skye, certified bug enthusiast (they/he)

@thatbugkid.bsky.social

809 Followers 509 Following

PhD student at UC Davis studying wasps and other fun bugs. Enjoys talking to bugs, stuffing moss into their pockets, writing, and fiber arts.

a conference badge for the ecological society of america conference. text on a white background reads “ESA 2025” and the name Skye Austin is below it. Below Skye’s name is “UC Davis”. Skye has a variety of ribbons (from top to bottom): a light blue “Poster Presenter” ribbon, a silver “Student Member” ribbon, a neon green “Student” ribbon, a dark green “They-Them-Theirs” ribbon, a green “SEEDS Alumni” ribbon, and a navy blue “Career Central” ribbon. The badge is resting on a faux-wood table.
Skye is holding a snap cap vial with an orange bee inside it. the bee is looking at the camera
a large, black bee is contained in a snap cap vial that skye is holding. you can see vegetation in the background of the photo.
a photo of oryx, the taken king reaching towards the camera. the caption reads “I’m taking that”
a shelf with a bin and a basket on it. squeezed in between the bin and the basket is a bag of fiber and a drop spindle
a photo of a black man looking confused with question marks surrounding his face
A picture of Skye in a public bathroom. They're wearing a jersey representing the Shenandoah University esports team. Skye is smiling in the photo.
A photo of Nezarec, the Final God of Pain. He is holding his glaive and running towards the camera.
an imperial moth is sitting on skye’s finger. it is waving its front leg to the camera like it’s saying hello!
A shallow, white cardboard box with foam at the bottom. pinned in the foam are small bees with labels. the label text is very small and hard to read. in the corner of the box is a vial containing the head of a bee. in the background of the photo, you can see some more bees that are pinned and drying.
an purple-y gray isopod with a reddish skirt and yellow dots down its back. it is sitting nicely on the substrate of the tank it is in. you can also see moss and dried leaves in the photo
A photo of Skye, who is wearing a white mask and has circular glasses, standing in front of a collections box. The box contains colorful butterfly specimens. Behind them is a photo of the collections drawers pulled out to show the large number of specimens.
a hand holding a labelled specimen jar. the label reads (from top to bottom): Halictidae, Agapostemon (this is crossed out), Lasioglossum (this is crossed out), Coll: 05/06/2023, BEF S2 V#17. in the very corner of the label are the initials SAUS.
a photo of a messy table. on the table is a stereoscope with the brightness set to high, a bottle of 95% ethyl alcohol, a flashlight, a marker, two pairs of tweezers, and many, many jars of bees.