Tagged: video

YouTube Entomology Contest!

The Entomological Society of America has announced a video contest!

Members may submit entries of no more than two minutes in four different categories:

• Discovery (research-based)
• Instruction (teaching-based)
• Outreach (extension-based)
• Open category (anything goes, for the uber-creative entomologist)

All entries will be displayed on the ESA YouTube Channel, which will be accessible from the ESA website, and the winning entries will be shown at the Opening Session of the ESA Annual Meeting on Sunday, December 13, 2009, in Indianapolis.

I am hoping that they don’t actually limit it to active ESA members.

I did a bit of searching, and can’t seem to find an ESA YouTube account or Channel. I did accidentally find this video of an insect that smears itself with plant resin, which was pretty nifty.  Anyone know where the ESA channel is?

Butterfly timelapse videos!

Check out this nifty film of painted lady emergence from pupae:

It’s particularly interesting to see these color changes as the butterflies develop–and then they suddenly turn a milky color. What’s happening?

In preparation for shedding a skin, an insect secretes moulting fluid.  This liquid separates the old skin from the new one underneath it–and eventually partially dissolves the cuticle.  This changes the color and opacity of the skin.

Lots of other nifty time-lapses at that channel–These swallowtails are fascinating to watch as they wriggle out of their larval skins like an old sock, and a silkmoth spins a cocoon.

For amazing shiny beauty, you must watch this lifecycle of purple hairstreaks.

Oh, were you trying to get work done? Sorry about that.

Bark Beetle Music Video

Some fun for a Friday. And I’m sure the large number of beer bottles in the video are a total coincidence :D

Virginia Tech has a nice publication on Bark Beetles:

“Bark beetles attack trees that are weakened or dying due to stress factors such as drought, disease, smog, mechanical injury, alteration of the water table, or root damage due to nearby construction.”

All sorts of Bark Beetle information is also available at barkbeetles.org, BTW.

Waggle of the antennae to InsectaPodcast for pointing me at this.

Colbert, bees, and cows

I was just thinking “Gosh, we’ve been seriously lately at the Bug Blog….”

Fortunately, Steven Colbert weighs in on the bee-cocaine experiments! (At 2:12)
Bonus: before he gets to the honey, he explains how cow-tipping will help the environment.

Sadly, I can’t embed the Colbert video at WordPress, but you can click and visit.

He also covers the escape of a spider in space!

Amusing Music Thursday

Wow. I soooooo wish I had the chutzpah to do this. I present: Leslie Hall, from Ames, Iowa.

There is, alas, no video for the song “Midwest Diva,” which you can hear on her MySpace page. Because it would probably be awesome.

Also, someone tell PZ that she’s got his octopi on her shoulders.

Isabella Rossellini, insects, and porn

Really, could there be any better combination?
Apparently she’s created a series of short films:

“The 55-year-old actress will premiere “Green Porno”, a series she directed and co-produced as “quickies” for mobile phones and mobile video players, in the Berlinale’s sidebar Forum section, the festival said.

“Rossellini sets off on colourfully costumed expeditions into the microcosm…Disguised as a male insect — as a firefly, dragonfly and spider — she investigates the illuminating question: How do the insects do it?”

I hope this will be released on the web after the premiere!

Japan, insects, and a high jump

Something fun for a Friday afternoon!  I have commented before on how I find Japanese culture both baffling and fascinating. The butt-biting bug was one example–here’s another one.

A game show contest that involves a high jump. But…also…
The contestants are dressed as giant insects.
And if you fail at the high jump, two girls dressed as spiders eat stinky food and breathe on you.

The video is not hosted on YouTube, so I can’t post it. But….wow.  Click on the link above and be amazed. (Also, if anyone can get me the green bug costume, it would look really awesome on me.)

Thank you for finding this,  :D ata What:!