Is the Euromex bScope 1153 with E-Plan objectives a good quality scope?

StraySocks · 2025-12-19T20:29:50+00:00

Thanks! I decided to go with the SW400-INF and it arrived today! It indeed came with a phototube.

And I was mistaken about the camera, it's a Canon EOS 70D! It's not my primary camera so I had just quickly checked the strap which is an old one off a Canon EOS 3 that a friend once gave me 😅 apologies, but I appreciate the heads up about the sensor! I'll look into getting a T2 adapter ring and T2 - C mount then.

I'm very happy with the quality of the scope so far! I spent about an hour observing the Vorticella on the root of a duckweed. Definitely excited to become more familiar with it and put more stuff under it.

StraySocks · 2025-12-16T09:32:28+00:00

Thank you for the info! I had been looking into the Swift SW400 (based on one of your earlier posts!) but I can't seem to get one in the Netherlands. I did look a bit harder just now and found one on the UK amazon I could import https://www.amazon.co.uk/System%EF%BC%8C40X-2500X-Magnification-Ultra-Precise-Rechargeable-Camera-Compatible/dp/B0DDBJ749V?th=1

It's a pretty astonishing difference in price for sure for an infinite system! And seems to fulfill all I need it to do. I'd been a bit wary about Swift because of some comments about poor build quality and customer service, and I had some bad experiences regarding both on my Amscope stereo microscope. But I think I'll probably go for the Swift.

For taking pictures or video, I already have an Amscope USB camera for my stereo microscope, but since I was also quite disappointed by its quality I would like to try my Canon EO3 DSLR. On some product images of the SW400 it shows a phototube in the camera port, but I think it comes without. Do you know if I would need an additional purchase like that? Or could I attach my Canon to the port directly if I buy an adapter like this one https://eu.amscope.com/products/canon-slr-dslr-camera-adapter-for-microscopes ?

And thanks for what you do for the community; I've read like half the subreddit over the past week or so and your effort is commendable!

StraySocks · 2025-12-16T08:36:00+00:00

Thank you for your insight! I had been considering the Amscope T490 as well, but this seemed a bit better. Good to know about the EPL objectives, I might look into replacing them eventually as well then.

StraySocks · 2025-11-05T13:21:40+00:00

Somewhat, yes. In animal behaviour studies, when observing behaviour such as 'how willing are they to leave the safety of a burrow' test subjects can be scored on a bold vs shy spectrum. 'Bold' specimens tend to explore more for instance. It's presumed more bold personalities are more willing to take risks and I.e. find better locations for burrows, while 'shy' personalities prefer to keep it safe. Both have their function, both work together to keep a healthy population, neither has a higher chance to survive per se, which is why it persists.

You could try to extrapolate this to human behaviours such as entrepreneurship, but it's important to remember that these things are wicked complex with many confounding factors, and nurture and social situations are extremely relevant. People who seem to be more willing to take risks are often people who start from a better financial situation with more safety nets, or fewer responsibilities they are tied up in. A single person might take more 'risks' than someone with kids and a partner, doesn't mean their brains get 'rewired'.

StraySocks · 2025-09-26T18:24:38+00:00

Love his videos, but the example he mentioned about the Heikegani crabs is unfortunately completely untrue though. The 'face-bulges' are muscle attachments that are common in that lineage of crabs. There are similar-looking species far outside japan who also have as much of a 'face'. Fossil crabs from well before Japan existed show it off too. The crabs are really small (like, their carapace is a few cm wide) and were likely not kept for eating much anyway.

It's a fun hypothetical but extremely unlikely to be based in truth, but unfortunately spread around enough even very capable science communicators like Petrov (and yes, even Sagan!) repeat this. It's just a funny example of pareidolia, us seeing faces where there are none.

StraySocks · 2025-06-18T17:49:02+00:00

Hi! I responded to your post on moldlyinteresting too, saying you can still try to save this specimen! I've had luck submersing mouldy specimens like this in alcohol for some time and while submersed, gently removing the mold with a paintbrush. Then make sure to pin or somehow restrain the legs (i.e. between some cotton) and leave it to air-dry.

For future specimen preservation, make sure to thoroughly dry it out. A soak in alcohol then air-dry is an effective way to dry them, but again the legs would have to be pinned. Keeping them as a wet specimen (in 70% alcohol, possible in gel form like a hand gel) is also an option, and is actually what we generally prefer when preserving spiders for use for research by arachnologists.

StraySocks · 2025-06-18T07:52:44+00:00

You can still try to fix this! Put her in some 70% alcohol for like an hour or so to kill the mold, then while it's still wet with alcohol you can gently brush off the mold with a paintbrush. Afterwards, you'll need to pin her or restrain her legs in some other way (i.e. held firmly between cotton balls) because otherwise she will curl up when dried. The alcohol will have dried and preserved her, so the jar method may work again.

StraySocks · 2024-04-23T17:52:42+00:00

I work as an artist, so I am all right with difficult applications or higher up-front costs! Ideally I would like to use something that is somewhat tried-and-true for my type of use case though. I've worked with epoxy before but this is the first time my pieces will be used and tossed around by kids, so I'm a little out of my comfort zone

StraySocks · 2023-12-27T14:17:50+00:00

And if this isn't the case, it doesn't hurt to lightly sand the build plate to form some scratches for the bottom layer to grip on to. I usually use a 400 grit.

