With a stylish look of a black leopard and the mannerisms of a Siamese cat, Phiale guttata jumping spiders are always a treat to observe. Usually their inquisitive nature is what gives them away: These spiders really like to explore their surroundings and often end up finding us before we spot them.

Melanophoxus griffinii, a small conehead katydid from the Amazon region, trying to climb on my lens. This is one of the many challenges in shooting wide angle macro: you have to get very close, and for some animals this is an opportunity for them to go and explore your camera and flash system 😅

Lithodytes lineatus is quite common in tropical South America, and I have encountered the adult frogs on every single trip I've made for the past 20 years. This cute species is sometimes found in the nest of leafcutter ants!

This frog fooled me. When I dug it out from underneath a fallen log during a night walk in Brazil, I thought I found a poison dart frog. This is a juvenile gold striped frog (Lithodytes lineatus), a mimic of poison dart frogs. Their colors are exceptionally bright at this stage!

When the Antiteuchus babies hatch, the mother will keep protecting them until they can fend for themselves. Isn't nature amazing?

A bug carrying the next round of beers? No, actually something way more exciting! This female Antiteuchus sepulcralis is displaying parental care by shielding her eggs. She can't cover them all so she puts her feelers forward, both as an extension of her body and to sense if someone gets too close.

Dragons exist! This insect showed up at the light trap in Brazil. I humbled to say that I don't know what this beautiful, 8mm-long insect is. All I can tell you is that it is some kind of sap-sucking hemipteran, and that it's likely a male. Hoping that someone can chime in with more information!

The orchid bee deploys its tongue only for drinking nectar from long tubular flowers. It is quite a cumbersome tool to move around with, look how long it is!

Normally the tongue is folded underneath the orchid bee's body at all times, even in flight. In males the folded tongue can resemble a stinger but remember only female bees can sting ☝ Males are completely harmless.

Orchid bees are among the insects I always look for when I visit Latin America. I never get tired of them! This beautiful male Euglossa from Brazil is doing a very good job hiding his long tongue.

That moment when you find a whip spider chewing on rainbow candy in the middle of the Amazon... Heterophrynus batesii, one of the most impressive arachnids in the Amazon area, seems to like feeding on the colorful Hyperphrona gracilis katydids. I see this scene very often on my visits to the region.

Love is all around. Sometimes you just have to look at the forest floor to see 💕 Atta laevigata is one of the largest species of leafcutter ants, and my absolute favorite. Observing the big workers with their shiny heart-shaped head fills me with joy every time! Photographed in Amazonas, Brazil

This photo from a 2007 visit to the Ecuadorian Amazon shows a much larger nymph with more normal body proportions typical for mature leafhoppers.

At this minute size of only 1mm long (!!!), they have exaggerated body proportions - a large head with enormous eyes. It's so small that it can easily be mistaken for a speck of microplasitc.

Look at this goofball sticking its tongue at you! This leafhopper nymph (Amblyscarta) is one of the most brightly colored insects you can find in the Amazon region. This is a freshly hatched nymph.

This spectacular cockroach (Panchlora aurora) came to the light trap at Igapó's International Fieldwork Course in Manaus, Brazil. The colors and texture of this species are unreal. The pastel blue & yellow together with the smooth and shiny surface makes it look like it is made out of porcelain!

Leaf-mimicking katydids like this Cycloptera speculata are among my favorite to encounter when I visit the Ecuadorian Amazon. They really look and behave like a leaf, and if that's not enough they also show a high degree of color pattern variation to depict leaf damage like holes and sunburn marks.