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To predict climate change impacts, we need to move from simple food-chain models ▶️ complex food *webs*. Variation in the sensitivity of interactions to mismatch could help stabilise ecosystems as the climate warms. Next steps?: mapping the *diversity* of these responses across systems /🧵🛑

Finding #4: Species diversity could enhance food-web resilience. Different hosts are best in different situations. Caterpillars can switch hosts, and benefit from emergent portfolio effects (👇📄FEE). ➡️ Response diversity could buffer (👇📄GCB) the phenological impacts of climate change in food-webs/🧵

Finding #3: Response to asynchrony varies widely among trophic interactions. 44/48 interactions showed -ve effects, but a handful showed little or no decline, even after large experimentally induced mismatch. ➡️ Whether or not mismatch matters is often idiosyncratic to each trophic interaction /🧵

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Finding #2: The classic trophic interaction isn’t representative. The famous, widely-studied Oak → Winter Moth system showed the second steepest decline in survival with inc. mismatch. ➡️ Focus on this model system may have unintentionally overstated the average ecological impact of mismatch /🧵

Finding #1: Phenological mismatch *does* reduce spring caterpillar survival 🐛🌿 Across 48 interactions, survival fell steadily as mismatch increased. ...But growth and development time showed no consistent trends. ➡️ In this system, mismatch seems to act mainly through differential mortality /🧵

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Temperature change and seasonal shifts could lead to phenological mismatch between consumers and time-limited resources... 🕐🌳→🕦🐛→🕟🐦 ...potentially causing population declines, and undermining ecosystem stability. But most evidence comes from simplified trophic interactions of two species /🧵

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Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

📣 New preprint with @allyphillimore.bsky.social, out now! As climate change shifts seasonal timing across food-webs, we present an experiment testing the impact of phenological mismatch in *48* plant-caterpillar 🌳→🐛 trophic interactions. Read it here: doi.org/10.64898/202... ...or scroll 🧵👇 1/7

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A real contrast with the hugely procedural and bureaucratised nature of academia today... I doubt there would be room now for these unusual figures, or the flexibility that allowed them to make the scientific innovations they did.

Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

Pithy explanation of how (and why) natural selection works at the genetic level... From @rdawkins.bsky.social in 'The Selfish Gene'.

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Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Aliens, AI, and WD Hamilton with a paperclip in his hair... Some highlights from a great Thursday evening with @rdawkins.bsky.social and Matt Ridley at Edinburgh's Usher Hall! Half a century from its publication, The Selfish Gene has aged remarkably well for a scientific book...

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Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

'The Selfish Gene is the culmination of a long scientific revolution that began with Darwin’s own book, On the Origin of Species, more than a century earlier' 📚 My reflections on the 50th anniversary of a scientific classic, in @thefreethinkermag.bsky.social ✍️🧬 freethinker.co.uk/2026/06/crys...

freethinker.co.uk

Crystallising Darwinism: 50 Years of ‘The Selfish Gene’ - The Freethinker

Half a century on, Richard Dawkins’s classic work 'The Selfish Gene' remains an essential explanation of the evolution of life.

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Reposted by Jamie C. Weir

British Ornithologists’ Union (BOU) @bou.org.uk · 28/05/2026

📢 REMINDER: IBIS SPECIAL ISSUE Collections-Based Ornithological Research in a Changing World If you use avian natural history collections in your research, then this Special Issue is for you! onlinelibrary.wiley.... ⏰ Submission deadline: 30 June 2026 #ornithology

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Caterpillar-bird mismatch increases significantly in warmer springs. As the #climate warms, fluctuations in caterpillar abundance therefore have the potential to be an important modulating factor on the effects of trophic mismatch across ecological systems. 🧵4/4

Effect of mean April/May temperature on nest-level mismatch across three passerine species

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We analysed paired #caterpillar abundance and #bird breeding performance data from 14 sites in England, over 15 years. We found that increased caterpillar abundance significantly increased performance in Blue and Great Tits—especially # of offspring fledged—across a range of mismatch values. 🧵3/4

