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What is this white, winged insect?
I saw this insect crawling on a wall in the UK (Birmingham) today (March 28th). It's about 5mm long. I assumed it was a white fly, but having looked at other images of white files on google, I don't think it is! I assume the fact it has jet black eyes means it's normally nocturnal?

At first I was thinking Trichoptera, but the antenna were not long enough and I noticed your size is quite small (~5mm).
The small size and body stance made me think of the order Neuroptera (the net-winged insects).
Specifically, this specimen reminds me of the family Coniopterygidae (or the dustywings).

A distinguishing feature is that like many other Neuroptera, dustywings carry their wings nearly side-by-side when at rest, whereas whiteflies carry them almost flat across the back  [the last part being related to the OP's original thought that their specimen was a whitefly]

Interestingly, unlike many other net-winged insects, the dustywings do not actually have "net-winged" venation -- just like the OP's specimen.
If this is in fact a dustywing, according to Wikipedia:

These tiny insects can usually be determined to genus with a hand lens according to their wing venation, but to distinguish species, examination of the genitals by microscope is usually necessary.

Just as a reference, according to here and here, a similar looking species called Conwentzia pineticola lives in the UK. You can see a picture of this species below:

 Source: NatureSpot
Comments on appearance and characteristics:
From Catherine A. Tauber et al. (2009) in Encyclopedia of Insects (Second Edition):

The Coniopterygidae is generally a very homogeneous family characterized by very small adults (forewing length 2–5 mm) with bodies covered by white waxy (“dusty”) secretions.

The family name means "dusty wing" [source] due to the usually conspicuous whitish dust of waxy scales on the wings of these insects. I can't tell if this "dusty" nature is apparent in your picture or whether your picture is simply blurry.
Regarding the antenna, Tauber et al mention:

Adults have chewing mouthparts, large compound eyes located laterally on the head, and multiarticulate antennae that are usually filiform (thread-like) or moniliform (with bead-like segments).

You can see a similar looking (and similar sized) specimen from the U.S. here and one from Spain here. Additional images on bugguide.net seem to suggest that your specimen is in the subfamily Coniopteryginae.


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Tiny light-colored bug ID in Amman-Jordan
Can you please help me identify this bug I keep finding inside my home in Amman-Jordan. Mostly on the wall and once on the bed sheet. Too small to be noticed and too light colored. I used my flash light and zoomed with my mobile camera to be able to take photo.

Hi, for proper identification you should provide, the region / country you saw it, and ideally the season and the habitat (in the wild, in a house, etc...). Apart of this the pictures should be in a good resolution and focus, your latest pic is not perfect but the two others are probably useless as too blurred. I recommend you to edit your question.

That's the est best photo I could take with my mobile. Is it by any chance bed bug nymph?! I live in Amman-Jordan

@Rashah it is not a bed bug of any kind. See Insect identification - Is this a bedbug? for more info for IDing a bedbug. Your insect is a psocid (or book louse), which you can read more about in the post that yours has been marked as a duplicate of. (See the link at the top of the page)

source: Stack Exchange

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

sort: votes


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Tiny dark-colored bug ID in Amman-Jordan
I live in Amman-Jordan and I keep finding this bug species on my walls. I saw four till now on the walls of another room. A little bit bigger than the first one.
Click on all photos to open full-sized image:

With cm ruler:

I also have a video, but don't know how to post it.

Hi Rashah. Please provide an approximate size of this insect. If you can, also provide a clearer picture. Your photo quality makes this insect difficult to ID accurately. Could be a bedbug, but might also be a beetle (perhaps a grain beetle). A better photo will help us ID this accurately for you, so please [edit]. Thanks.

I don't know if that will help but the walls I keep finding it on has some mildew on them. Though I sprayed the wall with vineger. Nothing on my bed. No bites on any of my family members. And it's brownish red with naked eye

Regarding your video. Try uploading it to ezgif.com, convert it to a gif file (optimizing to get it below 2mb) and then you can post it directly into your post. You could upload the whole video to youtube and link to it as well.

These are very likely flour beetles (Tribolium spp) of some kind. These small (~3mm) reddish-brown beetles are some of the most widespread and common pests of stored food products worldwide [source].

 Left: red flour beetle; Right: confused flour beetle. Photo credits: Rebecca Baldwin (left); James Castner (right)
The photo is too blurry to be able to differentiate between the most likely candidates: red flour beetle (T. castaneum) and confused flour beetle (T. confusum).

You can learn more about differentiating these insects here and here, and you can find more general information about them via UF/IFAS.

Distribution: Both species are essentially found worldwide; This UF/IFAS page provides a bit more nuanced explanation of their distribution:

The red flour beetle is of Indo-Australian origin (Smith and Whitman) and is found in temperate areas, but will survive the winter in protected places, especially where there is central heat (Tripathi et al. 2001). In the United States, it is found primarily in the southern states. The confused flour beetle, originally of African origin, has a different distribution in that it occurs worldwide in cooler climates. In the United States it is more abundant in the northern states (Smith and Whitman).

Extermination tips are available via epetsupply.com:

Prevention is key!
Keeps your home clean and free of food/crumbs
Sticky traps and pheromone traps

If I had to guess, I'd guess from your poor images that you have red flour beetles, but honestly it doesn't much matter from a pest-control standpoint.

The red and confused flour beetles live in the same environment and compete for resources (Ryan et al. 1970, Willis and Roth 1950). The red flour beetle may fly, especially before a storm, but the confused flour beetle does not fly. [source: UF/IFAS]

UPDATE:
Alternatively, now that I've looked at your picture with such a small specimen, it could be possible this is another "grain beetle": Ahasverus advena, the foreign grain beetle. From Wikipedia:

 Source: Wikipedia

Description:
The foreign grain beetle is approximately 2 mm (1⁄12 in) in length. It can be distinguished chiefly by slight projections or knobs on each front corner of the pronotum, and its club-shaped antennae. The larvae are worm-like, cream-colored and often reach a length of 3 mm before pupating into darker adults. Males and females are identical in appearance both as larvae and adults. The adult is usually reddish brown, or sometimes black.

Distribution
The foreign grain beetle is found in tropical and temperate regions [and is distributed all throughout the world -- see Spanish translation of Wikipedia page].

@Rashah, your updated pictures in your question post make it pretty clear that this is not a bedbug. See Insect identification - Is this a bedbug? for some images of bed bugs.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


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What species of butterfly/moth is this please?

What species is this please?
It's really tiny. That's an oregano leaf.
Location: United Kingdom

Mint moth. We can only see the forewings on this photo. Single gold spot is the giveaway.

Hi Phil. Thanks for providing an answer. Please provide more detail and links/citations to reputable sources that support your claim (and preferably a picture from a reputable source as well). Unsupported and one-line answers will be downvoted or deleted. Please edit accordingly.


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Want to know about a creature which bite me

I am Sachin from MP India. Few minutes back I have gotten bite by a creature. What is its name? Is it harmful if I got bitten by it? Feeling little pain there.

Hi Sachin, welcome to Biology.SE! Please review our [help] page and our species-identification guidelines. You must include the specimen size or some approximation of it. Also, the more specific you are about your location the better -- 2 things: 1) is "MP" Madhya Pradesh? and 2) what kind of habitat did you find this in? (urban, forest, mountain, aquatic, etc.).

That is an insect, in the order Zygentoma. These are harmless, and do not bite. If you were bitten by something, it was not this?

Who is "we". I find long-winded, padded answers extremely annoying when all the person wants to know it whether a bug can hurt them. Go ahead and remove it. I answered the question.

There are 550 species in that order. The OP asked which insect, not which order.


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Can mammals and/or birds see / detect infra-red light?
Wondering if there is any evidence that mammals or birds eyes can detect light emitted in the infra-red?  The reason I'm asking relates to the use of nest cameras to detect predators, using infra red LED light to take pictures at night.  New technology allows a picture to be taken every 3 seconds, throughout the night.   Clearly if these can be seen - then a mammal, or nocturnal bird could quickly learn to look for the flashes of light and find a tasty source of food...

they can detect it sure, just like we can feel heat from sunlight on our skin.

Pit vipers do but not using their eyes and they are not mammals or birds.

https://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/147746/why-human-and-most-of-vertebrates-cannot-see-near-infrared-light-720nm-1500nm

This is an interesting question, and I think what you really want to ask is

How to choose near infrared LEDs that will not be visible to mammals or birds at night?

Remember:

their eyes will be dark-adapted
unlike laser diodes, LEDs don't emit a single wavelength, they have a spectral spread which can have long-ish tails, especially high-power LEDS used for illumination, and especially if you plot their spectrum on a log scale, which you should in this case
a very slightly visible dim, steady dot will not be as obtrusive as a flash, so if there's a small spectral overlap, don't flash to save power.

Outdoor security cameras often have integrated near-IR LEDs to illuminate the scene. When they are not careful and choose LEDs with wavelengths too close to our visible range (I'm going to call our long-wavelength limit 720 nm, though it's quite weak until about 700 nm) you can see dim red dots around the edge of the camera.
Point your cell phone at it and you can often see them more clearly because the near-IR cut-off is not perfect.
Different species will have different photopigments and you'll have to think about both rods and cones.
It's a big job if you want to cut it close.
Since powerful LEDs for illumination can go out to 900 to 950 nm, and a good CCD with its infrared filter removed can be sensitive out there, this should be your starting point.
If the published spectrum of your 900 to 950 nm LEDs show a short wavelength tail that might be visible to some animals, you can also add a short-wavelength cutoff filter in front of the LEDs - letting most of the light through except say anything shorter than 800 nm.
After that, choose some species and search the literature for the spectral sensitivity of neurological responses rather than simple pigment absorption plots which are shown below.
You might ask a separate question in psychology and neuroscience SE about this. Those are the folks that have a century of data on vision systems of animals. A century of mice and cats and pigeons with wires coming out of their heads...

