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N.N. Yunakov: Curriculum Vitae

Dr. Nikolai Yunakov

 

Affiliation and official address

Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences,

199034, St. Petersburg, RUSSIA

Phone: 7 812 3281212

Fax: 7 812 3282941

E-mail: omias@mail.ru

blaps@zin.ru

 

Date and place of birth

June 3, 1976, Kharkiv (Ukraine)

Nationality

Ukraine

 

Education

1993–1999 Graduated in Biological Faculty of the Kharkiv State University. Biologist, teacher of biology and chemistry.

Mother tongue: Russian, Ukrainian. Foreign languages: English, German and Polish.

 

Career/Employment

1999–2003 Post-graduate at the Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences.

2003 PhD thesis defense: Weevils of the subfamily Entiminae (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) of Ukraine.

 

Present appointment

Unemployed

 

 

Scientific field and expertise

Systematic, morphology, ecology, evolution, zoogeography, and paleontology of the weevil subfamily Entiminae. Parthenogenesis among weevils.

Comparative morphological study of the majority of the higher taxa of the subfamily Entiminae, which inhabit biotopes with different climatic conditions.

 

Awards

Thrice-repeated winner of “Young scientists contest” from Saint Petersburg Government during 2000–2002. Grants: ASP No 300725, ASP No 301684 and ASP No 302678.

Fellowships

Performer of two grant projects supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, grants No 00-04-31093 and 04–04–81026.

 

Membership of Professional Societies

Ukrainian Entomological Society

Russian Entomological Society

 

 

Publications

  1. Yunakov, N. N. 1998. New data on the fauna and systematics of weevils (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) from the Ukraine and adjacent territories. The Kharkiv Entomological Society gazette, 6 (1): 41-46. [In Russian]
  2. Yunakov, N. N. 1998. Synonymy and notes of morphology and distribution of some little known species of the genus Brachysomus Schoenherr (Coleoptera, Curculionidae). New data on the fauna and systematics of weevils from Ukraine and adjacent territories. The Kharkiv Entomological Society gazette, 6 (2): 37-40. [In Russian]
  3. Yunakov, N. N. 1998. On the weevil genus Otiorhynchus Germ. of the Ukrainian Fauna. Proceedings of V Congress of Ukrainian entomological society. Kharkiv, September, 7–11, 1998: 187. [in Ukrainian]
  4. Yunakov, N. N. 1999. A contribution to the knowledge of broad-nosed weevils (Coleoptera, Curculionidae: Entiminae) of Ukraine. The Kharkiv Entomological Society gazette, 7 (1): 9–16. [In Russian]
  5. Yunakov, N. N. 1999. Weevils (Coleoptera, Curculionoidea) of Grand Canyon of the Crimea. Biological researches in National Parks and biological stations. Jubilee conference 85 year of Biological Station of Kharkiv State University. Kharkiv, September, 16–19, 1999: 136–137. [In Russian]
  6. Yunakov, N. N. 2000. On weevils of the genus Otiorhynchus of the fauna of the Ukraine. Vestnik zoologii. Suppl. 14: 79-81. [In Russian]
  7. Yunakov, N.N. 2001. New and little known species of the subgenus Nehrodistus Reitter, 1912, genus Otiorhynchus Germ. from Crimea and Caucasus. Entomological Review 80 (3): 669-672. [In Russian]
  8. Davidian, G. E., Yunakov N. N. 2002. Contribution to the knowledge of the weevil Subgenera Nilepolemis Rtt., Udonedus Rtt., Otismotilus Rtt., and Motilacanus Rtt., genus Otiorhynchus Germ. (Coleoptera, Curculionidae), from the Caucasus and Turkey. Entomological Review, 81 (1): 128–173. [In English]
  9. Davidian G. E., Savitsky V. Yu., Yunakov N. N., and Arzanov Yu. G. 2002. Contribution to the knowledge of the weevil genera Otiorhynchus Germar and Meiranella Reitter (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) from Caucasus. The Kharkiv Entomological Society gazette, 9(2): 23–46. [In Russian]
  10. Yunakov N. N., Davidian, G. E. 2002. A new weevils species of the genus Otiorhynchus (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) from Azerbaijan. Entomological Review, 81(3): 373–374. [In English]
  11. Yunakov, N. N. 2003. Species of the subgenus Pseudocryphiphorus Magnano, genus Otiorhynchus Germ. (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) in the Fauna of the Crimea. Entomological Review, 83 (2): 221–229. [In English]
  12. Yunakov, N. N. 2003. A review of the weevil subgenus Pontotiorhynchus subgen. n., genus Otiorhynchus Germ. (Coleoptera, Curculionidae). Entomological Review, 83 (5): 513–530. [In English]
  13. Yunakov, N. N. 2003. Species of the subgenus Pseudocryphiphorus Magnano, genus Otiorhynchus Germ. (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) from the Crimea. Zool. Journ. 82 (1): 35–43. [In English]
  14. Yunakov, N. N., Nazarenko V. Yu. 2003. New and little-known Curculionoidea species from the Ukrainian Fauna (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea). Vastnik Zoologii 37(1): 95–99. [In Russian]
  15. Yunakov, N. N. 2003. Nanomias gen. n., a new genus of endogean weevils of the subfamily Entiminae (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) from the Mountain Crimea. Entomological Review. 83(5): 595–598. [In English]
  16. Korotyaev, B. A., Davidian, G. E., Yunakov, N. N., Gultekin, L. 2004. On the weevil (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) faunal links between of the Crimea, Caucasus, and Northeastern Anatolia. Proceedings of the conference on invertebrates zoology dedicatet to the 100th anniversary of S. M. Iablokoff-Khnzorian. September 6–8, 2004, Yerevan, Armenia: 81–82. [In English]
  17. Yunakov, N. N. 2004. On the taxonomy of the weevil genus Parameira Seidl. (Coleoptera, Curculionidae: Entiminae). Entomological Review 83(10): 1284–1289. [In English]
  18. Yunakov, N. N., Nadein K. S. 2004. About methods of collecting and preparation beetles (Insecta: Coleoptera). The Kharkiv Entomological Society gazette, 2003(2004), 11(1–2): 241–243.
  19. Yunakov, N. N. 2005. A revision of the weevil genus Amicromias Rtt. (Coleoptera, Curculionidae: Entiminae). Entomological Review 85(2): 156–168. [In English]
  20. Yunakov, N. N. 2005. Chorological analysis of broad-nosed weevil fauna (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Entiminae) and zoogeographical attribution of the Ukrainian Carpathians. Proceedings of the report scientific session of Zoological institute RAS by results of 2004 year: 40–41. St. Petersburg. [In Russian]
  21. Yunakov, N. N. 2005. Chorological analysis of broad-nosed weevil fauna (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Entiminae) and problem of zoogeographical attribution of the Crimean Mountains. General and applied entomology in Ukraine: 251–253. Lviv. [In English]
  22. Yunakov N. N., Korotyaev B. A. 2005. Bosporomias gen. n., a new genus of the weevil subfamily Entiminae from Taman peninsula (Coleoptera, Curculionidae). Entomological Review 84(2): 369–376.
  23. Korotyaev, B.A., Yunakov N.N. 2005. A new species of the weevil genus Alatavia from Kyrghyzstan (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). Zoosystematica Rossica 14(1): 101–103. [In English]
  24. Yunakov, N.N. 2006. New synonyms in the Entiminae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). Zoosystematica Rossica 14(2): 263–265.
  25. Yunakov, N. N. 2006. Contribution to a revision of the weevil genus Brachysomus Schoenh. (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Entiminae). Description of new taxa. Proceedings of the Russian Entomological Society 77: 294–329. [In English]
  26. Yunakov N. N., Nadein K. S. 2006. The new taxa of geophilic Entiminae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) from the Balkan Peninsula, Caucasus and Central Asia. Entomologische Abhandlungen 63(1-2): 77–98
  27. Yunakov N. N., Korotyaev B. A. 2006. A review of the weevil subgenus Metaphyllobius Smirnov (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Entiminae) from Eastern Europe and Siberia Entomological Review. In press.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current research work.

