thebrainscoop:

Gardening is great, but I’m terrible – I spent a half hour photographing the millipedes that were churning up in the soil. This little guy is Oxidus gracilis. It’s tiny- about the length of the first digit of a finger.

When I’m asked to talk about the best part of my job, I would say it’s exactly this kind of situation. Before getting to know Dr. Sierwald and learning about her love for millipedes, I wouldn’t have stopped for a second to get a closer look. Seeing something I now recognize and appreciate for its complexity is like having a new friend; a familiar face in a foreign world. You really do learn to appreciate the little things. The…. very little things.

Thanks to entoderek for the ID!