What kind of creature is this?

[Nicolas]

I'm in need of loads of rain water as my grass seeds are complaining about the sun... So that's when I checked out an old, very dirty rain water barrel in my garden.

That's when I saw some creature swimming in it. About 1 cm length, I've drawn it. It was a bit fuzzy around the edges. It swam with its tail. It was a living creature, aware of its surroundings. When I blew on the water (it was close to the surface), it stopped swimming.

Any idea what this is?

I left that water barrel alone.

[Nick Theodorakis]

Mosquito larva, maybe?

Nick

[megrfl]

ewwwww!

[Nick Theodorakis]

What, I showered this morning.

Nick

[Argos]

Mosquito larva, maybe?

Too big to be mosquito larvae.

[Nicolas]

I was thinking along the lines of larvae.

It looks a bit like this one:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...uito_larva.jpg

Though the one I saw had a tail as long as its body (in total about 1cm, so including tail).

I don't know what kind of larvae these musquito's with huge legs have? They're quite common overhere, that's why I think of them.

[ABR.]

Nicolas, from your drawing, the first critter that came to mind was a syrphid fly larva commonly referred to as a rat-tailed maggot. They like very mucky habitats as you described. However, the size you mentioned seems a bit on the small size. Any chance for a photo?

[Fazor]

Nicolas, from your drawing, the first critter that came to mind was a syrphid fly larva commonly referred to as a rat-tailed maggot. They like very mucky habitats as you described. However, the size you mentioned seems a bit on the small size. Any chance for a photo?

And just when I thought maggots couldn't be any more disgusting. Thanks in advance for the nightmares!

[ABR.]

And just when I thought maggots couldn't be any more disgusting. Thanks in advance for the nightmares!

Oh, so it's nightmares you want! Now where did I put those SEM micrographs of beetle naughty bits...

[megrfl]

Clean up on aisle 5... Clean up on aisle 5. Thank you.

[chrissy]

What about a Midge larva you never stated what colour it was Nicolas, or was it white.. like your picture?

[ABR.]

What about a Midge larva you never stated what colour it was Nicolas, or was it white.. like your picture?

Yeah, a midge pupa might fit -- wider anteriorly, tapering posteriorly. The other thing I was thinking, given that these things were less than 1cm and were swimming near the surface, perhaps they were copepods. Those will show up in temporary water habitats like magic along with ostracods and other microfrustraceans, er, that is microcrustaceans.

[captain swoop]

And just when I thought maggots couldn't be any more disgusting. Thanks in advance for the nightmares!

Nothing wrong with Maggots. I have 2 pints of them in the fridge at the moment big whites (Bluebottle) and small 'pinkies' (Housefly) all ready for fishing tomorrow. They are in Oatmeal to keep them dry and 'polished' it takes away the ammonia smell so that when I add the strawberry essence it isn't tainted.

Best all round bait for Chub, Bream and Roach etc.

I have a pint from last weekend that have 'turned' and they are nice crunch pupea, a couple of them on the hook in a cocktail with a maggot and some sweetcorn will sort out the big fish.

[chrissy]

True, the midge came to mind because they tend to hang around in my BBQ when there is water in it.

[Fazor]

Nothing wrong with Maggots. I have 2 pints of them in the fridge at the moment big whites (Bluebottle) and small 'pinkies' (Housefly) all ready for fishing tomorrow.

Ah, so you're one of those cheaters.

I don't like to use live bait when I fish. Not because I can't "handle" it . . . the 'nightmare' comment wasn't serious. I don't like maggots, but they're just bugs.

I prefer lures, but partly because I'm the only one that really fishes the farm pond I frequent. Bait just isn't a challenge there; you'll have a fish almost as soon as the bait hits the water.

Plus I'm primarily a bass fisher. It feels more like "hunting" when I use lures. I do use live bait when I fish for walleye (it's been years) and stink bait when I try for cats (which is close enough to never to just say never). Also use live baits when I'm vacationing somewhere where I can get out into the ocean.

[PetersCreek]

Feh. I'm a reformed bass fisherman. I tie my own midges, mosquitos, et al to catch fish properly.

[mugaliens]

Any idea what this is?

I left that water barrel alone.

Given the five, identically-sized, overlapping circles on a uniform (way too uniform, as in 100%) field of blue, I'd say it's an artificially blurred and resolution-reduced image of 5 circles on top of a bent butterknife.

Or a fork.

How about an image with a bit more detail?

[captain swoop]

Ah, so you're one of those cheaters.

I don't like to use live bait when I fish. Not because I can't "handle" it . . . the 'nightmare' comment wasn't serious. I don't like maggots, but they're just bugs.

I prefer lures, but partly because I'm the only one that really fishes the farm pond I frequent. Bait just isn't a challenge there; you'll have a fish almost as soon as the bait hits the water.

Plus I'm primarily a bass fisher. It feels more like "hunting" when I use lures. I do use live bait when I fish for walleye (it's been years) and stink bait when I try for cats (which is close enough to never to just say never). Also use live baits when I'm vacationing somewhere where I can get out into the ocean.

Apart from the Chub which will go for a fly none of the fish I go after will go for a lure. Maggots, bread, sweetcorn, tinned 'luncheon meat' and commercial 'pellets' similar to the stuff you buy for your ond fish are the baits to use. A shoal of Bream need to be fed with a huge ammount of 'groundbait' fired in with a catapult or from a 'feeder' on the line, they can hoover up a surprising quantity and if it's all gone they move on. Breadcrumb and oatmeal form the basis of it, that way they feed but don't fill up so you maggots are snapped up.

Anyway sorry thisd is way off topic, maybe we should start a fishing thread.

[PetersCreek]

maybe we should start a fishing thread.

Fazor did.

[showboat]

When I was looking last week on TV at Celerberty Survivors [Costa Rica] I was amazed to be shown a slug that was apparrently was using a16 millipede legs and the motion.
Looked more like caterpillar legs but moving fast.

I don't think its a link between mollusc and insect but the mollusc was trying to mimic a toxic millipede.

A amazing feat for a molluisc in the Costa Rican rainforest but thats where the last remaining diversity is to photograph.

[mahesh]

...maybe we should start a fishing thread.

Fazor did.

May be I'll do one too...as we are talking fish

I shall start with Pennsylvania Avenue....1600...to be precise...

[Nicolas]

Given the five, identically-sized, overlapping circles on a uniform (way too uniform, as in 100%) field of blue, I'd say it's an artificially blurred and resolution-reduced image of 5 circles on top of a bent butterknife.

Or a fork.

How about an image with a bit more detail?

I couldn't see any more detail, as the thing was in a badly reachable spot, in dark water. I didn't have a camera on me, so I made a drawing (Chrissy: yes, it was white). I can't take a picture of it now, as it's not in view.

But some kind of larvae or maggots is what it appears to be. No alien. Thanks!