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Torsten Dikow

@tdikow.bsky.social
1.9K followers 800 following 153 posts

biodiversity researcher - discovering fly species - deciphering their evolutionary history - natural history collections + digitization + data - #asiloidflies - deserts - photography - views mine ORCID orcid.org/0000-0003-4816-2909

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Reposted by Torsten Dikow
Erica McAlister @flygirlnhm.bsky.social · 14h
Last night was Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards at the @nhm-london.bsky.social . Excellent photography & I was especially pleased to see the Rising Star Award go to Alexis Tinker-Tsavalas for this image. Yes, my selfie with him is an indication as to why I’m not an award winning photographer
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Royal Entomological Society @royentsoc.bsky.social · 13/10/2026
🚨 Tomorrow's the big day! Join us for #InsectHour: The Strange Sexual Biology of Stalk-Eyed Flies with Prof. Andrew Pomiankowski @ucl.ac.uk & discover the fascinating evolutionary forces behind some of the most extraordinary eyes in the insect world. 🎟️ There's still time to register buff.ly/EDTCBaq
buff.ly
Join us for Insect Hour!
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Lincoln Savi @lincolnsavi.bsky.social · 13/10/2026
I made a new web app that makes egg collection posters. I programmed in some preset collections but you can add and subtract any of the eggs in the program (n=672) and make and name your own collection. Play around with it here and let me know what you think: Savimade.ca/egg-collection-posters/
An aesthetically pleasing illustrated collection of eggs from birds that nest in and around Algonquin provincial park.
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Jill Oberski, PhD @jilloberski.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
Hey bsky! I’d like to share some cool work I recently coauthored that integrates entomology, paleontology, and German cultural history. 🔶🐜⚡️ We discovered a fossil ant in the amber collection of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe! Read on for a delightful story of #museomics and #collectomics. >> 1/
A 3D micro-CT scan of ant Ctenobethylus goepperti encased in amber
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Christian Stöcker @christianstoecker.de · 11/10/2026
Geschenklink:
spiegel.de
Meinung: Klimakrise: El Niño treibt Weltmeere auf Rekordhitze – Folgen werden tödlich
Von der hiesigen Öffentlichkeit weitgehend ignoriert, bahnt sich eine akute globale Katastrophe an. El Niño bricht, von der Klimakrise verstärkt, lange vor seinem Höhepunkt Rekorde. Das wird teuer – und tödlich.
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Prof. Stefan Rahmstorf @rahmstorf.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
An important proposal for the security of Europe: www.ft.com/content/4870...
ft.com
We need an observatory for the cooling north Atlantic
The UK should convene a coalition of concerned states if rising emissions lead to the collapse of the Amoc that brings warm water to northern regions
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Assisted visiting scientist with photographing USNM #Megaloptera holotypes on my #GIGAmacro Magnify2 system - used #EntoBalls for holding these large insects (10+ cm) in place - Corydalus australis from Argentina - whole specimen photo stitch of 4 photos (each stack of 24) - n2t.net/ark:/65665/3...
dobsonfly in top viewdobsonfly showing undersidedobsonfly held sideways for photographydobsonfly held to photograph underside
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Karl Magnacca @kmagnacca.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
A few years ago a friend was compiling a regional catalog of types for a group, and asked me to check on the ~200 or so that were supposed to be in the museum I work at. It turned out about five of them were actually there.
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Dave Brice @davebriceflies.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Calling ecologists! Diptera backlog? Need ID work done before next season? Planning lots of diptera work next year? We can help! Please contact me for Diptera ID, full species lists and conservation status etc, see dipteraid.co.uk/projects/ Please share Conicera tibialis (Phoridae) for interest.
Conicera tibialis (Phoridae)  tiny fly with huge pointed antenna
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Christian Stöcker @christianstoecker.de · 27/09/2026
Kolumne: Es ist längst klar, dass das 21. Jahrhundert dem Strom gehört (Sie lesen diesen Post auf einem Taschencomputer mit Akku, oder?) Und für fließende Elektronen muss man heute kein Wasser mehr kochen. Deutschlands Zukunft hängt (auch) davon ab, das anzuerkennen.
