Come visit us at the Nature at Night event at the Chandler Nature Center THIS SATURDAY!! We have some nocturnal and light-trap specific specimens to showcase and share with you at our table. We will be located in the Painted Desert Classroom!
Event Address: 4050 E Chandler Heights Rd., Chandler, AZ
Shrew identification can be challenging! Laura Steger (lovingly) reviews the determination for every Sorex archived in the NEON collection. Only 1500 left!
Since ants are highly social, we can learn from how they navigate social situations, ranging from intra- to intercolony interactions with different ant species in their environment!
Here is a close-up of a western seed-harvester ant from our database!
Seed-harvester ants collect and store seeds in their nests that they eat in addition to insects. Meanwhile, leaf-cutter ants (Genus: Acromyrmex) grow fungus for food. Seed-harvester ants, which are in the same subfamily (Myrmicinae), have a more potent sting than the leaf-cutters for better defense.
Across his research career, Dr. Johnson has primarily worked with seed-harvester ants (Genus: Pogonomyrmex), studying their reproductive strategies and biogeography. Dr. Johnson has also studied how different ant species occupy ecological niches within a shared ecosystem.
Today, we are highlighting Dr. Robert A. Johnson, an evolutionary ecologist, expert on ants, and Faculty member at ASU. For his doctorate, he conducted a comparative study between ants and bees, ultimately deciding to focus on ants!
Thank you to everyone who came to see us at the Roots of Creation Festival!
Thank you to the City of Surprise for having us and to the ASU School of Art for sharing a booth with us for a fun, art, and science!
Catch us at our next event and get notified by signing up for our email list!
The males possess striking horns that are used in fights for mating. They come in two common colors, brown and gray. They often have spots on their elytra! Why do these beetles have “fur” on their body? This is called setae, which are “hairs” that aid in movement and sensory perception.
Let’s take a look at an insect some of you may not know has habitats here in Arizona! Dynastes grantii, more commonly known as the Western Hercules Beetle. They are most commonly found in areas with higher elevations and forested areas, providing ideal environmental conditions for this species.
Come join us tomorrow in at the Surprise Xeriscape Garden for the Roots of Creation: Art & Nature Festival!
FREE to attend and for ALL AGES!!
Hope to see you there! 🦋🪲🐿️🐗
Roots of Creation: Art and Nature Festival!
Location: Surprise Xeriscape Garden
Address: 16126 N. Civic Center Plaza, Surprise, AZ 85374
Event Date: 1/24/2026
Event Time: 12:00-4:00pm
Join us in celebrating art and nature! More information at surpriseaz.gov/RootsOfCreat...
Art by: Dante De La Rosa
Roots of Creation: Art and Nature Festival!
Location: Surprise Xeriscape Garden
Address: 16126 N. Civic Center Plaza, Surprise, AZ 85374
Event Date: 1/24/2026
Event Time: 12:00-4:00pm
Join us in celebrating art and nature! More information at surpriseaz.gov/RootsOfCreat...
Art by: Dante De La Rosa
We look forward to seeing you all at future events!
Keep an eye out for information about upcoming opportunities here on our socials. And if for more direct communication, join our email list through the link in our bio. (3/3)
We had various events this year, which ranged from Earth Day celebrations to field events to welcoming you into the heart of our collections. Which event did you attend? Give a shout in the comments! If an event where you connected with us is not on the list, give a shout as well! (2/3)
ASU Biocollections Outreach Events of 2025!
What a year! And what a joy to look back on the many wonderful outreach events where we brought our specimens out and beyond our doors, or where we brought you behind-the-scenes, to share with you the incredible biodiversity of our planet! (1/3)
Join the ASU Biocollections at the annual Bug Fest! Visitors are encouraged to dress up as well!
Date: Sunday, November 2nd
Time: 10AM-2PM
Location: Arizona Boardwalk Courtyard 9500 E Vía de Ventura, Scottsdale, AZ 85256
Cost: FREE! All ages!
#asubiocollections #butterflywonderland #bugfest
Some snippets of the displays we created for our Spook-tober Tours!
Look forward to more events to come! We are so grateful for your eagerness and enthusiasm with this debut!
#asubiocollections #spooktobertours #biocollections #naturalhistorycollections #spooktober #insects #vertebrates #lichens
Join us for some SPOOKY tours of our collections this October 27th or 29th.
Admission: $22 for adults, $12 for students and kids
Sign up by scanning the QR code or through Linktree in our bio!
#asubiocollections #halloween #spookyscience
Artwork by Dante De La Rosa
Dragonfly & Butterfly Bash!
We want to invite you to this FREE community event for ALL AGES centered around Dragonflies & Butterflies this Saturday 10/4/2025 from 9AM-12PM at the Chandler Nature Center (4050 E Chandler Heights Rd, Chandler, AZ 85249)!
Hope to see you there!
Creature Feature Friday!
Today’s highlighted mammal is the Masked Shrew (Sorex cinereus)!
These little critters are actually NOT rodents, and belong to the family Eulipotyphla, which are true insectivores. They are more closely related to hedgehogs and moles than mice!
Check Insta for more info!
¡Les esperamos en el jardín de Blanca en Spaces of Opportunity (Opportunity 1200 W Vineyard Rd, Phoenix, AZ, son a las 6:30PM - 8PM, 10 de Agosto) para ver de cerca a los insectos nocturnos que viven en nuestros ecosistemas! Conecta con tu comunidad. ¡Este evento es gratuito! 💡🪲🔎
We are excited to announce a public insect light trapping event! Please join us at the Spaces of Opportunity (1200 W Vineyard Rd, Phoenix) on August 10th from 6:30pm to 8pm to take a look at some of the local nocturnal insects that inhabit our ecosystems. It's a free event for all ages! 💡 🪲 🔍
Two hands overlapped on top of each other, palm facing up, holding two striped red-backed salamanders with identification tags attached to each of the salamanders.
Four people, three women and one man, shown holding red-backed salamander specimens. Three of the women are holding jarred specimens, while one man and another one of the women are holding just the salamanders in the palms of their hands.
Four images, two close-up and two medium shots, of a striped red-backed salamander specimen incased in a vial. The stripe on its back has speckled coloration within it.
Four images, two close-up and two medium shots, of an unstriped red-backed salamander specimen incased in a vial. Its primary color is dark and close to black.
Discover how Rianna Sandoval, Leodivina Dodoo from ASU, and Maggie Hantank (w/ assistance from Brendan Enochs) from the University of Dayton are studying the impact of environmental factors on red-backed salamander color patterns. Insights from NEON data reveal climate's effect in these variations.
Welcome to Creature Feature Friday! Meet the Poetry Moth (Neumoegenia poetica), a native of the dry landscapes of the Southwestern U.S. and Northern Mexico. Its dazzling golden wings shimmer in the light, often with hints of green and bronze.
@asu-insectcoll.bsky.social Welcome to Bluesky!! 🦋
The scene is of two rows and columns of wooden drawers. We are looking down from above at two drawers that are pulled out. The open drawers are filled with trays of shells and data labels. A women holds a shell from the drawer in her hand for individual inspection and discussion.
Hi all! This is the Bluesky account for the ASU Biocollections.
We consist of the ASU Natural History Collections & NEON Biorepository.
Our collections of insects, lichens, plants, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, shells, fossil plants, a cryo facility, & more are available for research & education
I had so much fun taking photos of my colleagues at the @asubiocollections.bsky.social last week.
Here is Sangmi Lee, ASU Hasbrouck Insect Collection Manager. She poses with her study species -Gelechiidae - the twirler moths.🦋✨
