Jen C Mars
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jencmars.bsky.social
Jen C Mars
@jencmars.bsky.social
Illustrator: Fantasy & Nature - Wildlife Photography Enthusiast - TTRPG Player - I like birds and bugs

Portfolio: https://www.jencmars.com
Shop: https://jencmars.bigcartel.com/
Reposted by Jen C Mars
More Salish Sea cephlapods - The brave Rubies are out and about in Cove 3 right now! This is rhe same individual showing off its colors for the camera.

#octopus🐙 #pnwdiving #underwaterphotography #coldwaterdiving #marinelife #macrophotography #macro
November 29, 2025 at 7:22 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
At first you're like, why does this have a wiki page

Then you find out it might be the best wiki page ever
November 28, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Looking for prezzies for the GM on your list? Give 'em one of my books!

But—here's the important part—today, this weekend and through Cyber Monday, DON'T BUY FROM AMAZON OR TARGET. BUY INDIE! BUY LOCAL! #WeAintBuyingIt

Order from your favorite independent bookseller at bookshop.org/beta-search?...
November 28, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Introduce yourself with 5 animals you've seen in the wild:

Blue whale (and calf)
Mexican free-tailed bat
King rail
Portuguese man-o-war
17 year periodical cicada
Introduce yourself with 5 animals you've seen in the wild:

Polar bear
Beluga whale
Moose
Wolf
Lynx

(it was hard to pick 5)
Introduce yourself with 5 animals you've seen in the wild:

Caribou
Ravens
Seals
Kea
Turkeys
November 28, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
AND supporting your local library is super important! If you actually DO want books to be available to everyone, the library *already exists* and is staffed by the people who are deep in the trenches of fighting censorship! Supporting the library is doing actual good for your community!
TAPS SCREEN

For like the zillionth time: Libraries are FREE for you, but WE still get compensated for our work!!
Just saw someone claim that authors who want to be paid for their work are "class traitors" because we "only let the wealthy" read our books, and I think I need to go into the woods to scream into the night for a bit.

It's $5, not your first-born child! I need that $5 for health insurance!
November 26, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Going all the way back to Gili T - I was amazed at how many Peacock Mantis Shrimp there are there! I know I say this about most critters, but these have to be one of my faves!

#marinelife #🦐
November 26, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
A Scarlet Kingsnake (Lampropeltis elapsoides) from NE Louisiana. These small (<24in) kingsnakes are mimics of the venomous Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus fulvius) and a joy to photograph. #herps #snakes #NaturePhotography 🌿
November 25, 2025 at 3:18 AM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
These fork-tailed bush katdid nymphs have drama antennae

Whenever I find them I wonder about the bright colors, they're very striking and noticeable to my eye
November 24, 2025 at 9:40 PM
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Stopped by the local bookstore. A young teen boy wanted a WINGS OF FIRE. His mom refused, saying…

“Graphic novels don’t have proper sentences in them.”

I have never more wanted to become a teen’s illicit pusher. “Here, kid, take this PLAIN JANE AND THE MERMAID to the counter, it’s on me.”
November 25, 2025 at 2:39 AM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Not a tiny bird's nest, this cute little mossy cup is the remains of a green lacewing cocoon!

If you've seen a crawling piece of fluff it's almost certainly one of these little trash monsters, hiding from predators & prey. Adults look like this: flic.kr/p/2jZaTAQ

#Chrysopidae
North Carolina, USA
November 22, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Yes, this is absolutely my Monday expression
These fork-tailed bush katdid nymphs have drama antennae

Whenever I find them I wonder about the bright colors, they're very striking and noticeable to my eye
November 24, 2025 at 9:48 PM
These fork-tailed bush katdid nymphs have drama antennae

Whenever I find them I wonder about the bright colors, they're very striking and noticeable to my eye
November 24, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
I think today is a good day to share my second piece for the Magic: The Gathering in Miniature III exhibition that'll be in Gallery Nucleus Jan 31 - Feb 15, 2026:
Elspeth in Bloomburrow with sweet pea wings! 💖 This is done in acrylics on the back of a Swords to Plowshares artist proof.
November 24, 2025 at 7:05 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
In several days you'll likely be sitting next to an ignorant relative who is 100% convinced he knows the difference between a sweet potato and a yam. Here's my primer on the topic. #thanksgiving #sweetpotato #yam #botany 🍠 colinpurrington.com/yams-versus-...
The difference between sweet potatoes and yams » Colin Purrington's blog
Every year at Thanksgiving, families in the United States sit down to argue about politics and the difference between sweet potatoes and yams. This page details how to tell them apart and explains how...
colinpurrington.com
November 24, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
I'd never even heard of 'thrips' before until I found a Giant Thrip (Idolothrips spectrum) in my garden last night.

It was only about 1cm long, so 'Giant' is relative.
#insects #invertebrates
November 24, 2025 at 2:25 AM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Blind cave spiders~

This occurs due to the process of regressive evolution. In an environment without light, vision provides no advantage in finding prey or avoiding predators. The loss of their eyes means that energy and resources once used for eyes are instead allocated to other traits.
November 23, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Have you ever heard of an allonautilus? The fuzzy sea peach at the top of my oil painting is the extremely rare allonautlius. Its only been documented in the wild a couple of times.

*more in comments*

#nautilus #allonautilus #marinelife #cephalopods #wildlifeart #oilpainting 🐡 🦑 #deepseamining
November 23, 2025 at 2:51 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Today may be the day for me to play the lotto!

In 4.5 years I've *seen* two Pacific Wrens in the yard (maybe heard a few more)

Today TWO Pacific Wrens just runnin' all around the place - like right out in the open!

And posing for photos...

Wren 1

#birds #becurious
November 20, 2025 at 10:05 PM
From the other room, where I’ve left the 7 y/o alone: “OH YEAH, WE’VE GOT SOME WACKY SCIENCE GOING ON IN HERE!!!”
November 23, 2025 at 2:05 PM
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Ok hell yeah. Some kid (presumably) put their whole ass into this public education campaign. I’ve seen multiple stapled on poles near my house. I love the energy.
November 22, 2025 at 11:53 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
ARTISTS!
I need your help!

In collab. w/the Society for Integrative & Comparative Biology, I'm organizing a group of artists to come to our Jan. meeting! We're looking for artists to create based on what they learn at the conference. $1000 stipend.

Application is V short! forms.gle/ah1i8KwNJinZ...
November 22, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Endangered Species of the Philippines 🇵🇭
November 22, 2025 at 1:04 AM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
#BlueSkyArtShow theme is #Small: this is an isopod, a small land dwelling crustacean in the genus Armadillidium. Acrylic painting on wood panel. #art #painting #bugs #traditionalart #colorful
November 21, 2025 at 11:26 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
With ICE and border patrol goons spreading out across the country, I put together a resource guide for buying, printing, and distributing whistles, based on my own experience. Now is the time to whistle up, hope this helps. dansinker.com/posts/202…
November 21, 2025 at 9:35 PM
Reposted by Jen C Mars
Fly
Liv Rainey-Smith
Woodcut print
LE of 33 signed and numbered. Part of the ARCANUM BESTIARUM by Robert Fitzgerald. #art #woodcut #printmaking
November 21, 2025 at 8:46 PM