Took the quiz to find out that I’m a Platygastrid wasp 🤘

Seems about right 🤷🏻‍♂️

Chagas disease and kissing bugs have been in the news lately. I'll just leave this here: #chagasdisease #kissingbugs

MOST importantly, I found a single specimen of Macrocilix nr. maia in the unsorted/pro tempore section, the magnum opus of visual ecology

Back from vacation on the shores of Lake Superior and digging myself out of a pit of emails, just like this ant getting out of an antlion nest. At least my risk of getting eaten is much lower… #entomology

Learn all about Asian longhorned beetles in a new special collection from Environmental Entomology! Articles cover biology, behavior, natural enemies, survey tools, eradication methods, and more: academic.oup.com/insect-scien... @oxfordacademic.bsky.social

There are white grubs and then there’s this heckin chonker I found while building a fence last weekend. Larva of the stag beetle Lucanus capreolus. Safely placed it back down amongst the mulch. #beetles #Coleoptera #WisconsinBugs

🐞 🐝 I'm recruiting students to join my lab at the University of Minnesota! Hoping to bring on 2-3 MS or PhD students (MS a pre-req for PhD students). Take a peek at the opportunities available and feel free to reach out with questions. Please share widely! jhemberger.github.io/ibug_lab_web...

Goczał, Beutel & Gorb. 2025. Formation of #beetles #elytra and the most spectacular animal #radiation in the history of Earth. #evolution doi.org/10.1093/zool...

By default, I automatically repost awesome #scorpionflies 🤩 #Mecoptera

Large chunks of people's favorite trees seemingly go leafless overnight this time of year, usually thanks to caterpillars. Our paper (w/ @kellyoten.bsky.social & #nobluesky Robert Jetton) in @entsocamerica.bsky.social's JIPM highlights several species in the SE US: academic.oup.com/jipm/article...

Invertebrates rule, vertebrates drool…

Insects and spiders are declining in tropical forests around the world, even in areas untouched by logging, mining, or farming. In these places, new research posits, more potent El Niños are driving the losses.

Big blue bees are the BEST!

This is what happens when Scolytines run into the wall a few too many times without a helmet on.

Fluffy. Sparkly. Adorable. These are not the things you usually say about a fly, but here we are. Let this little creature warm your heart 🥰 #Psychodidae #Setomima nitida North Carolina, USA (w/ @dradriansmith.bsky.social)

These are definitely Hymenopterans, don't worry about it

Last Friday’s Wisconsin Insect Fest at Olbrich Botanical Gardens was a huge hit. Looking forward to seeing what we come up with for next year: #entomology #outreach #insects

Animals as beautiful as these greenbottle flies (Lucilia sp.) are likely in your back yard at this moment! #diptera #insects #macrophotography #backyardbugs

Not all heroes wear capes. Also check out Eric's new book! press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...

There are horse flies and then there are HORSE FLIES 💪 Found this chonker (Tabanus atratus) on the ground this morning in a store atrium.

Midges (lake flies) super abundant in Madison, WI at the moment. If you see what appears to be a smoke plume near the lake shore, it’s probably a cloud of these flies! #insects #Diptera

The top 10 flying insect clades rule the skies—but defy the rules. Weak or inverted latitudinal diversity gradients leave biogeographers puzzled. Entomologists? Mildly amused. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Few critters have a worse reputation than the black widow. But much of what we think we know is wrong. (They don't all have a red hourglass on their bum, for one thing.) Are they really lethal? Read on!🧪 news.ncsu.edu/2025/05/are-...

New on Entomology Today: Many butterfly species often congregate in puddles, rotting organic matter, or other moist surfaces. A new review on "puddling" in butterflies details current knowledge on this nutrient-gathering behavior but also shows how much remains unknown about why they gather.

