Microscope Madness

If you follow any of my social media accounts you have probably noticed that I have started uploading microscope pictures. Recently, I acquired a fantastic Brunel MX7T microscope for my birthday, it comes with a rotating turret with 20x and 40x magnification (although this can be increased through additional eyepieces).

My primary reason for wanting a microscope was to start an alcohol preserved specimen collection, containing particularly arachnids and myriapods. The vast majority of spiders (and invertebrates as a whole) only have a scientific name, lacking a common name, furthermore most of them can only be identified through microscopic examination.

Observing invertebrates through a microscope reveals all of their complexity and beauty. In fact, it is hard to really appreciate their magnificence without one.
Since I have started using the microscope I feel as though my entomology has achieved a new level and I am very much enjoying the specimen preservation collecting. Specimen collections are a massively important part of entomology, in particular, but zoology as a whole. And if you have an interest in these fields I would highly recommend purchasing a quality microscope and cannot recommend a Brunel enough.

Don’t forget to follow me on twitter and/or Instagram. I post regular wildlife facts, pictures, links and general information. They have essentially become condensed, regular blogs and I massively appreciate all likes, comments and follows. But more importantly, don’t forget to get out there and enjoy the incredible wildlife the world has to offer.

Thanks for reading!
Twitter: Matthew Woodard @ZoologyNotes
Instagram: Matthew_Woodard303

Here are a number of pictures of specimens under the microscope some and the species identifying characters. *Disclaimer: I am quite confident in my ability to correctly identify spiders to species level, because they are both my main interest and I possess a very detailed guide of how to do so (including what to look for through a microscope). However, I am still quite new to microscopic identification of other invertebrate groups, so if you spot any mistakes, I’d love to know! All feedback welcome. Thanks 🙂

Dorsal view of a femal Amaurobius ferox

This is a female Amaurobius ferox (black lace weaver) Distinguished from other Amaurobius species by the dark, backwards facing triangle on its epigyne.

Male Salticus scenicus (zebra jumping spider). They have distinctively large chelicera.

The large chelicera are more identifiable than the palps in this species.

Small centipede from my garden, what I believe to be a juvenile Lithobius melanops, but if you know better, feel free to correct me.

Currently unconfirmed weevil, again, it is hard to appreciate their complexity until you see them under a microscope.

Currently unconfirmed fly species, but what I believe to be a Phaonia sp. But flies really are fascinating under the microscope.