Max Tercel’s visit from Cibio, Portugal!

We had the immense pleasure of hosting long-term FERG collaborator Max Tercel here in Newcastle! Max came to visit for EcoNet (which you can read all about in our recent post, including Max’s help running the molecular workshop) and Ento 2025 in Glasgow. Jordan and Max have worked closely together for most of their careers and continue to collaborate on various different research ideas, so it was great for the wider group to get to meet him and learn about his current research. To that end, Max gave a talk on his current project focused on Dorylus army ants in Equatorial Guinea. These ants are ecologically incredible, performing raids on littoral prey, but also attracting mutualistic and commensal interactions with various other organisms as a result of their massive ecological impacts to nearby organisms. Max’s talk featured all sorts of incredible photos and videos that had everyone wishing they could work on these keystone organisms too!

As above, Max’s contributions to EcoNet were also incredible, from helping run the molecular workshop and present a seminar on the ‘problem of omnivory‘ to chairing a session and just generally being a delightful presence. Rosy, Ben and (only briefly due to childcare responsibilities) Jordan also got to spend some time with Max at the Royal Entomological Society’s Ento 2025!

Max got to experience some of our incredible nearby landmarks during his stay, including Holy Island/Lindisfarne, a tidal island north of Newcastle steeped in both monastic and natural history! We hope to welcome Max back very soon and have all sorts of exciting plans to continue working together.

Read more about Max’s research on ResearchGate, Google Scholar and his institutional page, and check out his poster for Ento 2025, focused on his Dorylus army ant research!