Matina Donaldson-Matasci
@matinadonaldson.bsky.social
Associate Professor of Biology at Harvey Mudd College. Studies ants & bees in the lab, the field, and the alternate reality of mathematics.
Students in my lab have been observing interactions b/w native and invasive ants in our local field station. First-year student Su writes about the different species they've encountered in the process, including our fave, the California harvester ant! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-... @hmc.edu
The Ants of Harvey Mudd: Which Ones are You Seeing?
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
November 19, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Students in my lab have been observing interactions b/w native and invasive ants in our local field station. First-year student Su writes about the different species they've encountered in the process, including our fave, the California harvester ant! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-... @hmc.edu
We've seen our turtle ants, after being bitten, stung and thrown by twig ants, just walk away all nonchalant. What makes them so hard core? Read about our latest exploratory project in Lexie's new blog post: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/11/knig... @hmc.edu
November 17, 2025 at 8:22 PM
We've seen our turtle ants, after being bitten, stung and thrown by twig ants, just walk away all nonchalant. What makes them so hard core? Read about our latest exploratory project in Lexie's new blog post: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/11/knig... @hmc.edu
Want to learn about ant weaponry & wrestling moves? New undergrad student Phoebe interviewed collaborator Dr. Scott Powell to find out how the enemy species she's studying in the lab interact in the field. Read her blog post here: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/10/neve... #ants #wrestling @hmc.edu
Never Gonna Give You Up: Twig Ant Mandibles
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
October 20, 2025 at 4:11 PM
Want to learn about ant weaponry & wrestling moves? New undergrad student Phoebe interviewed collaborator Dr. Scott Powell to find out how the enemy species she's studying in the lab interact in the field. Read her blog post here: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/10/neve... #ants #wrestling @hmc.edu
Hey #ABS2025 are you excited to see some Ant Wrestling?? My undergrad Marissa Douglas made this fun trailer for her thesis presentation: youtu.be/MtBHG3XNVxY?... I'll be talking about it this afternoon at 4pm in Social Aggression.
Thesis Trailer for interspecific competition of Cephalotes varians and Pseudomyrmex gracilis
YouTube video by Marissa Douglas
youtu.be
July 11, 2025 at 1:39 PM
Hey #ABS2025 are you excited to see some Ant Wrestling?? My undergrad Marissa Douglas made this fun trailer for her thesis presentation: youtu.be/MtBHG3XNVxY?... I'll be talking about it this afternoon at 4pm in Social Aggression.
Wanna read more about ant wrestling -- and learn how we make science replicable? First-year undergrad Hanna writes about her experience working in the lab this semester & what she learned about the importance of a detailed protocol w/ lots of examples hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/05/wres... @hmc.edu
Wrestling Ants, The Sequel! Why We Cannot Randomly Score Insect Aggression
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
May 22, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Wanna read more about ant wrestling -- and learn how we make science replicable? First-year undergrad Hanna writes about her experience working in the lab this semester & what she learned about the importance of a detailed protocol w/ lots of examples hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/05/wres... @hmc.edu
Reposted by Matina Donaldson-Matasci
Protecting habitat is perhaps THE most important conservation strategy. But a proposed change to the Endangered Species Act would stop doing so, allowing people & companies to destroy habitat that endangered species need to survive.
Join us in stopping this change ➡️ xerces.org/protect-the-esa
Join us in stopping this change ➡️ xerces.org/protect-the-esa
May 8, 2025 at 9:50 PM
Protecting habitat is perhaps THE most important conservation strategy. But a proposed change to the Endangered Species Act would stop doing so, allowing people & companies to destroy habitat that endangered species need to survive.
Join us in stopping this change ➡️ xerces.org/protect-the-esa
Join us in stopping this change ➡️ xerces.org/protect-the-esa
"Have you ever watched a WWE wrestling match and wished you could see it at a fraction of the size? Ever wanted to see miniature body slams, tiny submission holds and even small aerial moves?" If so, read on in the latest student blog post by Lexie! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/05/wres... @hmc.edu #ants
Wrestling Ants: How We Score Insect Aggression Like WWE Moves
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
May 12, 2025 at 5:13 PM
"Have you ever watched a WWE wrestling match and wished you could see it at a fraction of the size? Ever wanted to see miniature body slams, tiny submission holds and even small aerial moves?" If so, read on in the latest student blog post by Lexie! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2025/05/wres... @hmc.edu #ants
Reposted by Matina Donaldson-Matasci
Work on the resilience of wood ant transport networks led by SandorPiross shows network dynamics that are highly effective in stable environments have limited capacity to cope with targeted disruption 2/2 @uoyopenres.bsky.social @matinadonaldson.bsky.social royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
Strong and weak environmental perturbations cause contrasting restructure of ant transportation networks | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Dynamic transportation networks are embedded in all levels of biological organization.
