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Just creating this blog as a forum for student blog posts during the 2015 spring semester at SNU.

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From Water Tigers to Deadly Divers: Dytiscidae

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                       Plop. After surfacing briefly for a respite of fresh air, the expert diver submerges into the murky deep. Soon spotting the fish of interest, he darts forward, his legs moving in strong, coordinated strokes. Stealthily approaching his target (which rivals him in size), he fearlessly charges for the kill. The prey writhes and wriggles helplessly as the diver sinks his prong-like mandibles into its flesh. The predacious diving beetle’s excursion was successful; dinner has been secured.                      Predacious diving beetles belong to the family Dytiscidae , which is derived from the Greek root word dytikos, which means “able to dive,” aptly describing the impressive ability of these little aquatic predators. This family encompasses over 4,000 described species. Adults generally range in si...
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Bear Lake Bog

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            A picture of a wetland bog from the Northern Hemisphere Source: https://infograph.venngage.com/p/176597/bog-biome               From lakeside dunes to old-growth white pine forests, Michigan is enriched with unique ecosystems. Although many of which have been claimed by society for agricultural and suburban means, portions of conserved land have been reserved for public recreation and admiration of wilderness. Wetland bogs are microcosms that serve as host to many unique organisms. While they used to be much more prevalent in the United States, they are still an important ecosystem in the US. This blog will expound on our class’s excursion to a bog named Bear Lake Bog.             Bear Lake Bog is located about six miles south of Au Sable campus and is found between the East Lakes and Bear Lake. We visited this bog on May 22, 2018. We broug...
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Family Lampyridae, Fireflies, or the ever elusive Lightning Bugs

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          The experience that has been on the top of my bucket list since I can remember was watching the fireflies lighting up during a Midwestern summer. The “lightning bug” or the “firefly” is in the family Lampyridae , order Coleoptera, Suborder Polyphaga, Infraorder Elateriformia, and superfamily Elateroidea. Lampyridae are medium-sized brown or black beetles, often with red and yellow coloration. A distinguishable characteristic is their ability to emit light during the mating season, which attracts the opposite sex during the evening after dusk (Hess 39). Most of the species of fireflies are bioluminescent during the larval and adult stages, except one species ( Pyropyga fenestralis ), which only emits lights during the larval stage (Hess 39). They are often nocturnal, but can be diurnal . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly#/media/File:Photuris_lucicrescens.jpg             Fireflies are...
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