Just as an example, Figure from Imamoto and Shichida (2014) Cone visual pigments (Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Bioenergetics, 1837, (5), May 2014, pp 664-673)

Fig. 4. Absorption spectra of cone visual pigments in representative animals. The spectra of cone visual pigments of human (563, 532, and 424 nm [79], [101]), mouse (511 and 358 nm [91], [97]), chicken (571, 508, 455, and 415 nm [5]), salamander (615 (A2), 567 (A1), 444, and 367 nm [65], [102], [103]), and goldfish (566, 516, 447, and 370 nm for A1, and 617, 535, 454, and 382 nm for A2 [104]) are shown. The absorption spectra of the pigments belonging to L, M2, M1, and S group are shown in red, green, blue, and violet, respectively. The spectra of pigments having A2 retinal is shown by broken lines. These spectra were generated using Govardovskii's template [105].

Just for example see Thorlabs' IR%20Mounted%20LEDs.
NOTE: if you click the option to download the Excel data you can see there is measurable light as short as 750 nm for this particular LED, which is why a filter is a good idea.

Infrared is a fairly large part of the electromagnetic spectrum, so to get an answer best suited to your specific case, you should specify the wavelength of your LED. There is at least one study showing that ferrets (not sure if it's the best predator to worry about for what I assume is a suspended bird's nest) can see up to 920nm.
So to answer your question, yes, at least some can, but the further into the spectrum you go, the fewer there will be.
I am much less certain, however, that this would attract danger. Nocturnal predators in biomes inhabited by humans generally evolve to avoid rather than seek out artificial light sources.

Thank you so much TheChymera.  The camera LED's are in the 950-970 nm range - so looks very likely they will be out of range of mammals... and hopefully birds too, although I'm not aware of any evidence here - just seems likely.

@DamonBridge I wrote this answer before seeing your comment here. Those are peak wavelengths of the LEDs but they can have pretty broad tails - especially when designed for high power for illumination. As mentioned in the answer, you can get short-wavelength cutoff filters that won't stop most of the LEDs' power but will remove the short-wavelength tails.


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Got stung by this flying bug in Death Valley and Arches, what is it?

We camped in Death Valley and these guys were attracted to light and ended up stinging us. Didn't hurt as bad as a bee Sting. Any ideas what they are? Couldn't find them doing a Google search or image search.

Please provide an approximate size. Also, the more information/photos you provide, the better chance of getting the correct answer. Please [edit] your post with more detail. Thanks

A photo with the wing venation in focus should be among your additions; from what is here, we can say Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, ants, et cetera), but not an ant (the antennae don't have a distinct angle between the first segment and the second).


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Snake with strange head
This snake was killed in graveyard Peshawar (Pakistan). I just wonder what is this? Is it a snake? Baby crying sounds were reportedly heard from graveyard in Peshawar after months of search the sounds of baby crying were identified and this snake was killed. I have a video. I just want to know what is this?

It makes me sad that it was killed. Looks like Cerastes genus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerastes_(genus)

It seems like your dead snake is already mentioned in Wikipedia: "A member of this species [Cerastes cerastes] was reportedly found and killed by locals in urmar graveyard situated on border of Peshawar and Nowshera districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The incident was reported along with a photo of the dead reptile in 'Aaj' Urdu language newspaper published from the provincial capital Peshawar on September 10, 2019."

Aren't Cerastes spp. pretty much found in the Arabian peninsula and west?  Might this be in the genus Pseudocerastes, which is known to be found in Iran and Pakistan?

@mgkrebbs Perhaps. But the horns look more like Cerastes to me.

The picture looks like it's from the Cerastes genus. It looks similar to a head shot of Cerastes Cerastes (Saharan horned viper) shown on Wikipedia:

In fact, the incident you describe is also reported in Wikipedia's Cerastes Cerastes article since it could be the first sighting in Pakistan. However, I sincerely (and respectfully) doubt that this snake was producing the "baby crying sounds". According to Wikipedia they produce a "rasping sound" when threatened.
I'm not sure that the specimen in your photograph is actually Cerastes Cerastes but the genus should be correct.


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What is this 5"-across spider found in my bedroom in France?
As the subject-line says, what is s/he? I've removed more spiders than I remember over the years, but one that almost fills a pint-glass was approached with some trepidation!

N.B. Found last-week (late Summer), French Jura. Sent packing to the garden...

It looks like a type of Wolf spider https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf_spider

We ask species ID answers to be accompanied by a confirming photograph and background details, e.g.  whether the location of the species matches the distribution profile of the species ID, if the size and color of the species match etc etc.

Not a wolf spider - looks more like a funnel weaver, related to the Giant house spiders. Perhaps Aterigena ligurica


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What is the name of this insect?

This insect was found in my garden in India on the evening of August 07, 2019. It's rainy season here.

it's a leafhopper. a lot of them have horns. You are supposed to state the location of your garden, if it's in america/india/UK/south africa.  https://www.google.com/search?q=horned+leafhopper&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjkn4yml_HjAhXtAmMBHe5NBDAQ_AUIECgB&biw=1972&bih=1009

Not a leafhopper but a treehopper (same order, suborder and infraorder, different family); if another is seen a side view will help (the pronotum of all treehoppers is of high value in identification, but we do need that side view to go further -- which will be done by someone else; I don't know the Indian fauna of the group).

This is a treehopper (an insect in the family Membracidae).
As Arthur J Frost mentioned in his comment above, it will be difficult to ID this specimen more specifically given the angle, lack of further info, and my personal lack of knowledge of Indian fauna.
However, you can view an at-least similar looking species by viewing Oxyrachis tarandus, which is found in India (see here and Sharma & Pati (2011)1).
You can find photos of O. tarandus here, with one copied below for reference.

 © www.NatureLoveYou.sg

 1. Sharma, A. and Pati, P.K., 2011. First report of Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal, as a new host of cowbug (Oxyrachis tarandus, Fab.) in plains of Punjab, northern India. World Applied Sciences Journal, 14(9), pp.1344-1346.


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Species-ID: What is this thing attached to my wall (California, USA)
I found this thing attached to my wall next to my garden. I live in Simi Valley, California, USA.
At first I thought it was a caterpillar and I left it alone, but after 2 or 3 months I don’t think it is a caterpillar anymore. I touched it today for the first time and it moves. What is it?

What is the approximate size? Maybe 3cm?

It is About 1.5-2cm

This is very likely a chrysalis (or pupa) stage of a lepidopteran.
A similar looking example belongs to the giant swallowtail butterfly (Papilio cresphontes).

 Source: Bill Frank
P. cresphontes is found in southern California [source], so it would not be unreasonable to find it in Simi Valley.


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What is this tiny bug
I have seen these on my floor several times now that spring has arrived and temps have started to go up. It is silvery in color, appears to have a hard and segmented shell, it kind of reminds me of a lobster. They are very small, the dark line in the picture is the grout between two tiles on my floor for scale. I am guessing it is about three quarters of a centimeter in length. I am in Utah.

This is a silverfish (Leipisma genus, the most common being Leipisma saccharinum). They are extremely common pests world-wide, eating a range of plant-based materials, particularly those made of cellulose - such as any pieces of paper you have lying around - books, book bindings/glues and cardboard. They will also eat things like cotton, silk, crumbs, dead insects (including other silverfish) and lots of other things too.
Unfortunately if you have seen one, you have many more around. Call a pest-control expert.

Well, I mean, maybe it depends on the climate or something (I'm in the UK) but we've been finding silverfish in our house occasionally for years and there's never been any problem.  Never observed any sign of books being nibbled or anything.


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Animal specific names with non-alphabetic characters
I'm part of a research team that investigates and documents native bee species, and we identified one of our Andrena specimens as A. w-scripta. With over ten years of experience in insect and ray-finned fish taxonomy, this is the first animal species I've EVER seen with a hyphen in its name. Google didn't turn up any other examples, and now I'm curious if anyone here can point me towards other names with non-alphabetical characters!
I've dabbled in plant taxonomy and seen a few hyphenated specific names in that kingdom, but those naming conventions are pretty different from Animalia's, if I'm not mistaken.

Not too rare in plants. Carya carolinea-septentrionalis and Smilax bona-nox both quickly come to mind. I think this question is too broad -- is your intention for people to just provide an infinite list of species names that match your description?

That is my intention. This question was so much fun I had to sign up for stackexchange and mention my own personal findings.
I wasn't sure how to go about investigating the subject in my own. I stumbled on A. w-scripta by pure coincidence and had no idea how to find more species or even the ICZN's conventions regarding punctuation! I feel like I'd need to learn R to effectively approach questions like these.

Short Answer
Very few hyphenated specific epithets (i.e., species' names) exist due to the regulatory body (the ICZN) that governs the nomenclature code for animals. The code has multiple rules preventing hyphens and other marks/punctuation from being included in animal binomial names. If such marks originally existed when the species was first described, the ICZN code even recommends removing/updating those marks in all but 1 instance.
Hyphens are only allowed if they separate a letter used to describe some physical characteristic of the animal and the letter needs to be separated from some other word describing the letter.

Example: Polygonia c-album is retained because this butterfly has a white ("album") shape on its wing shaped like the letter "c."

Long Answer
According to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature from the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN), usage of a hyphen or other marks is not generally accepted in a specific epithet. There is 1 specific instance in which hyphens are permissible.
See relevant excerpts from the Code below (with bold text being my emphasis):

Article 27. Diacritic and other marks:
No diacritic or other mark (such as an apostrophe), or ligature of the letters a and e (æ) or o and e (œ) is to be used in a scientific name; the hyphen is to be used only as specified in Article 32.5.2.4.3.

