Priyantha Wijesinghe
@elaphrornis.bsky.social
A naturalist on the prowl. (New here, same handle on Twitter/X)
Does spring begin in fall (or autumn)? Took a walk yesterday &!saw patches of ground (where in spring I find Ivy-leaved Speedwell) covered with these young plants with prominent cotyledons & their hairy true leaves still v tiny. I need to learn more about cotyledons, clearly more than food stores.
November 8, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Does spring begin in fall (or autumn)? Took a walk yesterday &!saw patches of ground (where in spring I find Ivy-leaved Speedwell) covered with these young plants with prominent cotyledons & their hairy true leaves still v tiny. I need to learn more about cotyledons, clearly more than food stores.
Someone on iNat asked me about a marginal note about Gea subarmata (Araneidae) on the copy of my undergraduate thesis (1983) on the spiders of Sri Lanka uploaded to @archive.org (archive.org/details/wije...). So I thought I would post that page & the page from an old notebook as explanation.
November 7, 2025 at 1:00 PM
Someone on iNat asked me about a marginal note about Gea subarmata (Araneidae) on the copy of my undergraduate thesis (1983) on the spiders of Sri Lanka uploaded to @archive.org (archive.org/details/wije...). So I thought I would post that page & the page from an old notebook as explanation.
What is @inaturalist.bsky.social ?
An introduction & virtual demonstration of iNat to a primarily Sri Lankan audience, via the Sri Lanka Natural History Society.
Saturday, November 15th, 2025.
6:30 PM 🇱🇰 time (Note: QR code to download iNaturalist app)
Zoom:
Meeting ID: 840 2777 8484
Passcode: 824340
An introduction & virtual demonstration of iNat to a primarily Sri Lankan audience, via the Sri Lanka Natural History Society.
Saturday, November 15th, 2025.
6:30 PM 🇱🇰 time (Note: QR code to download iNaturalist app)
Zoom:
Meeting ID: 840 2777 8484
Passcode: 824340
October 24, 2025 at 11:53 PM
What is @inaturalist.bsky.social ?
An introduction & virtual demonstration of iNat to a primarily Sri Lankan audience, via the Sri Lanka Natural History Society.
Saturday, November 15th, 2025.
6:30 PM 🇱🇰 time (Note: QR code to download iNaturalist app)
Zoom:
Meeting ID: 840 2777 8484
Passcode: 824340
An introduction & virtual demonstration of iNat to a primarily Sri Lankan audience, via the Sri Lanka Natural History Society.
Saturday, November 15th, 2025.
6:30 PM 🇱🇰 time (Note: QR code to download iNaturalist app)
Zoom:
Meeting ID: 840 2777 8484
Passcode: 824340
What’s this, then? (Sorry, no prizes.)
October 15, 2025 at 5:51 PM
What’s this, then? (Sorry, no prizes.)
This new European butterfly field guide looks pretty cool!
Butterflies of Britain and Western Europe and Their Caterpillars: An Identification Guide
Jean-Pierre Moussus
@princetonupress.bsky.social
Expected Nov 2025 in UK, Jan 2026 in US. #WILDGuides series.
press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...
Butterflies of Britain and Western Europe and Their Caterpillars: An Identification Guide
Jean-Pierre Moussus
@princetonupress.bsky.social
Expected Nov 2025 in UK, Jan 2026 in US. #WILDGuides series.
press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...
October 10, 2025 at 1:38 PM
This new European butterfly field guide looks pretty cool!
Butterflies of Britain and Western Europe and Their Caterpillars: An Identification Guide
Jean-Pierre Moussus
@princetonupress.bsky.social
Expected Nov 2025 in UK, Jan 2026 in US. #WILDGuides series.
press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...
Butterflies of Britain and Western Europe and Their Caterpillars: An Identification Guide
Jean-Pierre Moussus
@princetonupress.bsky.social
Expected Nov 2025 in UK, Jan 2026 in US. #WILDGuides series.
press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...
Lankester described Craspedacusta sowerbii in Nature, June 17, 1880; it was also described by G J Allman as Limnocodium victoria on June 24, 1880, also in Nature. Lankester published a 2nd paper in Q. J. Micr. Sci. in which he gave some interesting figures. www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/49018902
October 9, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Lankester described Craspedacusta sowerbii in Nature, June 17, 1880; it was also described by G J Allman as Limnocodium victoria on June 24, 1880, also in Nature. Lankester published a 2nd paper in Q. J. Micr. Sci. in which he gave some interesting figures. www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/49018902
NTB WNPS Monthly Lecture
The Study of Sri Lanka’s Endemic Biota: A Malacologist's View
By Dinarzarde Raheem
When: 16th October 2025, 6.00 p.m.
