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This is a #linocut of a couple of Snowflake Beetles a widely unknown, quite possibly, completely #imaginary creature. These miniscule #insects are camouflaged to match their environment, fresh fallen snow. Each of their hexagonal shields (the elytra) are disguised as snowflakes. Through an extraordinary instance of biomimicry, each pattern is as unique;
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it is believed that no 2 Snowflake #Beetles are the same.* Both their minute size and their successful camouflage adaptation have long hid the Snowflake Beetle from discovery. The Coleopterans include more species than any other order & the diversity of beetles is very wide. Yet, the Snowflake Beetle is exceptional in several ways.
*It should be noted that "no two snowflakes are alike" is in fact just an adage. Identical snowflakes have been made in the lab.
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At a typical size of 1.5 mm (0.06"), they belong to the Ptiliidae, a highly diverse yet poorly known group of minute beetles & are amongst the smallest beetles anywhere in the world. Like other ptiliids they have feathery wings & are colourless to white throughout their lifecycle. But unlike any other beetles, they thrive in high latitudes, high altitudes & polar regions where snow is abundant.
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Other arthopods do live in snow, including mites, snow fleas & some spiders, but insects & beetles in particular were previously unknown in such cold conditions. It is believed that they make a warm little burrow or igloo in the snow & farm fungus for food. Like aquatic beetles, it is believed they hold a pocket of air between their abdomen & elytra (the snowflake shield) to breathe when "diving" in snow.
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