Four days left to apply for two postdocs in social evolution with me and @dustinrubenstein.com Based at the University of Bristol (UK), conducting fieldwork with wasps in Cameroon, Kenya, and South Africa.

Eoophyla dentisigna (Agassiz, 2012) Crambidae: Acentropinae C. Hackforth det. 2025 Republic of the Congo This fascinating group are aquatic as larvae, and adult females may enter the water for several hours to lay eggs. The tiny hindwing eyespots are thought to represent jumping spider mimicry.

Zamarada protrusa serrula (Fletcher, 1974) Geometridae: Ennominae C. Hackforth det. 2023 Republic of the Congo One of ~25 Zamarada species collected from 3 hectares of Congolese lowland forest.

Porthesaroa sp. Erebidae: Lymantriinae C. Hackforth det. 2024 Republic of the Congo (new country record) This species currently awaits formal description.

Maruca vitrata (Fabricius, 1787) Crambidae: Spilomelinae C. Hackforth det. 2023 Republic of the Congo (new country record)

Heterostegane pachyspila (Fletcher D. S., 1958) Geometridae: Ennominae C. Hackforth det. 2023 Republic of the Congo (new country record)

Cheroscelis oospila (Prout L. B., 1912) Geometridae: Geometrinae C. Hackforth det. 2023 Republic of the Congo

Sciatta inconcisa (Walker, 1869) Noctuidae: Pantheinae C. Hackforth det. 2023 Republic of the Congo (new country record)

Pliniola gibba (Plötz, 1880) Erebidae: Arctiinae-Lithosiini C. Hackforth det. 2023 Republic of the Congo (new country record)

Pseudambia albomaculalis (Hampson, 1897) Crambidae: Spilomelinae C. Hackforth det. 2025 Republic of the Congo (new country record)

Balacra rubricincta (Holland, 1893) Erebidae: Arctiinae C. Hackforth det. 2023 Republic of the Congo

As we come to the end of 2025 I've had some time to photograph some moth specimens from my work in the Republic of the Congo, which I will share here in the coming weeks. First up: Mazuca strigicincta (Walker, 1866) Noctuidae: Xyleninae C. Hackforth det. 2024 Republic of the Congo

Thrilled to today be starting as a PostDoc in the TropEco lab at the University of Bristol. I'll be working on the PanTropIn project, which aims to describe drivers and impacts of insect biodiversity changes across pantropical forests. Very excited to be up and running within an exciting new team!

Last week I defended my thesis "Structure and Function of Insect Communities in Central Congo Peatland Forests" with minor corrections. Thanks to supervisors Jan Axmacher and Simon Lewis for their inspiration and support, and to examiners Tim Newbold (UCL) and Ed Turner (Cambridge). Now, to publish!

Rapid butterfly declines across the United States during the 21st century www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

The programme for this two day meeting on African Tropical #Peatlands includes talks on climate, biogeochemistry, vegetation, socioecology, ecosystem dynamics, and of course insects. It will be closed by the Environment Minister of the Rep. of Congo. So something for everyone! Sign up at link below:

World’s largely unprotected peatlands are ticking ‘carbon bomb’, warns study

Next Monday at 4.15, I will be speaking at the Royal Society in London about my PhD research on the insects of the Central Congo peatlands. The talk is part of a two day discussion meeting on African Tropical Peatlands. Register to attend in person or online here: royalsociety.org/science-even...

Recommended read: Issues around mining for cobalt – a mineral “essential to decarbonisation” – in the Democratic Republic of the Congo employ “new forms of old colonial practices”, researchers wrote in @us.theconversation.com

The programme for our upcoming scientific meeting on the theme of tropical #peatlands in Africa is now live. The meeting will be held at the Royal Society in London and will be streamed online. To register for free or find out more visit: ow.ly/BEu550UCvZg @royalsocietypublishing.org