Jess Awad
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parasitoidrex.bsky.social
Jess Awad
@parasitoidrex.bsky.social
1.4K followers 580 following 210 posts
Entomologist specializing in parasitoid wasps and dark taxa. Leiden, Netherlands.
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parasitoidrex.bsky.social
Jess Awad @parasitoidrex.bsky.social · Feb 12
Gall midges and their parasitoids are abundant, megadiverse, and very hard to identify! Such "double dark taxa" systems present special challenges for ecology and agriculture. 🧵🧪🐙 @smnstuttgart.bsky.social @marinamoser.bsky.social @krogmann.bsky.social doi.org/10.1093/aesa...
Untangling host specialization in a “double dark taxa” system
Abstract. Platygastrine wasps (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae) are parasitoids of gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae). They and their hosts are exceptionally
doi.org
Reposted by Jess Awad
aglaia.bsky.social
Nomineer nu jouw favoriete soort voor de verkiezing Insect van het Jaar! Vroege Vogels roept er ook toe op, dus dan moet het zeker. ☺️ www.bnnvara.nl/vroegevogels...
Wie wordt het 'Insect van het Jaar' van 2026? - Vroege Vogels - BNNVARA
Elk jaar kiest Nederland zijn favoriete insect. Dit jaar kan iedereen tot 1 maart een insect nomineren, met mooie prijzen te winnen. De verkiezing helpt mensen insecten beter te begrijpen en waarderen...
www.bnnvara.nl
January 12, 2026 at 4:09 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
timcurran.bsky.social
Meet the springtails: little-known fantastic beasts that live everywhere on Earth
theconversation.com/meet-the-spr...

Ping @frankashwood.bsky.social
Meet the springtails: little-known fantastic beasts that live everywhere on Earth
These tiny critters have shaped the health of our planet for hundreds of millions of years.
theconversation.com
January 12, 2026 at 8:29 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
hsauquet.bsky.social
We've just created an exciting new Phylogenomics Botanist role to join our vibrant team at Botanic Gardens of Sydney and help us build the NSW Plant Tree of Life! Applications close 26 Jan 2026: iworkfor.nsw.gov.au/job/phylogen...

#botanicgardens #nswflora #nswptol #phylogenomics
January 13, 2026 at 12:26 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
ashwhiffin.bsky.social
Steven Hammer, one of our regular collection users, co-developed a new #insect pinning block, with staff and volunteers from the museum.

It’s 3D-printed and open source, so you can try it for yourself:
cults3d.com/en/3d-model/...

#ECN2025
Entoblock step
An improved pinning block for entomological collections. It has five steps at different heights for quick and accurate label setting. The steps are visible from both sides, making it suitable for lef...
cults3d.com
November 9, 2025 at 8:24 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
fotoyaaf.bsky.social
En de rups van de #koninginnenpage mag er uiteraard ook wezen!

#vlindermaand
Caterpillar of old world swallowtail butterfly on it's host plant, wild carrot. The image is taken in the late evening, with the sunset behind the caterpillar.
January 10, 2026 at 7:47 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
camglamresearch.bsky.social
Call now open for Visiting Fellowships in our Natural History Humanities programme! Building long-term collaborations with early career researchers on Cambridge GLAM collections.

@camunivmuseums.bsky.social @theul.bsky.social @cubotanicgarden.bsky.social
www.ccc.cam.ac.uk/initiatives/...
Natural History Humanities - Collections Connections Communities
www.ccc.cam.ac.uk
January 9, 2026 at 8:27 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
jeffontherock.bsky.social
Chocolate Tube Slime Mold (Stemonitis sp) on a spruce tree cone. The slime mold is about 1.5cm wide.
#slimemold #fungifriends
Photo of a spruce tree cone laying flat on a mossy forest floor. A mature, brown chocolate tube slime mold is attached to the top of the cone.
January 8, 2026 at 1:13 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
aglaia.bsky.social
In de winter is het ook mogelijk om insecten te zoeken, achter schors bijvoorbeeld. Daar vind je dan overwinterende dieren, zoals deze slakkenaaskever (Phosphuga atrata) die niet per se blij was met de verstoring. #ElkeDagEenInsect
Phosphuga atrata
January 8, 2026 at 5:46 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
saskyavn.bsky.social
Starting soon:
January 8, 2026 at 12:19 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
taxonfoundation.bsky.social
For 2026 we have space for new community science projects in the Netherlands or abroad. So if you are a team of neighborhood nature enthusiasts who need expert help with biodiversity inventories, please drop us a line.

