Wood Wide Ants — WWA 🐜
@woodwideants.bsky.social
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🐜🧬 Genomics & evolbio of red wood ants 🎓📚 SciComm and teaching of entomology, biodiversity genomics, & citizen science 🌍 By UniBo UniFi & UniPv, supported by @sib.swiss @biogeneurope.bsky.social @ergabiodiv.bsky.social 🔗 https://linktr.ee/antswoodwide
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woodwideants.bsky.social
1/3🧵Kicking off on #bugsky today & introducing Wood Wide Ants, aka WWA! We're researchers studying the #evolbio of the #ant Formica paralugubris and its kin, through #genomics, #SciComm & #CitizenScience📚🐜🧪🧬🖥️ #insects #mirmecology @sib.swiss @biogeneurope.bsky.social @ergabiodiv.bsky.social
Reposted by Wood Wide Ants — WWA 🐜
dinoserious.bsky.social
#invertober 13, banded sugar ant 🐜

#invertober2025
sketchy drawing of a banded sugar ant looking at the viewer on an orange background. "SUGAR!" is written above its abdomen
Reposted by Wood Wide Ants — WWA 🐜
rmwaterhouse.bsky.social
Accounting for systematic phylogenetic bias led to a revised view of #mosquito #evolution, including the nonmonophyly of subfamily Culicinae, and the origin of mosquitoes to ~106 Mya, 100 My younger than previous estimates www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
www.pnas.org
woodwideants.bsky.social
One of the WWA missions is to bring research into high schools—sharing #biodiversity #genomics, #myrmecology, #entomology & #CitizenScience straight with students!📚🐜🧬🖥️

Learn more about our school programmes in the link in bio🌐🔗 #OpenScience #bugsky @ergabiodiv.bsky.social @biogeneurope.bsky.social
A photograph of a classroom or laboratory setting where a small group of students is engaged in a science activity. In the foreground, two students are looking through a microscope positioned on a desk. On the desk are papers, small pins, and an illustration of an ant. Other students are working at a separate table in the background. The WWA logo, featuring a black circle with a stylized red ant head, is visible in the bottom right corner. A photograph taken from above, showing a student's hands holding an open text document over a table with other papers, a tablet, and headphones. The visible text on the open document is in Italian and discusses the structure and characteristics of an ant's genome and body, mentioning the head, antennae, and abdomen. The tablet screen displays handwritten notes in Italian. The WWA logo, featuring a black circle with a stylized red ant head, is visible in the bottom right corner. A photograph taken outdoors, showing a student kneeling down, taking a picture with a silver smartphone of a dark, weathered wooden plank or pallet lying on a grassy area, partially covered in dirt. The WWA logo, featuring a black circle with a stylized red ant head, is visible in the bottom right corner. A photograph of three students in a dense, slightly overgrown garden or park area surrounded by apartment buildings. The foreground is dominated by various green plants and large agave succulents. Two students are standing close together among the foliage on the right, and a third one is standing on a paved path to the left, looking into the garden. The WWA logo, featuring a black circle with a stylized red ant head, is visible in the bottom right corner.
woodwideants.bsky.social
2/2🧵 Thrilled to announce that our shot "A fortress made of spruce needles" was awarded a Honorable Mention by the Environmental Photography Award 2025🐜📸🏆 It shows the spectacular nest of the #ants species Formica paralugubris #bugksy @ergabiodiv.bsky.social @biogeneurope.bsky.social @sib.swiss
A wide-angle photograph of a massive domed nest of the ant Formica paralugubris, situated in a dark, dense forest. The huge mound, built from brown pine needles and forest debris, dominates the center of the frame. To the right, a large tree trunk is covered in vibrant, thick bright green moss. The background features tall, dark pine trees, with a bright sunburst visible through the canopy directly above the nest, creating dramatic backlighting. A small credit is visible at the bottom: "© Iacopo Nerozzi | Unaesthetic Fauna". A photorealistic digital mockup of an open art book lying on a white surface. The right-hand page features a full-page reproduction of the photograph of the wood ant nest in the forest (same as the other image of this post). The left-hand page contains several paragraphs of the photo caption, with the text "Iacopo Nerozzi" visible at the top. A photorealistic digital mockup of the hardcover of an art book lying flat. The cover features a photograph of a Marine Iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus), a large, dark-colored lizard with reddish-orange markings, resting on a black, jagged volcanic rock on the coast. A layer of misty fog obscures the background. Overlaying the image is the title text: "ENVIRONMENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY AWARD FONDATION PRINCE ALBERT II DE MONACO 2025." The Skira logo is in the bottom right corner.
woodwideants.bsky.social
1/2🧵In 2024 we took the first photo shoot ever of the #ant Formica parlaugubris, in order to support our #SciComm activity 🐜📸 A huge thank to the naturalistic photographer ©Iacopo Nerozzi for these outstanding pics. #bugsky @ergabiodiv.bsky.social @biogeneurope.bsky.social @sib.swiss
An extreme close-up macrophotograph the ant Formica paralugubris, engaged in predation. The ant's head, antennae, and reddish-brown thorax are in sharp focus. Its mandibles are clamped onto the bright green body of a caterpillar, which is large, out-of-focus, and curves out of the foreground. The image powerfully captures the ant's predatory action. The background is a mix of blurred dark brown and reddish-brown earth/detritus. A small credit is visible at the bottom: "© Iacopo Nerozzi | Unaesthetic Fauna". A macrophotograph of the ant Formica paralugubris, adopting a defensive or aggressive posture. The ant has a reddish-brown head and thorax, a darker brown abdomen, and long, slender legs and antennae. It is standing on a dense, vibrant green bed of moss. The ant is rearing up, holding its head high and its mandibles open and ready, suggesting a defensive or threat display. The background is a softly blurred dark green and black. A small credit is visible at the bottom: "© Iacopo Nerozzi | Unaesthetic Fauna".
woodwideants.bsky.social
That's a wrap! Had a great time at the European Researchers' Night #ERN25 by @ec.europa.eu in Bologna🇮🇹! #SciComm #OpenScience

