NEW EPISODE! We sit down with Andrew Robertson (@andrew-antdude.bsky.social) winner of the #myscijourney competition hosted by @galacticpolymath.com. Dive into the remarkable world of ants and learn how complicated these tiny creatures are! Listen now www.smartteapodcast.com/andrew-rober...

How do you keep a lid on #invasive species? I agree with the authors. Broadcasting poisoned baits will hurt much more than just the fire #ant. The USDA waged wars against fire ants using the same idea in the late 50s. Probably not the best use of resources onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

Sometimes it can be hard to find the silver linings, but 2025 was a good year for me to get loads of practice in #insect #macrophotography How many kinds of #ants can you see? Bonus points if you can also report the number of genera or species 👀

It made me pretty nervous at first, but teaching has become such an important part of my career. For context, I served as head TA for a large ecology class this fall, and I got some excellent anonymous feedback from the students. Here are some of my favorites:

Have you ever run into a neighbor while on vacation? That's how it felt finding a Trachymyrmex #ant while in Colombia! These fungus farmers have some of my favorite patterns on ants. Can you tell which is from my back yard? (And which one had my clip on #macro lens?)

Ok, I promise this is a one and done sort of post, but it just happened too perfectly. My brother collected cards back around 2000 and gave me his spare digletts (I didn't know how to play but loved the art) What should come from my first ever pack but a rare #DurantEX! Ant card for the #ant guy!

Just got word that our cost of living adjustments for graduate students (cut from 6% to 4% in August) just got cut to 0% 🙃 Please get friends and family to study and vote, y'all On a lighter note, here are some stingless bees from Colombia. The nest is in the wall, and they close the door at night

Post a photo of an animal that looks Gen-AI but is 100% real Arrenodes minutus - Helen, Georgia

This #Acromyrmex leafcutter #ant I saw in Colombia has quickly become one of my all time favorite #macrophoto

Thanks to everyone who supported me! Thanks especially to @galacticpolymath.com for hosting the competition and helping me to get deeper into science communication! More #ant research is on the way!

Got a few nice #macro photos with the #fire #ants today, and managed to get a shot of the tiny chompers on this male. If you want to support my work with fire ants, don't forget to leave a like on my #scicomm video! Contest ends Saturday! youtu.be/DXypfsxjl0Q?...

How often do you run into your school's mascot? This southern #yellowjacket #wasp queen was buzzing around my backyard yesterday, probably looking for a place to overwinter. Hope I don't meet her daughters in the spring

I made a video for @galacticpolymath.com describing #MySciJourney in the world of #ants as part of their science communication challenge. Give it a quick look and remember to leave a like! #scicomm #outreach www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXyp...

It's all about perspective. The lines on the wings of this #fly don't look like much to me, but it managed to scare off this invasive needle #ant by mimicking a spider with quick sidestep movements. At least, that's how it looked, from my perspective

Throwback to when I met my first trapjaw #ant (Odontomachus brunneus) in South Alabama. She gave me a little kiss, but it would be weeks later until I got my first sting. Ponerine venom feels really different from myrmecine, don't you think?

Want to learn about social #insect nests? Can't (or don't want to) read our giant review? Lead author Paige Caine wrote a blog post for #InsectesSociaux summing up the broad strokes of our synthesis and conclusions looking at #termite #wasp #bee and #ant nests! insectessociaux.com/2025/09/27/i...

Sooo excited to share that our social #insect nest review is finally out! There is so much ground to cover between #termites #wasps #bees and #ants. I was thrilled to help out with this effort (and provide some cool photos!). Enjoy! link.springer.com/article/10.1...

#Ants are totally wild!! From obligately chimeric males to hybridogenesis and now "xenoparity" they really have just about every mode of reproduction I can think of. And probably a few that I can't! Link to this fascinating new article: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Assassin #bugs look so metal 🤘 This nice fella was on my front door. Thanks for the free pest control!