Ever-growing anthropogenic disturbances and an increasingly variable climate highlight
the importance of understa...
royalsocietypublishing.org
April 22, 2025 at 1:20 PM
Work on the resilience of wood ant transport networks led by SandorPiross shows network dynamics that are highly effective in stable environments have limited capacity to cope with targeted disruption 2/2 @uoyopenres.bsky.social @matinadonaldson.bsky.social royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
Meet the lab ants, part II! In this blog post, Chloé introduces our three species (turtle ants, two kinds of twig ants) & the personality differences she's observed. Like me, she prefers turtle ants, but her reasons are different... hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/12/flor... #ants @harveymudd.bsky.social
Floridian Ants: The true test of my patience
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
January 8, 2025 at 7:39 PM
Meet the lab ants, part II! In this blog post, Chloé introduces our three species (turtle ants, two kinds of twig ants) & the personality differences she's observed. Like me, she prefers turtle ants, but her reasons are different... hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/12/flor... #ants @harveymudd.bsky.social
Tavo joined my lab this semester because he loves insects, so he was super excited to learn how to use the lab's dissecting scope to get up close and personal with *live* turtle & twig ants 🐜🐜🐜. Read his blog post, w/ lots of pics: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/12/up-c... #ants @harveymudd.bsky.social
Up Close and Personal with the Ant Lab’s Current Residents!
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
December 20, 2024 at 5:53 PM
Tavo joined my lab this semester because he loves insects, so he was super excited to learn how to use the lab's dissecting scope to get up close and personal with *live* turtle & twig ants 🐜🐜🐜. Read his blog post, w/ lots of pics: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/12/up-c... #ants @harveymudd.bsky.social
The Red Imported Fire Ant is a major invasive pest across much of the US, but it also accomplishes some really cool engineering feats. Read TJ's latest student blog post about fire ant rafts, which they use to survive floods: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/12/when... @harveymudd.bsky.social #ants
When Hugs Meet Survival: The Science Behind Fire Ant Rafts
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
December 16, 2024 at 5:03 PM
The Red Imported Fire Ant is a major invasive pest across much of the US, but it also accomplishes some really cool engineering feats. Read TJ's latest student blog post about fire ant rafts, which they use to survive floods: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/12/when... @harveymudd.bsky.social #ants
The prisoner's dilemma is a classic game that emphasizes conflict & shows how hard cooperation can be. In the latest student blog post, Julianne explains how red fire ant queens get around this problem using a green beard: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/12/ant-... @harveymudd.bsky.social #ants #gametheory
Ant-agonists: The Line Between Betrayal and Cooperation
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
December 13, 2024 at 10:47 PM
The prisoner's dilemma is a classic game that emphasizes conflict & shows how hard cooperation can be. In the latest student blog post, Julianne explains how red fire ant queens get around this problem using a green beard: hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/12/ant-... @harveymudd.bsky.social #ants #gametheory
Ever wonder: do ants sleep? In the latest student blog post, Diya writes about ants' sleeping habits -- and what college students have to learn from them! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/11/an-a... #ants @harveymudd.bsky.social
November 22, 2024 at 4:38 PM
Ever wonder: do ants sleep? In the latest student blog post, Diya writes about ants' sleeping habits -- and what college students have to learn from them! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/11/an-a... #ants @harveymudd.bsky.social
Reposted by Matina Donaldson-Matasci
If you missed Dr. Sue Chan’s poster on cucurbit pollen collection and use by squash #bees (Xenoglossa pruinosa) at #EntSoc24, feel free to check out the @jpollecol.bsky.social open access paper instead: doi.org/10.26786/192... @entsocamerica.bsky.social
November 11, 2024 at 5:25 PM
If you missed Dr. Sue Chan’s poster on cucurbit pollen collection and use by squash #bees (Xenoglossa pruinosa) at #EntSoc24, feel free to check out the @jpollecol.bsky.social open access paper instead: doi.org/10.26786/192... @entsocamerica.bsky.social
Reposted by Matina Donaldson-Matasci
Want to be my colleague? There are two tenure track Assistant Prof positions opening up at my university - month of 1st consideration is Jan 2025 😄
One for Freshwater Fisheries Biology and the other for Animal Ecology! 😊
jobs.missouristate.edu/postings/78080
jobs.missouristate.edu/postings/78118
One for Freshwater Fisheries Biology and the other for Animal Ecology! 😊
jobs.missouristate.edu/postings/78080
jobs.missouristate.edu/postings/78118
November 5, 2024 at 8:58 PM
Want to be my colleague? There are two tenure track Assistant Prof positions opening up at my university - month of 1st consideration is Jan 2025 😄
One for Freshwater Fisheries Biology and the other for Animal Ecology! 😊
jobs.missouristate.edu/postings/78080
jobs.missouristate.edu/postings/78118
One for Freshwater Fisheries Biology and the other for Animal Ecology! 😊
jobs.missouristate.edu/postings/78080
jobs.missouristate.edu/postings/78118
Reposted by Matina Donaldson-Matasci
Two Lichtenberg Lab student presentations at #EntSoc24 on Monday! At 9 in 129A, Avery Pearson is talking about how ranch management alters plant visitation networks. At 11:42 in 132A, Marie Muñiz is talking about bees learning from lady beetles.
November 11, 2024 at 5:58 AM
Two Lichtenberg Lab student presentations at #EntSoc24 on Monday! At 9 in 129A, Avery Pearson is talking about how ranch management alters plant visitation networks. At 11:42 in 132A, Marie Muñiz is talking about bees learning from lady beetles.
