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Esme Ashe-Jepson

@esme-ashe.bsky.social
741 followers 409 following 95 posts

Post-doc at the University of Würzburg | Global change and temperature impacts on butterflies across the life cycle 🦋🐛☀️ My views are my own, she/her, 🇬🇧 in 🇩🇪

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Reposted by Esme Ashe-Jepson
Malte Jochum @maltejochum.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
New preprint out today: Solar parks ☀️ as an opportunity to jointly advance climate-change mitigation and biodiversity conservation 🐦 🦋 @nadja-simons.bsky.social @esme-ashe.bsky.social @christianhof.bsky.social @uni-wuerzburg.de ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v... Figures @juliabeutling.bsky.social
ecoevorxiv.org
Solar parks as an opportunity to jointly advance climate-change mitigation and biodiversity conservation
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
As another year of fieldwork comes to a close, I can reflect on how this season was for butterflies in my region
A photo of a brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni) perched on a finger.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
It’s been scorching hot here in Germany for so long many of the plants and even trees are dead/dying. 🥵🔥 It’s getting hard to find any butterflies, but I am still finding moths, like this lovely Silver Y (Autographa gamma), a long distant migrant from southern Europe/Africa
A photo of a silver y moth (Autographa gamma) sat on a hand.
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Reposted by Esme Ashe-Jepson
Communications Biology @commsbio.nature.com · 30/07/2026
🦋🏔️🌡️ Lack of variation in thermoregulatory capacity in #butterflies across an elevational gradient suggests limited adaptive capacity. Poorer thermoregulators had stronger upwards range shifts in response to #climate change. @esme-ashe.bsky.social @globalchangeeco.bsky.social doi.org/10.1038/s420...
doi.org
Butterflies with low thermoregulatory capacity show greatest upwards range shifts along an elevational gradient - Communications Biology
Lack of variation in thermoregulatory capacity or thermal tolerance in butterflies across an elevational gradient suggests limited adaptive capacity. Poorer thermoregulators had stronger upwards range...
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Catch of the day!! An absolutely gorgeous Queen of Spain fritillary (Issoria lathonia), caught with the help of our student intern in an extensively managed urban park
A photo of a queen of Spain fritillary butterfly (Issoria lathonia) held in forceps.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
New paper out! Limited evidence that butterflies are capable of changing their thermoregulatory performance or thermal tolerance in response to local climatic conditions. Instead, poorer thermoregulators have shown stronger upwards elevational range shifts in response to climate change rdcu.be/fuSJE
rdcu.be
Butterflies with low thermoregulatory capacity show greatest upwards range shifts along an elevational gradient
Communications Biology - Lack of variation in thermoregulatory capacity or thermal tolerance in butterflies across an elevational gradient suggests limited adaptive capacity. Poorer...
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Last night we hosted Moth Night; we showcased different moth trapping methods, looked at moths beneath the microscope, and played some moth themed games! We highlighted their diversity, ecological importance, and conservation. 🌙 Thank you to everyone who took part!
Two panel image: left people standing around a skinner moth trap. Right a person standing in front of a tower moth trap.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Woke up to an elephant hawk moth (Deilephila elpenor) on the toaster, must’ve been after some breakfast 🍞🍳🥓
An elephant hawk moth (Deilephila elpenor) perched on a toaster.An elephant hawk moth (Deilephila elpenor) perched on a hand.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
I’ve had some interesting insect finds this week while out hunting for butterflies, including this dazzling light crimson underwing moth (Catocala promissa) that generously showed off its bright red hindwings as for just a moment before flying off 😍
A photo of a light crimson underwing moth perched on a handA photo of a light crimson underwing moth perched on a hand flapping its wings.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
Delighted to share that our paper that showed how historic records kept by hobby entomologists can be used to investigate long-term change was Highly Commended by the Royal Entomology Society Journal Awards 🥰📚📜 you can find our paper here: doi.org/10.1111/icad... www.royensoc.co.uk/news/res-jou...