Where: Jasmine Hall, BMICH, Colombo
The Study of Sri Lanka’s Endemic Biota: A Malacologist's View
By Dinarzarde Raheem
When: 16th October 2025, 6.00 p.m.
Where: Jasmine Hall, BMICH, Colombo
October 6, 2025 at 10:36 AM
NTB WNPS Monthly Lecture
The Study of Sri Lanka’s Endemic Biota: A Malacologist's View
By Dinarzarde Raheem
When: 16th October 2025, 6.00 p.m.
Where: Jasmine Hall, BMICH, Colombo
The Study of Sri Lanka’s Endemic Biota: A Malacologist's View
By Dinarzarde Raheem
When: 16th October 2025, 6.00 p.m.
Where: Jasmine Hall, BMICH, Colombo
Spotted Lanternflies are actually pretty interesting critters. Lots about them in the invasive species & crop pest literature, but perhaps not so much about them as wild organisms worthy of study in their own right. From September 26th.
October 4, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Spotted Lanternflies are actually pretty interesting critters. Lots about them in the invasive species & crop pest literature, but perhaps not so much about them as wild organisms worthy of study in their own right. From September 26th.
Should have added this video clip of Atteva aurea (Ailanthus Webworm) caterpillars in their communal web as it’s from the same observation. See how the caterpillars “scoot” away smoothly from danger.
October 4, 2025 at 11:09 AM
Should have added this video clip of Atteva aurea (Ailanthus Webworm) caterpillars in their communal web as it’s from the same observation. See how the caterpillars “scoot” away smoothly from danger.
Illustration by Colleen Witkowski of life cycle of Spotted Lanternfly, from Penn State Extension (extension.psu.edu/spotted-lant...). Gravid females with or without males on Ailanthus trees, wonder if low nighttime temperature will kill them before egg laying. Old egg mass in tire track pattern.
October 3, 2025 at 11:00 AM
Illustration by Colleen Witkowski of life cycle of Spotted Lanternfly, from Penn State Extension (extension.psu.edu/spotted-lant...). Gravid females with or without males on Ailanthus trees, wonder if low nighttime temperature will kill them before egg laying. Old egg mass in tire track pattern.
Nilanthi Rajapakse is the author of these two guides to Strobilanthes in Sri Lanka, published by the Department of Wildlife Conservation, Sri Lanka. (Thanks to Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne for the images.)
September 30, 2025 at 6:32 PM
Nilanthi Rajapakse is the author of these two guides to Strobilanthes in Sri Lanka, published by the Department of Wildlife Conservation, Sri Lanka. (Thanks to Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne for the images.)
Is there an actual decline in the Spotted Lanternfly in NYC or has the "novelty" aspect worn off now? [Raw observations for each year (1 January to 31 December) since it was first recorded from NYC on @inaturalist.bsky.social in 2020 (52 observations, by 20 observers; 2025 numbers to date.]
September 30, 2025 at 3:52 PM
Is there an actual decline in the Spotted Lanternfly in NYC or has the "novelty" aspect worn off now? [Raw observations for each year (1 January to 31 December) since it was first recorded from NYC on @inaturalist.bsky.social in 2020 (52 observations, by 20 observers; 2025 numbers to date.]
SLNHS Public Lecture #6 / 2025
Mass Blooming of Nelu in Horton Plains: A Magical 12 Year Phenomenon Returns in 2025
Dr. Nilanthi Rajapakse
Tue, 14 October 2025
6:00 PM (🇱🇰)
Biology Lecture Theatre 2, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Colombo
Zoom:
Meeting ID: 867 2801 9061
Passcode: 269031
Mass Blooming of Nelu in Horton Plains: A Magical 12 Year Phenomenon Returns in 2025
Dr. Nilanthi Rajapakse
Tue, 14 October 2025
6:00 PM (🇱🇰)
Biology Lecture Theatre 2, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Colombo
Zoom:
Meeting ID: 867 2801 9061
Passcode: 269031
September 30, 2025 at 9:24 AM
SLNHS Public Lecture #6 / 2025
Mass Blooming of Nelu in Horton Plains: A Magical 12 Year Phenomenon Returns in 2025
Dr. Nilanthi Rajapakse
Tue, 14 October 2025
6:00 PM (🇱🇰)
Biology Lecture Theatre 2, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Colombo
Zoom:
Meeting ID: 867 2801 9061
Passcode: 269031
Mass Blooming of Nelu in Horton Plains: A Magical 12 Year Phenomenon Returns in 2025
Dr. Nilanthi Rajapakse
Tue, 14 October 2025
6:00 PM (🇱🇰)
Biology Lecture Theatre 2, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Colombo
Zoom:
Meeting ID: 867 2801 9061
Passcode: 269031
Found many dead Oryzaephilus beetles in a bag of long-forgotten semolina. They are tiny, so I’ll need to take a closer look at higher magnification 🔬 to decide if they are O. mercator or O. surinamensis, using this handy publication 👉
publications.gc.ca/collections/...
publications.gc.ca/collections/...
