Christopher Antoniou
@christosa89.bsky.social
Naturalist, Designer
I explore Colne Valley Regional Park's biodiversity
Visit X for wildlife I document: https://x.com/ChristosA89
Visit ArtStation for my designs: https://artstation.com/chris_antoniou
I explore Colne Valley Regional Park's biodiversity
Visit X for wildlife I document: https://x.com/ChristosA89
Visit ArtStation for my designs: https://artstation.com/chris_antoniou
Fast signalling, thus associated complexity, is only made possible by dissipative structures incurring extreme entropy production. Of these at every level, autocatalytic reactions being most effective. Without high coupled entropy -TxΔSi to irreversible calcium signals in fertilisation for instance,
November 29, 2025 at 8:34 PM
Fast signalling, thus associated complexity, is only made possible by dissipative structures incurring extreme entropy production. Of these at every level, autocatalytic reactions being most effective. Without high coupled entropy -TxΔSi to irreversible calcium signals in fertilisation for instance,
1/8: Thermodynamics influenced my viewing open biological systems similarly. My workings how I use Gibbs as primary metric, calculating 'human dissipative structure Fitness' against 'net biodiversity dissipative structure Fitness' over 'closed Earth system':
H=U+pV
ΔU = q + w
H=U+pV
ΔU = q + w
November 6, 2025 at 3:23 AM
1/8: Thermodynamics influenced my viewing open biological systems similarly. My workings how I use Gibbs as primary metric, calculating 'human dissipative structure Fitness' against 'net biodiversity dissipative structure Fitness' over 'closed Earth system':
H=U+pV
ΔU = q + w
H=U+pV
ΔU = q + w
Neotropical Cassida sp. from top right I think. Precisely why Coleoptera are so speciose, and formidably adaptive as an order. Their sclerotised elytra/pronota unlocked diverse habitats, denied to most other Insects. The physiological quirk (via mRNA) for quinones repurposed then sent to the
🧬 Not all DNA comes out easily! Some species lock their secrets behind tough shells, rigid walls, or tricky chemistry. Extracting high-quality DNA can mean cracking exoskeletons, dissolving cell walls, or working around inhibitory compounds — science meets detective work 🔬💥
October 19, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Neotropical Cassida sp. from top right I think. Precisely why Coleoptera are so speciose, and formidably adaptive as an order. Their sclerotised elytra/pronota unlocked diverse habitats, denied to most other Insects. The physiological quirk (via mRNA) for quinones repurposed then sent to the
Phenotypic plasticity is all the rage when defining convergent evolution at the macroscale. Very seldom do nucleotide bases randomly assort, thereafter selected by convergent evolution at the microscale. Here's one such example, however: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Distinct genomic architectures but the same gene underlie the convergent evolution of a plant supergene
Evolution reflects a balance between innovation and constraint, often repurposing existing components in new contexts. Convergent evolution exemplifies this interplay, with similar traits evolving ind...