A photo of pinned moths in a museum.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
The forest has been a great place to work on these hot days, lots of insects flying (and unfortunately biting 🪰🦟)! Plenty of white admirals fluttering about at the moment🌳🦋
A photo of a beautiful demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo) on a leafA photo of a white admiral (Limenitis camilla) on a mesh window.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Had a great (but very hot) weekend on the Fauna Excursion, collecting and identifying insects in grasslands and forest. The forest day in particular was great, we caught both a purple emperor and a lesser purple emperor, and lots of white-letter hairstreaks! 🦋🦋🦋🌳
A photo of a purple emperor butterfly (Apatura iris) with wings closed.A photo of a lesser purple emperor butterfly (Apatura ilia) in a tube. A photo of a white-letter hairstreak butterfly (Satyrium w-album) in a tube.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Germany is currently experiencing a pretty brutal heatwave 🥵🔥 bad for me, but the butterflies so far are loving it! Very high numbers of Essex skipper (Thymelicus lineola) and marbled white (Melanargia galathea) on campus at the moment! 🦋🦋🦋
A photo of an Essex skipper (Thymelicus lineola) perched on a fingertip.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
On our Evolutionary Ecology course today, we had the pleasure of meeting Pinu, a dog trained to sniff out scarce fritillary (Euphydryas maturna) caterpillars to improve their monitoring! 🐛🦋 Great job Pinu and his dedicated owner Ádám Kőrösi!
A photograph of a black dog sniffing the ground
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
It was an absolute pleasure today to share some of my recent research with the students and staff at @unimarburg.bsky.social! 🦋🦗🗻☀️ Big thanks to Elisa Schenkel for the talk invite 🥰
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Effective conservation requires knowledge. Our recent paper led by Hendrik Mohr highlights knowledge gaps in our understanding of global change drivers on above/belowground organisms. These closely related and interacting systems require simultaneous study to untangle anthropogenic impacts 🦋🦗🕷️🪱
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
This Sunday is Citizen Science day, come along to Uni Würzburg hubland campus to hear about how citizen science supports research, enjoy hands-on workshops, and guided excursions! 🦋🌱🐦‍⬛ www.uni-wuerzburg.de/en/projects/...
uni-wuerzburg.de
Invitation to the Citizen Science Day
At Citizen Science Day, people of all ages can learn about and try their hand at citizen science and biodiversity research on the university campus. Admission is free, and no registration is required.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
Come along today at 2:30 to hear me talk about butterflies in the Alps, and what they can tell us about how butterflies respond to climate change 🏔️🦋☀️ #SOTM2026 @sotm2026.bsky.social
A painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui) on a hand in front of a mountain.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
Super excited for the start of the #SOTM2026 conference tomorrow!! 🌎🌱🦋 What an incredible location at sun moon lake in Taiwan 🤩 Come along on Thursday at 2:30 to hear me talk about how montane butterflies respond to temperature change 🦋☀️ @sotm2026.bsky.social
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Today we set up two insect monitoring stations in the glorious sunshine as part of a Masters thesis project. We will be comparing this with traditional monitoring to improve our understanding of the role of AI to supplement and enhance insect monitoring 🐝🪰🦋💚 @globalchangeeco.bsky.social
Three people with a Bee Friendly Insector remote sensing insect monitoring system in a renaturated quarry.Two people setting up a Bee Friendly Insector remote sensing insect monitoring system in a renaturated quarry.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
I was delighted to receive a best poster award at the closing ceremony yesterday! Had a great time at #TIBS2026 and look forward to seeing all the wonderful biogeographers again in the future 🌍🌎🌏 @biogeography.bsky.social
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Reposted by Esme Ashe-Jepson
Global Change Ecology group @uniwuerzburg.bsky.social @globalchangeeco.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
The @globalchangeeco.bsky.social team (@christianhof.bsky.social, @esme-ashe.bsky.social, @nicolas-willems.bsky.social, @christianzehner.bsky.social & Lars Landgraf) at #TIBS2026 - we really enjoyed great #biogeography science & the exchange with wonderful colleagues from all over the world.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Already the last day of #TIBS2026, starting with the fascinating links between biogeography, culture, and language @biogeography.bsky.social
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Global Change Ecology group @uniwuerzburg.bsky.social @globalchangeeco.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
How has landscape heterogeneity changed and how did this influence biodiversity trends? Our MSc student Lars Landgraf presented first results on his poster at #TIBS2026.