MEINUNG • Energiewende in Deutschland
• Dampf ist out, Elektronen sind in
Eine Kolumne von Christian Stöcker
Moderne Hochtechnologie braucht nur Strom, keinen Brennstoff, keinen Wasserdampf. Wie löst sich unsere vermeintliche High-Tech-Nation von 150 Jahre alter Technik? An der Antwort hängt unsere Zukunft.
27.09.2026, 11.56 Uhr
SPIEGEL bei Google bevorzugen
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Biodiversity Data Journal @bdj.pensoft.net · 24/09/2026
Still at #TDWG2026 in Oslo? Don't miss our new article on GBIF's incredible 25-year journey! 📊 Read the full piece in our open-access journal: doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.... @tdwg.org #GBIF25 #OpenData
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Pensoft @pensoft.net · 25/09/2026
🌿 It's our last day at #TDWG2026 and we've loved sharing #ORPHO, our newly launched scientific writing tool, with the biodiversity community. ✨ Thank you to everyone who tested it at our booth and joined our workshop! @tdwg.org #ScientificWriting #OpenAccess
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Rod Page @rdmpage.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Summary of user feedback on future interfaces for @biodivlibrary.bsky.social as part of workshop run at @tdwg.org #tdwg2026 forum.biodiversitylibrary.org/t/bhl-worksh...
forum.biodiversitylibrary.org
BHL Workshop at TDWG 2026 feedback
Yesterday @bhl_nicole and I ran a workshop on “future interfaces for BHL” at the TDWG 2026 in Oslo. The workshop was “hands on” with live demos of various tools that I’ve posted here, such as the BHL ...
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
#TDWG2026 presenting (virtually) this morning (local time in Oslo) on tool for automated transcription of digitized insect specimen labels - using machine learning to extract, transcribe + itemize data into Darwin Core fields - we call it Labellum - slides at @figshare.com doi.org/10.25573/dat...
presentation slide for a talk at TDWG 2026 meetingpresentation slide for a talk at TDWG 2026 meetingpresentation slide for a talk at TDWG 2026 meetingpresentation slide for a talk at TDWG 2026 meeting
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Christian Stöcker @christianstoecker.de · 24/09/2026
“Auch ein Fusionskraftwerk wäre im Prinzip nichts anderes als ein Tauchsieder“, sagt Harald Lesch bei der KlimaManagementTagung in Hamburg. „Wir müssen den Leuten, die ständig irgendwelche Wunderwaffen versprechen, entschlossen die Stirn bieten“. #Klimakrise #Wissenschaft
Harald Lesch auf einer Bühne, Klimamanagementtagung 2026
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Rob Waterhouse @rmwaterhouse.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Planning the #Libroscope - how to liberate #biodiversity data trapped in PDFs and how to now move toward born-digital #publications at #TDWG #Oslo @plazi-species.bsky.social @pensoft.net
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Agree to some extent, but from what I learned, there is more being done behind the scenes. You can also search different agents (GBIF etc) at the same time or get climatic data from NASA for all occurrence records found at same time
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
How did I not know about iChatBio? ichatbio.org - an AI-assisted collection data query chat presented at SPNHC by Michael Elliot - virtual.oxfordabstracts.com/event/76295/...
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Great label generation tool presented by Ian Engelbrecht at SPNHC - developed through South African National Science Collection Facility - labels.nscf.org.za - it’s free + labels are customizable + makes nicely standardized labels + works best with larger screens
screenshot of label tool presentationscreenshot of label tool presentationscreenshot of label tool presentation
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
I know it’s a lot, but it applies to the complexities we face and the cost of contractors for pre-curation and image QC or label transcription, for example - direct digitization cost is ‘only’ US$3.42 per specimen - overall price may be lower in other settings/countries
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
At annual SPNHC (Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections) meeting at Iziko South African Museum - presenting on Pinned Insect Digitization Conveyor used at Smithsonian NMNH to digitize 360,000+ pinned pollinating insects - slides at @figshare.com doi.org/10.25573/dat...
