In my bathroom in my Chicago apartment. I need help.

Hello! This little fellow was hanging outside of my work tonight. It was just chilling (where it is quite chilly), but I didn’t want to get too close and disturb it. I increased the exposure so you can see it a little better. As you can see, the thick black stripes are very black, so I have no idea what I’m looking at here.

Found in Tsukuba, Japan (where there are a bunch of trees).

Hello! I'm a creature designer with an interest in bugs and I'd love to find someone I can consult about the nature of bug eyes, how images are formed in the brains of insects, and how this could be applied to character designs. I hope this is an appropriate place to ask for help, thanks in advance!

FL, tampa bay area. he reminds me of leaf footed bugs but the body looks to be shaped differently so i'm not sure

Hi All,
I keep Dermestids but recently have had an infiltration of ham beetles. Apparently the larvae look so similar that you wont be able to tell them apart, advice is to scrap the whole colony.

There are certainly some larvae I’ve notice that don’t look 100% like the Dermestids, but not enough for me to be sure they’re ham beetle larvae, they just look a little off.
First pic is my adult Dermestids. Second pic is a Dermestid larvae and a questionable larvae that just doesn’t look exactly like a Dermestid. Third pic is the adult ham beetle I’m dealing with.

Is there a way for me to definitely ID what larvae I’m looking at??
If I can save my remaining Dermestids that’d be preferable, but at this point I can only ID the adults apart.

Edit: the species I keep is dermestes maculatus. Idk what exact species the ham beetles are.

i’ll add the second image in comments. this dragonfly was connected to another dragonfly seemingly, or sitting on the wall right above another one. it wasn’t a mating wheel though. it looked like they were connected at the mouth, but then they flew off separately seconds later. this is one of the dragonflies. it looks like it’s convulsing and pulsating its abdomen towards the ground. why is this, and what’s going on? is the dragonfly ok?

Anyone able to help me identify them? Please and thank you

Sorry for the bad pictures, I was so excited I was shaking LMAO !!

i noticed something really strange with the ghost ant colony that has been infesting my boyfriend’s house (east coast of florida) and am hoping someone with some ant knowledge can explain it!

in the first two pictures, you can see a rather large congregation of ghost ants around a windowsill and outlet. there was a steady population increase over the past week. ants could be found in the bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom. but never this many in one location.

i went to buy some liquid bait traps and when i returned 30 minutes later the ants were almost completely gone (last two photos).

what would cause this very sudden disappearance? and what would cause the congregation in the first place?

not really looking for pest control advice. i’ve got that mostly sorted! i’m just an ecologist fascinated by all creatures big and small and want to understand more about ghost ants and their behaviors!

We found this (dead) little guy on the floor at my work. I’m in Colorado, and I work in a hospital on the 4th floor so we’ve had fun little theories about how he got in. But everything I’m reading says they’re not established here, so maybe in a supply box or something is my guess. Unless I got my google identification wrong? Haha

In my bathroom in my Chicago apartment. I need help.

I planted a few Quercus Accutisima (Sawtooth Oak). A year later, I saw this weird stem that looked like perhaps a deer was grazing on the tree. I reached for the stem and touched it. It didn’t feel like a twig. It was flexible and squishy. I quickly withdrew my hand and took this picture.

I assume this is a bug, caterpillar, or worm of sorts mimicking a stem. I have tried Seek and iNaturalist. It sees the tree but not the critter on the tree.

My question is: what is the critter in the center of that picture?

This is in Central New York State, USA

I recently relaxed a butterfly and buckmoth in a relaxation chamber, and just removed them a few minutes ago. For something to keep them in, I ordered a lot of floating frames (it has a thin plastic wrap type layer), since I've seen this done before with preserved insects I've bought. I'm a bit nervous to put them in immediately after taking them out of the relaxation chamber. If I put them in now, will they mold or be damaged by trapped moisture? Should I wait for them to dry first, and for how long?