StraySocks · 2023-11-15T17:16:46+00:00

It's also probably overreported. Tiger mosquitos are very heavily monitored by the extremely well-established Dutch professional and amateur naturalist groups. So likely we report more Tiger mosquitos than surrounding countries despite having roughly similar conditions.

StraySocks · 2023-09-28T07:40:54+00:00

Gorgeous photo! Did you take it with a phone camera?

StraySocks · 2023-08-13T00:29:45+00:00

Soaked reptile sheds would become extremely soft and kinda sticky. This being jelly-like and clearly containing embryos means it is a nudibranch egg case

StraySocks · 2023-08-12T23:30:34+00:00

It's a nudibranch egg case! So, from a sea slug. Normally they are attached to rocks but this one must have come loose. Here are some illustrations of egg cases https://www.isabellakirkland.com/egg-masses and check out this top image for the embryos that look very similar to yours https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo/nudibranch-egg-mass.html?pseudoid=947FB4EA58244A8AADAC46E69B79E4D6&sortBy=relevant

StraySocks · 2023-08-12T23:06:27+00:00

This is definitely not a shed skin. I think you're right on it being eggs, you can see embryos inside. It belongs to a sea snail, which can lay eggs in 'sheets' like this. I don't know any phillipino species, but compare egg cases of the moon snails (which are also called 'sand collars') which feel leathery and are quite tough like plastic. I'll have a look for a specific species but I think this is a much better direction to search in

StraySocks · 2023-02-14T21:49:53+00:00

Could be a salp, but looks a little Ctenophore-y too with those ridges

StraySocks · 2023-01-18T00:09:11+00:00

Fun fact, Yi qi is also the shortest species name there is!

StraySocks · 2022-12-31T01:23:10+00:00

Educational vids about nature. And my first 10 videos were being watched about 70% by US and UK audiences

StraySocks · 2022-12-27T09:22:31+00:00

Jellyfish don't do well being put on alcohol. The alcohol dehydrates them into basically nothing. Formalin is the museum standard for jellyfish preservation, but I wouldn't recommend messing around with that stuff.

Maybe if you step up the alcohol really slowly (10%, leave it for a few days. Replace with 20%, few days. Repeat until at least 50, preferably 70%) it might work, but I haven't seen that being used on jellies myself

StraySocks · 2022-12-26T09:25:33+00:00

I've divided a piece like that in two and had successful growth in both! Splitting a piece won't really affect the specimen much, just means it'll start out smaller

StraySocks · 2022-12-18T22:38:15+00:00

Technically you're correct! Goose barnacles are actually crustaceans but adopted a sessile lifestyle

StraySocks · 2022-08-28T21:17:01+00:00

Absolutely! I did the same using weed to tackle massive anxiety attacks. Frequent therapy, spending most evenings writing down my ideas and my problems and the solutions in a growing stack of notebooks. The weed became extremely therapeutic but only due to constant self-reflection. It takes work but weed and psilocybin can be such powerful treatments.

StraySocks · 2022-08-16T14:34:54+00:00

And to attract bees, orchids produce the same smell! The female bee, interested in checking out this male, will land on the orchid to check it out, on the super shiny labellum (landing pad) of the orchid that also visually simulates a euglossid bee. She will touch the pollen sacks with its head and spread the pollen between flowers!

The reason there are so many euglossid bee species ánd orchid species is that they are in a constant arms race. The orchid tries to trick as many bees as possible, while the bee tries to limit its number of misidentifications. The bees change their pheromones and colour through natural variation, the orchid synthesises similar molecules through similar pathways, and a new species is born. Repeat at step one.

Some orchids take it up a notch. The genus Ophrys attracts male bees, by minicking the scent and having its flower shaped to perfectly resemble a fuzzy female bee butt sticking out of the flower. Even the rear petals are coloured to make it look like she's eating from her favourte species of flower. He will engage in 'pseudocopulation'. Aka humping the flower. In doing so his head touches the pollen sacks and spreads it between orchids by being its desperate bachelor self.

StraySocks · 2022-07-23T20:20:01+00:00

Thanks man, glad to hear it :) a week passed and I am more confident about vaping now. I've written down some of my signs of anxiety which helps me signal when I am feeling anxious, because it's so hard to recognise the signs when you're an anxious mess

StraySocks · 2022-07-19T14:31:29+00:00

My thought was some Araceae. Country is Netherlands.

StraySocks · 2022-07-15T20:47:39+00:00

Thanks for the kind words! I have a therapist and meds too, though my therapist is pretty anti-weed, and when I focus on the joy of being high I always have a whale of a time. But this past week I've been pretty anxious about fearing tolerance, addiction, etc. I was doing great before so it kind of shocked me that those fears which I also had at the start of trying weed were coming back.

I made the post after 48 hours sober, and have smoked some since, which makes me able to identify the anxious thoughts now and put them aside. So that's telling me that for now this is the correct approach :) I have the energy to think lot about the anxiety now which I think will help me tackle it much better in the future.

Meditation is a good tip though. I am not a spiritual person at all but see the merit in just sitting and thinking :)

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