slide of presentation on Pinned Insect Digitization Conveyorside view of hover fly digitized on Pinned Insect Digitization Conveyorside view of bee digitized on Pinned Insect Digitization Conveyorview of Iziko South African Museum with Table Mountain in the background
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Back in Cape Town at Iziko South African Museum - looking through Malaise Trap samples from Tankwa Karoo NP to discover #asiloidflies - 1st Mydidae + several Asilidae species recorded from this vast Succulent Karoo environment
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PIK_climate @pik-potsdam.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Europe's relatively mild climate is enabled by the #AMOC. 🌊 @rahmstorf.bsky.social explains how this oceanic "central heating system" transports immense amounts of energy as heat into the north Atlantic region before cooling and returning southward. Watch in full: www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNOS...
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
I use degrees minutes seconds on my locality labels for insects because it is human readable - you can pick up a map and find the place - of course, for making distribution maps in some software I convert (or better, my database converts) into decimal degrees
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
It’s been extremely hot in Germany this summer with several heateaves already - highest ever temperatures recorded for Germany and many states happened all this summer - 41.7 C (107.1 F) country record set in June in eastern Germany
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Distributed System of Scientific Collections @dissco.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Good to see the #IUCN reiterate what has been our mantra all along: #NaturalHistory Collections are not repositories of the past but research-active infrastructures ready to address current and future global challenges: www.dissco.eu/iucn-natural... #biodiversity #taxonomy @eurotaxonomy.cetaf.org
dissco.eu
ICUN Position Statement on the vital role of biological collections in biodiversity conservation - DiSSCo
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Matt Bertone @bertonemyia.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
OK class: which is the male (♂️) and which is the female (♀️)? [BTW - these are the smallest members of this family of flies I have ever seen!] #FlySchool2026
Two small dark gray flies, one on top of the other and mating, rest on a green leaf.Close up of two small dark gray flies, one on top of the other and mating, rest on a green leaf.Close up of two small dark gray flies, one on top of the other and mating, rest on a green leaf.
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GBIF @gbif.org · 04/08/2026
👾 Level up your data skills with DataCamp! Thanks to our on-going partnership with #DataCampDonates, GBIF is proud to offer free licenses to biodiversity data users to explore courses hundreds of online courses such as Python, GitHub, data theory, SQL and Power BI. 🔗 gbif.link/datacamp2026
A rainbow beetle with GBIF and DataCamp logos
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Matt Bertone @bertonemyia.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
The hammerhead condition has evolved numerous times in flies, resulting in various flavors. Last time we found an extreme one (flic.kr/p/2qeN7Hz) but this example is a bit more tame (still lovely, though! ❤️) [Coll.: Khong Lunaria] #FlySchool2026 Costa Rica #Richardiidae: #Richardia cf. telescopica
A yellow and brown fly sits on a white background facing to the right toward the viewer. It has a broad and somewhat triangular head, about twice the width of the thorax.A yellow and brown fly sits on a white background facing to left. It has a broad and somewhat triangular head, about twice the width of the thorax.A yellow and brown fly sits on a white background facing away from the viewer. It has a broad and somewhat triangular head, about twice the width of the thorax.
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taz @taz.de · 25/07/2026
2025 haben europäische Flüsse einen neuen Rekord aufgestellt, 603 Hindernisse wurden aus ihnen entfernt. Das ist ein wichtiger Schritt für mehr Umweltschutz.
Grafik mit dem Titel „Mehr Flüsse in Europa werden von Dämmen und anderen Barrieren befreit“. Ein Flusslauf-Design zeigt von links nach rechts die Jahre 2020 bis 2025. Jedes Jahr ist mit einer roten Linie markiert und verknüpft mit einer Zahl: 2020 (101 Hindernisse in 11 Ländern), 2022 (325 Hindernisse), 2023 (487 Hindernisse), 2024 (542 Hindernisse), 2025 (603 Hindernisse in 21 Ländern). Links im Fluss ist eine Illustration eines Dammes mit aufgestautem Wasser. Unten steht: „Dämme und andere Hindernisse, die pro Jahr aus europäischen Flüssen entfernt wurden“.
