Research professor in ecology @Université Libre de Bruxelles - @FNRS Ant symbioses / Ecological networks / Myrmecophiles / Insects 🐜🌿🕷🦗🪲 www.thomasparmentier.comhttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3mujhhhs5g22ja hidden colony of the shiny guest ant Formicoxenus nitidulus in a deserted red wood ant mound02 Sep 2026 07:55 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3mujhhhs5g22jhttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3mliagg727k22Ant-myrmecophile interaction: Formica sanguinea and the food begging rove beetle Dinarda dentata10 May 2026 07:29 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3mliagg727k22https://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3migjlwy3b22vOntdek alles rond hoe detectiehonden kunnen worden ingezet om rode bosmierkoepels op te sporen en te monitoren, geen aprilgrap :). Ik zal hier ook een praatje doen over mierengasten bij bosmieren [contains quote post or other embedded content]01 Apr 2026 10:53 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3migjlwy3b22vhttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3mhgizn2frs2dWe found that Rickia wasmannii, known from Myrmica workers, also infects queens, males, and larvae, with spillover to nest associates (incl. Lomechusa). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00040-026-01088-8 Complex dynamics in the ant microcosm --> more ant–fungus work coming @insectessociaux.bsky.social @dhaelewa.bsky.social19 Mar 2026 17:17 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhgizn2frs2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3lz6jm4fmks2tSampling huge red wood ant mounds in the Belgian Ardennes @monitant.bsky.social19 Sep 2025 09:14 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3lz6jm4fmks2thttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3lu5uuqpfbc2fAnts meet woodlice, discover the hidden world of their interactions in our new review. We explore the full spectrum of ant-woodlice relationships: from predation, to facilitation, and eventually to facultative and obligate ant association. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejsobi.2025.103753 @ulbrecherche.bsky.social17 Jul 2025 11:57 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3lu5uuqpfbc2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3ltn6fqslcs27New paper with @wybouw.bsky.social on the protection of aphid eggs in ant nests: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.250217 *black eggs --> Anoecia zirnitsi, host: Lasius flavus *eggs rapidly retrieved among ant brood and protected against predators and fungi *mediated by chemical cues, transferred to glass dummies10 Jul 2025 20:32 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3ltn6fqslcs27https://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3lr4jpngsj22mRed wood ants can be mite magnets ...08 Jun 2025 18:49 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3lr4jpngsj22mhttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3lp2tiabi5s2cFormica sanguinea interacting with Dinarda dentata, a game of evasion, stealth and perfumes13 May 2025 15:48 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3lp2tiabi5s2chttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3lmx5deyvsk2aThe first imago of the ant bag beetle Clytra quadripunctata this year, note the empty cases of the larvae that pupate in the nest of the previous years16 Apr 2025 17:43 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3lmx5deyvsk2ahttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3ld42r26rxs2sThe blind white isopod Platyarthrus hoffmannseggii thrives in #ant nests, abundant in temperate Europe and introduced in USA. Much more to discover about this #myrmecophile ... Some years ago, we reported surprisingly differences in body size across host species https://doi.org/10.1093/biolinnean/blw05212 Dec 2024 10:28 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3ld42r26rxs2shttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3lbmkqdxvg22gRed wood ants (Formica polyctena) retrieving a caterpillar prey23 Nov 2024 13:06 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbmkqdxvg22ghttps://bsky.app/profile/tparmentier.bsky.social/post/3lbkwnjpjjs2oGiant Stomaphis aphids with exceptionally long rostra are usually hidden in crevices, but last month they were out in the open, massively tended by Lasius fuliginosus ants on a maple stem #Entomology #Aphids #Ants #Symbionts22 Nov 2024 21:34 +0000at://did:plc:whldxk7ms3onrydp4sjsnep3/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbkwnjpjjs2o