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#Trophic #mismatch with an ephemeral #food resource can have serious negative effects on consumer performance. But higher overall resource abundance could offset some of the effects of mismatch, by establishing a higher resource baseline across all levels of mismatch. 🧵2/4

Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

📣 New Preprint, out now on @ecoevorxiv.bsky.social... Resource abundance can buffer trophic mismatch in a caterpillar-passerine food-chain 🌳→🐛→🐦 w/ @kenandlindasmith.bsky.social, @piedflynet.bsky.social et al. Read it here: doi.org/10.32942/X2K... ...or scroll for some highlights 🧵👇 1/4

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Thanks to everyone who came along at #BES2025 to chat about my work on phenological synchrony with @kenandlindasmith.bsky.social and @piedflynet.bsky.social Even for specialist species, mismatch may only matter in years where resources are scarce 🐦🐛 If I missed you at the conference, get in touch!

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Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

If you're at the @britishecologicalsociety.org #BES2025 in Edinburgh and interested in #phenology, come and find me for a chat about how resource abundance modulates the impacts of the trophic #mismatch. My poster is A17.21 in the Cromdale Hall, and I'll be there from 6pm this evening! 🌳 -> 🐛 -> 🐦

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Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 15/12/2025

Very pleased to announce that my recent paper in Oecologia "Trophic generalism in the winter moth: a model species for phenological mismatch" won the journal's 2024 Ehleringer Prize for student research! 🏆 You can read more about the paper and the award below 👇 link.springer.com/journal/442/...

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Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 15/12/2025

It's an excellent statue! An almost aristocratic air of quiet confidence, which suits its position tucked away at the back of the museum. It feels as though you're interrupting his reverie as you walk by.

Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 11/12/2025

If you missed the @linneansociety.bsky.social's annual lecture in #Edinburgh last month, you can watch it now on YouTube! 👇 Hear Mark Blaxter (@sangerinstitute.bsky.social) give an inspiring overview of the Tree of Life Project! 🌳🦋🐒 www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cca7...

youtube.com

Busy ‘bout the Tree of Life: genome sequencing of biodiversity

YouTube video by Linnean Society

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Reposted by Jamie C. Weir

The Linnean Society of London @linneansociety.bsky.social · 28/11/2025

Thank you to everyone who joined us in Edinburgh last night for our partnership lecture with @edinburgh-uni.bsky.social! Prof Mark Blaxter gave a brilliant talk on how genome sequencing is helping us understand and protect biodiversity. Recording will be posted soon. @sangerinstitute.bsky.social

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Luis-Miguel Chevin @lmchev.bsky.social · 21/11/2025

I was quite impressed and humbled yesterday to give a talk at the @linneansociety.bsky.social, in front of this very portrait and plate!

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Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 25/11/2025

2/2. This year, we're excited to have Mark Blaxter, of the @sangerinstitute.bsky.social, talking about sequencing the genomes of all life - and the insights this can offer us in a changing world... *Thurs 27th, 6-8pm* Sign up now, for free, in person or online! 👇 tinyurl.com/edin-linnsoc...

tinyurl.com

Busy ‘bout the Tree of Life: genome sequencing of biodiversity

As extinction accelerates, scientists race to decode the DNA of life - unlocking secrets that could help save our planet’s biodiversity.

Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 25/11/2025

1/2. In or around #Edinburgh?... 🏰 There's still time to sign up for our annual @linneansociety.bsky.social lecture, hosted by @edinburgh-uni.bsky.social. **Thurs 27th, 6-8pm** Sign up now, for free, in person or online! 👇 tinyurl.com/edin-linnsoc... ... or scroll for more info 🧵👇

eventbrite.co.uk

Busy ‘bout the Tree of Life: genome sequencing of biodiversity

As extinction accelerates, scientists race to decode the DNA of life - unlocking secrets that could help save our planet’s biodiversity.

