N. Joris Fleck

🚨 Postdoc in evolutionary genomics of heat stress adaptation position at @ucddublin.bsky.social.
📍 Dublin, Ireland
Closes: 15th Oct 2025
🔗 www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DOV094/u...

Young Systematists’ Forum Young Systematists’ Forum An exciting setting for postgraduate students and early postdoctoral researchers to present their work to a scientific audience interested in taxonomy and systematic…

Join us Nov 14th for #YSF2025, a completely free, online conference where postgraduate students (and other early career researchers) present their work on systematics, taxonomy and/or phylogenetics.

Abstract submission closes Oct 25th!

REGISTER: tinyurl.com/2fvmmthc

systass.org/young-system...

That comment made my day, cheers! 🐍

🐸 𝐅𝐫𝐞𝐞, 𝐧𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟-𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐧𝐨𝐧-𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐭: This is not my business-plan to finance my PhD, but a platform for our scientific community

Whether you’re doing your first field project or leading your own lab, this is a place to connect and collaborate with others who share your passion. 🌍✨

#hissscord

🐸 𝐆𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐲 from the community, instead of waiting weeks for a cryptic response from your supervisor
🐸 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬
🐸 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 with herpetologists worldwide
🐸 𝐒𝐮𝐛𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 with different sub-channels for, e.g., coding help, fieldwork, methodology-related questions and more

+++ Hissscord🐍 NEWS +++

Second call for joining our server! 🐸
Hissscord is open to everyone in the scientific herpetological community, from students to established researchers.

💬 DM me for an invite to the Discord channel, or reach out via email: hissscord[at]gmail.com

Please share!📣

Most of my group gathered in one place for the first time possibly ever. From left to right, former master's student Collin Bos, current postdoc Alice Petzold, me (Mark D. Scherz), former bachelor's student Joris Fleck, and current master's student and former bachelor's student Clara Keusgen.

Having a diffuse research group means that I rarely get to spend any time with my group in 3D. It was a great delight therefore to be joined by @collinbos.bsky.social @alicepetzold.bsky.social @njorisfleck.bsky.social and @clarakeusgen.bsky.social together in Bonn for the #SEH2025! 🧪🐸🦎🐍🧬

Herpetology is the science of reptiles and amphibians, and usually unrelated to herpes. That said, some reptiles can catch herpesviruses—it’s actually quite feared among turtle keepers, for example. 🐢

+++ Hissscord🐍 NEWS +++

Our new server is live! 🐍
A free space for young and experienced herpetologists to connect, collaborate, and get quick help.

💬 DM me here on Bluesky or elsewhere for an invite to the Discord channel!

Please feel free to share and repost!

#Herpetology #SEH2025 #Hissscord

Learn more about South Australia's new university for the future.

We are hiring!! 🦎🧠🐍 2 year postdoc to work on on the evolution of brains in snakes and lizards (on our current ARC Discovery project).

Applications close 25th March 2025!

careers.adelaide.edu.au/cw/en/job/51...

That'd be awesome! I'll start distributing the link to the channel soon.

I’m setting up a Discord server for young herpetologists, derived from an idea at #SEH2025. The goal is to create a space for quick help, collaboration, and networking. If you’d like to give input or get involved, let me know!

#herpetology

I’ve been spending A LOT of time in scientific collections.
Outside, the weather keeps changing. Inside? Permanent chill.

35°C? I’m freezing my butt off in the collections.
-4°C? Still freezing my butt off in the collections.

The only constant in my life right now is museum-grade air conditioning.

A lizard hanging onto a plastic fence in Italy.

An Italian wall lizard (Podarcis siculus) found in Castiglione della Pescaia, Italy

#Herpetology #lizard #herping

CORPS (Contemporary Overview in Research-based Preparation of Specimens) was initiated by my co-initiators Mei, Acean, and me in 2023. We are teaching students how to prepare animal specimens for scientific collections — a skill rarely taught in university. In 2024, Allie and Seyma joined our team.

The CORPS Team

The CORPS team with the award certificate and flowers

The CORPS team has won the 2025 Teaching Award from #LMU ’s Faculty of Biology! 🏆
What began with preparing bird specimens in my living room is now the faculty’s first student-led, -organized, and -taught course. We are incredibly happy!
Thank you all—here’s to CORPS 2025!
@lmumuenchen.bsky.social

Ordering primers for the first time and can't shake the feeling that an adult should probably look it over before I hit “order.”

#science #labwork #genetics

Holotype of the extinct crocodyliform Machimosaurus buffetauti Young et al., 2014

Holotype of the extinct crocodyliform Machimosaurus buffetauti Young et al., 2014

Had the pleasure of visiting the @smnstuttgart.bsky.social and getting an awesome tour of part of their collection from the amazing @michela-johnson.bsky.social — thanks so much, Michela!

📸 Holotype of the extinct crocodyliform Machimosaurus buffetauti Young et al., 2014
#paleontology #FossilFriday

A part of a lizard's lower jaw bone stuck in a toothbrush

A toothbrush taped to a bucket

Gluing a completely disintegrated lizard skull back together is about as much fun as it sounds. And yes, I'm using a toothbrush taped to a bucket for assistance. Not elegant, but at least it's creative. Sue me.

#herps #bones #Gallotia #lizard #herpetology #LMU

Nothing matches the feeling of finishing a manuscript, while an epic movie soundtrack is climaxing in the background.

Printed old drawing of a green iguana

Interesting #illustration of a green #iguana in one of my favorite old #books.

W. Lackowitz (1899) Das Buch der Tierwelt. Verlag von W. Herlet, Berlin, Germany.

#history #library #oldbook #biology #herpetology

It's crazy how much housework I get done in a day when I need to finish a manuscript.

In a natural history museum, the beak of a hummingbird holds a paper label.

That's my new favourite way of short-term labelling #hummingbirds and other long-beaked #birds.

Macro photo of a snake flicking its tongue

I finally finished another photo editing session. This time, a #macro shot of a #tongue-flicking 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘶𝘴 (Günther, 1880) from #Madagascar.

Am I the only one who measures how close to home I am by the fraction of roadside plants I can identify to species level?

Hyla arborea, a frog, sitting on the street

Found a little Common Tree #Frog (Hyla arborea) in #Munich, Germany, on the street at night!

A picture of 𝘔𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘴, a snake from Madagascar

I'm trying to be a bit more active on this platform, since the other ones become increasingly annoying.

I've (again) started working on the pictures I took on my last research field trip to #Madagascar a few months ago. This is a stunningly beautiful #𝘔𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘴!

Tiny, four-fingered hand of a small frog

High fi...! Ugh, never mind.

This tiny hand belongs to a tiny specimen of the tiny #frog species #Stumpffia madagascariensis, endemic to #Madagascar. This hand is less than 4 mm long!