Our first night as a group completed without much ado, save for a technological issue with our projector, I awoke at five this morning surprisingly willingly. I had no bug bites or aches and pains despite the fact that I slept in a hammock outside our room all night.
Screens protected me from physically encountering any insects in my sleep, but did nothing to silence the industrial noise coming from the loudest of these bugs, the cicada. They were my alarm this morning; and they worked better than any alarm did all semester at Rice.
No snooze button available. Nature: 1, Technology: 0.
We spent the first half of our day at the Caracol archaeological site, where I was equally or more fascinated by the spectacular flora and fauna as I was by the impressive Mayan ruins. The highlight of my day was finding a remarkably beautiful specimen from my taxonomic group, Orthoptera: Abel’s Katydid (also known as the Crayola Katydid because of its vibrant blue, orange, and green coloration). It’s a male, as you can tell from its lack of large, sword-like ovipositor. Its also missing a leg because I was rough with it—sorry lil’ guy.
This species is aposematically colored, meaning its gaudy appearance is a warning sign to predators that says “DON’T EAT ME! I’M NOT GOOD TO EAT!” In the case of this species bright coloration is an honest signal of its unpleasant, and toxic, taste. Interestingly, other species have learned about this trick and mimic the colors of some toxic animals in order to garner the same benefits as the actually honest creatures (clever!)
When researching Orthoptera pre-departure I distinctly remember that this species really stood out among the dozens of “run-of-the-mill” insects with normal old green or brown/black coloration (how boring). Seeing this gorgeously appointed masterpiece of evolution, I was star-struck. On top of that, it was the first and only opportunity I had to show off my orthopteran expertise to the group so far—what beginner’s luck!
P.S. I also included the image of another Orthoptera I saw today! (A grasshopper nymph)