First, let's look at Article 32.5 more broadly to see its scope in removing characters followed by some sub-articles demonstrating common instances in which hyphens are not appropriate.

32.5. Spellings that must be corrected (incorrect original spellings)

32.5.2. A name published with a diacritic or other mark, ligature, apostrophe, or hyphen, or a species-group name published as separate words of which any is an abbreviation, is to be corrected.

32.5.2.2. In a compound species-group name published as separate words that are deemed to form a single word [Art. 11.9.5], the component words are to be united without a hyphen.

32.5.2.3. In a compound species-group name published as words united by an apostrophe or a hyphen, the words are to be united by removing the mark concerned (but see Article 32.5.2.4.3).

32.5.2.4.4. If the first element is a Latin letter or group of Latin letters not identifiable as fitting into the preceding three categories, punctuation (if any) must be deleted and the components united.

Etc.
Finally, Article 32.5.2.4.3 indicates the only instance that hyphens can be used:

32.5.2.4.3. If the first element is a Latin letter used to denote descriptively a character of the taxon, it must be retained and connected to the remainder of the name by a hyphen.

Example. c-album, in Polygonia c-album, so named because a white mark on the wing of the butterfly is similar to the letter c.

BONUS: Plants
Note: hyphens in plant scientific names is more common.

E.g., Carya carolinea-septentrionalis, Smilax bona-nox, Ribes non-scriptum

The reason? The International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants doesn't have as strict of rules preventing their usage. For example:

60.11. The use of a hyphen in a compound epithet is treated as an error to be corrected by deletion of the hyphen. A hyphen is permitted only when the epithet is formed of words that usually stand independently, or when the letters before and after the hyphen are the same (see also Art. 23.1 and 23.3).

20.3. The name of a genus may not consist of two words, unless these words are joined by a hyphen (but see Art. 60.12 for names of fossil-genera).

23.1. The name of a species is a binary combination consisting of the name of the genus followed by a single specific epithet in the form of an adjective, a noun in the genitive, or a word in apposition (see also Art. 23.6). If an epithet consisted originally of two or more words, these are to be united or hyphenated. An epithet not so joined when originally published is not to be rejected but, when used, is to be united or hyphenated, as specified in Art. 60.11.

There's also ICNAFP Article 23.3:

23.3. Symbols forming part of specific epithets proposed by Linnaeus do not prevent valid publication of the relevant names but must be transcribed.

Ex. 2. Scandix ‘pecten ♀’ L. is to be transcribed as Scandix pecten-veneris; Veronica ‘anagallis ▽’ L. is to be transcribed as Veronica anagallis-aquatica.


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What is this bone from?
This object showed up on my fire escape in New York city. It appears to be some kind of bone. It's a bit smaller than an adult human hand. What animal is it from?

Given the size and thin/elongated ilia as well as the urban location, I think a domestic cat and/or a raccoon are likely candidates. I'm leaning toward cat.
Cat pelvis:

 VCA Hospitals

 Ventral view of domestic cat pelvis; Source: BoneID
Raccoon Pelvis

 Anterior view of raccoon pelvis; Source: BoneID
I'm not an expert in differentiating these two species' bones. I will note that your specimen is more or less in between the sizes of these two species. Your size is probably closer to the raccoon, but a cat is just more likely given the location.
The most noticeable trait that stands out to me is the size/pointedness of the ischial tuberosity, which better matches that of the cat.

I could not for the life of me definitely identify it from the first picture alone. I saw those sockets and thought "hips", and those articulations and thought, vertebrae, but I never saw such a pelvis. This is why you have a gold badge in identification. Fantastic!

@anongoodnurse, teaching 11 years of anatomy + that arduous comparative vert anatomy course I took all those years ago in college help a lot :p.

I'm still in awe. Makes me want to take a comparative vert anatomy course!


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can you identify this animal?
What kind of animal is this?
is this a spider?

Please clarify your specific problem or provide additional details to highlight exactly what you need. As it's currently written, it's hard to tell exactly what you're asking.


text:
ID Large, broad flat bone found in Gulf of Mexico
`1
Is this a tooth? A rib? Or a fish?
I found this in about 4’ of water in the Gulf of Mexico/Galveston.
It is slightly curved and the side edges have numerous pointy parts. On one side at the bottom it has what looks like the root or something that attached to something else. It is sitting on my thigh. I am a 5’9” male. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Excellent picture, bizarre and intriguing object, I'll be following this one closely. Welcome to the site.

Well it seems like there was a similar bone found in Missouri and identified here. Turtle. This great site. Very detailed explanation of that question. I am satisfied that what I found was part of the back of a sea turtle.


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Can someone help me to identify what kind of pear is this?
I went to my local groceries supermarket (in Lima, Peru) and found this cheerful looking pear named locally as "pera canela". But I found it weird as the only variety which I'm aware of is Packham's pears. I tried to do some research on different cultivars and species known of pears. So far the only ones which I found were in this wikipedia's entry but it didn't help me much.
Below is a set of pictures I took of the pear referred to as "pera canela"

Figure 1. Picture of packed Pera canela, the printed label shows its local name.

Figure 2. Picture of Pera canela's as they are on a basket in groceries stand. Seen in the background.

Figure 3. Picture of Pera canela seen closer for identification.
I've tasted it and it is a little bit more sweeter than the Packham's variety, on the juicier factor I would say that it is pretty much the same as Packham's
So far by comparing it with different entries on Wikipedia. I'm not very sure if it's a local name given to either Abate fetel or perhaps to Bosc
 varieties, or could it be a D'Anjou?
Since I'm not good at identifying plants, can somebody help me identify which kind of pear it is? It would also greatly help me if the answer could include its scientific name so I could do more research into it.

Plu Code 4413 is a bosc pear (a cultivar of Pyrus communis).

From the PLU search tool available via the International Federation for Produce Standards

FYI: take a close look at the pear you're holding in your picture:

Pera canela, meaning "cinnamon pear" in English, is in reference to its color. From Wikipedia:

Famous for its warm cinnamon color

Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been moved to chat.


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Is this a bed bug
I'm moving into a new house. We have pretty much thrown out all of the bed furniture's and have not seen any bugs in the sheets or anything like that.  But, while preparing for painting, I saw this little guy on the wall and I've never seen one of those before.  Know what it is?  Is it a bed bug?
The plastic thing you see here is an electrical outlet wall plate. I would say the insect is about 2 mm. I live in Quebec, Canada
(Edit: i understand there is another post like mine but his pictures show an adult bed bug while my pictures show what I think is either a nymph or a book lice or something else). Thanks!

Does this answer your question? Insect identification - Is this a bedbug?

Size, shape, and coloration make me thing psocid (or book louse), but your pictures aren't too great. If you can, try uploading a better photo and you'll likely get a more definitive answer. If that's not possible, then I would recommend searching our site for other posts about psocids which will result in quite a few hits for you to compare images to. Good luck!

Thanks, I'll look for that, never heard of those!


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What kind of worm/bug is this?
Recently, I found a few worms in my bathroom and I am wondering what kind of worms are they. They move slowly and they are about 6-9 millimetres long. It seems that they are not sensitive to water. Are they harmful parasites or harmless creatures? For your information, I live in Turkey.
Here are photos of a selected worm.

Thank you for your help.

Welcome to Biology.SE! For identification questions please [edit] your post to include the location (e.g. country and region — the more specific the better) where you observed this creature. The location can be an essential clue for identifications. ——— If possible clear, closeup photos of the creature from multiple angles (e.g. from the side and below) could also be helpful. ——— Please also take the [tour] and then go through the help pages starting with [Ask] questions effectively on this site. Thanks!

This is almost certainly a fly larvae of some kind. My initial guess was Psychodidae due to the bathroom location and siphon-like structure, but the body shape (wide and tapering vs long and narrow) and lack of distinct head leave me guessing this is not correct.

Possibly Fannia? (See here, here, here, and here). Can you provide any additional (BETTER QUALITY) photos or more context (where in the bathroom? do you have cigarettes in the bathroom?, any dead bodies?, anything else to note?)?

These worms were crawling on the floor. Also there was an almost full trash can in my bathroom and were no cigarettes. ResearchGate reference photos resembles these worms and your explanation of a fly larvae of some kind is pretty convincing. Because I don't own a pet or any other animal at my home. Maybe they went out from the trash can to the floor. I cannot provide better photos since I cleaned all my bathroom and fortunately there are no signs of them anymore. If you provide your answer below, I can accept it.


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Are there genetic causes underlying the difference in circumference of the upper arm and foream?
Is there any genetic reason for the difference in size between the upper arm and lower arm (i.e., the forearm)?
In most women, it seems that the upper arm is larger in circumference than the forearm. However, in males it seems to vary - some men (like myself) have an upper arm with a diameter smaller than their forearm, while for example in body builders the opposite may be true, as they often have large biceps.

