Weevil News

http://www.curci.de/Inhalt.html

No. 21

 4 pp.

15. September 2004

ISSN 1615-3472

Stüben, P.E. & Bayer, Ch. (2004): CURCULIO Institute established in Eastern Middle Europe! Report on the 3rd international Conference of the CURCULIO Institute in Ochotnica Górna (Western Carpathians), Poland, 1st to 7th  August 2004. - Weevil News: http://www.curci.de/Inhalt.html, No. 21: 4 pp., CURCULIO-Institute: Mönchengladbach. (ISSN 1615-3472).

 

CURCULIO Institute established in Eastern Middle Europe!
Report on the 3rd international Conference of the CURCULIO Institute
 in Ochotnica Górna (Western Carpathians), Poland,
1st to 7th August 2004
by
P.E. Stüben (Mönchengladbach) and Ch. Bayer (Berlin)
with 29 photographies

Impressive hosts

The East European Office of the CURCULIO Institute, founded in March 2003, performed the meeting perfectly organized, and Dr. Stanislaw Knutelski (Cracow) resolved the leading of the conference masterfully. [W21. E1] The mountain station (in Ochotnica Górna) of the Department of Entomology of the Jagiellonian University turned out to be an ideal laboratory and conference center for the paticipants from Poland, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Switzerland. [W21. E2]
A short visit at the residence of Prof. Boguslaw Petryszak in the forest of the northern Gorce Mountains was impressive to our delegation. Prof. Petryszak was still enthusiastic about some inspiring field trips together with the famous Lothar Dieckmann (Germany) in the 1970ies and 1980ies. [W21. E3]
The Polish colleagues are not only masters of planning, but also of improvising. A fire in the early morning of the final day of our meeting damaging the Institute of Zoology of the Jagiellonian University of Cracow did not cause the early end of the conference. [W21. E4] A colleague of Dr. Knutelski, Prof. Dr. Zbigniew Dabrowski (Department of Physiology of Jagiellonian University), offered ‘private scientific asylum’ to the participants and by moving closer together the final part of the conference was saved. [W21. E5]
In the end a visit to the famous old town of Cracow was the cultural highlight for our international group of weevil-researchers. The variety of languages was as it turned out not an insuperable obstacle, but a valuable addition to our discussion. [W21. E6]
Collecting „monophagous“ – analysing and utilizing „polyphagous“

One week of getting up early, intensive field trips and using as much collecting methods as possible [W21. E27][W21. D28] – sometimes working to the point of exhaustion [W21. E7][W21. E8]. In WEEVIL NEWS there will be a separate publication on the results of our faunistical studies of the region of the Tatra Mountains by S. Knutelski and P. Sprick. This will be the chance to convey experience and new observations to the public which facilitates scientific innovation.
This means more than just hopping from lecture to lecture on a ‘sterile’ conference. [W21. E9] Usually scientists are on a field trip alone with ‘their’ weevils and host plants. [W21. E10][W21. E11] So it is not obvious to exchange new experience and interesting observations around a campfire [W21. E12] or in the conference laboratory immediately. [W21. E13] Learning from each other without loss of face [W21. E14] and without grabbing for academical reputation – where can one experience this today?! [W21. E15]
Of course there were also short talks, but always in an asking-researching way – never just giving a speech to a bored audience.
There was for instance a discussion on „species description in the internet“. It is important to realize that descriptions in the internet will be reality and are reality in some cases already (P. Stüben). We shall ask ourselves not any longer if but how to make such publications valid and save (Ch. Bayer). One further question was how to realize ‘stability’ and ‘intersubjective control’ without cutting back scientific licence. We do not need more „law and order“, there is already enough of it, but we need more creative power to handle the new digital challenge!
The confusion about „higher systematics of weevils“ is disturbing to some scientists (E. Colonnelli) [W21. E16], to some it is not. „Members of species are able to mate, genera have never been observed during such procedure“ (M. Kostal). And with some Far Eastern wisdom one may also make progress. „Instead of discussing to much you better start to work intensively“ (H. Yoshitake) [W21. E17]. And that means: Instead of discussing the meaning of separate distinguishing marks from more or less accidental standpoints one shall better push forward phylogenetic and biogeographic research at all levels.
Sometimes the practice may become the problem itself. That may happen when there is nobody able to determinate your specimen of Curculionoidea of Cyprus (G. Alziar). If one has to wait several years for the determination by overtaxed specialists, someones patience is wearing thin. Even in this case there is still a promising solution. „Just finish your annotated list of species and depict all specimen without determination” (P. Stüben). Where? Why not in the WEEVIL NEWS (Editor: P. Sprick)?! Wake curiosity and vanity of the specialists. They will than look for new species more in the internet than in the field… “Be certain, specialists will find your digital photographs of specimens and aedeagi quicker than you are travelling from Nice to Cyprus“ (N. N.).
Sometimes the evening discussions turned out to be entomo-political: For some scientists „Red Lists“ are forcing lame governments to act more from the ecological point of view (P. Sprick). [W21. E18] But entomologists sometimes also suffer from ‘nature protection’ in a paradoxial way. Every new protected area might be a dangerous pitfall to those without collecting permit. Then they may in the worst case end up in a Spanish or Turkish prison.
For all that ambivalent prospects one may realize: Amongst us „phytophagous weevils“ the atmosphere was always peaceful and relaxed. [W21. E19] It is known that there is a much more rough behaviour amongst carnivorous individuals.

