WEEVIL KNIEVELS: ATTEMPTING THE LEAD FOR OCEANIC TRANSPORT. A REVIEW BY DR. CHRISTINA PASPARAKIS
Paper reviews are a wonderful way for scientists to be able to learn and teach their fellow colleagues about research that they do not particularly focus on but are interested in. RECOVER’s Dr. Christina Pasparaskis, based at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School, wrote one of those reviews based on a paper featuring a globe-trotting beetle species – the Weevil.
The Weevil, a terrestrial beetle species, utilizes floating debris in the oceans to colonize and inhabit new habitats and spread their genetic information around the world. Christina does a fantastic job translating the complex research presented in the paper entitled “Rafting on floating fruit is effective for oceanic dispersal of flightless weevils.” Written by Yeh et al., 2018 (Yeh HY, Tseng HY, Lin CP, Liao CP, Hsu JY, Huang WS (2018) Rafting on floating fruit is effective for oceanic dispersal of flightless weevils. J Exp Biol. 221(24). DOI:10.1242/jeb.190488.).
“Since I am used to writing scientific papers, I was initially a bit out of my comfort zone when I started to write this weevil editorial. The ultimate goal of this piece was to translate important scientific research/jargon into more common and relatable language, while also maintaining the scientific integrity of the study. I ended up really enjoying writing this editorial and am in awe that these little weevils are able to successfully traverse the oceans by hitching a ride on fruit! It was a very cool study and I loved reading and writing about it.” Dr. Pasparakis says of the writing experience.
We also love a good pun and Dr. Pasparakis did not disappoint.
You can find her review in the journal, Conservation Physiology’s Volume 7 Issue 1. To access her review, click here or here.
