clearly appearing like something out of a Hollywood special-effects laboratory, this unreal-looking skin is actually quite common and is perhaps devouring something right outside your back door... it is a super-closeup of a June Bug's thorax (shoulder blade equivalent). the June Bugs in our area are an uninteresting plain brown, but as we explored it's outer surface, we noticed a very small metallic-looking shiny spot. far too small to see with the naked eye, we zoomed in on this spot and discovered it to be made up of many 'skin' cells of reds, oranges, and yellows each measuring around 1/3000 of an inch across. the green jellybean-like objects are actually pits in the bug's shell and have a hair growing out of each one (similar to a human pore). these deep bowel-shaped pits (about 1/400 of an inch long) were lined with more metallic-type cells that reflected our lighting back in various greens.

top of MarcaHuasi in Perú

northern Indiana woods

southern Maui along the road to Hana

although usually a moisture-loving plant, i found this one in Arizona. i think its roots must have tapped a nice hidden water supply.

vast amounts of water flowing over Horseshoe Falls (Canadian side of Niagara Falls)

A white dicentra plant bathed in morning sunlight.

JiuZhaiGou, China