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Marc A. Milne @forthespiders.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
It may be surprising to some that there are thousands of undescribed species just sitting in museums awaiting description. One of the main reasons this problem exists is that taxonomy is undervalued and underfunded, a trend that coincides with the devaluing of studies on natural history.
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Jack Ashby @jackdashby.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
🚨 #MUSEUMJOBS KLAXON🚨 We're looking for a Senior Digitiser and two Digitisers to work across @zoologymuseum.bsky.social & @camplantsci.bsky.social to help create biodiversity data for the researchers who need it, through #DiSSCoUK. 1. www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/senior-... 2. www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/digitis...
A pinned moth is positioned within a light box, with a camera positioned aboveA museum drawer containing tens of pinned tiger and emerald moths lined up in rows
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Michael E. Mann @michaelemann.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
My comments on the new @nationalacademies.org report on climate change & extreme weather attribution. The TLDR statement: If anything, the academy understates the strength of the science linking increasingly extreme weather events to climate change: michaelmann.net/comments-on-...
michaelmann.net
Comments on National Academy of Sciences Report on Climate Change & Extreme Weather Event Attribution | Michael E. Mann
The National Academy of Sciences has put out a new report assessing the state of understanding of the science of extreme weather attribution, an area of […]
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Christian Stöcker @christianstoecker.de · 05/07/2026
Kolumne: Die Leute, die gestern noch behauptet haben, die Erderhitzung sei kein Problem, erklären jetzt die Leute für doof, die sich nicht auf die Erhitzung vorbereitet haben. Nun will die Anti-Klimaschutz-, die Anti-Wärmepumpen-Fraktion es schon immer gewusst haben.
•Kulturkampf in der Hitzewelle
Wer erklärt den Rechten, dass Klimaanlagen Wärmepumpen sind?

 Christian Stöcker
Eine Kolumne von Christian Stöcker
Um Klimaanlagen ist eine bizarre Scheindebatte entbrannt. Rechte lobpreisen die Geräte als Lösung für ein Problem, das es in ihren Augen gar nicht gibt – die Erderwärmung. Dabei funktioniert Abkühlung ganz einfach.
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Erica McAlister @flygirlnhm.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
We gave thanks & celebration on Monday for Peter Chandler - an extraordinary man, a great dipterist & a kind & generous spirit Check out the 10 year old Peter’s answers in his I-Spy entomology book- they made me smile & feel grateful to have known such a great man @dipteristsforum.bsky.social
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Admirable Women @admirablewomen.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Maria Sibylla Merian (1647–1717) was a pioneering naturalist, entomologist & scientific illustrator whose meticulous artwork & observations: 🦋 Revolutionized the study of insects 🐜 Laid early groundwork for #ecology 🐞 Permanently changed how we understand insect life It's #InsectWeek #WomenInSTEM
A side-by-side image of the German-Dutch naturalist Maria Sibylla Merian (1647–1717), celebrated for her groundbreaking contributions to entomology and ecology. On the left, a formal historical oil portrait depicts Merian as a young woman from the chest up against a dark, minimalist backdrop. Facing forward with a slight turn to the right, she maintains a calm, serious expression. She wears a black dress accented by a wide, sheer white lace collar draped over her shoulders, a dark jeweled brooch, a double-strand pearl necklace, and large teardrop pearl earrings. Her brown curly hair is partially covered by a black fabric head cap. On the right is a vibrant book cover titled "Maria Sibylla Merian's Metamorphosis." The cream-colored cover features her detailed scientific illustrations, including a large blue and brown butterfly, a yellow butterfly, a lizard, caterpillars, a large blue passionflower, and assorted foliage, showcasing her legacy of documenting insect life cycles and host plants.
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Christian Stöcker @christianstoecker.de · 25/06/2026
Hier ein paar gesammelte Fakten zum Antworten auf die „früher war es auch schon heiß“-Trottel, die aktuell alle sozialen Medien mit ihren Dissonanzreduktionsversuchen vollmüllen.