@fghiselli.bsky.social & Enrico Strada entertained loads of ppl with #ants, #genomics and all of our work 🐜🖥️🧪🧬

@sib.swiss @biogeneurope.bsky.social @ergabiodiv.bsky.social
A photo of our stand at the European Researchers' Night, with Fabrizio Ghiselli and a person scanning our QR code A photo of our stand at the European Researchers' Night with Enrico Strada talking about mirmecology with two young people A photo of our stand at the European Researchers' Night with Enrico Strada showing ant samples to a group of young people
woodwideants.bsky.social
Wonderful news! Keep us updated on further publications, F.gagates is such an interesting specie
woodwideants.bsky.social
🇪🇺Getting ready for today's European Researchers' Night 2025 #ERN25 by @ec.europa.eu #SciComm #OpenScience #bugsky

🧪🖥️🧬🐜WWA will be present in Bologna to talk about #biodiversity #genomics, #ants & #entomology

@sib.swiss @biogeneurope.bsky.social @ergabiodiv.bsky.social
Entomological box with specimens of various ant species, a phylogenetic tree and an explanation of the WWA project A researcher observing ant specimens under a dissecting microscope A macro photography of an ant head under a dissecting microscope
Reposted by Wood Wide Ants — WWA 🐜
swarmofthoughts.bsky.social
Everything is getting ready for #ERN2025 European Researchers Night tomorrow at @casacienciasevcsic.bsky.social , where we are going to present our workshop "Insects - witnesses of the past", dealing with #fossils, palaeoclimate reconstruction and ecological physiology of insects
Poster of the European Researchers night in Sevilla 3d printed replicas of the fossils of non-biting midges Sediment core part, stickers with fossil insects, and bunch of postcard with Baltic amber insects Part of the postcard with Archaeognatha and an ant from Baltic amber
Reposted by Wood Wide Ants — WWA 🐜
niooknaw.bsky.social
New publication: The European Reference #Genome Atlas: piloting a decentralised approach to equitable #biodiversity genomics, by @KvanOers and others. #genomics #eukaryote #sequencing

https://doi.org/10.1038/s44185-024-00054-6
woodwideants.bsky.social
3/3🧵Want to find out more about Wood Wide Ants WWA? Check out our website, where we post #research and #SciComm updates, as well as facts about the #ant Formica paralugubris 📚🐜🧪🧬🖥️

🌐🔗 tinyurl.com/59w7hhdp

@sib.swiss @biogeneurope.bsky.social @ergabiodiv.bsky.social
woodwideants.bsky.social
2/3🧵Our project Wood Wide Ants WWA is lead by people from Uni of Bologna, Uni of Pavia & Uni of Florence. We partner with @sib.swiss @biogeneurope.bsky.social @ergabiodiv.bsky.social, which supported #genome annotation and #SciComm activities
woodwideants.bsky.social
1/3🧵Kicking off on #bugsky today & introducing Wood Wide Ants, aka WWA! We're researchers studying the #evolbio of the #ant Formica paralugubris and its kin, through #genomics, #SciComm & #CitizenScience📚🐜🧪🧬🖥️ #insects #mirmecology @sib.swiss @biogeneurope.bsky.social @ergabiodiv.bsky.social