Species card of Archignathacean occlupanopsid Chartocutis shiwakurisu, "Wrinkled Kurisu's paper skin", found on bags of grapes in Hong Kong.
The chartoniphytous Hong Kong occlupanopsid Chartocutis shiwakurisu also mimics I. kurisu, and has fooled even seasoned occlupanologists. C. shiwakurisu has a notable predilection for roaming pedestrian crossings near fruit markets, once it has detached from its host and its (usually large) amicula.
Species card of Archignathid occlupanid Kurisuphenax ultimus, "Ultimate Kurisu-deceiver", found on bags of grapes in Hong Kong.
These next species have arrived courtesy of the Heung-Shing Expeditionary Lab for Occlupanology (HELO), and both have a connection to Infirmimaxilla kurisu. The first is the latest in a string of ever-increasingly-clever mimics in the genus Kurisuphenax, found on paper bags of grapes in Hong Kong.
"Holotypic World" Artistamp collection, Mail art from Nonlocal Variable. The "Holotypic Occlupanid Forms in Nature", combines occlupanids with names of biological organisms taken from Ernst Haeckel, While "Post-Holotypic Mail Art In Outer Space" crosses various occlupanids with avant-garde artists.
A series of custom artistamps of diverse occlupanid outlines collaged with avant-garde artists, many from the Fluxus movement.
The HORG mailroom was recently gifted a collection of mail art 'Artistamps' crafted by Nonlocal Variable. The stamps depict diverse HORG holotypes collaged with artists in one set, and another cleverly re-arranged with invertebrate nomenclature from Ernst Haeckel's Kunstformen der Natur.
This is an absolutely phenomenal body of work on the Vestimentia!
Species card of Archignathid occlupanid Chirophragma necopinus, "Unexpected hand-barrier".
Discovered in a shipment of laboratory gloves by field researcher C. Cody. Often such gloves would be shipped in a cardboard tube, but one shipment arrived swaddled in a large plastic bag with C. necopinus attached. It is surmised that this occlupanid escaped predation during its postal migration.
They were then quarantined and brought back through customs under tight controls. They have since been relegated to a secure area at our facility, lest they escape to the HORG break room and masquerade as drink coasters.
Three giant occlupanopsid-like entitiess, the size of drink coasters, part of a museum gift-wrapping service at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa, Japan. Local specimen of Diplacofelis wangi shown for scale.
While it is the opinion of reputable synthetic taxonomists that specimens of this scale are probably too large to be considered microsyntherans, the exquisite gilded markings were too elaborate for the visiting scholars to resist, and so several specimens were collected on site.
Counter display at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa, Japan, showing gift-wrapping service. "Plastic bag is not included in the price."
Part of the museum "gift-wrapping" service, these colossal chartoniphytes employ human agents, who attach these boldly-embossed entities to bolts of fine cloth, entrapping any purchased items in a silken sarcophagus.
Single giant occlupanopsid-like entitiess, showing exquisite gilded markings. This species, unidentified, is not considered to be an occlupanopsid, and thankfully will not have to open yet another branch of study at our already cramped HORG headquarters, where enough valuable science substrate is being taken up by non-syntheric entities as it is.
At the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa, Japan, visiting occlupanologists on holiday last October were alarmed to find what appeared to be immense occlupanopsids in the museum store!
One of the many institutions celebrating Taxonomist Appreciation Day is the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS), which lists some amazing creatures described this past year, including the Darth Vader Supergiant Isopod Bathynomus vaderi. www.marinespecies.org/worms-top-te...
Happy Taxonomist Appreciation Day! On this day the synthetic taxonomist community, and HORG in particular, celebrates the rigorous and passionate work that underpins our knowledge of the natural world. Scholars of Microsynthera everywhere owe a deep debt of gratitude to their work.
Happy Taxonomist Appreciation Day, y'all.
There's undescribed biodiversity all around us! Not long ago, Brian Brown and Emily Hartop put up some malaise traps smack in the middle of Los Angeles, and right away they described 30 new species of phorid flies.
mapress.com/zt/article/v...
Species card of Corrugatid occlupanid Asterirosea dreamlandii, “Dreamland’s pink star”, found only on miniature bags of pretend bread products.
Though some scholars have proposed to place this unusual micropanid in its own family, the morphological similarities to Corrugatidae are striking, though the oral hooks have atrophied almost entirely. It has been observed on "Kirby"-themed miniature food sets.
Species card of Toxodentid occlupanid Cermartus jujuae,“Juju’s tiny bit of bread”, found only on miniature bags of pretend bread products.
This miniscule microsyntheran is one of the smallest toxodentids yet recorded. Its dential processes are nearly vestigial, but still recognizable as a toxodentid oral groove. As in other “micropanids”, the oral hooks are atrophied, possibly due to lack of serious competition in its singular niche.