#scicomm #insects #Biodiversity #communityscience #citizenscience #urbannature
January 7, 2026 at 11:20 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
ymilesz.bsky.social
I love these illustrations!
January 6, 2026 at 10:38 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
waspvenom.bsky.social
New paper from the Martinson Lab! A fun study where we find a nice example of cascading speciation and describe three new species. Plus some exciting data to suggest that ecological guild may influence the impacts of host-associated differentiation. A 🧵. #galls #insects 🧪 doi.org/10.1111/mec....
Photo of a tank-like black parasitoid wasp, a new species called Eurytoma trixa
January 6, 2026 at 9:35 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
megdaly.bsky.social
This is a wonderful program! Pass it along to evolution- and biodiversity- curious undergrads!!
January 7, 2026 at 12:32 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
jeffontherock.bsky.social
Roundleaf sundew leaf. One of the #carnivorous plants we have here in #newfoundland, Canada. #botany #plant
Photo of a roundleaf sundew leaf at dusk. The leaf is green and is covered in tiny red hairs. Each hair has a drop of sticky liquid at the tip. The background of the photo is dark.
January 6, 2026 at 4:01 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
arnoldtortoise.bsky.social
A faded Ooctonus hemipterus wasp of the Mymaridae found in Combe Valley 31.7.2024. Love those brachypterous wings!

#UKWildlife #wasps #Mymaridae
Side view of a tiny brown wasp with disproportionately small wings. Its head is to the left of picture and has a large red eye and long pale antennae.
January 6, 2026 at 11:39 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
tapani-hopkins.bsky.social
Yay, our new species is out! Only two Xanthephialtes species were known to exist from before, now we've added a third from Uganda.

Please welcome: Xanthephialtes iida sp. nov! 🧪🐣🥳 Named after Emil's wife.

In @zookeys.pensoft.net with @ilarisaaksjarvi.bsky.social, me, Emil, Kari, Simon.
Review of the genus Xanthephialtes Cameron (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae), with re-definition of the genus and description of a new species from Uganda
Xanthephialtes Cameron, 1906 (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Pimplinae) is a small Afrotropical Darwin wasp genus with only two previously known species, for which we provide images of the holotypes. Her...
doi.org
January 5, 2026 at 8:45 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
dezene.me
Peru 🇵🇪 has given legal rights to 175 native bee 🐝 species:

"...stingless bees now have the fundamental right to exist and flourish in a healthy environment, without pollution, habitat loss, climate change, human activity or other threats..."

🪲🪳🌎

www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/h...
Honey-Making Stingless Bees in the Peruvian Amazon Become the First Insects to Gain Legal Rights
Two local ordinances granted rights to at least 175 stingless bee species in Peru, which are culturally and spiritually significant to Indigenous peoples and help maintain a healthy rainforest ecosyst...
www.smithsonianmag.com
January 5, 2026 at 9:41 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
evoldir.bsky.social
Three postdoctoral positions are open at the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, focusing on insect-microbe interactions. Application deadline: 08.01.2026. More info: https://www.unibz.it/en/home/research/competence-centre-plant-health/ #postdoc
Competence Centre for Plant Health
The focus of the competence centre lies in the research of abiotic and biotic stress factors in order to understand their role on the health of plants, to research changes and to predict future challenges, as well as to develop innovative solutions and recommend them in practice.
www.unibz.it
December 24, 2025 at 8:38 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
bossdorf.bsky.social
Please RT: we are looking for a PhD student to work on macrogenetics and quantitative genetics of South African proteas. Amazing collaborative project with @plantecology.bsky.social @debbiemleigh.bsky.social & others, embedded in @terra-cluster.org. Dream project if you love molecular biodiversity!
January 4, 2026 at 11:48 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
integsyst.bsky.social
First report of the invasive pest species Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Eastern Europe

