Kayla Lizaola
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insectifying.bsky.social
Kayla Lizaola
@insectifying.bsky.social
15 followers 27 following 12 posts
Post-bacc entomologist exploring avenues for academic development and science communication. 🏳️‍🌈🔬 Insect Disease Ecology lab at USD | BA in Screenwriting, minor Biology from CSUN
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insectifying.bsky.social
Virus? 😉 #diseaseecology #NPV #lepidoptera
Two Dione vanillae caterpillars in a cage full of Passiflora vines. One is healthy, the other is a darkly colored and shrinking. Potentially infected with NPV.
September 22, 2025 at 2:37 AM
insectifying.bsky.social
Got to take some students to a community garden last week to connect with a community member who has been helping us build up our colony of Dione vanillae butterflies. We need lots of eggs for projects. We have been successful in getting those numbers up. 75+ eggs so far! #entomology #lepidoptera
Dione vanillae 3rd instar caterpillar eating Passiflora sp. leaf. Seven Dione vanillae adults in a mating cage. One adult resting on a gloved hand. Passiflora vines and a small 4oz plastic cup full of red Powerade with a pink flower shaped paper cutout on top in the background. Second instar Dione vanillae caterpillar on Passiflora sp. leaf. A photo of a large Passiflora sp. vine growing around a wooden fence with a blue sky in the background.
September 22, 2025 at 2:34 AM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
drk-lo.bsky.social
Respondents reported restrictions on free speech and travel, chilling effects on free speech and travel, censorship of scientific terms, concerns about the ability of the government to comply with legal mandates, reports of biased or removed information from federal sources, removal of climate.gov
Most respondents reported that federal policies caused uncertainty about the future (85% of respondents) and increased stress and anxiety (79%). Almost half of respondents reported being impacted by a chilling effect on free speech (48%), funding freezes (48%), cuts to the federal workforce (46%), and budget cuts (46%). About a third of respondents reported being affected by changes to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies (38%), hiring freezes (36%), cuts or threats of cuts to indirect costs (36%), concerns about human rights violations (35%). A proportion of respondents were affected by changes to international research and funding (25%), deletion of public data (21%), restrictions on research (20%), cancellations of solicitations (19%), cancellations of an awarded grant (17%), and cancellation of a training program or internship (14%). Threats to visa status were reported by 8% of respondents (117 respondents) and 1% of respondents reported visa revocation (18 respondents). A percentage of respondents reported no negative impact to them or their research (6%).
August 25, 2025 at 12:55 PM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
drk-lo.bsky.social
83% of respondents said that federal policies since Jan 20, 2025 had "extremely negative impact" or "irreparable harm" on their field of science
Respondents were asked to indicate the degree and direction of the impact of federal and state policies since January 20, 2025 on the categories of: “Impact on my field of science”, “Impact on my Department and Institution”, “Impact on my research”, “Impact on my career prospects”, and “Impact on my personal life”. A percentage of respondents reported positive impacts in each category (~1-2%). 83% of respondents said that federal policies since Jan 20, 2025 had "extremely negative impact" or "irreparable harm" on their field of science (Figure 3, top row). 83% of the respondents also reported that the effects on their department/institution were slightly negative to extremely negative, with 8% reporting no impact and 8% reporting irreparable harm (Figure 3, second row). Most respondents reported slightly negative to extremely negative effects on their research (76%) and career prospects (71%), with about 20% reporting no impact and 5-8% reporting irreparable harm in both categories (Figure 3, third and forth rows). A majority of respondents reported slightly negative to extremely negative effects on their personal life (83%), with 7% reporting irreparable harm and 9% reporting no impact (Figure 3, fifth row).
August 25, 2025 at 12:55 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
Super excited to start working with some virus in USD’s disease ecology lab!! Learning about NPV infecting Gulf Fritillary butterflies!
August 25, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
pontebalas.bsky.social
Noche arreglada.