The first answer explains that proximal limb segments do more "work" * using quotes to be careful w.r.t. technical definitions of work. Genetically, this is correct--it's the ancestral condition for tetrapods. It is also worthwhile to answer why it's beneficial for why proximal segments get bulky to do this work, instead of their distal counterparts -- i.e. why did natural selection favor this arrangement in the first place.
There is a biomechanical reason for distal limb segments to be less massive than proximal limb segments, especially in tetrapods: That moving masses farther away from the center of rotation, when force is applied between the center of rotation and the mass, takes a LOT more force.
Let's consider the arm from your example. We'll treat the forearm as a "load" which is supported by the upper arm and shoulder.
In this case, the whole arm is a Type 3 lever, with the force applied (by upper arm and shoulder) inbetween the load center of mass and the fulcrum (joint). Image from https://alexeinstein.wordpress.com/2014/09/03/lever-of-human-body/:

 In the picture, it's showing the hand (could be a weight in the hand, too) as the load, but for an empty hand the center of mass of the lower arm is probably slightly more proximal (but not more proximal than the muscle insertion).
In order to support the load that is the lower arm, the torques about the joint need to be balanced. So the torque produced by the muscles (by force AF in the diagram), needs to equal (or for bicep curls, exceed) the opposing torque produced by the mass of the load.
Torque is the product of the rotational force acting perpendicular to the lever and the distance along the lever to the fulcrum. (Reference is Wikipedia, but there's no argument about the definition of torque.)
Lets make up some numbers, and work through the example. Say that the weight of the lower arm (R in the diagram) is 10. And the distance from the center of mass to the elbow is also 10. Then, the biceps in this image needs to produce an opposing torque of at least 100. But the insertion of the biceps is very near the fulcrum, say at a distance of 1. So it needs to produce 100 times the weight of the load to create a balancing torque. For most joints in the body, the muscle insertion is nearer to the joint than the load--so the muscle will ALWAYS need to produce more than the load. So you can see how having a lighter forearm would be of benefit.
Now let's consider the whole arm, relative to the shoulder. I drew a picture for us. Suppose we only need 10 muscle mass to do day to day moving of things. Let's imagine a world where that 10 muscle mass is in the lower arm. If we have an upper arm of length 10, and a lower arm of length 10, and we hold our arm perpendicularly in front of us (so the center of mass of the 10 muscle mass is approximately at the middle of the lower arm(15 length from the shoulder), the weight of the arm is generating a torque of 150. This needs to be matched by the rotator cuff muscles, and it's a lot. The shoulder girdle insertion is quite close to the joint (let's say 2 length from the shoulder), so these muscles must produce 150 Torque / 2 length = 75 force perpendicular to the arm -- which means even more force overall, because the muscle is not acting perpendicular to the arm. That's a lot of force. (PS: red is showing lines of action of forces)
Now, suppose instead we put the 10 required muscle in the upper arm. (Another drawing for you.  We'll say the center of mass of the whole arm is now probably just before the elbow, at length 9 from the shoulder. The whole arm is producing a torque of 10 * 9 = 90 at the shoulder. The shoulder girdle muscles (with the same insertion distance of 2) must produce 90 Torque / 2 length = 45 force perpendicular -- much less. This holds in general--for a type 3 lever, the muscles will always have to do more work if the load is farther away from the joint.
Thus, placing muscle mass distally means the center of mass of the entire limb s farther from the body -- which means the body must produce a lot more force to support the mass than if the load is closer to the body. This is the same reason why it is easier to carry a heavy backpack in your arms than at the end of your arms. On an evolutionary time scale, it makes sense that the bulk of muscle mass has been placed closer to the center of mass.

How do I ping @AliceD ?

For a ping to work, AliceD must be involved in this thread. If you're unsure, just start typing @AliceD. If he's involved, the autofill will give you a choice to click on his name. Try it under my answer and see what happens. :) +1 btw. Very nice!

@Kara - I'm here and you've got my upvote. What a great answers here on this question.

Yes, there are genetic reasons for this. But your observation is either incorrect or abnormal.
The shoulder (and hip) muscles do the heavier work, thus have larger (and bulkier) muscles. The more distal the muscles, the more involved with finer motor skills (yes, even in the foot), so we're after finesse here, not strength. You can pick up 100 pounds primarily because of your upper arms. You can curls weights (not 100 pounds for most humans) because of your distal arm musculature. You can grip the weight because of your hand and lower arm muscles.
It's like this for most vertebrates. Have you ever seen a dog, cat, horse or other animal with skinny "thighs" and fat "lower legs"? A horse's thighs (between their back and their knee) are huge, their gaskins (between the knee and the ankle, also called the hock) are prominent, the rest barely visible.

Here is a Grizzly Bear:

Here is a frog:

This is the plan for almost all terrestrial vertebrates, including humans. Certain vertebrates may have different musculature depending on how they live.
If it is true that your forearms are larger than your upper arm, then it simply means you are using your forearms much more than your upper arms, something not common for man before the present age.
Horse: http://thinklikeahorse.org
Grizzly: The Grizzly Bear
Frog: antique drawing, French.

Nice answer, +1! something not common for man before the present age so it is common nowadays? Can you give more details about this?

how come all girls have bigger upper arm , is is t due to fat

@another'Homosapien' - No, it's not common at all. In fact, I have never seen this outside of infancy (infants have yet to work much, and their upper arms are sometimes significantly larger than their lower arms.)

@murmansk - No, it is not. The answer explains why this occurs.

Can you cite the sources where the images are from?

@another'Homosapien' - Oops. I meant the other way around!

@canadianer - done!

This answer is not entirely correct. Muscles get big from use, yes, but most big muscles are placed proximally to begin with, by virtue of physics.

@Kara - Why are the proximal muscles of the shoulder girdle larger than the proximal muscles of the forearm? Arguing from physics is a teleological argument in my opinion. They are that way because that placement - passed on from generation to generation from early ancestors - was the most effective. So, yes, it also makes sense from the standpoint of physics. But it's not because of physics. It's because of it's success in ancestors.

@Kara - Thinking about it, it's because of the laws of physics that it was the most successful plan. But... but. The muscle groups are larger. We are born with the gluteus maximus being the largest muscle in our body. Because it works is a less satisfying answer imo. But that's just one person's opinion.

@anongoodnurse -- yes, it is fundamentally physics. And it is also the plesiomorphic condition. I just wanted to point out WHY the physics works. Rarely are there examples of natural selection agreeing closely with physics. It was successful in ancestors in the context of physics.  However, success in ancestors would not also explain the effectiveness of lifting weights far away from the joint. My addition was more to address the "they are that way because of use" reasoning, I have no qualms with the "they are that way because of ancestry" reasoning.

@anongoodnurse I'm sorry if I've offended you. As a biomechanist, I'm inclined to explain ALL the physics. Even arthropods place bulky limb musculature close to the center of mass, and those limbs are independently evolved.

@Kara - not at all! I'm sorry I gave you that impression. I tend to be to the point, so combined with the inability to see body language and tone from the written word, I was interested in what you had to say. It's kind of a chicken-and-egg argument. I don't really know but what I have stated. I like your addition to the "discussion." The more good answers, the better!

Oh good! I was worried! I'm generally in your camp, as opposed to the adaptationist one, on this kind of question... I think this q. just reminded me of a time when I calculated the torques and forces on a pregnant woman's spine/hips. It was enlightening? ( Or en-ohgodwhy-ing. That.)

@Kara - Wow! What an interesting job you must have! (Seriously) Your answer reminds me of how when I was doing a neurological/musculoskeletal exam, I would tell men to put their fist to their shoulder and keep it there, while I tried to pull it down. And of course, because physics, I could pull it away. They would always look at me (a smallish woman) and say with a touch of embarrassment, "You must be stronger than you look..." Ha!

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/


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Female mosquito fate in absence of food
What happens to female mosquitoes which want to lay egg but couldn't find mammal host for blood, will that mosquito simply die, if no mammals in area would mosquitoes will be absent too?

It depends which part of the world of the mosquito's habitat. An Anopheles gambiae. in Africa has a life-span of 10 days maximum, the failure of the female to take a blood meal is pretty devastating on the survival of their lineage. In this case, the female has obligatory blood-feeding (lineages that don't simply don't persist).
All male mosquitoes exclusively feed on nectar, whereas for anopheline females, I suspect facultative nectar-feeding is restricted to sylvatic mosquitos, but even then the life-span of the female is critical.
Considering Aedes aegyti their entire life cycle within a domestic domiciliary, so nectar-feeding is too risky for the females. The objective of the species is to maximise offspring.
In general terms of the major medically important mosquito I would suspect that only Culex spp. will females exclusively engage in facultative blood feeding, because all members of the genus are sylvatic. As the above post-mentions in temperate climate mosquitoes are believed to "over-wintering", although I don't know many winter flowers for nectar sources.
Aedes and Anopheles have one or more domestic or semi-domestic species.
Reference for Anopheles gambae
The Garki project: research on the epidemiology and control of malaria in the Sudan savanna of West Africa
Source(s):  World Health Organization (WHO)
Countries: Nigeria
Authors: L. Molineaux and G. Gramiccia
Reference on Culex and Aedes
The Biology of Disease Vectors 1st Edition
by Barry J. Beaty (Editor), William C. Marquardt (Editor)

Hi! I think you have a great response here. However, I would encourage you to add some references as well as checking out the posting and answering guidelines in the Help Center.

Done as requested.

Usually, the function of having blood meals is to produce eggs but not for surviving. Some exceptions are for overwintering species which uses some blood-feed meals to survive during winter such as Culex pipiens.
In absence of blood host (the host depends on mosquito species and can range from fish to mammals!) and after mating, the female would just keep looking for a host (and some sugar source to stay alive) until she dies. So there is no reason for not living as long as in the case she would have found one or several hosts in her entire life (a couple of weeks usually).

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/


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What do butterflies eat?
I found a beautiful scarce-swallowtail butterfly in my storeroom, but it was kind of frozen and couldn't fly away. So, I put it on my terrace in the sun. After a little bit, it flew a few meters away and fell. I was wondering what could these beings eat, so that I can help it...
Any answers would be great appreciated!
Thanks in advance

Nectar is one of them. Perhaps some weird species also have some unusual diets...

@YvesLaFayette It's probably done reproducing, so there's no reason for it to eat or fly any more. Sorry...