Free download: doi.org/10.18476/202...

#pest #moth @braconidae-ua.bsky.social @smnstuttgart.bsky.social @bioone.bsky.social
Male of Spodoptera frugiperda, recorded on 26.VI.2021 in a small valley in the vicinity of Velyki Dmytrovychi, Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine. (Photo: V. Voronov)
January 4, 2026 at 8:59 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
integsyst.bsky.social
A remarkable new species of the Megaselia sulphuripes-group: Megaselia heimingshofensis sp. n. from Central and Eastern Europe (Diptera: Phoridae)

Free download: doi.org/10.18476/202...

#scuttleflies #GBOLIII #darktaxa @smnstuttgart.bsky.social @leibnizlib.bsky.social @flygirlnhm.bsky.social
Megaselia heimingshofensis sp. n., holotype, ♂, Germany, Nordrhein-Westfalen. Lkr. Coesfeld, Haltern am See, “Heimingshof-Moor”, Lat 51.751, Lon 7.264, 30.VI.2023. a. Lateral habitus. b. Right wing. c. Head, dorsal view. d. Hypopygium. e. Hypopygium, left (L) and right (R) views.
January 4, 2026 at 9:07 AM
parasitoidrex.bsky.social
So happy to see this published! Led by the very talented @marinamoser.bsky.social who also did all the line drawings, a valuable and increasingly rare skill. Congrats team!
January 4, 2026 at 9:14 AM
Reposted by Jess Awad
evolodonata.ecoevo.social.ap.brid.gy
Come and join me and my colleagues at the Department of Biology, #LundUniversity in #sweden! We have am open position as Senior Lecturer/Associate Professor in Biodiversity.

Apply here no later than February 11 2026:

https://lu.varbi.com/en/what:job/jobID:848749/type:job/where:4/apply:1
Senior Lecturer/Associate Professor in Biodiversity
The Department of Biology was established in 2010 through the merger of the Departments of Ecology, Cell and Organism Biology, Biological Undergraduate Education, and the Biological Museums. The depar
lu.varbi.com
December 20, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
bertonemyia.bsky.social
It never ceases to amaze me that a species with these colors is native to the Southeast US (this is from North Carolina).

Florida predatory stink bug nymph #Pentatomidae: #Euthyrhynchus floridanus
A stink bug nymph sitting on a white background facing right. Its head, thorax, legs, antennae, and row of scent glands on the abdomen are metallic blue-green. The rest of the abdomen is brilliantly shiny red. A stink bug nymph sitting on a white background facing bottom left. Its head, thorax, legs, antennae, and row of scent glands on the abdomen are metallic blue-green. The rest of the abdomen is brilliantly shiny red. A stink bug nymph sitting on a white background facing bottom right. Its head, thorax, legs, antennae, and row of scent glands on the abdomen are metallic blue-green. The rest of the abdomen is brilliantly shiny red.
January 2, 2026 at 9:04 PM
Reposted by Jess Awad
entopoc.bsky.social
From the ENTOPOC team, we wish you an incredible 2026.

This year, we reaffirm our commitment to support students of color. We would like to announce our research and travel grants.

Two application deadlines: April 15 and September 15.

Find more information at:

www.entopoc.org/researchtrav...
Research and travel grant up to 500 USD for students around the world. Deadlines: april 15th and september 15th.
January 2, 2026 at 5:20 PM