ascalaphid
@ascalaphid.com
bugs and shrews, critters with booze
https://ascalaphid.com
https://bowelfly.tumblr.com
stickers: https://ko-fi.com/ascalaphid/shop
https://ascalaphid.com
https://bowelfly.tumblr.com
stickers: https://ko-fi.com/ascalaphid/shop
Pinned
ascalaphid
@ascalaphid.com
· Jan 1
They're up! come grab a couple shrews. I promise they look better in person than my crappy photos.
ko-fi.com/s/3696021c0e
ko-fi.com/s/3696021c0e
Plocamus echidna, one of my favorite northeastern weevils
February 10, 2026 at 8:09 PM
Plocamus echidna, one of my favorite northeastern weevils
Reposted by ascalaphid
Messing around in boats
February 10, 2026 at 5:01 PM
Messing around in boats
i finally had my coffee and realized the pun you two were making
February 10, 2026 at 4:53 PM
i finally had my coffee and realized the pun you two were making
barklice are cute as hell. we occasionally get those in samples too
February 10, 2026 at 2:44 PM
barklice are cute as hell. we occasionally get those in samples too
these ones have been thoroughly pickled in ethanol and antifreeze so they'd make for some rather spicy furikake
February 10, 2026 at 2:43 PM
these ones have been thoroughly pickled in ethanol and antifreeze so they'd make for some rather spicy furikake
got em off amazon many years ago. super handy since nobody ever mistakes them for their own!
February 10, 2026 at 8:10 AM
got em off amazon many years ago. super handy since nobody ever mistakes them for their own!
oh yeah, it's to look out for invasive species
February 10, 2026 at 8:01 AM
oh yeah, it's to look out for invasive species
those are both questions that would be hard to answer with a character limit and also i'm going to bed but the bottom line is i do it because getting paid to look at bugs all day fucking rules
February 10, 2026 at 7:54 AM
those are both questions that would be hard to answer with a character limit and also i'm going to bed but the bottom line is i do it because getting paid to look at bugs all day fucking rules
i'm on there as cnestus but haven't been especially active lately
February 10, 2026 at 7:52 AM
i'm on there as cnestus but haven't been especially active lately
not often but every few months i get annoyed enough to go through the scolytine photos on inat and at least try to knock down some of the (many, many...) misidentifications
February 10, 2026 at 7:47 AM
not often but every few months i get annoyed enough to go through the scolytine photos on inat and at least try to knock down some of the (many, many...) misidentifications
i'm a professional beetle sorter. most of the species in this pile are non-native unfortunately. bark beetle grub ID is probably possible but it would suuuuuck. you'd have better lock basing your ID off the host plant and gallery pattern. or PCR.
February 10, 2026 at 7:42 AM
i'm a professional beetle sorter. most of the species in this pile are non-native unfortunately. bark beetle grub ID is probably possible but it would suuuuuck. you'd have better lock basing your ID off the host plant and gallery pattern. or PCR.
insect taxonomy is basically a kind of wizardry. i think my job should give me a cool robe or something when i hit my 5 year anniversary
February 10, 2026 at 7:40 AM
insect taxonomy is basically a kind of wizardry. i think my job should give me a cool robe or something when i hit my 5 year anniversary
they are the seasoning dummy
February 10, 2026 at 7:27 AM
they are the seasoning dummy
it definitely helps when like 90% of them are the same species, in this case Xylosandrus crassiusculus, so it's mostly a job of separating out the other species
February 10, 2026 at 7:26 AM
it definitely helps when like 90% of them are the same species, in this case Xylosandrus crassiusculus, so it's mostly a job of separating out the other species
barkies don't tend to be that stinky, at least as long as they were preserved properly. i've opened a few samples in the past where someone put water in the container instead of alcohol and those cleared the lab pretty fast
February 10, 2026 at 7:24 AM
barkies don't tend to be that stinky, at least as long as they were preserved properly. i've opened a few samples in the past where someone put water in the container instead of alcohol and those cleared the lab pretty fast
I tend to lose track of time when i'm in the beetle zone and it really varies depending on the sample though but i'd guess this one took me around an hour
February 10, 2026 at 7:22 AM
I tend to lose track of time when i'm in the beetle zone and it really varies depending on the sample though but i'd guess this one took me around an hour
One sample from today. There's a little over 1000 bark beetles here representing 29 species. Love my job
February 10, 2026 at 7:11 AM
One sample from today. There's a little over 1000 bark beetles here representing 29 species. Love my job
pretend there's like 2-3 more panels after this that all look the same and are just captioned fucking around on the internet
February 9, 2026 at 7:39 AM
pretend there's like 2-3 more panels after this that all look the same and are just captioned fucking around on the internet
you can now have your own tiny molumbo
ko-fi.com/s/fe627dba9c
ko-fi.com/s/fe627dba9c
Molumbo - ascalaphid's Ko-fi Shop
Just one more thing (new design for 2026!)
ko-fi.com
February 8, 2026 at 10:23 PM
you can now have your own tiny molumbo
ko-fi.com/s/fe627dba9c
ko-fi.com/s/fe627dba9c
at this point I'm just using the sticker sales to justify my addiction to making more stickers
February 8, 2026 at 10:20 PM
at this point I'm just using the sticker sales to justify my addiction to making more stickers
uploaded 20 new sticker designs to the shop
ko-fi.com/ascalaphid/s...
ko-fi.com/ascalaphid/s...
February 8, 2026 at 10:04 PM
uploaded 20 new sticker designs to the shop
ko-fi.com/ascalaphid/s...
ko-fi.com/ascalaphid/s...
shame shame shame by shirley & company
February 8, 2026 at 7:31 PM
shame shame shame by shirley & company
trungo may have taken a backseat to the shrews lately but he will never be far from my mind
February 8, 2026 at 7:22 PM
trungo may have taken a backseat to the shrews lately but he will never be far from my mind
Reposted by ascalaphid
Since I've discovered you can make stamps from erasers, I must have done two dozen of these... And today's stamp is a little bit of an @ascalaphid.com fanart!
February 8, 2026 at 7:16 PM
Since I've discovered you can make stamps from erasers, I must have done two dozen of these... And today's stamp is a little bit of an @ascalaphid.com fanart!