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Reposted by Esme Ashe-Jepson
Nicolas @nicolas-willems.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
I had the opportunity to present the first results of my Master’s thesis at #TIBS2026 My work focuses on grasshopper colouration along an elevational gradient. Great discussions and valuable feedback! Thanks to everyone who stopped by! 🦗⛰️
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
Thank you to those who spoke with me at my poster yesterday! The poster is still up for the rest of the #TIBS2026 conference so please come find me or email me if you want to chat
A photo of Esme standing with her poster
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Christian Hof @christianhof.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
Amazing talk at #TIBS2026 by @katschiff.bsky.social from @zurelllab.bsky.social on the drivers of bird occupancy trends in North America. Climate change appears to be more important than land-use change, at least for the last 30years.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
Wonderful opening to the #TIBS2026, including an inspiring talk from Mark Lomolino who shared his thoughts on the future of biogeography 🌍🌎🌏 @biogeography.bsky.social
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
Very excited to be sharing my recent paper on microclimate performance during heatwaves at #TIBS2026 today! Come along to poster 2023 to find out more about how insects experience extreme heat 🦋🐜🪲🔥☀️ @biogeography.bsky.social
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
New paper alert! Microclimate temperatures are more extreme than we previously thought! Near-ground temperatures are amplified in hot weather, cool refugia is lost and replaced with heat traps ☀️🔥🥵 escape from heat will be very hard for small ground-dwelling organisms doi.org/10.21425/fob...
doi.org
Local microclimates can both amplify and mitigate extreme temperatures associated with climate change
Climate change is a threat to global biodiversity, with changes to mean temperatures and increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. Heatwaves in particular pose a threat to species’...
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Reposted by Esme Ashe-Jepson
Eva Katharina Engelhardt @ekengelhardt.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
Come work with us! 🪲For our new project bAImo we are searching for a PhD researcher combining modelling 💻 with ecological expertise, aiming to improve interdisciplinary approaches to insect monitoring 🔎🐝 please visit tinyurl.com/bAImo-PhDoffer for more details. Looking forward to your application 🦗😊
Job Offer: PhD Position
Project bAImo: artificial intelligence for insect monitoring
3 years (initially)
65% TV-L
Background: photo of a brown butterfly (Pyronia tithonus) on a purple flower
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
Cool critter of the day! 🧐 These are the same moth species, one male one female! There are quite a few amazing moth species active around this time of year where the females don’t bother growing wings (why waste the energy?) and look like completely different insects!! 🤩
A photo of a female winter moth (Operophtera brumata) on a finger.A photo of a male winter moth (Operophtera brumata) in a pot.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
My latest paper is now published in an issue! We showcased the incredible scientific contributions that local and amateur naturalists make for research on long term change! 💚🌍 doi.org/10.1111/icad...
doi.org
Local entomologists shine a light on moth communities: The value of amateur records in cataloguing long‐term change
Written records associated with museum collections are often underutilised. We use two new macro-moth collections donated to the University Museum of Zoology (Cambridge) to investigate long-term cha...
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Malte Jochum @maltejochum.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
At our @globalchangeeco.bsky.social retreat to Austria, we are both taking in the beautiful surrounding landscape and discussing the latest research advancements of the team members. Here, Rasmus Dam Jensen presents our #MultiCrossBEF project as part of @bexplo.bsky.social @uni-wuerzburg.de
The Global Change Ecology crowd listening to Rasmus Jensen introducing his PhD research.A field path and some trees in the foreground with a mountain range in the background
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Reposted by Esme Ashe-Jepson
Global Change Ecology group @uniwuerzburg.bsky.social @globalchangeeco.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
GCERetreat2025: Our MSc student Katrin Fuest presented ideas and first fieldwork reports from her thesis. She studies thermoregulation of forest #butterflies in relation to habitat structure and microclimate. Well done Katrin!