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Jamie C. Weir @jamiecweir.bsky.social · 20/11/2025

Had a great time today presenting a poster about my PhD work 🐛 at the @linneansociety.bsky.social symposium on biological resilience. Some excellent talks in wonderful surroundings - so much food for thought with Darwin looking on - and all topped off with a fishy keynote @trishschulte.bsky.social 🐠

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The Linnean Society of London @linneansociety.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

As extinction accelerates, scientists race to decode the DNA of life - unlocking secrets that could help save our planet’s biodiversity. Join Mark Blaxter, leader of the Sanger Institute’s Tree of Life programme, as he explains the genome sequencing of biodiversity. 📆 Nov 27 6pm buff.ly/nq2Gf04

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Royal Society Publishing @royalsocietypublishing.org · 15/11/2025

Mammal colouration is typically drab, and iridescence virtually unheard of, except in the most unlikely place: blind, subterranean golden moles. Here, researchers quantitatively confirm iridescence in 14 mammal species: royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/... #JRSocInterface #evolution

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Reposted by Jamie C. Weir

Sensory Ecology Lab @sensoryecology.bsky.social · 31/10/2025

“Andrews adds that researchers adapting the task to other species would need to think carefully about what constitutes strong evidence: Dogs, for instance, might consider scent to be a stronger source of evidence than visual cues.” #scicomm www.science.org/content/arti... 🧪 🐵 🦊

science.org

New evidence? No problem. Chimps can weigh conflicting clues, just like humans

Study is first to suggest our closest relatives think about their own thoughts

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In summer, when insects are most abundant, they are a dominant part of the diet of G. moholi. Understanding the kinds of insects eaten by bushbabies and how they find them is key for their #conservation, and for unpicking their functional role in tropical/sub-tropical forest food-webs. 🧵 8/8

G. moholi posing.
Image Credit: Jamie Weir. All rights reserved.

Sound may act as an important proxy for prey size in nocturnal feeding behaviour. Bushbaby vocalisations are usually confined to social contexts, but I also made novel observations of vocalisations associated with solo foraging 🗣️👇 🧵 7/8

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Furthermore, manipulative experiments using Male Driver Ants 🐜 -- a popular prey item -- suggested that while visual movement was a key driver of prey-finding behaviour in G. moholi, sound made prey items particularly attractive and increased the incidence of targeting for feeding. 🧵 6/8

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Previous evidence is mixed, with some reports emphasising a primary role for Lepidoptera in the diet, others suggesting Coleoptera and Orthoptera are most important (e.g. Harcourt, 1986). I observed G. moholi easily catch Lepidoptera mid-flight, including strong fliers such as hawk-moths. 🧵 5/8

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Observing/testing predation of different prey items, I found that: • Moths were always consumed • Insects with distasteful or noxious secretions (Shield/Stink Bugs) were avoided • Beetles were closely examined before consumption, and only some eaten --> clear, species-level prey choice 🐒🐞🦋 🧵 4/8

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While recording moths at a UV light trap in South Africa during Oct/Nov 2024, I was able to closely observe the Southern Lesser Bushbaby (G. moholi) foraging and predating insects drawn to the light. The fieldwork was generously supported by @edinburgh-uni.bsky.social Davis Expedition Fund. 🧵 3/8

Much remains unknown about our #primate relatives. E.g./ Though #insects are a key dietary component for many #nocturnal species, we still have little idea of: • which taxa are eaten, and why • individual/population/seasonal variation in preferences • the #sensory stimuli used to find them 🧵 2/8

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In my **new paper**, out now in Folia Primatologica, I shed light on the nocturnal feeding habits of the Southern Lesser Bushbaby (Galago moholi), documenting observations and experiments made during fieldwork in South Africa. tinyurl.com/bushbaby-diet ...Scroll for more #bushbaby pics 👀👇 🧵 1/8