Butterflies die. :( That's probably what yours is doing. But if you have a blooming butterfly bush or any tubular flowers in bloom right now, it's worth a shot.

More probably it's dying (butterflies know how to find food by themselves), or there's a small chance your sugar concentration was too high or too low?

Be careful you don't overfeed them.

Adult butterflies don't eat! I mean.... not in the sense of chewing on food. They rather drink. They get their nutrients via ingestion of liquid substances. Their mouth consists of a long tube called a proboscis that acts as a straw.
What do butterflies feed on?
The vast majority of butterflies eat nectar from flowers. Many species are quite specialized and feed on the nectar of a few species only.
There are a few exceptions though. Some species feed on tree sap, dung, mud (see mud-puddling), pollen, or rotting fruit. Butterflies are attracted to sodium and may as well try to feed on human sweat but I doubt there exist any species would get a non-negligible source of nutrients from human sweat. Coming to exceptions, you should definitely consider reading @DmitryGrigoryev's answer as well.
What do caterpillars feed on?
Of course, you are probably aware that butterflies have a complex (-ish) life cycle. The larva is called a caterpillar, while the adult is called a butterfly. So what do caterpillars eat?
Caterpillars have mandibles, so they can chew tissues and not just drink. Most caterpillars eat leaves and other plants parts. Again, many species are specialized to only a few plant species.
There are of course exceptions. For example in the Phengaris genus, (such as the famous large blue (Phengaris arion), caterpillars live in ant colonies and mimic the larvae of these ants. Some of them are able to trick the ants into feeding them as though they were ant larvae (e.g. Phengaris alcon, Phengaris rebeli). Others (e.g. the aforementioned Phengaris arion) will act as predators and eat the real ant larvae!
When the butterflies emerge from their cocoons after metamorphosis, the ants finally figure out the trickery and start attacking the butterfly. The butterfly has therefore very little time to try to fly away from the colony before getting killed. It is a critical life stage for individuals of this species.
How to feed a butterfly?
This section exists thanks to @Rodrigo's recommendation.
As a substitute of nectar one can simply use sugar water. The optimal sugar concentration (in mass-mass) is around 35% (Kim et al. 2011) although it likely varies among species.
Kim et al. 2011 explains that what limits optimal sugar concentration for insects is the viscosity of the solution. Too much sugar renders the solution too viscous and difficult to forage on. Interestingly, the ability to drink viscous solutions depends upon the drinking technic (active suction, capillary suction or viscous dipping) which vary, not among butterflies but among insects. The article is interesting.

Then there are other metamorphic species, e.g., Luna Moth, which don't even have a mouth in their 'adult' stage.  They don't eat at all after exiting the coccoon.  Oh, never mind, Dmitry has that covered.

It would be great if you specify the limits of sugar concentration butterflies can drink on. I know the amount is different between bees and hummingbirds, but don't remember the numbers, and don't know about butterflies either.

OP, do you have a source for "When the butterflies emerge from their cocoons ... the ants finally figure out the trickery and start attacking the butterfly"? The Wikipedia article for one of the Phengaris species cites a book called "Extraordinary Animals: An Encyclopedia of Curious and Unusual Animals" in support of this, but I can't find a peer-reviewed paper or other authoritative source to back it up. Footage from the BBC's "Life on Earth" shows the butterfly leaving the nest unhindered, and there are anecdotal claims that Large Blues can even have the ants escort them outside!

@Astrid_Redfern No, sorry I don't have a peer-review reference for it. I am just repeating stories I have heard!

Several species of the order Lepidoptera don't feed at all in adult form, surviving entirely on the reserves made while they were larva. Two examples I'm aware of are the Atlas moth (as well as most of the family it belongs to) and the clothing moth.
Also, many butterflies and moths which normally do feed stop doing so after the mating (for males) or after laying all the eggs (for females). This might be the case of the butterfly you have found: if it has completed its reproductive program, it just looks for a place to pass away in peace and no amount of food and sunlight will revive it.


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What bird is this?
Not very good pictures, but saw  this bird I have never seen before out my window
Location: Salem, Oregon, USA

Welcome to Biology Stack Exchange. It would help to have information on where the bird was seen (i.e., what country / state / province), and what the surrounding habitat is like (i.e., rural / urban / wooded / etc.)

Seen in Salem,OR surrounding is urban right in the city.

It's probably a type of heron, thought it's probably going to be difficult to identify definitively with those pictures.

Looks like a great blue heron, but the markings aren't clear enough to be certain. The black cap, shoulders, etc. are good matches.

I agree with @anongoodnurse. Could you tell us a bit about the general area you live and it might narrow things down.

Although the picture is blurry, this almost certainly is a great blue heron (Ardea herodias).

 © Helen Pine, FL, March 2008 (Left)       © Brian Guest, FL, March 2009 (Right)
The coloration and size are what give it away. From All About Birds:

Size: Largest of the North American herons. 97–137 cm long, 167–201 cm wingspan, and weighing 2100–2500 g (up to 6 lbs).
Color: Appear blue-gray from a distance; white in the face with a wide black stripe over the eye.

In flight, the upper side of the wing is two-toned: pale on the forewing and darker on the flight feathers.

That white spot on it's lower neck? That's their built in napkin:

specialized feathers on their chest that continually grow and fray. The herons comb this “powder down” with a fringed claw on their middle toes, using the down like a washcloth to remove fish slime and other oils from their feathers as they preen

Range: The heron is common across much of the US, including as a year-round inhabitant across Oregon.

 Source: All About Birds

Ecology: The heron typically feeds on fish and spend much of its time in marshes, along streams/lakes, or near other bodies of water. I would guess you have a body of water or swampy/marshy area somewhat nearby where you saw this specimen.
How to distinguish from other (seemingly) similar species?

The Great Blue Heron’s massive size and white in the face separates it from other dark herons such as Little Blue Heron and Tricolored Heron. Sandhill Cranes are more uniformly gray, and adult Sandhills have a vivid red crown. In flight, a Sandhill Crane keeps its neck outstretched and flies with snappy wingbeats, flicking its wings quickly upward. Great Blue Herons fly with their heads pulled back against their shoulders and have smooth, deliberate wingbeats, barely raising their wings above horizontal. Sandhill Cranes are less widespread than Great Blue Herons and are typically seen in flocks. Great Blue Herons travel solo, except if you catch them during migration when you might see up to 10 together. [Source].


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What is the name of this plant with mango type leaves?
Location: South India
Leaves: Mango Type
Indoor/Outdoor/Wild: Indoor
Month: May

Looks like a eugenia

This looks very much like a plant in the Ericaceae family, and specifically it looks to be some species of rhododendron.

Shrubby looking tree/shrub
Spirally arranged stiff (appears evergreen) leaves
Strong midrib on leaf
Large flower

With over 1000 species worldwide and more than 120 species known to occur in India, the picture likely doesn't have enough detail for someone without specific knowledge of Indian plant species to be able to ID to species. Even an expert might need the following details:

Exact leaf measurements, specific habitat details (elevation, distance to water, etc.) and closeups of leaf undersides, stem axils, bark and (opened) flower. A zoomed out picture showing the whole shrub/tree would also likely be helpful in IDing to species.

I would recommend reading Mao (2010) The genus Rhododendron in north-east India.

List of species and locations etc.

 Disclaimer: I am not very familiar with Indian flora, so I could be unaware of genera/species that might be a better fit. Please try using a flora with dichotomous key to ID.


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Can you identify this fossil?

I found this fossil near a beach in Victoria, Australia. Can anyone identify it?
It is roughly the size of an Australian 20 cent piece (~30 mm). I think it might have been washed down from an eroding cliff.
I found another similar sized but less detailed fossil near by, which might be the same thing.

It's a sea urchin (Echinoidea). It looks like a specimen of Lovenia or another genus from the heart urchin (Spatangoida) family.
What you see is just the shell without the spines.
Lovenia woodsii

Fossil sea urchin spines

Image sources:

http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/collections/echinoderms/echinoids/lovenia-woodsii-r488/
http://www.fossilguy.com/species/invert/echino/aurora/lc_urchin_spine.jpg


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Why do we have only one elbow per arm and one knee per leg, not multiple elbows or knees?
I was surfing on the internet for a long time, but I couldn't find the answer to my question: Why do we have only one elbow per arm and one knee per leg, not multiple elbows or multiple knees per limb?

Possible duplicate of Why do some bad traits evolve, and good ones don't?

The simple answer is: our ancestors did...as did our ancestors ancestors, and so on. We are not optimally designed, but rather, we take what our ancestors give us, and work with that. The horses for example. They have added another joint by essentially extending their toes, and walking on them, which gives them an advantage in running. It is possible to modify the skeleton, but even in this case, the original is modified, not fundamentally changed.

An example or image of our fishy ancestors limbs would improve this answer, not everyone will know what you mean. this may help, http://www.devoniantimes.org/opportunity/images/fin-limb_2006-1.gif

And to carry the examples a bit further, consider how birds & bats have modified that same basic anatomy into wings - but didn't make the same modifications.

We are the way were are solely because of evolution. The only reason we do have a single elbow per arm or a single knee per leg is only because it was advantages to have these bendable joints. Long before humans existed little organisms with small sticks as legs and arms probably roamed the Earth, but there must have been a single time where a mutation came and gave and organism these joints we know have. These elbows and knees are obviously very helpful and preferred. Also the main reason we don't have more than one elbow per arm would probably because no random mutation has come about and on top of that there is no reason we would need it.


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Australian Tree Identification Help
I am looking at identifying a tree for a friend who lives outside of Melbourne.  Being from Tennessee in the US, we don't have anything very similar to this at all and it doesn't look like any of the US tropical trees that I know of either.  Can anyone help?
This is the far away view of the tree
Specific location: It was taken in the laneway behind a property in Glen Iris, Victoria just outside of Melbourne (Australia).

