Alex Wild on insects, science, and photography
Several years ago Australian myrmecologist Alan Andersen proposed a set of categories for arranging ant species by “functional group“. These groups carried names like “cold-climate specialists,” and “subordinate camponotines,” and they were widely adopted by ecologists for their ease of use. The scheme also drew considerable ire from taxonomists, especially since the categories were somewhat [...]
Here’s why I love the internet. Within 24 hours of tweeting a new photo of an odd Australian wasp, I received this tweet back from the fine folks at the NCSU insect museum: I emailed chrysidid expert Lynn Kimsey, a friend from my grad school days back at U.C. Davis. I hadn’t recognized the wasp [...]
photo details: Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x macro lens on a Canon EOS 7D ISO 200, f/13, 1/250 sec diffuse twin flash
Yesterday’s red smear looked to me like a lava field on some distant planet. Zoom out, though, and we see this: The redback spider is an Australian equivalent of our Northern hemisphere black widow. Both are in the widow genus, Latrodectus, and both build low, tangled webs near the ground. I could blather on about this [...]
The insect news is carrying stories of soldier beetle swarms overrunning Australia: A local Bondi resident, Sandra Bianchi, said she and her husband first noticed the beetles on Tuesday afternoon. ”We were looking out onto the balcony and then all of a sudden there was a swarm,” Mrs Bianchi said. ”There were millions of them. When [...]
I’m far too jetlagged from a 17 hour time difference to be productive today- my brain is moving in a different dimension than the rest of me- but I just thought I’d post that we’re back home in Illinois after spending three wonderful weeks visiting friends & family in Australia. I trust everyone’s holidays are [...]
…cuter than American possums. The evening was so dark I could scarcely see the possum with my own eyes, but my camera & fast lens stepped up last night to capture this low light photo. As wildlife goes, the brushtailed possum isn’t terribly exciting. It is like Australia’s gray squirrel, common even in urban habitats. [...]
Here we are in lovely Cape Tribulation, where the Australian rainforest goes right down to the beach. I’ve only got about 2 minutes of internet time to make this post, so here are a couple photos:
Winter descends again on Illinois, bringing insect season to a close. Time to head for the tropics! Mrs. Myrmecos and I will be spending much of December in Australia, visiting her family and photographing the continent’s bizarre ants. In particular, I’m hoping to capture images of weaver ants weaving- a behavior that has thus far [...]
This classic animal film is worth watching just for the soundtrack: On a more personal note, I’ve found baby wombats to be the most adorable thing ever, even when they’re trying to eat my shirt:
A personal weblog by Illinois-based biologist and photographer Alex Wild.
Myrmecos- derived from the ancient greek word for "ant"- hosts Alex's musings about these and other little creatures that share our planet.
Questions? Comments? Email alwild [at] myrmecos.net
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