@dwhitmore79.bsky.social
Diptera Curator at Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart | Editor-in-Chief of @integsyst.bsky.social
A common type of ant in Europe breaks a fundamental rule in biology: its queens can produce male offspring that are a whole different species
go.nature.com/4mOb5T9
Macrophotograph of a Peacock Fly (Callopistromyia sp) resting on a slightly weathered metal beam. The fly holds its patterned wings upright in an elaborate, fan-like display, appearing almost butterfly-like. Each wing is intricately marked with shades of dark brown, black, white, and subtle hints of iridescent blue, creating a mosaic-like camouflage pattern. The fly’s body is robust and heavily speckled in shades of brown, black, and cream. Bright, vivid orange-red eyes stand out distinctly on its head, along with delicate antennae and fine bristles visible along its legs and thorax. The textured metal beam beneath it has faint scratches and rust streaks, providing contrast that highlights the detail and coloration of the insect.
A Peacock Fly (Callopistromyia sp.) showing off the beautiful display on those wings! They strut around waving their wings and doing a little wiggle, an amazing behavior right in your own backyard.
#Invert #Diptera #bugsky 🌿 #entomology
An ant on the stem of a plant. It is coppery colored with a dark brown abdomen and the abdomen is pointed up.
An ant on the stem of a plant amid a bunch of aphid. A small phorid fly can be seen near the stem of the plant above the ant.
A close-up of the phorid fly showing a grayish color, hooked abdomen, and large eyes. The stem of the plant with aphids on it can be seen in the upper right.
This is an interesting interaction for entomology folks. Found some ants that looked like they were aphid farming, but they were walking around with abdomens up, which seemed weird. Well, there was a phorid fly lurking around.
Mammoth, AZ
Volume 8 (1) of @integsyst.bsky.social was published on 30 June 2025. It includes the descriptions of 7 new genera and 31 new species of insects. The articles are Open Access and available for download at @bioone.bsky.social:
tinyurl.com/yeytj2bh
🤯
25.02.2025 21:04 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Side view of a tiny translucent white, slightly orange wasp with bright yellow eyes that have a dark purple spot where you are looking straight down the ommatidia. She sits on a blade of grass where, at this magnification individual plant cells are just about visible and some blurry white spots in the foreground, which are the stomata. The wasp is licking up some sugar water which I put there so she is occupied and won't fly away. The background is a blur of shades of petrol.
0.8mm tiny Aphelinidae wasp (Centrodora sp.?) I found in some hay last autumn
Single shot using Mitutoyo MPlan APO10X on a tube lens with variable aperture on a mirrorless aps-c camera.
#hymenoptera #Aphelinidae #insects #insect #macrophotography #macrophoto #ultramacro #parasitoid #parasitoidwasp
È ritardato
24.02.2025 08:02 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0Old friend just laid off by USDA, 1 mos short of his probationary period as senior researcher. Brilliant person who left a tenured faculty position several yrs ago to join USDA. Bright early-career researchers also being laid off. USDA is terminating a generation of highly-qualified scientists.
17.02.2025 02:17 — 👍 20976 🔁 5611 💬 797 📌 260
Whip spider (Paraphrynus laevifrons) covered with chloropid fly puparia. The parasitoid fly attacks the eggs carried by the female. When done, the maggots climb on the "childless" mom's back and pupate. She protects them during this period thanks to her motherly instincts.
06.02.2025 17:13 — 👍 275 🔁 52 💬 17 📌 6
We're new on @bsky.app!
You can explore our latest issue in this thread. It includes a new genus of tarantulas, a new genus of tachinid ("bristle") flies and several new invertebrate species. The articles are Open Access and available for download at @bioone.bsky.social:
tinyurl.com/yh22fb6s