Also ask for how it smells.

The first 2 photos posted by Whitney show Syzygium paniculatum, or perhaps S.smithii. Magenta Cherry or Lilliplly.

Cat Mackenzie is right.
The leaves are darker, thinner, and more shiny than eucalyptus. The leaves also have two different sides, unlike eucalyptus.
Syzygium paniculatum, or S.smithii. I suspect S. smithii.

Ok, this is more complicated than I first thought. I am pretty sure that we have an eukalyptus tree here. The species is more complicated, but I think it is likely Eucalyptus baueriana or one of its subspecies. To check this further, more detailed images of leaves, blossoms are needed. Check this image (from here):

It isn't the right species, the leaves in OP's picture are ovate but that of E. viminalis are lanceolate.

@SanjuktaGhosh You agree now?

I too think it is of that Genus, it is not my subject though. But looking at the leaves of E. baueriana, they are a little too ovate for OP's plant.

I think it is species E.ficifolia.

From the leaves, this could fit, but E. ficifolia has red blossoms, which the tree in the question has not.

Some variant of it has white flowers too.

Hey @Chris, your answer would be improved by providing further reasoning and support for why you think this is the correct species. You include a similar-looking image, but you don't really back up with any explicit characteristics or discussion for why your answer is correct. Please consider updating. Thanks!

No! Eucalyptus trees have a distinctive operculum which this tree lacks

I presume it is Corymbia ficifolia previously called Eucalyptus ficifolia, a white variant of this species which usually bears red flowers.
Image links:
Source

Another picture (with a better view of the leaves)

Hey @TytoAlba, your answer would be improved by providing further reasoning and support for why you think this is the correct species. You include a similar-looking image, but you don't really back up with any explicit characteristics or discussion for why your answer is correct. Please consider updating. Thanks!

No! It does not have the wavy leaves of corymbia ficifolia - besides, corymbias have alternately arranged leaves

This is a species of Syzygium, most likely S. paniculatum or s. australe - if you look at the spent flowers you can see four persistent sepals attached to each one. This sets it apart from other close relatives that have been suggested, like Corymbia and Eucalyptus, as in both of these, the sepals and petals are fused into a cap that gets pushed off the end of the bud.
Furthermore, the leaves will most likely have no distinct scent, and the flowers will develop into juicy, pink or purple berries with a single seed.


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I found a bug on my bedroom floor. Is this a bedbug?

I found this insect on my bedroom floor. I'm worried. I hope this is not a bed bug.
Size: 3-4 mm

It doesn't really look like a bedbug, but the picture is extremely poor and you need a better one for a species determination.

Honestly i just want to know if this is a bed bug or not

It vaguely looks like a flea, but the photo quality is very poor.

Please update the question with your location

I've voted to reopen because I've incorporated some more info into the question AND I have a good answer for the user.

I think the question should remain closed - the pic is too poor for an ID with any certainty. Given the info, it might be a bed bug, but it could also be something else (so it is unclear).

I trust @theforestecologist has a good answer, so I voted to re-open.

@fileunderwater. The body shape (and, importantly, the presence of a notch at the pygidium) is a giveaway to the type of insect. Bed bugs do not have that body structure. It's a terrible picture, but I'm pretty sure I know it.

@theforestecologist This is up to the community, not up to me (and several have voted to keep closed). I don't think it should be open, since it is of extremely limited value to the site. I don't really see how we can have any pretence of maintaining the quality of BioSE if we keep this kind of question open. And whether you think that you can provide an answer doesn't really have anything to do with it; somebody can always imagine that they can provide some sort of answer to all questions that we close as "too broad" or "unclear". That doesn't mean that the Q should be open.

@theforestecologist Anyway, now it is open, so you got your wish. This is more of a discussion for meta though. For the record, I've been talking to an expert on domestic pest insects, and he thought that it is impossible to say for certain whether this is a bed bug (from this picture). This was also my original point, and why I think that the question should be closed (it is too unclear to answer with any certainty).

@Virginia Again, please update with your location. Also please let us know 1. if you have seen any more of these (if so, where? and do you have photos), 2. if you have pets and 3. if you have received any bug bites.

To answer your question this is very likely NOT a bedbug.

See this answer for a positive ID of (and more info for) a bedbug.

However, based on the size and body shape of your specimen, it appears you've found another blood sucking paristic pest: a flea.

 Sources: Here, here and here.
 General Info:

Fleas are small flightless parasitic insects (order Siphonaptera) that consume the blood of mammals (including humans) and birds.
Over 2,500 species of fleas have been described worldwide.
Adults are 1.5-3.3mm long, narrower than wide and brown (or reddish brown). [1,2]
Flea larvae are worm-like (vermiform) in shape with a sparse covering of bristles.  They rarely live on the body of their host.  Instead, they are usually found in its nest or bedding where they feed as scavengers on organic debris (including adult feces).

 Likely Species:

I'm assuming you have a pet (cat or dog perhaps). If that is the case, you're likely looking at a cat flea or dog flea (depending on your locaiton). From UF IFAS:

The most common [American] flea is the cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis  (Bouché). The adult cat flea, unlike many other fleas, remains on the host. Adults require a fresh blood meal in order to reproduce.
The dog flea, Ctenocephalides canis (Curtis), appears similar to the cat flea, but is rarely found in the United States. Cat fleas are commonly found on both cats and dogs in North America, while dog fleas are found in Europe.
The two species are distinguished by a slight morphological difference which is detectable only under high magnification.

 Cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis) from University of florida IFAS
Note: both species will parasitize multiple species (including both cats and dogs as well as humans), and their distinction (as mentioned above) is more dictated by geographic location. However, both can be found worldwide.

Linardi & Santos (2012)1 have an excellent publication for correctly identifying between the dog and cat flea.

For More General Information See:

Wikipedia
 - Terminix
 - Orkin
 - Univ. of Evansville
 - Purdue University
 - UFL IFAS (cat fleas or dog fleas)

 Fleas vs. Bed Bugs
See this Terminix page for "What is the difference between bed bugs and fleas?"

Your specimen is almost certainly a flea because:

The body of the insect in your picture is thin but vertically "tall" (or "laterally flattened"). In other words, it appears to be narrow like a flea.

A bed bug, on the other hand, is wide and vertically very flat.

Though, an engorged adult can appear to be more narrowly long when engorged on blood. See here.

Fleas are narrow so that they can easily maneuver through a host's fur/hair/feathers; while a bedbug is flat to be able to effectively hide in crevices.

The size (3-4 mm) is more appropriate for a flea.

Although some larval stages of bed bugs can range between 2.5 - 4 mm, these larval stages still retain the relatively flat appearance of the adult (except when engorged).

Notice the reflection toward the posterior end of the specimen in your photo. This is not present on bed bugs. This light is reflecting off the flea's pygidium (or sensilium).

Some fleas have bristles on the posterior end of their body. Bed bugs do not. The insect in your picture has these posterior "hairs."
Fleas have powerful hind legs for jumping that stay relatively close to the body, while bed bugs have very skinny legs that spread laterally from the body.

When bedbugs become engorged and appear more like the insect in the question picture (i.e., not flat), their abdomen grows posteriorly but their legs do not extend very far back.
Notice when I brighten the OP's picture from the question you can see the light reflecting on the wide posterior femur that is both close to the body and extends relatively posteriorly as compared to the overall abdomen:

Location & Behavior: Although both fleas and bedbugs are generally nocturnal, both can be found during the day. However, they would generally be found in different places:

Bed bugs are likely to be digesting meals on the piping of your mattress, in and around the bed frame or box spring, along the baseboards and creeping around in other well-hidden cracks and crevices
Fleas, however, (like your specimen) are more likely to be found making themselves at home in animal sleeping areas or lurking around in your upholstery or carpeting, waiting to hop on for a bite. [Source]

Should You Still be Concerned?

Some fleas are well known to transmit diseases (e.g., plague, murine typhus, etc., and a host of issues for your pets) unlike bedbugs. So really, fleas could potentially be more harmful.

Unlike bedbugs, however, vacuuming goes a long way for managing fleas on bedding, carpets, and furniture.
However, one flea can lay between 150 and 300 eggs every week, so do not wait!

 Works Cited:
1  Linardi, P.M. and Santos, J.L.C., 2012. Ctenocephalides felis felis vs. Ctenocephalides canis (Siphonaptera: Pulicidae): some issues in correctly identify these species. Revista brasileira de parasitologia veterinária, 21(4), pp.345-354.

Wow, you did have a good answer!

I had a bed bug infestation a few months ago. That picture looks like it could be a bed bug that hasn't fed in a while. But, the overall body shape looks more like a flea....
Bed bugs look different depending on what stage of life they are and whether or not they have fed recently. The picture below is a bed bug who has recently fed. You'll notice his body is fat and has a reddish color.

You may want to get an ultraviolet flashlight and look in the seams of your mattress and in the cracks of your headboard. Baby bed bugs are tiny and almost impossible to see..... Also, in case you have fleas, use that UV Flashlight to scan your carpets and pet's fur also.
You can find more information on how to find out if you have bed bugs and what you can do to eliminate them at http://ridbedbugsnow.com/how-to-get-rid-of-bed-bugs


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How much do arteries expand during pulse?
Arteries expand during a pulse. The amount of expansion may differ from artery to artery. How much do arteries expand? I understand it might be a range. Inform the same. Even values specific to some arteries will be fine.

I assume you're asking about humans -- is this true, or are you asking more broadly? Also, please indicate some of your own research for this question. (See How do I ask a good question for some tips for writing good questions on Bio.SE).


