Driver ants, forming colonies of up to 20 million, are fascinating yet poorly understood. They engage in large raids, with workers of various sizes serving specific roles. Although their interactions with other species remain largely unexplored, studies are ongoing to clarify their ecological behaviors and dynamics as social insects. In this entoLIVE webinar, Max Tercel shared his research findings exploring the ecology of these fascinating ants.
Category Archives: entoLIVE Blog
The Shining Guest Ant: An Unexpected Houseguest
The Shining Guest Ant (Formicoxenus nitidulus) is a tiny and elusive ant that lives as an uninvited but harmless ‘guest’ in the nests of much larger Wood Ants (Formica rufa group). For a new Shining Guest Ant queen, establishing a colony is a challenging task. To avoid the inbreeding risk of saying local, she must disperse and not only find the right woodland habitat, but also locate a suitable new host nest. Because of their secretive nature and small size, these ants are underrecorded and their movements are poorly understood. In this entoLIVE webinar, Elva shared new, surprising research about Shining Guest Ant queens’ ability to find new homes, and provided tips on how to spot these elusive creatures on your next walk in the woods.
More Moths Please! Breeding and Reintroducing the Dark Bordered Beauty
Georgina Lindsay (RZSS) discusses the conservation breeding and reintroduction of the Endangered Dark Bordered Beauty moth in Scotland.
Getting to Know Weevils
Mark Gurney (UK Weevil Recording Scheme) provides an introduction to this adorable, fascinating and diverse group of beetles in the UK.
Syrph-ing the Continents: Hoverflies, Our Unsung Agricultural Heroes
Samm Reynolds (University of Guelph) explores the ecosystem services and long-distance migration of hoverflies.
The Bizarre Biology of Bdelloid Rotifers
Dr Chris Wilson (University of Oxford) shares insights into the fascinating world of bdelloid rotifers.
Falling through the Cracks: iNaturalist Invertebrate Records in the UK
Joss Carr (Queen Mary University of London) discusses his MSc Research Project investigating the data quality of UK invertebrate records on iNaturalist.
Networking Nutrients: Nutrients as a Driver of Invertebrate Interactions
Jordan Cuff (Newcastle University) presents research integrating nutrients into networks to investigate the drivers and structures of entomological interactions.
British Springtails: How Many Species Really Are There?
James McCulloch (National Springtail Recorder) discusses the constantly increasing species list for UK Collembola.
Insects That Live In The Sea: Why Are There Are So Few?
Prof Stuart Reynolds delves into the world of marine insects and why there are so few of them.
Biological Recording 