A trio of "micropanids" collected by field researchers from miniature bags of pretend bread products from Japan. Despite their strange appearance, multiple sightings have confirmed their status as distinct and identifiable species.
Colour morphs can be confounding! Meanwhile, revel in the mathematically true statistic that you have spotted 100% more occlupanids in Germany than the entire staff of HORG.
Collected occlupanids of family Toxodentidae: Aspericardis lehmeri (2016) Porrectofrontus microstoma (2016) Porrectofrontus mechadeus (2000) Palpatophora gracilis (1994) Palpatophora uvularaptor (1995) Palpatophora deminutus (2019) if you’ve ever wondered how P. glyphodorsalis got its name, it is because of early specimens like these!
Collected occlupanids of family Toxodentidae: Palpatophora utiliformis grandis (1994) Palpatophora magnastoma (2019) Palpatophora glyphodorsalis (2014)
Collected Occlupanids of families Corrugatidae and Acutignathidae: Genevertonicus quimbyi (2012) Toroidopanis undulatis (1994) Migrugibba vulpis (2026) !
Nestled amongst this diverse clattering of occlupanids was an acutignathid only recently described by the students of a high school science class.
Collected occlupanids of family Haplognathidae: Dicrania uganda (1998) Ungella vescus (2016) Unidentia quadratus (1996) Unidentia identicalis (1996) Indescribus conundrum (1999) Unidentia obtusamaxilla (2003) Unidentia obtusamaxilla azureus (2017) Unidentia obtusamaxilla brevis (2013) Unidentia oblongaris (2019)
Collected occlupanids of family Tridentidae: Captospinula simplistica (1996) Captospinula celsus (2021) Carisma matsumotoi (1998)
Collected occlupanids of family Archignathidae: Cardioris cirrhosoma (1998 Cardioris amplifolium (1999) Cyrtotergum albus (1997) Protocrena obtusilateri (1996) Protocrena variotaedium (1996) Protocrena escharops (2020)
Collected occlupanids of family Toxodentidae: Palpatophora utiliformis (1994)
An occlupanological treasure trove donated to HORG, found at a recycling facility. Contained within a small ziploc bag were over 30 species, a high rate of microsyntheric diversity! Many of these species, once commonly encountered in the wild, are today mostly observed in clatterings such as these.
Excellent observation! It looks to be a very healthy specimen of Palpatophora utiliformis! On our staff retreat to Munich in 2024 we observed exactly 0.00 occlupanids during the course of our urban survey.
It is possible that M. vulpis does not attach itself to a host for a great portion of its life cycle, but instead sustains itself via the proximity of other occlupanids.. It is hoped that the young occlupanologists of tomorrow will help discover more about them!
The students placed their discovery in the established genus Migrugibba ("little bumps"), and gave it the species name of vulpis ("fox"), in honor of their school mascot. A second specimen was subsequently found in Oakland, California, in a similar diverse clattering of hoarded occlupanids.
The mysterious occlupanid was determined to be an Acutignathid, a family of occlupanids whose most identifiable feature (aside from their centrally-located pointed dential process) is that they almost never identified in the first place, due to the fact that they are almost never encountered.
Species card of a bright green Acutignathid occlupanid, Migrugibba vulpis "Little bumps of the fox". Discovered by Students at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, DC. It has been since found in two locations, on opposite ends of the continent, both times inside large diverse hoards of other occlupanids.
While sorting through a pile of occlupanids in biology class as an introduction to taxonomy, students at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, DC noticed some small green occlupanids that did not fit into any of the dichotomous keys they were creating, and perhaps found an unidentified species...
Those are beautiful specimens of Paniraptor vafra, an occlupanopsid, which is a paper-formed occlupanid mimic! www.horg.com/horg/?page_i...
Though scientists have yet to find any species endemic to the continent, this heroic research is of great value to occlupanology.
Display of several occlupanids from Antarctica, collected at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, during the austral winter of 2025. Species collected: Palpatophora utiliformis, P. utiliformis grandis, P. glyphodorsalis, Protocrena gigantis, Porrectofrontus colwelli, and Admordorsum floridensis. All in suitably polar hues, except for that viridis one.
Occlupanids from the South Pole. A diverse clattering of 34 specimens were delivered to HORG by field researchers Z. Mills and A. Barden, while stationed at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. It is theorized that these specimens had likely migrated from North America or New Zealand.
They have definitely increased their range, and are now found on several continents. Shipping is certainly a factor, but it is thought some have made it to other remote locations by riding oceanic gyres...
Definitely and old one. Beautiful! Looks like Protocrena obtusilateri! Where was this found?
