Megarhyssa greenei and M. atrata

By Matt Young
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Photography Contest.

Malcolm Schongalla, Honorable Mention.

Ichneumonid wasps. Mr. Schongalla notes, "These photographs were taken June 2026 in the Northeastern US. The two wasps were laying eggs on horntail larvae in the same log, at the same time. These are 'parasitoid wasps,' also known as Darwin wasps, of the family Ichneumonidae. The lighter color wasp [above] is Megarhyssa greenei and the darker one [below] is Megarhyssa atrata. The female member of this insect family lays her eggs on or near another insect host after paralyzing it. The larva feeds on the host insect's body as it grows. Unfortunately, no larvae are visible in these pictures. The larvae are inside the log, and the wasps' long ovipositor is adapted to reaching deep into the bore holes to reach them. The wasps have, amazingly, developed ways to detect the presence of larvae deep within the wood, from the outside."

More, including the second photograph, below the fold.

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Is evolution defied because life is an "idea"?

By Joe Felsenstein
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[Brown Bear]
Kamchatka Brown Bear (Ursus arctos), By Robert F. Tobler Wikimedia CC BY-SA 4.0

 

Eric Hedin had a post at Science & Culture Today (The Discovery Institute’s former Evolution News) that seems to fully commit to Platonic idealism and to teleology. Which is surprising since he is a Ph.D. in particle physics, from my own University. It will be found here.

Its final two paragraphs will give you the general drift, but you should read Hedin’s post, which is short:

To imagine that each of the millions of species of living creatures on Earth “evolved” by a weeding-out process, undirected by any idea of the wholeness they would ultimately manifest, runs counter to our experience with functional design and the known limitations of the laws of nature. If prolific reproductivity is the “goal” of natural selection, why should life have ever evolved to anything beyond bacteria? Cancer cells, as a mutation from original design, would seem to be evolution’s crowning achievement.

The wholeness of living organisms testifies to their metaphysical origin as an “idea,” originating in the mind of their Maker. The evidence suggests that creatures exceed the boundaries of what is possible by undirected natural forces. Even information, as we understand it, appears to fall short as the groundwork for life. Apparently, life comes from life, and nothing else will suffice. Life is a brilliant idea!

Is there some way we can counter this argument? The title of his article is “In Defiance of Evolution, Life is an Idea”. Is evolutionary biology finally totally defied?

To see comments, click on the title of this post or on the header showing the number of comments.

Nyctibius griseus

By Matt Young
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Photography Contest.

John Harshman, Third Place.

Common potoo, a bird with protective coloration hiding on a branch.
Nyctibius griseus – common potoo. Dr. Harshman notes that the potoo, from Ecuador, is "in his common daytime position of pretending to be the end of a broken branch." Just for the record, it is a bird.

Two decades ago, Dover showed how to win elections in conservative towns. They're still fighting

By Lauri Lebo
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Photograph of the author

Lauri Lebo is an advocacy coordinator and organizer for the Pennsylvania State Education Association. As a reporter, she covered the Kitzmiller v. Dover trial and wrote a book about her coverage, The Devil in Dover. She is a recipient of NCSE’s Friend of Darwin award in 2026. We asked her to write a few paragraphs linking to her recent article in the Reviews Reports of the National Center for Science Education. – Matt Young

It’s been 21 years since the First Amendment test case of Kitzmiller v. Dover, in which U.S. District Court judge John E. Jones III ruled that “intelligent design,” a form of revamped creationism, is unconstitutional to teach in the public schools.

While the parents who sued and science teachers celebrated, the school board members and their legal team had little to say. Looking back, most people involved in the trial said that few minds were changed. Many were just glad the national spotlight was no longer shining on Dover.

But roots run deep in south-central Pennsylvania, and history repeats itself. Some on the religious right quietly started preparing for the next opportunity.

I still get asked about comparisons between Kitzmiller v. Dover and attacks today on our public schools. Particularly, what did we learn about defeating school boards pushing a religious agenda? In this article in the Reviews Reports of the National Center for Science Education, I delve into what worked then and what works today.

Zeugomantispa minuta

By Matt Young
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Photography Contest.

Al Denelsbeck, Runner-up.

Northern green mantidfly with 2 views, one of which shows an unusual pattern in the eye.
Zeugomantispa minuta – northern green mantidfly. Mr. Denelsbeck writes, "I was delighted to find a northern green mantidfly having only spotted one over a decade previously, and captured this one for a studio session. However, two different lenses captured two different effects from the compound eyes under near-identical conditions and lighting. The left version is with a reversed 28-105 lens at approximately F/16 with a custom softbox on the flash, from a very short distance, while the right is with a 180 mm macro, also at F/16 and the same softbox, but significantly greater working distance. I have not yet determined if the different effects were from the working distance and perhaps diffusion of the lighting (the left version being more diffuse because the softbox was more above the subject and broader in 'source,') or it was a product of the optics of the two lenses - the 28-105 lens was never intended to be used in reverse, and might have suffered from the methods used to reduce chromatic aberration. The right version is much more stunning, but also a bit distracting. My subject was released back where found after the session. Overall body length just 12 mm.


Another optics problem! The submission was by design relatively low in resolution, so I asked for the original and cropped it so as to reveal more information. More below the fold.

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