When I was out looking at freshwater invertebrates this past weekend I found this VERY pregnant female freshwater Gammarus, which is an amphipod crustacean genus in the family Gammaridae. The female is definitely having some difficulty getting around because of how many offspring she has in her brood pouch. I watched her for a while and hoped she would "give birth," but no luck. Amphipods don't give birth the way humans do - instead she will release her offspring the next time she molts (sheds her skin in order to grow). If you look very closely, you can see all the little ones moving around in her brood pouch - they are getting ready to swim freely!
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Melissa Sanchez Herrera and I are organizing a Sys-EB Section symposium for the 2019 EntSoc meeting in St. Louis, MO.
The symposium is entitled:
Bugs in Technicolor: How Color Research Advocates for Entomology
The reflection and emission of light from insect surfaces has both fascinated and inspired entomologists and the general public for centuries. The goal for our symposium is to provide a setting in which to discuss color research and its use in public outreach initiatives that aim to inspire insect curiosity and advocate for entomology. We have talks that will be given by entomologists from different continents / countries working on diverse, ingenuitive projects that incorporate insect coloration components including production, structures, perception and selection.
In addition to these talks, we intend to have an electronic exhibit of images, illustrations, and videos that fulfill these criteria and we are thus seeking submissions for this endeavor.
If you are interested in including an image please fill out the form below and upload your image / video!
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