Come join the FAN-dom: Wing-fanning presents an underexplored avenue in social insects 🌬️

Megha shows how a simple wing movement opens a window onto some of the biggest questions in social insect biology.

insectessociaux.wordpress.com/2026/10/04/c...

#SocialInsects #Thermoregulation #HoneyBees

New review article! 📚

Majoe & @phdbee.bsky.social argue that wing-fanning is a plastic behaviour that can serve as a model system to understand how insect societies respond to their environment 🌬️
🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s000...

#SocialInsects #Plasticity #Thermoregulation #ColonialBehaviour #Biology

New research article! 📰

@chrisleduck.bsky.social, @molamelipona.bsky.social, @fsnascim.bsky.social et al. show that nesting in buildings comes with smaller colonies but a more stable environment 🏙️
🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s000...

#SocialInsects #StinglessBees #UrbanEcology #Urbanisation #Meliponini

New short communication! 📄

Kühn et al. find that the microplastic type bees most commonly encounter on roadsides is also the one that ends up in their brood cells 🐝
🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s000...

#SocialInsects #Microplastics #BumblebeeHealth #Pollution #PollinatorDecline

New research article! 📰

@morganmorrison73.bsky.social, fmandredini.bsky.social, markjfbrown.bsky.social et al. find that a wing-deforming bee virus is still prevalent in bees across UK protected grasslands 🌿
🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s000...

#SocialInsects #BeeHealth #Virus #Pathogen #Conservation

New short communication! 📄

Wang & Billen describe a previously unknown gland hidden in the leg of the bullet ant, bringing the total count of exocrine leg glands in ants to 28 🐜
🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s000...

#SocialInsects #AntAnatomy #ExocrineGlands #BulletAnt #Myrmecology

New research article! 📰

Cardoso et al. map the genetic landscape of this leaf-cutting ant found only in Brazil's threatened restinga coastal habitats 🌿
🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s000...

#SocialInsects #ConservationGenetics #LeafCuttingAnts #Phylogeography #AtlanticForest

New research article! 📰

Haouzi & Darrouzet reveal that the alarm pheromone of the invasive yellow-legged hornet is not a fixed signal but shifts in chemical composition as workers age 🚨
🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s000...

#SocialInsects #InvasiveSpecies #AlarmPheromone #VespaVelutina #ChemicalEcology

New paper out! What can student groups learn from ants? We propose 3 social-insect-inspired suggestions aimed at improving performance of student groups: make tasks group-worthy, embrace division of labor, and develop shared rules of engagement. lnkd.in/eJvGKM2h #socialinsects #DBER #education