Elaine T
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elntangle.bsky.social
Elaine T
@elntangle.bsky.social
200 followers 56 following 140 posts
birder, biologist, bedoodler: birds and bugs 🐦🐜🎨 (they/them) currently living in Sydney AUS
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elntangle.bsky.social
Any ideas for uses of this double-pronged ento pin? I guess I could have it hold up a label in between the prongs like a little signpost, but you can do that with a regular pin if you so wished.
A photo of an entomological pin with one round brown pinhead conjoining two pins, held slightly open by pale fingers.
June 20, 2025 at 5:39 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
I'm obsessed with this common bronzewing that we banded two weeks ago. When it was in the bag for transport and unable to see anything, it made the softest little "coo, coo" noises you could only hear by holding it up to your ear 🥺 #birdbanding #birdinthehand #pigeons
A photo of a common bronzewing pigeon (Phaps chalcoptera). The bird's subtly colored purple-orange-blue-grey head with white markings around the black eyes pokes out of a white bag, pale fingers encircling its body in the bag. A photo of a common bronzewing pigeon (Phaps chalcoptera). Its body is partially covered by a white bag while pale hands hold and manipulate the bird, showing off the iridescent green-orange feathers on the upper wing above the brown secondary flight feathers. A photo of a common bronzewing pigeon (Phaps chalcoptera). The bird's body is partially in a white bag while pale hands hold and manipulate the bird, showing off its buffy orange underwing. A photo of a common bronzewing pigeon (Phaps chalcoptera). Pale hands firmly encircle the bird's body, and bird and hands are lit by strong sunlight.
June 17, 2025 at 5:31 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
I just finished curating all the Apidae at the Australian Museum, huzzah! They're ready for volunteer handling now so we can get those specimens databased. We might be needing more volunteers soon, though. #museumlife #bees
A pinned specimen with labels of a yellow-brown Habropoda digger bee from Malaysia in a white unit tray. The bee's tongue is extremely long and curls in front of it, touching the bottom of the unit tray.
June 6, 2025 at 2:01 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
I saw some adorable roseate sundews (Drosera spatulata) while camping last weekend and now I want to grow some to eat my fungus gnats, but I don't know if I'm ready for that level of (non-mineral-water-buying/collecting) commitment. Beecroft Weapons Range, NSW. 🇦🇺 #plants
A photo of 5 round, low-growing, pinkish-red plants on sandy soil surrounded by sparse grass. A close-up photo of a round pinkish-red plant, a sundew, showing off its predatory droplet-covered leaves.
May 29, 2025 at 12:00 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
I've been working on long-tongued bees in the family Apidae, and this lady Amegilla (blue-banded bee) is quite stunning. The shapes! The colors! The pizazz! #WorldBeeDay #bees #museumlife
A photo of a pinned blue-banded bee specimen facing left. The bee has gold-orange fur on its middle segment and legs, and its black rear segment has iridescent blue bands. Its golden hind legs are posed as if the bee is high stepping, and its long orange tongue ends in a spiral.
May 20, 2025 at 11:56 PM
elntangle.bsky.social
Oooh, I didn't know it was #WorldBeeDay! Here's an orchid bee for the multi-level marketers (MLM). These bees have long tongues for lickin', and the males collect flower fragrances in their legs to woo females. #bees
A digital art drawing of an iridescent orchid bee in light green and sky blue, with white hairs on the bee's body and legs. The bee's tongue sticks out, touching the letters "MLeM" in the same colors.
May 20, 2025 at 11:49 PM
elntangle.bsky.social
Another good one for NSW could be the botany bay diamond weevil. Please... national/state/territory insect emblems could fix us... or at least make me very happy.
A teal-blue weevil beetle with black patterns facing right, perched on green wattle branches with wattle leaves in the background.
May 11, 2025 at 11:52 PM
elntangle.bsky.social
Hey, y'all got any snacks? #birds #WildOz
A photo of a black swan floating on water below a concrete ledge. Three metal wires from a fence cross the photo, separating the viewer and the swan. Dewdrops speckle the swan's head. A photo of a black swan's head, out of focus. The swan's beak juts forward over the concrete ledge in front of the swan's body, under the metal wire of a fence between the swan and the viewer.
May 10, 2025 at 10:55 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Carpenter bee with an ant head earring. It's a hyme-eat-hyme world our there. #museumlife #bees
A photo of a pinned large black and yellow carpenter bee specimen facing right. The bee's right antennae has a small black ant's head attached by its clamped jaws.
May 9, 2025 at 2:45 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
More photos, since I couldn't get over how beefy they are compared to swallows.
A photo of a pale hand holding a dark gray bird, fingers encircling the bird's whole body. A photo of a gray bird whose feet are being held by one hand while another hand holds its wing open, showing the wing's pale gray and white underside. A photo of a gray bird being held by its feet. The photo is slightly out of focus at the bird's big brown eyes and forward-facing beak. A photo of a gray bird seen top-down, being held by its feet by a pale hand.
May 5, 2025 at 11:56 PM
elntangle.bsky.social
Woodswallows are cool. They look like and are named after swallows (family Hirundinidae), but woodswallows are in the same group as butcherbirds and Australian magpies (family Artamidae). 🇦🇺 #birdbanding #birds
A photo of a brown hand holding a gray bird by its feet. The bird's wings are open, showing white and light gray undersides. A photo of a pale hald holding a gray bird by its feet. The bird's head is turned to the side, showing its thick blue-gray black-tipped beak.