Take the academy into your living room, if there is a fire again at university!

It is well known that there has been written a lot about burnt offering in the history of the old Greek civilization: It brings about a purification of senses and thoughts and focusses the attention to the essential part.
But what is essential?
A society growing continuously, year after year welcoming new members and dismissing members unwilling to pay – or a society every year creating something new in SNUDEBILLER? (Ch. Bayer & P. Stüben) P. Stüben for instance compiled a Power Point presentation for the members of the CURCULIO Institute. [W21. E20] In the near future everybody will be able to present the work of the CURCULIO Institute to the public wherever he uses the chance… There again weevils (and pictures) learn to walk, scroll-pictures become an infinite papyrus and zapping through the taxonomic menu service of the SNUDEBILLER-program means to have a lot of fun doing taxonomy of weevils in this way. May be this not just pure science, may be ‘didactics’ are also playing an important role – because in the end we do not want to become a sort of „living fossil“. Therefore always think of the next generation! [W21. E21]
The next generation will take the academy to the living room finally. The presentation of “The phylogenetic framework for the tribe Phytobiini” by H. Yoshitake, the youngest member of the CURCULIO Institute was impressing. [W21. E22] There was the critical remark that dried material is not usable for genetic analysis (P. Tykarski). With Japanese politeness H. Yoshitake leaded up to the pleading demand: If I have to use fresh material exclusively, please help me to find living specimens of the European Phytobiini e. g. Pelenomus velaris – and please do not forget to put it in ethyl alcohol.
P. Tykarski presented a database project (with cooperation of S. Knutelsky) on weevils of the Tatra Mountains. [W21. E23] Today faunistic large-scale projects can be realized with the digital technology and some inventiveness. But if there is a lack of cooperation such projects are endangered to get stuck halfway.
The “pornographic end” of the meeting will be unforgettable to all participants. A furtive glance to the wide open eyes of computer freaks and photographers of the SNUDEBILLER in astonishment was enough. Something like that they did observe never before. The master himself presented “Male and female weevils – a look on sexual conflicts and reproductive tactics” and we all went home in a thoughtful mood. Watching the fantastic screen-presentation of Marek W. Kozlowski we realized: We are working neither on ‘weevil material’, holo- and paratypes nor on simple ‘objects’ of our academical curiosity. Is it of any use to describe species which will be extinct in the near future? What will it mean when our children marvel at species only represented by holotypes in a museum?
In his documentary M. W. Kozlowski tells us: “You are working on ‘subjects’ and you might be a good advocate for your group, the weevils. You shall take over their case!”
Marek - we got the message!

Conclusion

This meeting in the Western Tatra Mountains (Tatra, Pieniny, Gorce) and in the City of Cracow was both successful in every respect and a memorable experience. [W21. E24]

And last but not least: As a member of CURCULIO Institute you shall join the next international meeting in April 2006! Where to? At our general meeting there was a promising proposal: The Canary Islands, Tenerife. [W21. E25] The CURCULIO Institute will prepare the meeting in cooperation with the local colleagues.

Participants [W21. E26]

Gabriel & Hélène Alziar (F), Friedhelm Bahr (D), Christoph Bayer (D), Piotr Bialooki (PL), Enzo Colonnelli (I), Christoph Germann (CH), Stanislaw Knutelski (PL), Michael Kostal (CZ), Boguslaw Petryszak (PL), Peter Sprick (D), Robert Stejskal (CZ), Peter Stüben (D), Jurek Szypula (PL), Piotr Tykarski (PL) and Hiraku Yoshitake (J).

Stan, many thanks! [W21. E29]