Steal the Look: Masked Flowerpecker abcbirds.org

Only known from a single plant growing in the botanic gardens in Sri Lanka, the endemic Pini-Beraliya was declared Extinct in the Wild. But a post on social media about the tree has now led to the discovery of three wild populations and a recovery programme! 🌱🧪🙌🏻 news.mongabay.com/2025/08/soci...

I've never been a believer that #thylacines still exist, and after 10 trips here, I've only grown more convinced they are gone. But every now and then, the landscape screams #THYLACINE. Today's walk in the Central Highlands definitely had the strong thylacine vibes 😉

The Mechanisms Through Which Fire Drives Population Change in Terrestrial Biota Fascinating review which seeks to find common fire-response mechanisms across wide-ranging taxa, and associated traits @ellapouton.bsky.social et al. ft. @ltkelly.bsky.social onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09... Just incredible that any government could under fund an eradication program for these things. Long term cost is going to be many multiples of the cost of an eradication program.

Morning all.

They've lost the 9yos

Going to the Henty Field Day tomorrow, flying the flag for @gulbali-institute.bsky.social . Stop by and say g’day!

Ponderosa pine smells like butterscotch. Go ahead, sniff one the next time you're in the western US. Some say "vanilla", some say "oh no, my nose is covered in sap." Let's talk about birds, butterscotch, forest fires, blue wood, & boring beetles. But mostly this thread is about terpenes.

It’s great to see WA Gov has committed to improving its state cat laws to enable local governments to prevent pet cats from roaming; a win-win-win solution for wildlife, cats and human health. NSW is now the only state who hasn't updated their laws. @drbrucewebber.bsky.social #cats #biodiversity

NEW IBIS ISSUE Past research and future directions in understanding how birds use their sense of smell | onlinelibrary.wiley.... Darcy Creece, Rafael Freire, Melanie Massaro | #ornithology

Sperm whale echolocation loud & clear on the @mbarinews.bsky.social hydrophone live stream right now! www.mbari.org/project/soun... Amazing to have live audio from the deep sea streaming online... & this long-term data enabling discoveries about these cryptic animals' lives tinyurl.com/58a5jefp

Reconstructing animals from their fossilized remains requires meticulous artistry and scientific rigour. What was done to bones partly of a woolly rhinoceros discovered in Germany in 1663 arguably involved neither. Behold the 'Magdeburg Unicorn' in all its tea-spitting glory. (Yes, it's real.)

Good morning good people.

The media release for our recent article on magpie quantity discrimination is out now! Check it out below 🐦⬇️ www.uwa.edu.au/news/article...

White-plumed Honeyeater eggs in a beautiful nest of woven grass and cobwebs, found in the back of my garden.

Vertical rows are the agrivoltaic winner! “The vertical panels produce slightly less electricity—but with higher value, as generation peaks coincide with morning and late afternoon demand…The crops don't seem to mind the presence of solar panels and they like the wind protection they provide.”

"Fluffy creature — with tail longer than body — found in the Andes. See the new species [2024] The “very long tail” belongs to the Otavalo’s Andean mouse, Thomasomys otavalo, recently discovered as a new species." I am reminded of the mouse's tale from Alice. www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-...

"Why do queen bumblebees emerge from hibernation during weekends?" I love this framing about bias in hobbyist-collected data.

When did tomato and coffee split? I used to say 90 Myrs similar to human-mouse, but apparently I have to push this way back… What is your number #SolRub2025

🪶 Juvenile BEARDED VULTURES look strikingly different from adults, with dark brown plumage that gradually lightens over 6–8 years. This slow maturation is one of the longest among raptors, reflecting their extended life history strategy. www.projectvulture.org.za #Beardedvulture #Africanornithology

Good morning.

Some lovely snippets in this story ... www.theguardian.com/environment/...

