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Jakob Jilg

@weevil-see.bsky.social

140 followers 100 following 30 posts

Entomologist (he/him) specializing in Curculionoidea ("weevils", "Rüsselkäfer") Studying "Biodiversity & Ecosystem Health M.Sc." 📍 Frankfurt (Main) / Germany https://www.instagram.com/weevil.see/ https://weevil-see.com/

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Aug 8

I started a blog and my first post is online!
The posts will try to explore topics which are not typically covered by introductory literature and textbooks, e.g. because they are considered to be "too basic". Let me know what you think!

weevil-see.github.io/taxonomy/Ide...

Species Identifications: Common Pitfalls

Some thoughts about Identifications. How do we identify properly? How do we avoid mistakes?

weevil-see.github.io

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · 13d

Thank you so much for this update! I'm super happy with the biological associations now visible in TaxonPages!

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · 13d

To keep track with everything, we love to make lists. They give us the illusion of order in a chaotic reality.
For this project, there is a large database in the background (TaxonWorks), and a data portal as frontend (TaxonPages: curculionidae.github.io/taxa)

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · 13d

You can now explore host-plant associations on "Curculionidae of the World Online"!
We have almost 3000 associations in the database.

Huge thanks to the team of TaxonWorks who got the Biological Associations tab for TaxonPages running with the latest release!
curculionidae.github.io/taxa/#/otus/...

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Sep 7

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORGW...
I had the honor to meet the two when they visited Europe!

Behind the Bell Brothers - Twin Insect Researchers | Discovery | Gardening Australia

YouTube video by Gardening Australia

www.youtube.com

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Sep 7

Damn I got caught! 😂
I'd never reveal in public how my desk actually looks like!
I use the desk in the image to have space to place insect drawers, but often its cluttered anyways. The microscope is on another desk, next to my computer.
I staged the photo to represent the topic in an idealized way

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Sep 6

Sounds great! But it's sad that its required to have an Eventbrite account

Reposted by Jakob Jilg

Biological Recording Company @biologicalrecording.co.uk · Sep 5

🪲 Weevils! The UK boasts 600+ species, almost as many as birds! Join us on 13 Oct (7–8pm) for an entoLIVE with @markgurn.bsky.social to explore their ecology, habitats & quirky plant preferences. It is FREE!!! Don’t miss it! 🧪 🌎

🔗 Sign up here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1491232379...

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Sep 5

Thank you so much! I can't see if someone is reading my blog posts, and if they enjoy them, so I really appreciate your words!

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Sep 5

Thank you very much for your kind words! As the blog has no comment section, it's difficult to see if anyone is reading it and what they think about it, so your comment is very much appreciated!

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Sep 3

A summary of Agave weevils!

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Aug 24

New Blog Post!
How to Obtain, Manage and Access Entomological Literature weevil-see.com/taxonomy/acc...

How to Obtain, Manage and Access Entomological Literature

Curating and searching large PDF collections

weevil-see.com

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Reposted by Jakob Jilg

mossworm.bsky.social @mossworm.bsky.social · Aug 19

it took one (1) question for the amazing new agentic LLM iChatBio to start fabricating data out of nothing. I asked for a list of clam shrimp in Florida, and it skipped a whole genus. when I told it that it was missing one, it confidently replied that Cyzicus also lives in Florida (it doesn't).

I ask: "how many species of clam shrimp are in florida"

ichatbio answers: "You’d like to know how many species of clam shrimp (order Diplostraca, suborder Laevicaudata, Cyclestherida, or Spinicaudata) are found in Florida. I will search occurrence record databases for the count of unique clam shrimp species reported in Florida."

ichatbio: According to iDigBio, there are 47 unique scientific names under the order Diplostraca (which includes clam shrimp and related groups) recorded in Florida, based on 524 records. This count may include both clam shrimp and other related taxa (like water fleas). If you'd like, I can filter the list to show only known clam shrimp species or provide the full list for your review.

me: show only clam shrimp

ichatbio:Thank you for your request to see only clam shrimp species (typically families Limnadiidae, Lynceidae, and Cyzicidae). I will extract and filter the species-level names to include only recognized clam shrimp taxa recorded in Florida.

ichatbio lists: eulimnadia diversa, lynceus gracilicornis, eulimnadia insularis, eulimnadia astraova, eulimnadia texana, and limnadia lenticularis.

it's missing genus Paralimnetis.

me: you are missing a genus

ichatbio: Thank you for pointing that out. You are correct that my previous filter included only the genera Eulimnadia, Lynceus, and Limnadia. There is another clam shrimp genus known from Florida: Cyzicus. Would you like me to include Cyzicus in the filtered list and provide updated results for clam shrimp species recorded in Florida?

me: cyzicus is not found in florida

ichatbio: Thank you for clarifying—Cyzicus is not found in Florida, so it shouldn’t appear in a Florida clam shrimp list. If you believe another genus is missing from the clam shrimp genera known in Florida, could you specify which one? Otherwise, based on iDigBio records and typical literature, the genera Eulimnadia, Lynceus, and Limnadia are the main clam shrimp genera documented in Florida.