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What is this growth on a Rosa rugosa stem?
I saw many of these on my big old Rosa rugosa bush yesterday. What are they?

Please provide your location and an approximate size of the specimens. Thanks.

I have this on my Rosa rugosa as well. I first noticed them 2 years ago and it is spreading to many of my plants. I think it has killed several of them. I am going to cut them back below this growth and see if that helps them survive. I am in Cape Cod , MA.

This looks like a gall. At first I thought that it was the common rose bedeguar gall, also known as Robin's pincushion gall which is caused by Diplolepsis rosae, a small wasp. However, there is a related wasp, the spiny rose stem gall wasp Diplolepsis spinosa, which attacks Rosa rugosa so I imagine this is what you have here.
Incidentally, you are probably wondering what bedeguar might mean. According to the OED it derives from a French word bédégar which in turn comes from the Persian bād-āwar ('wind-brought’).

This is a stem gall induced by the cynipid wasp Diplolepis spinosa. It has moved from the wild rose Rosa blanda in eastern Canada and Rosa woodsii in western Canada, onto the introduced Rosa rugosa. The bedegular or Robin's pincushion gall is induced by Diplolepis rosae. Both the host dog rose and D. rosae have been introduced from Europe. The mossy gall of D. rosae is induced on leaf tissues - even though the gall looks like it comes from stem tissues.

This is a great, informative answer, but it would be helpful to have a citation.


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Evolutionary term for multiple, related adaptations
Is there a term in biology for when adaptations are compounded on (or by) other adaptations?
One example in whales: the tail flukes, reduction of rear limbs and development of the blowhole were all part of a number of shifts that aided the transition from land to water. Is there a term, like chain shift, for that?
Also with humans, encephalization led to pelvic adaptation for larger infants.

Co-adaptation
The term you are looking for might be co-adaptation. Co-adaptation is kind of a generalist term that fits many scneario, its definition (source: wikipedia > co-adaptation)

In biology, co-adaptation, or coadaptation is the process by which two or more species, traits, organs, or genes undergo adaptation as a pair or group. This occurs when two or more characteristics undergo natural selection together in response to the same selective pressure. While the parts may be functionally independent they are only beneficial when together, sometimes leading to increased interdependence. Coadaptation and its specific examples are often seen as evidence for the broader process of coevolution.

You seem to be thinking about a chain of adaptations, where the first adaptation changes the selection pressure on another trait causing another adaptation. For this purpose co-adaptation is not the perfect term but I am afraid there is no perfect terms. You might want to consider the following ones though that help you express your ideas.
Structural interdependence
Ziegler et al. 2009 talk about structural interdependence and interdependence of internal organ.
Phenotypic space
Of course, you can use the frameworks of the phenotypic space (as in Pigliucci 2007) and of fitness landscape to talk about how a change in a given phenotypic trait affect selection pressures at other traits.
Phenotypic constraint
A phenotypic constraint (as in Pigliucci 2007) is a case of fitness valley in fitness landscape in the correlation between two of more phenotypic trait, hence causing a trade-off. Absence of such constraint are cases of interest to you
Phenotypic plasticity
It is common to talk about the ability of a specific phenotypic trait to vary to fit into the broader context of the whole body as phenotypic flexibility or phenotypic plasticity. There is a difference plasticity and flexibility for many but I don't think all authors use the exact same definition.
Phenotypic plasticity

Phenotypic plasticity refers to the changes in an organism's behavior, morphology and physiology due to its adaption to a unique environment.2 Fundamental to the way in which organisms cope with environmental variation, phenotypic plasticity encompasses all types of environmentally induced changes (e.g. morphological, physiological, behavioural, phenological) that may or may not be permanent throughout an individual's lifespan. The term was originally used to describe developmental effects on morphological characters, but is now more broadly used to describe all phenotypic responses to environmental change, such as acclimation or acclimatization, as well as learning.5 The special case when differences in environment induce discrete phenotypes is termed polyphenism.

Exaptation
This is a poorly related term but it may eventually be of interest to you. The definition from wiki > Exaptation

Exaptation [..] and the related term co-option describe a shift in the function of a trait during evolution. For example, a trait can evolve because it served one particular function, but subsequently it may come to serve another. Exaptations are common in both anatomy and behaviour. Bird feathers are a classic example: initially they may have evolved for temperature regulation, but later were adapted for flight. Interest in exaptation relates to both the process and products of evolution: the process that creates complex traits and the products (functions, anatomical structures, biochemicals, etc.) that may be imperfectly developed.

Phylogenetic signal
Phylogenetic signal is used way more often than the term exaptation. It is however also quite unrelated to what you are looking for but I added it because... well we never know what you'll find helpful!

Phylogenetic signal is a measure of the statistical dependence among species' trait values due to their phylogenetic relationships.

For example, the existence of 4 limbs in vertebrates is a phylogenetic signal (see Why don't mammals have more than 4 limbs?)

@Tom let me know if it helped!


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How can inbreeding be used for selecting mutations?
I understand that inbreeding, after a number of generations of crossing genetically related individuals eventually yields homozygotes, however I can't seem to understand how it can be used for selecting mutations.

What particular allele is retained in the homozygote?  Where did that particular allele originally come from?

Consider a sibling-sibling mating system, the simplest inbreeding situation, with a simple Mendelian trait.
Step 0:
Let's start with heterozygotes, Aa x Aa.
Step 1:
Their offspring will be a collection of AA, Aa, Aa, aa, in roughly those ratios assuming equal survival.
Step 2:
Now we breed siblings. If we happen to breed Aa x Aa, we are back to the original starting point. Return to Step 1.
If we happen to breed AA x AA or aa x aa, and then continue to breed those offspring with their siblings, all of the following generations will be homozygous unless there is a mutation. Stop here, you have homozygotes.
If we happen to breed AA x Aa or Aa x aa, the next offspring will match those parents: AA, Aa or Aa, aa. If we breed Aa x Aa, return to Step 1. If we breed AA x AA or aa x aa, stop here, you have homozygotes.
Of course, theoretically you could end up with heterozygotes doing this forever, but the odds get lower and lower the more generations you breed.

For selecting a particular mutation, it is often simpler to genotype for presence of an allele rather than zygosity (i.e., just use simple RT-PCR). For example, if you want to eventually produce aa, you can test for the 'a' allele, and not breed any offspring that do not have any 'a', therefore they are AA. If you do this, you will always eventually end in a path with aa homozygotes.
If you have an easily produced model organism, you can also do this simply by phenotype (depending on the trait): once a strain settles into a consistent phenotype, you know you have a homozygote of one type or the other. If your model organism is easy to produce, it's okay if some don't end up carrying the mutation.
For selecting a random mutation, the same is true, except you have many genes instead of just gene "A". Any random mutation in just one individual early in the breeding could potentially be fixed in the inbred population somewhere down the line, following the steps above. If you breed BB x Bb, where Bb has a random mutation, you have a chance to breed a Bb x Bb pair in the next generation, which starts you at Step 0 for that particular random mutation.


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Why are there no large animals with chloroplasts?
Mitochondria and chloroplasts display similarities with bacteria that led to the endosymbiont theory. This theory states that an early ancestor of eukaryotic cells engulfed an oxygen using non-photosynthetic prokaryotic cell. Eventually, the engulfed cell formed a relationship with the host cell 1n which it was enclosed, becoming an endosymbiont (a cell living within another cell). Indeed, over the course of evolution, the host cell and its endosymbiont merged into a single organism, a eukaryotic cell with a mitochondrion. At least one of these cells may have then taken up a photosynthetic prokaryote, becoming the ancestor of eukaryotic cells that contain chloroplasts.
So my question is,  why is it that all the cells that took in the chloroplasts became plants or other simple animals but not large mammalian or reptilian animals?  Is there a limiting factor that restricted chloroplasts from being beneficial to large animals? Why is it that large plants can have both chloroplasts and mitochondria but not relatively larger animals?

"cells that took in the chloroplasts became plants or other simple animals" -- what does this refer to?  I am not aware of any animal (metazoa) species whose cells contain chloroplasts? There are symbionts like Elysia chlorotica that ingest algae and have adapted to make use of their chloroplasts for photosynthesis, but that seems quite different. Perhaps by "simple animals" you mean protozoa?

I'm no expert in evolutionary biology...but I suppose that it could be because of the higher energy needs in plants than animals.The plants have several more biochemical pathways than many larger animals so to maintain so many enzymes there must be more energy needs.And altogether its disadvatageous,perhaps it saved them from the intense competition during biogeny.

There are no animals with chloroplasts.

I believe the gist of it is that chloroplasts simply cannot create enough sugar from photosynthesis to significantly power the energy-intense needs of any but the simplest of animals. Consider that plants maximize their surface area to the extent possible for a living organism, and still only have enough energy to grow and reproduce - movement is essentially impossible.
Here's a pretty good article I stumbled across a while back:
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2012/09/18/will-we-ever-photosynthesise-like-plants/

Venus fly traps manage to move pretty well, though I imagine you mean move from place to place. However, you haven't given any evidence that plants' lack of movement is because of a lack of energy. One might instead posit that plants don't move because they "chose" to get their water supply by fixing themselves into the ground. And perhaps plants could make a trade-off and grow a little less to free up energy for moving. For example, small trees seem to do just fine until they get surrounded by taller trees that block out their light.

Venus fly traps can only move a few times before they wear out, it is useless for movement.


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Why do plants produce and store both amylose and amylopectin?
Since both forms of starch has its primary purpose of storing glucose and hence releasing energy, why are there 2 variations of this sugar? Is it possible for an organism to contain/depend only on 1 but not the other?


