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c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca wrote:
> Hi Dave et al.!
>
> On 20-Oct-07, at 4:36 PM, David & Alison Webster wrote:
>
>
>> Dear All, Oct 20, 2007
>>
>> I found Featherwing Beetles (Ptiliidae; about 1-mm long; new to
>> me) on Oct 11 and this being, after the warm rain, a time when things
>> might be active I looked for and found several more today.
>>
>
> Fabulous beetles aren't they? ;-> What habitat are you finding them in?
>
Hi Chris & All, Oct 20, 2007
Thanks for the background comments. I found these in the compost heap.
>> By the looks of it, this beetle should be easily able to float on
>> a rising column of warm air and I wonder if in fact they can do this.
>>
>
> We actually discuss this in our AME chapter, since some authors (i.e.
> Pringle 1957) have suggested that the beetles move around through
> passive flotation in the manner of dandelion seeds. However, this is
> an erroneous notion, as one can easily observe directed flight
> behavior in various situations, for instance in searching for their
> ephemeral breeding sites such as dung, compost, and decomposing fungi.
> Despite their tiny size, and unusual wings, they can fly with the same
> (or even better) facility as many other species of beetles.
>
But note that ability for directed flight does not prove inability
to float on rising air (passive flotation); hawks and the like.
Calculating the terminal velocity of a spherical body is, thanks to
Stokes, is a piece of cake. But non-spherical is another matter and is
perhaps fodder for a mid-winter project/discussion as some on the list
may know how to do this.
Yt, DW
>
> Cheers!
>
>
> Chris
>
> _._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.
>
> Christopher Majka - Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History
>
> 1747 Summer Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3H 3A6
>
> (902) 424-6435 Email < c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca
> <mailto:c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca> >
>
> _._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.
>
>
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