The Superb Lyrebird males have been quiet for the past three weeks as most have commenced tail moult.There are now many males in the forest with stumpy tails but they regrow with surprising rapidity and within the next couple of weeks they will be back to their former glory! #birds #nature #birding

The edges of this tree-hollow and the branch next to it have been worn smooth by what must be generations of #possums coming and going. The tree is a pencil pine - one of #Tasmania's endemic treasures. These slow-growing mountain giants can live for 1000 years. That's a lot of possums. 🌲 #trees

My cartoon for this week’s @newscientist.com

Evening all.

Morning all.

Pacific Gulls in southeast Australia a few years ago. Gotta love that red lipstick! 😊 #SuperSeabirdSunday #seabirds #WildOz

Currently

Awesome: Undergraduate and professor discover several new species of violets in the mountains of Virginia. “Put very simply, we looked." #iamabotanist #plantpeopleFTW www.ohio.edu/news/2025/09...

Past entries of the Branching Out category of our Ecology in Action photography competition to give you some inspiration! 📸⁠ ⁠ Have you entered yet? Entries close October 5- submit yours today: www.ecolsoc.org.au/opportunitie... #photographycompetition #ecology #wildoz #naturephotography #flowers

Morning all.

Good morning.

Made it out to the farm near Bridgetown for Grounded Festival. The sun is shining and punters are starting to stream in. Let’s do this!

Not Drowning, Waving’s Tabaran is one of my favourite albums ever - jumped on the chance to write about it, and will be in Melbourne tomorrow for the Recital Hall performance www.theguardian.com/music/2025/s...

Do you have a lot of annoying admin tasks or household chores you need to accomplish, but never seem to find the time for? Then may I suggest: setting aside a day to do nothing but write, you will be amazed at how many such tasks you can accomplish.

Morning all.

A raven turned up on our #LochArkaig ospreycam today, and had a lot to say for itself! 🔊 Sound up for some lovely kronking.🐦‍⬛ #raven

Morning all.

Hot off the press! Check out our new paper on sleepy lizard aka shingleback skink fire cue discrimination led by @ecolojolly.bsky.social DM if you want a PDF.

Tomorrow I’m crossing the continent on my way to Bridgetown for Grounded Australia. I’ll be giving two talks—spreading the good word on mistletoe and discussing why productive farmland is crucial for safeguarding wildlife populations groundedaustralia.com.au

The NSW Independent Planning Commission has rejected plans to restart Redbank Power Station based on expert evidence that native vegetation clearing to fuel the station would cause unacceptable environmental impacts. @biofuelwatch.bsky.social #biofuel #ClimateAction #biodiversity #redbank

This is true, and funny because it's true, and also an argument for "early writing" - you can write much of your paper, even most of it, well before the work is complete and thus before you're too late for "should have done".

IMO one of the best things about getting older is finding out all the things you don’t know (and having the self-confidence to admit that). Who wants to talk to an expert who can’t admit uncertainty?

Good morning good people.

Monte Perdido 1965 | 2025 How moving! 🤍 Jaime, standing on the same stone as his grandfather 60 years later, on top of Cilindro de Marboré (3325 m)! 🏔️⏳🔥 Monte Perdido (3355 m) at the background! In the 20th c, there were glaciers on the W face of Monte Perdido! 📷 Joaquín and Jaime Romeo 🙏

Happy 4^ / 3^2 / 5^2 day!!! (3^2/ 4^2 / 5^2 for us weird Americans) Not too many days satisfy the Pythagorean thm. @amermathsoc.bsky.social @austms.bsky.social @stevenstrogatz.com @monsoon0.bsky.social ht Peter Baxter for noticing. Looking forward to coming back to the US for joint maths in Jan.

Good news everybody! The Independent Planning Commission just REFUSED the bid to restart Redbank Power Station, noting unacceptable negative impacts on native flora and fauna. Common Sense prevails! www.ipcn.nsw.gov.au/cases/restar...

It would appear that one of my local Satin Bowerbirds is going for a more yellow theme this spring. I dropped a bunch of beautiful blue Crimson Rosella primaries and rectrices into his bower a week or so back but it appears that some of his thieving neighbours have made off with them. #birds #nature