May 5, 2025 at 11:53 PM
elntangle.bsky.social
Australian magpie, Gymnorhina tibicen, being firmly grasped. #birds #birdbanding
A photo of an Australian magpie being held by a pale hand over a wooden table covered in various bird banding tools. A photo of an Australian magpie being held by pale hands over a wooden table covered in various bird banding tools. One hand grasps the bird's neck and back, the other its legs. A photo of an Australian magpie being held by pale hands over a wooden table covered in various bird banding tools. One hand holds the bird's neck and torso, the other holds a wing. Another person's arm is visible in the leaf litter background. A photo of an Australian magpie being held by pale hands over a wooden table covered in various bird banding tools. One hand holds the neck and torso, the other spreads the bird's left wing open so the pattern is visible.
May 5, 2025 at 3:40 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Hey. Phone call for you (the phone WILL bite your ear off) #birds #birdbanding
A photo of a kookaburra being held by a pale hand that thrusts the bird forward as if offering a telephone receiver. In the outdoor sparsely wooded background there are bags at the base of a tree, and a folding table and chair are nearby.
May 2, 2025 at 11:20 PM
elntangle.bsky.social
I finally finished editing my photos from my Easter bird banding trip. We caught two species of pardalote, spotted (Pardalotus punctatus) and striated (P.striatus). Striated pardalotes are further divided into subspecies, two of which are compared in the third pic. #birds #birdbanding
A photo of a highly patterned bird, a spotted pardalote held in photographer's grip, its legs held firmly between fingers. A photo of a small bird, a striated pardalote held in photographer's grip, its legs held firmly between fingers. A photo of two small striated pardalote birds held by two different people. Fingers hold each bird's wing spread to show the fine white lines on the feathers.
May 2, 2025 at 7:27 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Can I offer you some nice neon cloak-and-dagger cuckoo bees in these trying times? It's cool to be working on museum specimens of this electric blue bee I saw once almost half a year ago. #bugsky #bees
A photo of two pinned bee specimens with labels inside a white unit tray. The bees are black with neon blue hair forming broad stripes on their bodies.
April 29, 2025 at 5:18 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
I never know if I should collect specimens or not. According to someone on iNat, this beetle is Carenum decorum, and "the only other records... for this species are the type series which were taken" more a hundred km away. I'm glad it was identifiable by photo. Dubbo, NSW. 🇦🇺 #WildOz #beetles
A photo of a blackish-purple, slightly iridescent ground beetle with its right legs pinched between pale fingers to hold it in place.
April 29, 2025 at 1:43 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Although with labels like this, maybe keeping the A.melliferas to one drawer won't be possible.
April 17, 2025 at 1:35 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
I'm in Honeybee Hell. I'm spacing the Apis mellifera specimens so volunteers can handle them and add labels, I hope I can keep them all within one drawer 😬 #bees #museumlife
A photo taken from a low angle of the inside of an insect specimen drawer filled with hundreds of specimens of a single species, the European honeybee (Apis (Apis) mellifera). The white unit trays of specimens are reflected blurrily in the drawer's glass lid.
April 17, 2025 at 1:19 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Some other green bees for your viewing pleasure.
A photo of a pinned green bee specimen, facing left with labels underneath. A photo of a pinned green bee specimen, facing left with labels underneath. A photo of a pinned green bee specimen, facing left with labels underneath. A photo of a white unit tray full of green bee specimens, held up by a pale hand wearing a black watch in front of computer monitors.
April 15, 2025 at 3:18 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Boots with the fur (green fur). Amegilla aeruginosa bees in the same genus as blue-banded bees are delightfully green-to-yellow, even after 30+ years. #bees #WildOz
A photo of a pinned bee specimen facing left with wings and legs spread. The bee's leg and body fur is green, fading to yellow at the hind end.
April 15, 2025 at 2:41 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Saw a wing-tagged ibis yesterday. Apparently all the tagged ibises around Sydney are the work of one guy who's studying ibis adaptation to urban environments (I forget his name).
A photo of a white ibis bird with a black featherless head, thick pink-black legs, and black plumed tail feathers stands on a waist-high partition in an area busy with human pedestrians and bicyclists. The ibis has a green wing tag on its right wing facing the viewer.
April 13, 2025 at 11:37 PM
elntangle.bsky.social
Got a lifer bird today, no.870 Eastern Barn Owl (Tyto javanica, split from T. alba by eBird in 2024). I was going to travel to the U.S. in Dec, but maybe that's no longer a good idea with my non-USAmerican partner. #WildOz
A digiscoped photo of a barn owl heavily obscured by needle-like leaves.
April 12, 2025 at 7:51 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Bug suitcase. Lepidopterist Dave Britton donated over 50 of these to the Australian Museum, and they're quite fun to go through as I transfer them into unit trays. #museumlife #bugsky
A photo of the inside of a wooden box held open by a hand. Both sides of the box are covered with small insects on pins, mostly moths and butterflies.
April 8, 2025 at 10:20 PM
elntangle.bsky.social
Who do I have to talk to to get some designated Australian insect emblems? I think Extatosoma tiaratum, the giant prickly stick, would be very cool for NSW or QLD. #bugsky #WildOz (old art from my RedBubble)
A digital art piece of a giant prickly stick insect in orange, blue, and white. Text around the insect in the same colors reads "STICKing to my FRIENDS".
April 7, 2025 at 3:43 AM
elntangle.bsky.social
Pijn #birds
A close-up photo through binoculars of a feral pigeon's head in side view, facing left. The pigeon's head is tucked close to its chest so its neck feathers are fluffed up.
April 7, 2025 at 3:11 AM