Title: MORPHO-ECOLOGICAL ADAPTATIONS AND EVOLUTION OF BROAD-NOSED WEEVILS (COLEOPTERA: CURCULIONIDAE: ENTIMINAE)

 

Research Objectives and background:

Creation of the natural classification and studying of micro/macro-evolutional processes among the Entiminae weevils.

The tasks are the following: to discover and classify of morpho-ecological adaptations of Entiminae, to create natural classification of Entiminae, to determine the main evolutionary trends in the Entiminae.

 

Broad-nosed weevils of the subfamily Entiminae are the largest group of the Curculionid-beetles distributed worldwide, mostly in tropical regions. Until now 1340 genera and about 12000 species are described.

The some genera include 500–1600 species. Many species belonged to numerous grass/tree-crows inhabitants. Some of them are common inhabitants of anthropogenic biotopes or fruit tree/crop injurious weevils. In contrast to others weevils, majority of Entiminae species associate with soil, as adults as well immature stages are polyphages or oligophages. Main evolutional acquisition of broad-nosed weevils is loss by rostrum of boring function as ovipositional organ, transfer of larvae from endophagy in the living vegetative organs (stems, leafs) of the high plants to ectophagy at the plant ruts in soil also transfer to parthenogenetic reproduction in numerous species. These conditions clear the way of adaptive radiation of the broad-nosed weevils.

Classification of Entiminae until now is bed work out. The main problem is artistic character of high taxa (genera and tribes). Some researchers use for classification of broad-nosed weevils small set of formal morphological characters or large massif of not weighted characters, most of which are superfluous information. Several researchers using cladistic analysis for classification of Entiminae in wider context of high-level classification of Curculionidae, it is result in mistaken deductions, unequal tribes (Marvaldi, 1995) or numerous artificial tribes (Alonzo-Zarazaga & Lyal, 1999) were proposed, because among the large massif of characters these authors have used the formal characters. For example, as important taxonomic characters were used adaptive correlated modifications, which are result of independent adaptation by the unrelated taxa to equal ecological conditions (wingless, blindness, discoloration, scaling etc.). At that the some new species were arbitrarily included to some genera. Thus, owing to the chaotic state of classification of the broad-nosed weevils it is impossible to use of it for quick extract an appropriate data. From the position of comparative morphology and analysis of the main evolutional trends and morpho-ecological adaptations the total analysis of higher taxa of world fauna will be enable a natural classification of Entiminae.

 

Expected results: Own phylogenetic analysis of recent and fossil Entiminae groups of the world fauna, as well analysis of morpho-ecological adaptations will allow to carry out the natural classification of the subfamily Entiminae and to detect the phylogenetic relationships between taxa, to determinate main evolutional trends in the Entiminae and position of broad-nosed weevils in the phylogenetic “tree” of the family Curculionidae. Also will be accumulated the rich data on the morphology, anatomy and ecology of broad-nosed weevils of the world fauna. This research will appreciably enlarge our knowledge of evolution and will contribute to the study and conservation of worldwide biodiversity.