Statista-Grafik „Es wird öfter heiß“. Anzahl Hitzetage pro 10 Jahre stieg von 31 in der Dekade bis 1962 auf 122 in der Dekade bis 2022Temperature Change in Germany, in 2025 mehr als 2 Grad über normal.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Is this how they’re going to keep the algae out?
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Craig B @mutillidae.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
How many adult pygmy backswimmers can dance on the head of a(n insect) pin? Apparently just one, but look how adorable it is! #NaturalHistoryCollections #FocusStacking #Pleidae
Small, point-mounted bug on the left and the head of a #2 insect pin on the right, against a white background. The bug is tan overall, with slight darker legs. Its dorsum is bulbous and rounded and its eyes are dark. It is about the size of the head of the pin on the right.
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
I am not that familiar with Mediterranean fauna + European genera of subfamily Asilinae are difficult to ID - Tolmerus sounds reasonable Great photos!
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Simon Knott @sjbknott.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Teneral Physocephala rufipes ♂ found today on flowerbed wall in Bengeo garden, fascinating then to watch it change to its full adult colour over next hour. P.rufipes is most wasp-like of conopid parasitoid flies. @flygirlnhm.bsky.social
Physocephala rufipes teneral malePhysocephala rufipes male
Physocephala rufipes male
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Rod Page @rdmpage.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
This is very preliminary, but this is an overview of every species in the Open Tree of Life, colour coded by whether their position in the tree is based on taxonomy only (dark colour) or includes phylogenetic information (blue). Phylogenetic coverage is sparse, mostly plants and vertebrates.
Hilbert curve for every species in the Open Tree of Life, colour coded by whether their position in the tree is based on taxonomy only (dark colour) or includes phylogenetic information (blue)
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
video posted at www.instagram.com/reel/DY46nMb...
instagram.com
Instagram
Create an account or log in to Instagram - Share what you're into with the people who get you.
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
Pinned Insect Digitization Conveyor at Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History explained - how to digitize 325,000+ pollinating insect specimens fast, safely, and in high quality www.instagram.com/reel/DY46nMb...
instagram.com
Smithsonian on Instagram: "One in every three bites of food you eat depends on pollinators! 🪲 Heard the buzz? Our @SmithsonianNMNH and Smithsonian Digitization Program Office are digitizing 325,000...
574 likes, 24 comments - smithsonian on May 28, 2026: "One in every three bites of food you eat depends on pollinators! 🪲 Heard the buzz? Our @SmithsonianNMNH and Smithsonian Digitization Program O...
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Rod Page @rdmpage.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Interesting new tool to extract phylogenies from images (Tremble). It is crazy that this is still something we have to do. doi.org/10.1093/bioi...
doi.org
Treemble: a graphical tool to generate Newick strings from phylogenetic tree images
AbstractSummary. Phylogenetic trees are ubiquitous and central to biology, but most published trees are available only as visual diagrams and not in the ma
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Volker Quaschning @volkerquaschning.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Die Energiewende im Master studieren und noch Fragen? Dann kommt heute zum Online-Masterinfotag: 👉 um 16 Uhr.
HTW Masterinfotag 27.5.2026 um 16 Uhr
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
It is an amazing system but also very complex. A video with an overview is coming late next week. I will make sure to post a link here.
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
#FlyFriday #InternationalBiodiversityDay #BiodiversityDay specimen data are being transcribed from label photos + added to records - photos will become CC0/public domain for everyone to use for biodiversity research photos also making their way to @gbif.org - see www.gbif.org/occurrence/6...
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
explore them at collections.nmnh.si.edu/search/ento/ add family or genus add "Skeletal record created as part of USNM-MDPP-POL project" in record status at bottom search such as USNMENT02161625 n2t.net/ark:/65665/3... #USNMDiptera
bee fly specimen mounted on insect pin in side viewbee fly specimen mounted on insect pin in front viewbee fly specimen mounted on insect pin in top view
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Torsten Dikow @tdikow.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
#FlyFriday #InternationalBiodiversityDay #BiodiversityDay slowly but surely, specimen photos are becoming publicly available - Syrphidae 2,561 specimens with photos, Conopidae with 1,869, Bombyliidae with 6,499 today
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