This sucker is the larva of Dynastes tityus – the Eastern Hercules Beetle
I’ve been rearing these (7 or so) larva since August of 2006. As of the 19th all but one have finally sequestered themselves in pupal chambers. Almost there!
I found a lot of these little beetles on a piece of fungus – getting a decent shot is like trying to shoot a gnat with an elephant rile. These beetles are about a millimeter long (the scale in the image is .5mm).
Using Canon’s MP-E 65mm 1-5x macro lens I was a few centimeters away from the beetles (if that) – at 5x it was a challenge to try and find a beetle through the viewfinder. Fortunately, there were plenty of them, so no worries about losing my subject.
life on six legs 