Gil Wizen
Entomologist and award-winning photographer. Professional breeder and wrangler of insects and arachnids for educational, research and display purposes.
- Reposted by Gil WizenHere are a couple of the underrated finds from our night walks in Guyana. Trying to ID obscure bugs is always a challenge, but @wizentrop.bsky.social was there to help me once again. Turns out these two critters (Largus anticus and Dubiepeira neptunina) have rarely been documented in the field!
- Reposted by Gil WizenPelican spiders for #febugary2026, based on photos by Jamie Hall, Hannah Wood, and Rudolph Steenkamp
- Reposted by Gil WizenTimeline cleans with snowflake-sized baby lagoon jellyfish. . 🎥 jelliesfarm www.instagram.com/jelliesfarm?...
- Two of these cool art renderings are based on my photos of Lamprosoma, from this post: gilwizen.com/lamprosoma/
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Very exciting day today, as we can finally attach a species name to this mysterious and beautiful hawkmoth caterpillar from Ecuador and Peru. Thanks to the rearing and documentation efforts of @gwentomologist.bsky.social, we now know this caterpillar is Manducta neglecta.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil WizenDid some work on my #FungiJournal the other day. A work in progress. I’ll finish it one day. Music: Detectorists - Johnny Flynn. #FungiFriends
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil WizenThe thing about entomology is, there are always weirder bugs than anything you could imagine on your own. Here's Cysteodemus wislizeni, a blister beetle from west Texas.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil WizenI found some tiny crabs in the sea 🦀✨️ It felt just like a crab kindergarten!! かにがにの多様性𓂃◌𓈒𓐍
- Reposted by Gil WizenGiant Leopard #Moths, Hypercompe scribonia, were frequent visitors to the bug light this year. What looks like black markings from a distance, is revealed to be a rich iridescent blue upon closer look. Some have spots, and some have rings. #MacroPhotography #Mothmas #Invertefest
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- This micromoth from Ecuador (Struthoscelis semiotarsa) is the epitome of 'kawaii'. Large head with emerald green eyes, long antennae, short forelimbs, fancy hindlimbs, and fluff. It also moved in a very cute way. It cannot use the hindlegs for walking, so it drags them behind like a dragon's tail.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Today I have something really special for you guys! Not too far from the caiman I posted recently, I found something MIND BLOWING This is a butterfly pupa, and it mimics the head of a snake. And not just any snake, but specifically the head of a boa snake!!! Probably Opsiphanes, an owlet butterfly.
- A pair of leaf-mimicking katydids (Typophyllum mortuifolium) from Ecuador displaying mate guarding to ensure paternity. Sometimes females carry *two* males simultaneously. Regardless of how we interpret this, I think we can all appreciate the physical and emotional labor the female is doing 🤗
- Reposted by Gil WizenFinally got some photos of Australia’s “blue ant”, Diamma bicolor, which is not an ant at all but a shockingly large metallic blue thynnid wasp, wingless and solitary, that hunts mole crickets. Been meaning to shoot this thing for years.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizenmy modest collection of flies with WIDE heads 🙇 a hammer-headed Richardia (Ecuador), a stalk-eyed Chaetodiopsis (Mozambique), a pointy-eyed Ophthalmoptera (Colombia), and an antlered Richardia (Colombia) why though? male-male competition? sexual selection? chime-in if you know!
- Reposted by Gil WizenNew Ant Lab video today about pincer wasps and a new research project. This one has some really cool, newly-filmed insect behavior in it! youtu.be/9osTBzQ0zbk
- It is true that when your eyes are focused on the vegetation and on the ground trying to find hidden arthropods, you tend to miss some of the larger animals. Here is a juvenile Schneider's dwarf caiman (Paleosuchus trigonatus) that we almost missed while crossing a small stream. What a lovely beast!