An oldie-but-goodie from my days as an entomology student 15+ years ago: #roadkill #entomology

we also found a fresh oak gall, which I split open to show the child how a wasp has laid her egg inside and injected the plant with a teratogen that makes a huge, hideous tumor on purpose, bc nature is beautiful

Things I get excited about: -Good coffee -Trail running 🏃 ⛰️ -Insects -Books -New/good reads in the scientists literature

Terrifying data. 63% decrease in flying insects since 2021. This is an emergency. #insect #entomology #teammoth www.theguardian.com/environment/...

It's published! The largest research work I've ever undertaken: Lords of the flies: dipteran migrants are diverse, abundant & ecologically important Published in Biological Reviews: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.... Thanks so much to co-authors @koralwotton.bsky.social & Myles Menz 1/x

Discovering #3DPrinting has been a blast. Here are some insect manipulators for tomorrow’s workshop for science teachers. Each cost ~ $0.25 to make. #entomology

Imminent danger never looked so cool: #insects #entomology

Warm enough temperatures in Wisconsin for paper wasps to start popping out. #insects #phenology #natureobservation

www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news... Two of the top National Taxonomists in the U.S., represented by the National Association of Agriculture Employees, have gone public about their controversial firings. #entomology #malacology 🧪 #taxonomy

Peekaboo! Did you know some armored #scales develop under the surface (inc. bark) of plants? It's the ultimate form of camouflage for these sessile insects. 1st animation/pic show a sp. under the trichomes/epidermis of a Southern magnolia leaf. 2nd is under the bark of an azalea twig. #Diaspididae

Dr. Charles Henry Turner was from Ohio; he earned a BSc and MSc from the University of Cincinnati. He was the first African American to earn a PhD in #entomology, which was at the University of Chicago in 1907. #28DaysOfBlackSTEMHistory #BlackHistoryMonth www.smithsonianmag.com/science-natu...

extra fancy bagworm with all the trimmings!!

Imagine if a wealthy benefactor wanted to establish a Species Discovery Institute. For just $4k a month, you could feed a taxonomist AND give them time to describe new species…

Solifuges are a great example of "WTF Evolution??". A face that is a can-opener, a body that's a trashbag with spindly legs. And yet these ferocious little predators are beautiful in their own way (also Piotr's photos are amazing, follow asap).

In a world full of chaos, remember: some Uropodidae mites hitch rides by attaching themselves to hosts using a pedicel extruded from their anus. #invertebrate 🧪

Today, the USDA lost experts in Psylloidea, Thysanoptera, Cerambycidae, Hymenoptera, Pseudococcidae, and Malacology. This is a devastating loss of expertise, occuring without warning. Their union's official statement on the issue can be found here: aginspectors.org/2-14-2025-a-... #entomology 🧪

"I've got you FIGured out!" 🖤 The intriguing story of fig and wasp mutualism includes two unique and deeply intertwined organisms that nourish and support each other's needs. More 👉 Natural History #ValentinesDay eCards: www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/science/natu...

Are things good? No! They are not good. You know what IS really good though? Bugs. Bugs are like. So good. One of the best things, really. Therefore. Send your friends Love Bugs. We have 4 designs on these valentines + facts & ways to help! Get a pack of valentines here: squidfacts.bigcartel.com

Dr. Margaret Strickland Collin’s studied termites, and was the first Black woman to earn PhD in entomology. siarchives.si.edu/blog/margare... #BlackHistoryMonth #28DaysOfBlackSTEMHistory

Got an email from an individual that suspected insect bites. Pets present in home, but not on flea & tick preventative because it's "winter" ...it was fleas... I also went for a run recently in shorts, BC it was over 50˚F in Wisconsin. They sure don't make winters like they used to...

Sometimes you just need a full day working with specimens & little/no emails: #entomology

From 2023, my deep dive into a bag of figs in search of the chalcid wasp, Blastophaga psenes. #FigWasps #insects #figs #wasps #hymenoptera #chalcidoidea #entomology #ficus #botany colinpurrington.com/2023/01/some...

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