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Global Change Ecology group @uniwuerzburg.bsky.social @globalchangeeco.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Yesterday at our GCERetreat2025 our postdoc @esme-ashe.bsky.social presented her impressive data collection as well as first models and findings on butterfly thermoregulation and thermal tolerance. Many more cool results coming up!
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 12/09/2025
I’ve had a wonderful week infiltrating the ranks of meteorologists! I’m always excited to share my own research, and I’ve learnt a lot about climatology, a subject with so much collaborative potential with ecology 🌦️🌱🦋🌍
A photo of a name badge
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Lyn Heideman @heidelyn.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
Essential to functioning ecosystems, insects are declining at alarming rates--even in remote areas. A 20-year study in CO found an average annual decline of 6.6% in insect abundance, amounting to a 72.4% drop over the 20-year period. The steep decline was associated with rising summer temperatures.
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 08/09/2025
I’m very excited to be sharing some of my work on quantifying microclimates and their performance during heatwaves at this years European Meteorological Society conference! I’m very much outside my comfort zone and looking forward to learning lots about climatology across scales 🕵️‍♀️🌍🔍
A photo of the EMS Annual Meeting welcome sign
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Christian Hof @christianhof.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
A pleasure to be (co-)supervising these young folks @globalchangeeco.bsky.social, together with @esme-ashe.bsky.social and @christianzehner.bsky.social
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 31/08/2025
Can we harness the knowledge of local or amateur entomologists to investigate long-term change? 🤔 I’ll be demonstrating how observations of the natural world can be translated into meaningful data and trends at @gfoesoc.bsky.social Thurs 12:15pm 0.001 📚🏫
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
And that’s a wrap! Today I finished my butterfly sampling in the Alps, with a final visit to my highest elevation site (and probably my favourite). I caught my 606th butterfly of the month, and it’s time to head home 🦋🗻
A photo of a mountain with trees below
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
After a few days of rain, we managed to get two dry days to complete our site surveys! Today was a beautiful bright day with a cold wind, air temperatures have dropped 10C in a week! It seems the summer field season is coming to a close, and we were just in time! 🦋🗻
A photo of a mountain with a lake below
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 19/08/2025
After a rainy few days we’re been back in the field! After a slobbery encounter with some cows, we had a good day sampling. The encounter of the day was this stunning spurge hawk-moth larva (Hyles euphorbiae) 🐛 it was huge, the size of a finger!!
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 15/08/2025
Another scorching day in the mountains! Today’s site was overflowing with Scotch argus (Erebia aethiops), even watched a few laying their eggs carefully on grass stems. Few other species around, but at least this one is flourishing here
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
Today was one of the hottest days we’ve gone out sampling, reaching nearly 30C here in the mountains ☀️🔥 Many butterflies seemed to be hugging the shade today. One of my students spotted this lovely garden tiger moth (Arctia caja) similarly hiding in the shadows
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
Another sunny day at our highest elevation plot! Some nice finds today, lots of yellow-spotted ringlets (Erebia manto), and my first ever mountain clouded yellows (Colias phicomone) (sadly no good photos)! So many species out flying, it’s always a pleasure to visit (…except for the climb)
A six spot burnet moth (Zygana filipendulae) taking off from a flower
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 11/08/2025
Another day out sampling butterflies! Many silver-spotted skippers (Hesperia comma) buzzing about, they’re in good numbers here! Otherwise had the pleasure of sharing a peaceful moment with this painted lady (Vanessa cardui), who seemed reluctant to leave after I interrupted their nectaring 🌸🦋
A painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui) sat on a hand with wings open in front of a mountain view
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 09/08/2025
Another sunny day out sampling butterflies in the Alps! Today we came across a site rich in silver-spotted skippers (Hesperia comma), but in the heat of the sun they were incredibly fast and restless, very hard to catch! 🦋💨☀️ luckily Erebia rarely seem to be in a hurry, so the sampling was still good
A photo of an alpine grassland with mountains in the background
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Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 08/08/2025
Today we visited two higher elevation sites, and made the most of the sunshine! ☀️ Highlights include this silver-spotted skipper (Hesperia comma) who seemed comfortable on my insect pot for just long enough to get a quick photo
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