September 28, 2025 at 3:28 PM
Found many dead Oryzaephilus beetles in a bag of long-forgotten semolina. They are tiny, so I’ll need to take a closer look at higher magnification 🔬 to decide if they are O. mercator or O. surinamensis, using this handy publication 👉
publications.gc.ca/collections/...
publications.gc.ca/collections/...
A hummingbird visited Mrs W's Impatiens flowers in our backyard today. #NatureNYC
September 28, 2025 at 2:32 AM
A hummingbird visited Mrs W's Impatiens flowers in our backyard today. #NatureNYC
Do Cepaea nemoralis snails smell like female Spotted Lanternflies? Why else are these male Spotted Lanternflies apparently trying to court a snail?
September 26, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Do Cepaea nemoralis snails smell like female Spotted Lanternflies? Why else are these male Spotted Lanternflies apparently trying to court a snail?
Took a walk on the wild side. Saw many female Spotted Lanternflies accompanied by one to many males. (I didn’t see any pairs actually “in copula”, however.)
September 26, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Took a walk on the wild side. Saw many female Spotted Lanternflies accompanied by one to many males. (I didn’t see any pairs actually “in copula”, however.)
Female Spotted Lanternflies looking very gravid these days.
September 26, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Female Spotted Lanternflies looking very gravid these days.
Saw a copy of Tim Birkhead’s The Wonderful Mr Willughby (2018) at @strandbookstore.bsky.social yesterday & am reading a digital version of book borrowed from the New York Public Library. Here’s a review of the book by Ian Carter via @markavery.bsky.social ‘s website:
markavery.info/2018/04/29/s...
markavery.info/2018/04/29/s...
September 24, 2025 at 9:24 PM
Saw a copy of Tim Birkhead’s The Wonderful Mr Willughby (2018) at @strandbookstore.bsky.social yesterday & am reading a digital version of book borrowed from the New York Public Library. Here’s a review of the book by Ian Carter via @markavery.bsky.social ‘s website:
markavery.info/2018/04/29/s...
markavery.info/2018/04/29/s...
So what is the origin of John Henry Dick’s field guide-style Illustrations of the birds of South Asia, i.e., Indian subcontinent & Sri Lanka? It all goes back to A Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia by Ben F King & Edward C Dickinson, illustrated by Martin W Woodcock. 3/n
September 24, 2025 at 2:33 PM
So what is the origin of John Henry Dick’s field guide-style Illustrations of the birds of South Asia, i.e., Indian subcontinent & Sri Lanka? It all goes back to A Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia by Ben F King & Edward C Dickinson, illustrated by Martin W Woodcock. 3/n
Although Salim Ali & S Dillon Ripley appear as the authors of the book they actually had nothing to do with it; the book is the work of the artist John Henry Dick. There is no descriptive text & I’ve heard it rumored that Ali & Ripley simply lent their names to sell the book! 2/n
September 24, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Although Salim Ali & S Dillon Ripley appear as the authors of the book they actually had nothing to do with it; the book is the work of the artist John Henry Dick. There is no descriptive text & I’ve heard it rumored that Ali & Ripley simply lent their names to sell the book! 2/n
I was of two minds about this book yesterday at @strandbookstore.bsky.social. I first saw a copy at @foylesforbooks.bsky.social in London in 1983, when it was newly published, but didn’t feel the need to acquire a copy then, so it’s odd to get this 40 years later. 1/n
September 24, 2025 at 1:22 PM
I was of two minds about this book yesterday at @strandbookstore.bsky.social. I first saw a copy at @foylesforbooks.bsky.social in London in 1983, when it was newly published, but didn’t feel the need to acquire a copy then, so it’s odd to get this 40 years later. 1/n
Found a copy of A Guide to the Birds of Ceylon by G M Henry (2nd edition, 1971) at @strandbookstore.bsky.social today.(A paperback version of this book was sold in Sri Lanka when it was published.) A digital copy is viewable at @archive.org:
archive.org/details/guid...
archive.org/details/guid...
September 24, 2025 at 12:40 AM
Found a copy of A Guide to the Birds of Ceylon by G M Henry (2nd edition, 1971) at @strandbookstore.bsky.social today.(A paperback version of this book was sold in Sri Lanka when it was published.) A digital copy is viewable at @archive.org:
archive.org/details/guid...
archive.org/details/guid...