I'm planning to post more cool #ant pictures from my short time in #Colombia but I can't resist sharing this spiny #Trachymyrmex in the meantime. What big eyes she has! 👀

What is common knowledge in your field, but shocks outsiders? The US waged three wars against fire ants early in their arrival to the US nearly 100 years ago (through my hometown!). They dropped a variety of poisons with actual bombers across the southeast that likely hurt native animals more.

It's national #Pollinator week in the US! Here are a couple photos of native #bees, a paper #wasp, and the best #mosquito I've ever met! Where would we be without them 💚

@sarahmackattack.bsky.social is it wrong if I call squid ink teuth paste?

A trip to California absolutely means trying my hand at #ant #macrophotography

I had a photoshoot with the #NeedleAnts today, #brachyponera chinensis. I couldn't decide what to post, so here's a thread, starting with predation on a favorite meal here in Atlanta, a #Reticulitermes worker

A new neighbor moved in this spring. Polistes exclamans is so vibrant

Walking the tightrope is a bit less impressive when you have 6 legs tipped with claws and gripping pads. But hey, you're in the show! #solenopsis #ants #fireants

Meeting up at the (sugar) watering hole Getting some more practice with my #macro lens and some #solenopsis invicta fire #ants . You can tell not only the variation in size, but also age! The smaller, pale ants below (called callows) will turn darker as they age.

Got a simple clip on #macro lens for my phone, and I think it's working alright. A #camponotus worker #ant with pretty well developed ocelli sat still just long enough for a half decent photo

Can't we all just get along? Apparently not. These #fireant workers from the same nest apparently had a score to settle. They disengaged eventually, but sometimes it feels like we're living in an #ant hill

Happy #DarwinDay! Today, we celebrate biology, diversity, and the environment. I'm always so excited to learn more about the world we share with such amazing creatures. Don't be afraid to flip over rocks or ask questions, you might just learn something by accident!🐜

What a cool study! A great idea to use #drones to capture reproductive #ants during nuptial flights. Maybe if I can attach my bug net to my drone, then I can catch some live queens for colony founding or even fill in data on ant #phenology Link to study: www.researchgate.net/publication/...

So far my only paper, so I guess it's my "best known" 😅 Florida Harvester #Ants ( #Pogonomyrmex badius) vary their insect foraging across the year, but they always like seeds. Also, #Solenopsis invicta fire ants are mean but not deadly for FHAs. Message me if you want to learn more!

Ever feel like your work follows you home? These #Solenopsis invicta fire #ants were building a nest on my sidewalk this afternoon

At my last job, I would often have lunch right below a Pseudomyrmex gracilis twig #ant colony. I had to be quick and lucky to capture even a shaky video of this miniature #predator

They don't call em sweat #bees for nothing! They're always welcome to me or the peppers in my garden. And they make great #macrophotography practice

Currently missing all the #ants in hibernation around my yard. Here's a favorite genus of mine, #Odontomachus, from the Gulf Coast on my wedding day last summer. She wasn't invited, but she was welcome anyway

Excited to be kicking off #SICB2025 here in Atlanta! Check out my talk on Sunday at 2:30 in Salon 7! There's gonna be a lot of cool presentations on #collectiveBehavior from 1:30-3:00pm

Me ten years ago: what's the big deal with macro photography? Me today: why can't they just hold STILL seriously, I have so much appreciation for the great photos of tiny animals and the people who take them. Just gotta keep practicing! #macrophotography #ants

One #vespula #yellowjacket #wasp left me a souvenir after I dug up her nest with a colleague of mine. What sorts of battle scars have your focal species donated?

I hope I took enough bug pictures to make it through winter! On a warmer day this season, I can often find my backyard winter ants out and about #Prenolepisimparis #ants

How rude! Fire ant workers gang up on a male in the lab. In polygyne nests of Solenopsis invicta, the wrong allele can put males in harm's way #ants #fireants

Had a nice photo shoot of some rafting fire ants today! Can't wait to finish writing up my first PhD project #ants #solenopsis