Found this on my sidewalk today. This 'ring of worms' is about 3 1/2 inches in diameter. Each worm is a bit more that 1/4 inch long. The larger whitish one is also a worm...like maybe some sort of 'queen'?. The whole thing is constantly revolving in place.
YIKES!!!
Gracious!!
Sorry, I've no clue at the moment ..
But it sure does look like they're circling the wagons, in preparation for battle!!
.. LOL ..
- Magpye
by far the weirdest thing ever. can you separate one and get closer detail? is it maggotlike, caterpillar......
Does this help any? I would say that they were (I squished them all) more maggot like. Couldn't really see any legs on them. They just undulated along like earth worms.
Well, I think I know what they are - except the larger one - but I'm not sure why they are in a circle. I can speculate though.
I'm pretty sure that those are fungus gnat larvae (from the family Sciaridae, if you want to find more information about them). They are usually harmless in small numbers like this. My guess is that they were on a migration that went bad - i.e. they were following the leader, but the leader ended up hooking up with the end of the trail, and they just kept following the chemical cues in a circle rather than getting anywhere.
Usually fungus gnat larve migrate becuase the area they were in is drying up or the conditions are no longer favorable for them.
That larger one looks like a different species - it is a fly larvae that is more maggot-like, since I don't see a head like on the others, so I'm not sure what it is doing in there with the rest of them.
Night_ Bloom...that all makes sense to me. Thanks a bunch.
That is so interesting!!
way to go Night_Bloom! How did you figure it out?
OH GROSS! LOL
Now I know exactly where to send my son when he comes to me with his captured "pets"... (Straight to this forum)
He takes after my brother who brought my mother a pocketfull of his "babies" which turned out to be maggots, which he then was forced to feed to the snake he was keeping in an old garbage can...who had just laid eggs. He also walked around a state park with a water moccasin draped around his neck. Honest. A ranger saw him and asked him to put the snake down verrrry slowly, and then blew it's head off. He was so traumatized we had to pack up and go home...
He's a lawyer now, but still digs up nightcrawlers...and probably anything else he can find.
handbright...well I am not quite as into the creatures of ill repute as your brother, but there is a picture of me at about age 3 sitting in a nest of baby snakes. They were the harmless garden variety. And still I do my best to encourage snakes to make a home in my gardens. You will also find spiders in my home that I have allowed to stay. They earn their keep by riding me of all manner of less desireable creatures. So anyone that comes to my house had better stay on my good side. ;>)
Gazania! LOL!
I have several house geckos that I like very much, so I understand completely...
I don't get many spiders in the house, the geckos probably eat them...
I always laugh when I read that insects (and arachnids) will inherit the earth...I mean- haven't they already???
And as far as staying on your good side~ well since your a spider whisperer and I'm a (self proclaimed) gecko/anole whisperer then we seem to be playing into the grand balance of life... :D
Amy
Never mind Bug Files, that belongs on X-Files...
They remind me of Fabre's caterpillars.
http://www.ps21.gov.sg/challenge/a_line/200208.html
Hyblaean: The second shot Gazania_in_pa provided had enough detail that I was able to confirm what I had suspected.
I have seen these critters before in my work. I've received both samples of the larvae themsleves and pictures of them through the Distance Diagnostic through Digital Imaging (DDDI) system (extension agents send me pictures of critters to identify for them). One or two of the DDDI pictures showed bunches of these doing one of their migrations. I didn't know what they were at first, but once I figured it out, they are pretty distinctive looking.
I've never seen them going in a circle before though.
that was freaky! thank you!
by the way, thank you for the Fabre reminder, I just ordered a book I've been meaning to order for some time now, his writings on insects and spiders were absolutely amazing.
plantnutga
What do you do Night_Bloom?
THIS is by far..the STRANGEST..YUCKIEST..GIVES ME THE HEEBEE JEEBIES-IEST...THING I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE!!...LOL..had a funny thought though...Sorta like NASCAR..one continuous circle..all left hand turns!!..
boogity-boogity-boogity!
Hyblaen: I identify insects and critters brought in by homeowners for extension agents in Georgia.
:) Sounds like a very cool job!
Cool job?Not for me, I'd be having nightmares all night and be itchy all day.
Necklace anyone?? LOL That is weird!
I encountered a similar problem this morning on my driveway... I had the below circle, plus another smaller one a few yards away. I have no idea what these are.
These do appear to be larvae of fungus gnats (Diptera: Sciaridae); they are cited in the book "American Insects: A Handbook of the Insects of America North of Mexico' by Ross Arnett as exhibiting mass movement behavior.
Pretty sure this is a sign of the apocalypse... SOLVED.
