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The other ant-fungi
If I were to mention an ant-fungus mutualism- that is, an ecological partnership between an ant and a fungus that benefits both- most biologically literate people might think of the famed leafcutter...
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Ant Ecology now available
Surfing around the bookstores this morning I see that the much-anticipated Ant Ecology book is out. At $129.00 it’s not something the casual reader is liable to pick up. Nonetheless, Ant Ecology is a...
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The eggs that weren’t
I did not expect everyone to nearly instantaneously solve yesterday’s termite ball mystery. I’m either going to have to post more difficult challenges (from now on, nothing will be in focus!) or...
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Eastern North America is the Asian Lady Beetle’s Bridge to the World
Harmonia axyridis, the Asian Multicolored Lady Beetle If I had to pick the most annoying insect in Illinois it’d be Harmonia axyridis. This lady beetle was introduced to our continent as a control...
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Pollinators in action
grass flowers: prettier than you'd think This shot may look like it came from an exotic location, but in fact I snapped it not three hours ago in our prairie garden. The sideoats grama is flowering,...
View ArticleCourse Announcement: Tropical Behavioural Ecology and Evolution in Panama
Rachelle Adams, who studies Megalomyrmex ants, sends word of a new tropical eco/evo class in Panama for graduate students: Click for details The Smithsonian’s Tropical Research Institute in Panama has...
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Native trees help an invasive ant push north
A long-leaf pine. Pest insects can be unpredictable, arriving in unexpected places yet failing to show up in regions where they ought to thrive. The famously defensive Africanized honey bees, for...
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In New Zealand, Argentine Ants Collapse
Linepithema humile, the Argentine ant Argentine Ants have spent the past century following commerce around the world, aggressively subsuming the territories of native ants. However, a study by Meghan...
View ArticleSunday Night Movie: Acacia Ants and Ant Acacias
I could do without the patronizing narration, but National Geographic’s footage of Pseudomyrmex acacia-ants is worth your time:
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A Novel Use For Formic Acid
Nylanderia fulva, the tawny crazy ant (photographed in Paraná, Brazil). Ant guy Ed LeBrun has a paper out in Science today documenting a novel defensive use for formic acid: detoxifying the venom of...
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