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What exactly is this small puffer fish doing and how did it manage to accomplish such a feat?
I recently saw a video on youtube  where it shows a puffer fish making intricate designs in the sand:
OZZY MAN VIDEO
The puffer fish made this design on the sand:

What exactly is the puffer fish doing and how is it capable of accomplishing such a feat?  Is this behavior learnt, or innate?

A tiny Japanese puffer fish creates a grand sand sculpture on the featureless seabed by using his fins to dig furrows. He uses this to attract the attention of passing females.

Why do puffer fish build sandcastles? (BBC)

Further observation revealed that this “mysterious circle” was not just there to make the ocean floor look pretty. Attracted by the grooves and ridges, female puffer fish would find their way along the dark seabed to the male puffer fish where they would mate and lay eggs in the center of the circle. In fact, the scientists observed that the more ridges the circle contained, the more likely it was that the female would mate with the male. The little sea shells weren’t just in vain either. The observers believe that they serve as vital nutrients to the eggs as they hatch, and to the newborns.

http://www.spoon-tamago.com/2012/09/18/deep-sea-mystery-circle-love-story/

Here is the source of the video:

Puffer Fish Constructs A Masterpiece of Love - BBC Earth (YouTube)

The following papers analyse said structures and the ethology in more depth:

We report that male pufferfishes (Torquigener sp., Tetraodontidae) constructed large geometric circular structures on the seabed that played an important role in female mate choice. Males dug valleys at various angles in a radial direction, constructing nests surrounded by radially aligned peaks and valleys. Furthermore, they created irregular patterns in the nest comprising fine sand particles. The circular structure not only influences female mate choice but also functions to gather fine sand particles in nests, which are important in female mate choice. Strangely enough, the males never reuse the nest, always constructing a new circular structure at the huge cost of construction. This is because the valleys may not contain sufficient fine sand particles for multiple reproductive cycles.

Role of Huge Geometric Circular Structures in the Reproduction of a Marine Pufferfish (2013)

Here, we examined the process of the outer ring construction, and extracted the ‘rules’ followed by the pufferfish. During construction, the pufferfish repeatedly excavates ditches from the outside in. Generally, excavation starts at lower positions, and occurs in straight lines... A simulation program based on these data successfully reproduced the circle pattern, suggesting that the complex circle structure can be created by the repetition of simple actions by the pufferfish.

Simple rules for construction of a geometric nest structure by pufferfish (2018)

Ok thanks +1. But this only answers the first part of the question. How is such a puffer fish capable of doing this?  Is this knowledge learnt or ingrained?

@user35897 I've added a quote from a paper which simulates the construction. It appears we don't yet know if it is learned behaviour, but in any case it only seems to require a small number of simple movements, repeated.

i would bet that the behavior is instinctive but also influenced (perhaps) by the structure the male rears the young in. note how hard it would be as hatchling to learn the patterns in this way --seems like if the pufferfish do learn from their dads this is unusual intelligence. not hard to test this by comparing fish removed very early from nest vs those reared the normal amt of time. also, testing of intelligence (like maze navigation which i bet both sexes would be good at) might reveal some surprises.

This "nest" is created by a male pufferfish for both courtship and for rearing young.
The male puffer fish uses its body and fins (a combination of pectoral, anal, and caudal -- see here) to break up the sand into fine particles and to move it around into the pattern seen above. It swims in channel-like (or furrow) patterns to create the ray pattern seen:

You can see a more complete video of this action through this BBC video on Youtube.
According to here and here this male puffer fish does all this to attract a female. National Geographic adds:

The circles, scientists say, are actually nests created by male pufferfish, which spend about ten days carefully constructing and decorating the structures to woo females. What’s more, this industrious pufferfish is thought to be a new species in the Torquigener genus, according to the study, published July 1 [2013] in the journal Scientific Reports....
When a potential female partner arrives on the scene, the male stirs up the fine sand in the nest’s inner circle. If she deems the nest, and the male who built it, satisfactory, she lays her eggs in the center of the nest and leaves.

Scientists are not sure why building intricate sand nests attract mates, but perhaps a larger, more-intricate nest (i.e., one that took a long time) could indicate to the female that the male is stronger or more fit.
All this effort does not stop at courtship however. Again from Nat Geo:

Once the female splits, though, it’s the male who does the parental chores: He remains in the nest until the eggs hatch six days later.


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What is this bug
This insect flew into my house in Singapore while it was raining.  Size is around 1.5 inches. What is this?

What we need: https://biology.stackexchange.com/tags/species-identification/info

My own "wish list" would include extreme close-ups (if possible) of the feet; the top photo suggests a "tarsal formula" of 5-5-4 (five segments in the front and middle feet, four segments in the hind), which would place this in the infraorder Cucujiformia (which group includes most of the beetles, so narrowing it that far isn't as much help as it could be).

As a singaporean, I'd say this is a tenebrionid, probably one of the Strongylium sp, possibly Strongylium erythrocephalum. Most of the Strongylium species here tend to only be found in the forest, but this species in particular seems to occasionally be found in urban areas.

Photo courtesy of Len Worthington, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Your answer could be improved with additional supporting information. Please [edit] to add further details, such as citations or documentation, so that others can confirm that your answer is correct. You can find more information on how to write good answers in the help center.

Very nice find! Thanks, and added a photo. Hope that's ok.

This is a beetle Coleoptera, possibly from the family of the 'ground beetles' Carabidae
As this family is one of the most speciose animal families, pinpointing an exact species will be difficult, especially in the tropics.
I think your specimen belongs to the genus of Carabus, they look similar as you can see on the picture from  wikipedia commons below:
- Long legs.
- Often a distinct pattern of dots and stripes on the shields.
- Long antenna with many segments
EDIT: As @theforestecologist pointed out, the body shape more resembles the family of Meloidae.   Most Meloidae don't have dots on the shield, but for example lytta does. https://bg.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Файл:Lytta_aenea.JPG

Body/wing shape doesn't quite match many Carabidae. I was actually thinking the OP's specimen looked more like Meloidae. Lytta sayi which is found in North America is very similar, but I do not known Singapore insects well and thus do not know any relevant relatives -- a quick search didn't pull up any good choices.

@theforestecologist Meloidae often do not have the dots on the shield, but you might be right about the body shape. Hmm, dunno.

@theforestecologist I did find any good choices either. I've edited my answer to reflect your doubt (and my own). Or should I remove the answer  now?

I'd keep the answer, since our back-and-forth should be enough to inform others that this answer is not definitive. I think if you're actually doubtful as you indicate in your last comment, that you should edit your post further to make that uncertainty more explicit  -- e.g., replace "it is" with "it possibly could be" or something similar...Perhaps someone more familiar with the fauna of Singapore can use this discussion as a jumping off point. Thanks.


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What is the name of this beautiful insect?
I spotted this magnificient looking insect last night in my house in Singapore. It was around 1.5 inches long and had a silverish golden back with long legs and antennae.

 ^ Click for full-size, higher-quality image

 ^ Click for full-size, higher-quality image

Pretty! You should add your location, that makes identification easier. (All i can say is that it's a heteropteran of some sort)

The presence of more than three veins in the forewing membrane (just barely visible in the top photo when magnified) and terrestrial habits narrows this to infraorder Pentatomorpha; the four-segmented antennae eliminate the superfamily Pentatomoidea; not knowing the local fauna forbids further progress from me.

This is indeed a true bug (Hemipteran) in the infraorder Pentatomomorpha.
As Arthur Frost said in his comment, exact identification is difficult for those of us on the other side of the world.
However, a fortuitous series of internet rabbit holes may have led me to a very similar looking specimen.
Homoeocerus striicornis and Homoeocerus angulatus appear to be quite similar in appearance to your insect, and so I would not be surprised if your insect was at least in this genus (see here for more pictures) within the "leaf-footed bugs" family (Coreidae).

I'd say Homoeocerus angulatus is more likely only because the sightings maps on inaturalist show this species being found in Singapore.

I can't say that any incredibly reputable or peer-reviewed resources in English online provide definitive support for this identification, but this is at least a step in the right (a?) direction.


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What is this red and white striped wasp?
I saw this dead wasp in a park in Hong Kong.

Looking at what I can see of the wings and antennae I'm more inclined to believe this is a true bug; a look at the animals topside (its upside down in these photos) would confirm that (but I suppose the corpse is no longer available for additional photos).

@ArthurJFrost We can also guess the rostrum on the photo, that is also a good hint that this is a hymenopteran.

First of all, it isn't a wasp, but a true bug. After a long search in the databases about Hong-Kong's insects, I found that it is a red cotton stainer. Wikipedia says "Dysdercus cingulatus occurs in Sri Lanka, northeastern India, Bangladesh, Thailand, the Philippines, Sumatra, Borneo, Papua New Guinea and northern Australia".  iNaturalist.org has a number of photos, including some that match the one in the question, and confirms that the bug occurs in Hong Kong.
These insects are serious pests of cotton and there are several other species of them, some of which occur in North America:

The cotton stainer is most common in southern Florida and in Cuba. It has been reported in Jamaica and Puerto Rico, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina. In view of its scarcity in north Florida, it must be presumed rare in the other three states mentioned. Dysdercus andreae ranges from southern Florida to most of the Antilles and Surinam. Dysdercus mimulus ranges from southern Florida, Texas, and Mexico into Central America and the West Indies. The fourth, undetermined species is known in the United States from two specimens taken at Key Largo Key and Homestead, Florida.

--University of Florida
Here are some pictures to compare with these one in the question:

To clarify, it's not a beetle which form the order Coleoptera but a true bug comprising the order Hemiptera. Beetles undergo metamorphosis from egg to larva to pupa to adult. True bugs undergo incomplete metamorphosis.