August 15, 2025 at 9:15 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
Incredible!!! Dr. Ware says her life would make a great movie. What an exciting thing to read about as a screenwriter and entomologist!!! www.sciencenews.org/article/mara...
This ‘hidden figure’ of entomology fought for civil rights
Margaret S. Collins, the first Black American female entomologist to earn a Ph.D., overcame sexism and racism to become a termite expert.
www.sciencenews.org
August 15, 2025 at 10:32 PM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
tack534.bsky.social
Thinking about how these things used to have 3ft wingspans

#naturephotography #wildlifephotography #insects #bugsky #wisconsin #dragonfly #fujifilm
August 15, 2025 at 12:31 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
Really interested in getting into bug macrophotography outside of the lab. Shooting specimens is fun, but I’d like to try my hand at photographing live ones. Any camera recommendations for a beginner? #bugsky #entomology #macrophotography
August 15, 2025 at 8:13 PM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
bug-gwen.bsky.social
What an amazing woman and researcher! www.sciencenews.org/article/mara...
This ‘hidden figure’ of entomology fought for civil rights
Margaret S. Collins, the first Black American female entomologist to earn a Ph.D., overcame sexism and racism to become a termite expert.
www.sciencenews.org
January 21, 2025 at 4:20 PM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
sagaoptics.bsky.social
Orange tip, Anthocharis cardamines. Five years after I found the butterfly, I was finally able to photograph the caterpillar and the pupa 🎉
August 11, 2025 at 3:43 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
Appreciation post! I remember making Pinterest boards of people out in nature catching bugs and dreaming of doing it myself. I can’t wait to find a great program and get back to school. Reading, writing, finding, exploring, learning. This is what sets my heart on fire❤️‍🔥🐜 #entomology
August 15, 2025 at 6:01 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
#tb to my first time catching a frog! The joys of an entomology field trip 🐸
August 15, 2025 at 5:56 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
So many papers describe only the male genitalia & I wonder how many species are out there that can only be identified if male. It seems like something more people would be interested in? I’ll make sure to include female specimens in my research…even if the dissection process is meticulous. Worth it!
August 15, 2025 at 5:27 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
Grateful for my job because I get to take cool photos of bugs all day. Then when the day is over, I can stay longer to take photos of bugs in my own collection! The beautiful diversity of Southern California. #coleoptera #raphidioptera #hymenoptera
August 15, 2025 at 4:34 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
Collected in Tajikistan! So much fun taking photos of these guys for work. Bruchus affinis Frölich 1799 #coleoptera #bruchinae #beetles
August 15, 2025 at 4:30 PM
insectifying.bsky.social
Photos from the last field trip of the semester. Loved this class and made such great pals! Found some awesome rove beetles on the opossum carcass we left out #entomology
August 15, 2025 at 4:29 PM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
alisonbechdel.bsky.social
So great to see this amazing poem by Robin Becker in The New Yorker!
April 12, 2025 at 4:41 PM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
alisonbechdel.bsky.social
If you haven't yet seen this doc about the remarkable lesbian activist Sally Gearhart, you must do so immediately! www.sallygearhartfilm.com?ss_source=ss...
SALLY!
www.sallygearhartfilm.com
April 16, 2025 at 11:48 AM
Reposted by Kayla Lizaola
jessicalwarelab.bsky.social
#Dragonflies! With @taramcallister.bsky.social @ethantolman.bsky.social and colleagues! Elevational and Oceanic Barriers Shape the Distribution, Dispersal and Diversity of Aotearoa's Kapokapowai (Uropetala) Dragonflies url: academic.oup.com/evolut/artic...
Elevational and Oceanic Barriers Shape the Distribution, Dispersal and Diversity of Aotearoa's Kapokapowai (Uropetala) Dragonflies
Abstract. Mountains and islands provide an opportunity for studying the biogeography of diversification and population fragmentation. Aotearoa (New Zealand
academic.oup.com
July 17, 2025 at 9:43 PM