![Social parasitism Queen and worker ants](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Social parasitism Queen and worker ants
Social parasitism in ants. The queen of the Slave maker ant, Formica sanguinea, being tended to by workers of Dusky ant Formica fusca.
![Wood ants guide cover image](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Wood ants guide cover image
Wood ants guide cover image Cairngorms national park and Southern red wood ants Formica fusca practising trophallaxis
![Colour roughs for different wood ant species](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Colour roughs for different wood ant species
Colour roughs for: Southern red wood ant Formica rufa, Hairy wood ant Formica lugubris, Scottish wood ant Formica aquilonia, and Slender ant Leptothorax acervorum. Used to check colours before proceeding to final illustrations.
![Ant species colour guide rough](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Ant species colour guide rough
Ant species colour guide rough for: Southern red wood ant Formica rufa, Hairy wood ant Formica lugubris, Scottish wood ant Formica aquilonia, Slender ant Leptothorax acervorum, Slave-making Blood red ant Formica sanguinea, Shining guest ant Formicoxenus nitidulus, and Narrow headed ant Formica exsecta. These sketches were used to check the colouration before moving onto the […]
![Worker ant Formica aquilonia Scottish wood ant](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Worker ant Formica aquilonia Scottish wood ant
Worker ant F. aquilonia Scottish wood ant, in profile. Workers are all haplodiploid, sharing much of their genetic material with their mother, the queen. This supports their eusocial colonies.
![Male wood ant Formica lugubis Hairy wood ant](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Male wood ant Formica lugubis Hairy wood ant
Male wood ant F. lugubris Hairy wood ant. These males have dark bodies and yellow legs and genitals. Like the females, they have wings. Unlike the females, shortly after mating during the nuptial flight, they will die.
![Queen ant Formica aquilonia Scottish wood ant](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Queen ant Formica aquilonia Scottish wood ant
Queen ant F. aquilonia Scottish wood ant with wings. Newly emerged queens have wings, and following their mating and nuptial flight, they bite these off. This enables them to burrow underground and set up a new ant nest and colony, and to begin laying eggs and raising young.
![Pupae and cocoon of wood ant and unsheathed pupae](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Pupae and cocoon of wood ant and unsheathed pupae
Pupae of a wood ant, both within its cocoon, and extracted. Detail from a life cycle ant illustration by Lizzie Harper natural history and sciart illustrator
![Larvae of wood ant](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Larvae of wood ant
Larvae of wood ant showing their translucent bodies and segmentation.
![Eggs of wood ant](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Eggs of wood ant
Illustration of several eggs of a wood ant.
![Scottish wood ant thoracic view](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Scottish wood ant thoracic view
Detail of the thorax of the Scottish wood ant Formica aquilonia. The illustration shows distribution of hairs up to the eyes. This species is often confused with the Hairy wood ant which has longer hairs.
![Ground ivy Glechoma hederacea](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Ground ivy Glechoma hederacea
Ground ivy Glechoma hederacea pen and ink line drawing with detail of oen flower
![Chironomid midge adult Micropsectra radialis](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Chironomid midge adult Micropsectra radialis
Chironomid midge Micropsectra radialis adult with larva. Head capsule detail reconstructed form electron microscope images of fossilized remains.
![Dandelion Taxacum officinale](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Dandelion Taxacum officinale
Dandelion Taxacum officinale with details of seed and root
![Wood anenome Anemone nemorosa](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Wood anenome Anemone nemorosa
Wood anenome Anemone nemorosa lone flower with dark green leaf
![Wood anenome Anemone nemorosa pencil](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Wood anenome Anemone nemorosa pencil
Wood anenome Anemone nemorosa pencil drawing
![Wildflower border](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Wildflower border
Wildflower border roughly following seasonal growth with hellebore, anenome, bluebell and daffodil showing spring; winter aconite, witch hazel, and snowdrops for winter; scabious, foxglove, dog rose, knapweed, poppy, terasel, fringed waterlily and a painted butterfly for summer; mistletoe, Ivy with a spider, violets, holly, primrose, and a hoverfly also make an appearance
![Vipers Bugloss Echium vulgare](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Vipers Bugloss Echium vulgare
Vipers Bugloss Echium vulgare flowering spike
![Sweet flag Acorus calamus fruit](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Sweet flag Acorus calamus fruit
Sweet flag Acorus calamus fruit growing from leaf, pencil
![Sunflower Helianthus annuus](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Sunflower Helianthus annuus
Sunflower Helianthus annuus close up of one flwoer
![Oak polypore fungus piptoporus quercinus](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Oak polypore fungus piptoporus quercinus
Oak polypore fungus piptoporus quercinus bracket fungus growing on the side of an oak tree
![Nigella and Scabious bouquet](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Nigella and Scabious bouquet
Nigella and Scabious bouquet with Nigella seed pods
![Oak bark Quercus robur](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Oak bark Quercus robur
Oak bark Quercus robur study
![Oak Quercus robur](https://lizzieharper.co.uk/wp-content/themes/lizzie/images/px.jpg)
Oak Quercus robur
Oak Quercus robur pen and ink tree shape without leaves