www.biorxiv.org
October 1, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Phenotypic plasticity is all the rage when defining convergent evolution at the macroscale. Very seldom do nucleotide bases randomly assort, thereafter selected by convergent evolution at the microscale. Here's one such example, however: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Aeshna cyanea, Aeshnidae, 12/9/25, Denham Lock Wood, UK:
September 14, 2025 at 11:25 PM
Aeshna cyanea, Aeshnidae, 12/9/25, Denham Lock Wood, UK:
Reposted by Christopher Antoniou
Tropical rainforests in the SW Pacifics. Dr Novotný took us on an epic adventure featuring Terry Erwin! On the arms race between plants and insects in the tropics, and the army of people it takes at a local scale to provide the raw data for these interactional insights over decades. #Ento25
September 9, 2025 at 9:41 PM
Tropical rainforests in the SW Pacifics. Dr Novotný took us on an epic adventure featuring Terry Erwin! On the arms race between plants and insects in the tropics, and the army of people it takes at a local scale to provide the raw data for these interactional insights over decades. #Ento25
Eriocampa ovata, Tenthredinidae, 24/8/25, Denham Lock Wood, UK:
August 25, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Eriocampa ovata, Tenthredinidae, 24/8/25, Denham Lock Wood, UK:
Carabus nemoralis, Carabidae, 22/8/25, Brush Hill Woods, Chilterns, UK:
August 25, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Carabus nemoralis, Carabidae, 22/8/25, Brush Hill Woods, Chilterns, UK:
Sermylassus halensis, Chrysomelidae, 22/8/25, Brush Hill Woods, Chilterns, UK:
August 25, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Sermylassus halensis, Chrysomelidae, 22/8/25, Brush Hill Woods, Chilterns, UK:
Euplagia quadripunctaria, Erebidae, 17/8/25, Brush Hill Woods, Chilterns, UK:
August 25, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Euplagia quadripunctaria, Erebidae, 17/8/25, Brush Hill Woods, Chilterns, UK:
I explored #Ancient Hodgemoor Woods late last night (#Chilterns, UK) and came upon this #rare #Symphytan:
August 15, 2025 at 1:33 AM
I explored #Ancient Hodgemoor Woods late last night (#Chilterns, UK) and came upon this #rare #Symphytan:
Very pleased my two Dolerus sp. are healthy and thriving, currently morphed from eonymphs to prepupae. I found this small pop. of rare Tenthredinidae larvae in an ancient woods (Northmoor Hill Wood, Denham UK). Interesting too whether they overwinter as pupae or emerge this year:
July 25, 2025 at 11:06 PM
Very pleased my two Dolerus sp. are healthy and thriving, currently morphed from eonymphs to prepupae. I found this small pop. of rare Tenthredinidae larvae in an ancient woods (Northmoor Hill Wood, Denham UK). Interesting too whether they overwinter as pupae or emerge this year:
A twitter post today made me unexpectantly sad. The last known recording of a male Kauaʻi ʻōʻō (1987), calling out for a mate that would never come. He died alone, and the species went extinct. So I wrote a poem:
July 21, 2025 at 7:04 PM
A twitter post today made me unexpectantly sad. The last known recording of a male Kauaʻi ʻōʻō (1987), calling out for a mate that would never come. He died alone, and the species went extinct. So I wrote a poem:
Platystomos albinus, Anthribidae, 16/7/25, Denham Lock Wood, UK. I found this specimen climbing an ancient alder tree, it engages in thanatosis when startled. Quite a scarce species.
July 19, 2025 at 12:22 AM
Platystomos albinus, Anthribidae, 16/7/25, Denham Lock Wood, UK. I found this specimen climbing an ancient alder tree, it engages in thanatosis when startled. Quite a scarce species.
Ichneumon suspiciosus, Ichneumonidae, 9/7/25, Denham Lock Wood, UK. A tentative ID, would appreciate any suggestions please @gavinbroad.bsky.social?
July 10, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Ichneumon suspiciosus, Ichneumonidae, 9/7/25, Denham Lock Wood, UK. A tentative ID, would appreciate any suggestions please @gavinbroad.bsky.social?
Melanostoma scalare, Syrphidae, 3/7/25, Denham Lock Wood:
July 5, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Melanostoma scalare, Syrphidae, 3/7/25, Denham Lock Wood:
Dorcus parallelipipedus, Lucanidae, 3/7/25, Denham Country Park, UK:
July 5, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Dorcus parallelipipedus, Lucanidae, 3/7/25, Denham Country Park, UK:
Reposted by Christopher Antoniou
But also reduces associative fixation with cereals like switchgrass. See this great paper from Michael Udvardi, for instance:
apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/...
apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/...