If you’d like, I can attempt to extract any other candidate genera from the occurrence records or check for further synonymies. Please let me know how you’d like to proceed!

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Aug 22

Is it everything you use to store, curate and access your PDF collection? Or do you have the files also elsewhere and use Scrivener only for quick access to those files you need often?
(I'm writing a blog post on how I manage my PDF collection, ofc I'm also interested to learn about alternatives)

Reposted by Jakob Jilg

Biodiversity Heritage Library @biodivlibrary.bsky.social · Aug 19

🌱 BHL’s Call for Support soft-closes on Aug 31. 🧪
With @clirnews.bsky.social as our new fiscal sponsor, we now have an administrative & financial home, but we still need partners, hosts, funders & long-term investment to secure BHL's future. about.biodiversitylibrary.org/call-for-sup... #ILoveBHL

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Aug 21

Job as "Insect Identification Laboratory Manager"
careers.pageuppeople.com/968/cw/en-us...

Details | Insect Identification Laboratory Manager | Careers | Division of Human Resources | Virginia Tech

careers.pageuppeople.com

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Aug 20

Meet Peltophorus polymitus, the Agave Stem Weevil!
- Larvae develop in the stem of different Agave species (often A. palmeri)
- When disturbed, the weevils will drop into the thorny depth of their host plant
- found in Mexico and the SW of the USA
- This specimen was found by Salvatore S. Anzaldo

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Aug 8

Species Identifications: Common Pitfalls

Some thoughts about Identifications. How do we identify properly? How do we avoid mistakes?

weevil-see.github.io

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Jun 11

Do I understand correctly that you do this to criticize iNats plans? I agree!
I see the main problem that reasoning for an identification changes based on context.
Id like iNat as the worldwide standard, but people in Europe are already concerned as the servers are located in the US...

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · May 16

For me it is always fascinating to be able to locate such tiny insects through their host plants. They are as reliable as a postal adress!

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · May 16

How to find Mogulones crucifer:
The weevil is native to Europe/West Asia, but has been introduced to North America to control its host (Cynoglossum officinale; Hound's Tongue) which is invasive there.

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · May 9

Could the needle be made out of silver? The corrosion is looking similar to that which is illustrated in this paper here: www.natsca.org/sites/defaul...

www.natsca.org

Reposted by Jakob Jilg

TaxonWorks @taxonworks.bsky.social · Apr 29

It is one week until TaxonWorks Together 2025.

With 7 in-depth conversations ranging from eDNA to Research Software Engineers and the role of vouchering, and stories of #data in transition, there's more than TaxonWorks on the table.

Join over 125 registrants, for free, at together.taxonworks.org.

TaxonWorks Together

Annual event about the collective work in the creation of data to Describe life

together.taxonworks.org

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · May 4

Do I have to be a paying member of the ESA to take part? When clicking "register", it's not clear for me if I'm creating a free account or if I'm registering as a member :)
(asking publicly because it may matter to others as well, hope that is okay)

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Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Apr 16

I'll give a talk on weevils next week (April 23)!
Language will be German.
artenkenntnis-niedersachsen.de/events/onlin...

Online-Vortrag: Spannendes aus der Welt der Rüsselkäfer - Kompetenznetzwerk Artenkenntnis Niedersachsen (KNAK)

Rüsselkäfer sind so charmant, wie der Name klingt. Häufig geht es, wenn man über sie spricht, allerdings um Schädlingsbekämpfung oder sie werden gefürchtet. Doch sie sind so viel mehr!Sie sind eine in...

artenkenntnis-niedersachsen.de

Jakob Jilg @weevil-see.bsky.social · Mar 16

I think they like moist habitats, I've seen them once in Brandenburg on a moist meadow (on Urtica), and once in the south of Poland, montane environment, on a vegetation of large herbs, mainly Petasites.

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