From Day 1 of my Experimental Ecology class, Chan's been focused on 🌱(and avoiding 🕷️). But in this new student blog post, he discovers that to really understand plants, you need to learn about other organisms too -- like 🍄 & even (gasp)🐞! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/04/yerb... @harveymudd.bsky.social
April 12, 2024 at 7:07 PM
From Day 1 of my Experimental Ecology class, Chan's been focused on 🌱(and avoiding 🕷️). But in this new student blog post, he discovers that to really understand plants, you need to learn about other organisms too -- like 🍄 & even (gasp)🐞! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/04/yerb... @harveymudd.bsky.social
In the third natural history blog post from my ecology class, Marissa writes about her seemingly fruitless search for coyotes, and how much she has learned about them from, well, their 💩. hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/03/what... @harveymudd.bsky.social #iTeachBio
What a Waste: My Time Scouting for Coyotes (Canis latrans)
A blog about social insect behavior, especially ants & honeybees, including field ecology, computer vision, and mathematical and simulation models.
hmcbee.blogspot.com
March 21, 2024 at 10:16 PM
In the third natural history blog post from my ecology class, Marissa writes about her seemingly fruitless search for coyotes, and how much she has learned about them from, well, their 💩. hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/03/what... @harveymudd.bsky.social #iTeachBio
Calling all grad students in N. America studying #ants, #bees, #wasps or #termites! We're accepting applications for IUSSI-NAS Spring Research Awards, plus nominations for Best Student Paper on behavior/evolution in social arthropods. For more info: iussi.cyberbee.net/2024/03/iuss...
IUSSI-NAS Spring Student Awards » IUSSI-NAS
iussi.cyberbee.net
March 13, 2024 at 9:10 PM
Calling all grad students in N. America studying #ants, #bees, #wasps or #termites! We're accepting applications for IUSSI-NAS Spring Research Awards, plus nominations for Best Student Paper on behavior/evolution in social arthropods. For more info: iussi.cyberbee.net/2024/03/iuss...
Here's the second student blog post about keeping a natural history notebook! This week, Josie writes about how she started out *looking* for birds -- but found that *listening* (along w/ Merlin Bird ID app) was more fruitful! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-... @harveymudd.bsky.social #iTeachBio
March 5, 2024 at 11:11 PM
Here's the second student blog post about keeping a natural history notebook! This week, Josie writes about how she started out *looking* for birds -- but found that *listening* (along w/ Merlin Bird ID app) was more fruitful! hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-... @harveymudd.bsky.social #iTeachBio
Students in my ecology lab are blogging about their experiences keeping a natural history notebook. This week, Sarah writes about lizards: taking a closer look gave her a new appreciation for their individuality & cuteness 🦎😍 hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/02/avid... @harveymudd.bsky.social #iTeachBio
February 28, 2024 at 8:31 PM
Students in my ecology lab are blogging about their experiences keeping a natural history notebook. This week, Sarah writes about lizards: taking a closer look gave her a new appreciation for their individuality & cuteness 🦎😍 hmcbee.blogspot.com/2024/02/avid... @harveymudd.bsky.social #iTeachBio
It's awful to think that Duke is giving up on their herbarium. So many irreplaceable specimens, and so much more to be gained from them as new methods are developed! If you agree, consider signing this petition to show support for the herbarium: chng.it/7NrcD4jNnM
Can you spare a minute to help this campaign?
The decision by Duke University to close their herbarium is deeply concerning. Herbaria are not just repositories of plant specimens, they are living libraries of life on Earth. They hold the keys to ...
chng.it
February 17, 2024 at 9:17 PM
It's awful to think that Duke is giving up on their herbarium. So many irreplaceable specimens, and so much more to be gained from them as new methods are developed! If you agree, consider signing this petition to show support for the herbarium: chng.it/7NrcD4jNnM
Reposted by Matina Donaldson-Matasci
My college (Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, CA) is hiring a Director of Learning Programs, who will oversee our Writing Center and Academic Excellence Program and contribute to the teaching of our first year core writing course.
lnkd.in/gxTPRqkE
Please help me spread the word!
lnkd.in/gxTPRqkE
Please help me spread the word!
February 6, 2024 at 8:47 PM
My college (Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, CA) is hiring a Director of Learning Programs, who will oversee our Writing Center and Academic Excellence Program and contribute to the teaching of our first year core writing course.
lnkd.in/gxTPRqkE
Please help me spread the word!
lnkd.in/gxTPRqkE
Please help me spread the word!
Reposted by Matina Donaldson-Matasci
sad news - Duke University decided to dump their herbarium, which has over 800,000 plant specimens, one of the largest among in America, and includes many type specimens of Lady Gaga ferns. What a shame. Please stop Duke admins for making this horrible mistake!!
February 14, 2024 at 4:40 PM
sad news - Duke University decided to dump their herbarium, which has over 800,000 plant specimens, one of the largest among in America, and includes many type specimens of Lady Gaga ferns. What a shame. Please stop Duke admins for making this horrible mistake!!