Field Notes

Alie Kratzer | Engineer + Scientist + Entrepreneur + Author | Trans Rights!

[jadafitch]

HAPPY NATIONAL MOTH WEEK! Celebrate with moth ART and STICKERS! Moths of North America poster Saturniid Moths of North America poster

[humanbyweight]

I have one of these hanging up in my office. 😊

[cdplayer]

"sound of the summer is this song" WRONG. its cicadas

[cdplayer]

for the 40th to 200th million summer in a row

[humanbyweight]

It's a little more complicated than that! Here is an excerpt from my book The Cicadas of North America:

[humanbyweight]

Guess who's forklift certifiiiiiiied

😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎

[humanbyweight]

As a biologist, I can say with absolute clarity that I am a transgender woman whose biological sex is female down to the molecular level.

[humanbyweight]

Trans, nonbinary, and intersex experiences are all supported by modern biological science.

Anyone who tries to convince you otherwise is just really excited for the chance to spit on marginalized people.

[humanbyweight]

Believe it or not, shouting "biology" to justify bigotry does not make you a biologist

[humanbyweight]

Zoey moved this turtle out of the road and told her to go find somewhere safer to lay her eggs. A few hours later we found her digging in the driveway instead. Following the letter of the law if not the spirit? 😅

[humanbyweight]

I went out to visit some of my favorite butterflies today.

[humanbyweight]

It's driving me crazy how every major clade of animals has a distinct word for "hairs" but not for "sexes"

setae pycnofibers protofeathers fur chaeta flagella cillia scales sensilla

Meanwhile we're still out here calling bugs and plants "female"

[xalatath]

How it feels lately

[humanbyweight]

I just want everyone to know that one of the most venomous spiders in the world is this adorable little dork

[salticidaeily]

(source: Sherwood & Hatchard, 2026. A case of gynandry and intersexuality in Phidippus regius C. L. Koch, 1846 (Araneae: Salticidae))

Sherwood and Hatchard describe the life history of a bilaterally gynandromorphic regal jumper in fascinating detail here, including some behavioral trials -- though near-perfectly split into male and female halves, overall this captive-bred regal exhibited more male-typical behaviors, though without much interest in courtship, and lived a two-year lifespan more expected from a female.

[harpsi-corpse]

The cards see all.

[fyanimaldiversity]

Bilateral gynandromorph Eastern tiger swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) [x]

[addicted2wasps]

My new custom quilt is finished!!! The honeycomb pattern fabric was designed by a different artist, but the yellowjackets fabric was custom designed by yours truly! It looks amazing put together! Carefully crafted by my godmother! Thank you so much!!! 😍 It looks great on my bed!

[apsciencebylyn]

Just a very normal paper wasp (with Grabby Hands) 👀

I did not know that the brown wasp mantidfly (Climaciella brunnea), which mimics Polistes paper wasps, can come in various morphs to mimic different species within Polistes (thanks @humanbyweight) - possibly P. metricus here! 😍

Just solid creature design

[emcheeseman]

been completely glued to the Artemis II coverage all week, I love space

[directactionforhope]

Part of what is so incredibly frustrating to me about transphobia is that trans studies COULD be the next twin studies, if only people would stop being such fucking assholes about it