I went out to help with @jonsweetman.bsky.social’s aquatic invertebrate class at Shaver’s Creek, and a curious calamoceratid caddisfly (comb-lipped casemaker) peeked out of its case!

#caddisfly #Trichoptera #aquaticinsects #fieldwork #entomology #freshwaterecology #macroinvertebrates

A vial containing Chaoborus larvae

Out sampling ponds this morning with my aquatic invertebrate class. Lots of Chaoborus (phantom midges).

New semester, first lab of my aquatic invertebrate class. Had students looking through some old samples today with Mason Ward’s help @masonsward.bsky.social. Had a beautiful Philopotamidae specimen: Chimarra spp. in a sample from half Moon Creek, PA #macroinvertebrates #Trichoptera

Happy seeing you sample macroinvertebrates! 😊

Mesocosm tanks in a field with insect emergence traps

Severe thunderstorm and tornado warning this evening. We will see how our floating emergence traps fare.. the joys of outdoor mesocosms! @masonsward.bsky.social

I had the wonderful opportunity to present my research on the drivers of macroinvertebrate taxa & functional traits in vernal ponds at the annual @freshwaterscience.bsky.social meeting this past week! I hope everyone who joined “Club Pond” had a wonderful time 😊
#sfs2025 #macroinvertebrate

Glad you enjoyed!

#MayflyMonday

Going through old #macroinvertebrate pictures and found this Heptageniid #mayfly collected last spring. Just look at those #gills in action! #freshwater #aquaticinsect

A water scorpion (Nepidae: Ranatra) overlooking a large wetland.

Decided to join the app where the sky is bluer! ☁️ I’m a PhD student at Penn State studying how environmental stressors impact vernal pond macroinvertebrate diversity.
#nsfgrfp #firstgeneration #macroinvertebrates #aquatic #stem #lgbtq

Pictured: Nepidae (Genus: Ranatra)