It's a grape with legs.

+2

Damn, I can't wait to get a good macro lens.

TsPoet wrote in post #8989558
+1
and check out one of these next time you need to remove one of those
http://www.amazon.com …den&qid=1257867​308&sr=8-1
lots of places other than amazon sell them.

Thanx.. I'll have to checkout Petsmart next time I'm there. This looks easier than tweezers.

Those are amazing photos!

Last year was hell for me due to a tick bite. Keep an eye out for them.

That is just insane! They are some nasty looking things aren't they? Well done.

great close ups of a very nasty mini beast. I get quite a lot of tick bites in Richmond Park which is a worry due to the possibility of Lyme disease - always wear appropriate clothing and check skin regularly.

racketman wrote in post #8992434
great close ups of a very nasty mini beast. I get quite a lot of tick bites in Richmond Park which is a worry due to the possibility of Lyme disease - always wear appropriate clothing and check skin regularly.

We are pretty carefull as well but we have had several days below freezing which usually takes care of the problem. This guy was on my dog.

I've always thought of insects, arachnidae and friends as God's wind-up toys (I'm not religious). With autonomous creatures as simple as these, form always gives in to function. They may not be appearing on any catwalk in the near future, but consider that these creatures have the same goal-seeking instincts as - say - birds.

As an example, consider a spider (can't remember the species) that preys on other spiders. Its attack-of-choice is the drop-from-above. Now this spider will spend up to an hour maneuvering itself into a position whereby it can effect this attack. During most of this time it is out of sight of its intended victim. It therefore has to remember where its lunch is. Keep track of where it needs to be relative to its current position. Remember why it's doing all of this. For up to an hour. With a mind contained within a cerebellum the size of one pixel of a 7D's sensor. Strewth, give me five minutes and I've forgotten where my coffee is, let alone my screwdriver.

In the insect world, the rule is simple: eat or die (the mating thing seems pretty much common to all species).

Great images, gjl. Keep them coming. I'm particularly impressed with the DOF in the first.

I still like grapes.

C:\>

Great macro .....

Well done

DigitalDabbler wrote in post #9000911
give me five minutes and I've forgotten where my coffee is, let alone my screwdriver.

Or where the stupid remote is. Dang.. where is that remote.

Very cool!

Fat as a tick!

We found a pair greyhounds that had been left in the country for their retirement (abandoned in the most convenient farm lot by the track) we pulled over 100 of these things from each one of them.

Great shots!

Mike

mikerault wrote in post #9003553
We found a pair greyhounds that had been left in the country for their retirement (abandoned in the most convenient farm lot by the track) we pulled over 100 of these things from each one of them....

Yikes!!

Dang what an ugly bug. Great shot!