- Reposted by Gil WizenDay 20 of #InsectAdvent Nearly there, eyes on the prize of Christmas Day. Talking of eyes, some of the best eyed creatures are stalk-eyed flies including Plagoiocephalus latifrons (image @bertonemyia.bsky.social) we saw in Costa Rica @royentsoc.bsky.social @dipterists.bsky.social
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- We are continuing our virtual hike along my favorite trail at Emerald Arch in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Oh, what's this? A wizened dry leaf?.. (see what I did there) No, it's a dead leaf mantis (Acanthops falcata)!
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Amazon tree boa (Corallus hortulana), an arboreal snake with many beautiful color morphs. This is one of the subtle morphs but I think it is stunning! Something about the ghost pattern against the olive background, and those pink and black accents are just... 😙👌 *chef's kiss* Photographed in ecuador
- Reposted by Gil WizenA handsome suit of armor on this female Nemotelus (Diptera: Stratiomyidae)
- Dendroblatta sobrina, a beautiful cockroach found in rainforests across northern Latin America. At night these stunning roaches can be found foraging on bark of mature trees, usually in small groups containing adults and nymphs. They are hypervigilant and sprint up the trunk upon any sign of danger.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- This monkey slug caterpillar (Phobetron sp.) from Ecuador has evolved to look like a discarded tarantula molt. This one mimics the tarantula Avicularia juruensis (see my previous post) so accurately, down to the pink toes and yellow bands! The hairs cause skin irritation, just like Avicularia hairs.
- Reposted by Gil WizenENOOOOORMOUS SNAIL!? 🤯🐌 PLEASE meet the Giant Amazon Land Snail (Megalobulimus popelairianus)! 🧡 These guys are the HEAVIEST terrestrial land snail and are just an all-round extraordinary critter! It was an absolute HONOUR bumping into this one on the beautiful paths of Maquipucuna’s forest! 🌳✨
- More than meets the eye
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Amazonian pinktoe (Avicularia juruensis) is by far the most common tarantula species at Emerald Arch. We encountered them on trees, on the path, in man-made habitats, I even had one living on the wall right above my bed! Beautiful and gentle creatures, it's easy to forget they are vicious predators.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Beautiful pattern on this longhorn beetle
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- No filter, woke up like this
- The bulky Brontostoma basalis from Ecuador - incredibly strong and its venom packs a punch! When I took it out of the vial it immediately grabbed my finger and bit it. Was it painful? Yes, for a hot minute. But as always with assassin bugs it is more the speed of action that surprises me the most.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- A beautiful Amazon broad-headed wood lizard (Enyalioides laticeps) that we encountered on multiple occasions while night hiking at Emerald Arch. This fast-moving diurnal lizard was so relaxed in our presence that I almost booped its nose while using the Kuangren K150 wide angle macro lens.
- Reposted by Gil WizenDay 10 of #InsectAdvent & the Christmas flirting has ramped up This male Robberfly, Pegesimallus teratodes, has striking, feather-like scales on its hind legs, likely used for female attraction during courtship. (& cleaning the dance floor) @royentsoc.bsky.social @dipterists.bsky.social
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- The peacock katydid (Pterochroza ocellata) is a leaf-mimicking katydid with a huge variability of wing colors and shapes, which makes it difficult for predators to recognize it. But if camouflage fails, the katydid can flash its colorful eyespots at predators before disappearing in the leaf litter.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil WizenLike a moss 💚🌱Swipe to see the species and check if you’ve find them all! 💚
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- A few months ago I shared this beautiful and mysterious hawkmoth caterpillar from the Amazon, and it seems that now more than ever we are finally close to revealing its ID thanks to @gwentomologist.bsky.social, who decided to rear it to adulthood. I highly recommend following this story on IG!
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- A thread with beautiful photos of aquatic invertebrates. Look at this cute mite!
- The amazing journey of a parasitic fungus: An ant infected with Ophiocordyceps australis got covered by leaves. The fungus stalk started probing for a way to the surface. After making contact with 2 leaves it eventually punched through a third leaf and produced a fruiting body for releasing spores.
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Precious bebe crab
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
- Reposted by Gil Wizen[Not loaded yet]
