2018 January 8

 

   Scott Gilmore writes from Lantzville:  I spent a long time exploring about a square foot of my backyard on Saturday (Jan 6th) and found more things than I have had a chance to identify yet or even deal with the photographs. The first is a mite from the family Erythracaridae.   I really think it should be called the Candy Cane Mite. The second is a new snail for me, Lauria cylindracea, a European import. And the last is a family of beetle I have never seen before, the Primitive Carrion Beetles, family Agyrtidae. This is Necrophilus hydrophiloides and I found them inside a decomposing squash.

 

Candycane Mite (Acari: Erythracaridae)  Scott Gilmore

Candycane Mite (Acari: Erythracaridae)  Scott Gilmore

Candycane Mite (Acari: Erythracaridae)  Scott Gilmore

Lauria cylindracea (Pul.: Pupillidae)   Scott Gilmore

Necrophilus hydrophiloides (Col.:  Agyrtidae)  Scott Gilmore

 

Scott also sends photographs of three spiders.  It’s a bit tricky to identify them, but thank you Robb Bennett for having a go!  Robb has the first two to genus and probably species.  He writes that the third one is a linyphiine linyphiid.  For those unfamiliar with the jargon, this means that it belongs to the Family Linyphiidae, and, within that, to the Subfamily Linyphiinae (sheet-web weavers).

 

Eratigena (probably agrestis) (Ara.:  Agelenidae)  Scott Gilmore

Xysticus (probably cristatus)  (Ara.: Thomisidae) Scott Gilmore

Ara.:  Lyniphiidae – Lyniphiinae      Scott Gilmore