Nitrogen Fertilization Reduces Nitrogen Fixation Activity of Diverse Diazotrophs in Switchgrass Roots | Phytobiomes Journal
The use of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers to grow biofuel crops adds to the economic and environmental costs of biomass production. Biological nitrogen fixation provides an alternative, eco-friendly s...
apsjournals.apsnet.org
May 28, 2025 at 6:57 PM
But also reduces associative fixation with cereals like switchgrass. See this great paper from Michael Udvardi, for instance:
apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/...
apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/...
@jeanmichelane.bsky.social So similarly would infusion of fixed nitrogen inhibit enzymic nitrogen fixation within rhizomes (& associated bacteria)? Or as the chloroplasts (formerly cyanobacteria) are well endosymbiosed, whereas the symbiotic root bacteria nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Exogenous sugar addition can exacerbate root carbon limitation in trees
In most tree species, roots serve as major carbon (C) sinks, where C is depleted first when C assimilation is limited. Recent methodological advancements in sugar infusion allow for a better underst...
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
May 28, 2025 at 5:28 PM
@jeanmichelane.bsky.social So similarly would infusion of fixed nitrogen inhibit enzymic nitrogen fixation within rhizomes (& associated bacteria)? Or as the chloroplasts (formerly cyanobacteria) are well endosymbiosed, whereas the symbiotic root bacteria nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Worrying development, and another cause of human ecological disturbance. The ‘triboelectric effect’ is well known in slightly ionising cuticular surface of insects (friction by rapid wing movement etc). Yet now the coadapted electrostatic attraction to partially negatively charged angiosperm plants
May 25, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Worrying development, and another cause of human ecological disturbance. The ‘triboelectric effect’ is well known in slightly ionising cuticular surface of insects (friction by rapid wing movement etc). Yet now the coadapted electrostatic attraction to partially negatively charged angiosperm plants
@georgemcgavin.bsky.social @steveormerod.bsky.social @rdawkins.bsky.social @danielkronauer.bsky.social @mcaterino.bsky.social @pjie2.bsky.social @bertonemyia.bsky.social @beetlequeen.bsky.social @coleopsoc.bsky.social Hope you enjoy the journey through deep evolutionary time!....
THE COLEOPTERISTS EVOLUTIONARY TOOLKIT: HOW TO ASSEMBLE YOUR BEETLE FROM A PRIMORDIAL CHEMISTRY
May 23, 2025 at 6:07 PM
@georgemcgavin.bsky.social @steveormerod.bsky.social @rdawkins.bsky.social @danielkronauer.bsky.social @mcaterino.bsky.social @pjie2.bsky.social @bertonemyia.bsky.social @beetlequeen.bsky.social @coleopsoc.bsky.social Hope you enjoy the journey through deep evolutionary time!....
THE COLEOPTERISTS EVOLUTIONARY TOOLKIT: HOW TO ASSEMBLE YOUR BEETLE FROM A PRIMORDIAL CHEMISTRY
May 23, 2025 at 5:58 PM
THE COLEOPTERISTS EVOLUTIONARY TOOLKIT: HOW TO ASSEMBLE YOUR BEETLE FROM A PRIMORDIAL CHEMISTRY
Reposted by Christopher Antoniou
An old photo I took during my first field season with a macro lens - checks notes - ahem, 20 years ago, in May 2005. I hadn’t discovered flash diffusion yet. But it’s a rarely witnessed scene: Eciton burchellii army ant workers collective carry a massive male larva. Henri Pittier NP, 🇻🇪.
May 2, 2025 at 7:02 PM
An old photo I took during my first field season with a macro lens - checks notes - ahem, 20 years ago, in May 2005. I hadn’t discovered flash diffusion yet. But it’s a rarely witnessed scene: Eciton burchellii army ant workers collective carry a massive male larva. Henri Pittier NP, 🇻🇪.
Reposted by Christopher Antoniou
I reckon alderflies (Sialis lutaria) would be great at playing Twister.
May 10, 2025 at 12:10 PM
I reckon alderflies (Sialis lutaria) would be great at playing Twister.