That's a tasty line-up of PhD projects!!

Our last product of the SCOR WG157 MetaZooGene if out! We run a 10-laboratory intercomparison experiment on for zooplankton metabarcoding. Take home: major patterns hold, but sequencing platform matters, taq matters (a lot), add positive/negative controls... onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

🔥 Hot off the press: ever wonder if you could get demographic info for natural pops with #eDNA #environmentalDNA? Well wonder no more! First proof of principle for sex-ratios coming to a computer screen near you: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

5 things you’ll learn in my new Stable Isotope Ecology courses: • Isotope foundations • Study design • Food webs • Mixing models • R workflows 👉 www.atomicecology.com/courses 👉

They are, and always will be, the coolest mammals...

Our new paper in PNAS, led by Megan Power: a large-scale study of telomere shortening in relation to reproductive costs in bats. Photo of one of the greater horseshoe bats we studied at Woodchester mansion by Hetty Metcalfe.

Dive deep into the early history of humans and dogs, this week on the @science.org podcast w/ Life Sciences Editor Sacha Vigniri 🐕🐕‍🦺🐩 www.science.org/content/podc...

New #mammal conservation #PhD: "Understanding and Addressing Rural Hedgehog Population Declines". @srucnews.bsky.social EastBio CASE project in partnership with (and co-supervised by) @ptes-org.bsky.social. Details: www.findaphd.com/phds/project... Act fast - applications close 15 December. 🦔🦔🦔

Our new @azti.bsky.social paper on Advancing ecological #assessment: towards the integration of #eDNA #metabarcoding into an estuarine #fish index is out. #Research #MarineEcology #GES4SEAS Free download here: authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S...

Ireland and Troy Parrott, why such a moment probably shouldn’t have been possible, and why it’s about so much more than a play-off A moribund national team culture is alive again www.independent.co.uk/sport/footba...

A PhD project on historical genomics in the declining red squirrel in Britain is available in my group, through the @aries-dtp.bsky.social. Use historical genomes to track the effects of decline and genetic rescue in this charismatic species. aries-dtp.ac.uk/studentships...

Ah, the dreaded reviewer comments that are longer than the paper itself 🤦‍♂️

Out now by Zhang et al: Hyperspectral imagery 🛰️, LiDAR point clouds 🛩️, and #eDNA 🧬 to assess land-water linkage of #biodiversity across #aquatic functional feeding groups.🐟🪰🦠🔬🌐🌍 zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/... @eawag.bsky.social #UZH

If there is anything that you always wanted to know about the #metaprobe but were afraid to ask, Mark your diary: THURSDAY 27 NOVEMBER! More news soon… #eDNA @britishecologicalsociety.org

🦌 Deer migration, deer density, tick distribution and incidence of a tick-borne zoonosis ➡️ buff.ly/4wXYf5c

🌊 A few weeks ago I shared my PhD roadmap on metabarcoding for river biomonitoring — with a focus on peninsular Spain. What’s working, what isn’t, and what’s next for our freshwater ecosystems. 🔬

Interested in a PhD in ornithology? Funding available for projects at the interface of ecology, behaviour & evolution from Oct '26 working on long-term population studies of tits at Wytham, based in @biology.ox.ac.uk in the new Life & Mind Building in Oxford www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

Five species from a #smallmammal #cameratrap at Portsoy, Aberdeenshire - a mouse, two voles and two shrew species - including Water Shrew 😀 #mammal #trailcamera @nesmammals.bsky.social

🐇 This study presents a methodological framework using camera trap and scat data to assess how components of prey availability influence prey selection. This is done in a way that can be applied across a variety of mammal species and ecological contexts➡️ buff.ly/7iWNO4X

Just out, our new paper "The state of the late Quaternary megafauna extinction debate...". We review the various perspectives, methods, and datasets which have been used to explore the extinction of many large animals. Was it humans, climate, or a mix of both? The debate continues!

In this #newpaper I joined 24 other colleagues across 18 countries to say nuance is needed in licensing marine ecological restoration projects. We don't advocate deregulation but they can't be subjected to same licensing framework as extractive and commercial activities. www.cell.com/cell-reports...

🌊 New paper out! Our latest study in Environmental DNA shows how fish daily vertical migrations affect eDNA in the ocean. 🐟 For species like European hake, seafloor eDNA signals vary between morning and evening, showing that behavior must be considered in eDNA monitoring. 👉 doi.org/10.1002/edn3...

Thrilled to share my latest open access research publication - Shifting Seasons: Long‐Term Insights Into Climate Change Effects on Bird Phenology From UK Bird Observatory Ringing Data #ornithology #ljmu #impact @ljmuofficial.bsky.social @ljmu-ris.bsky.social onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

My first post here 🙂 👩‍🔬💧 Can a few drops of water reveal hidden rice-field pests? Our new bioRxiv preprint shows how low-cost eDNA can help farmers track native & invasive species efficiently—no long surveys needed. 🌾 Read more: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... #eDNA #Agroecology #PestMonitoring

!!! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Today I heard a pair of great tits just outside my office window, followed by a loud thump of something against the windowsill. I rolled up my blinds and to my surprise, there was a bat! This tit had knocked a bat from her roost and looked like he was thinking about lunch…

1st PhD chapter from @jjackman27.bsky.social on comparing #eDNA filtration methods in a hyper-tidal estuary. Although some methods outperform others, all are generally effective in recovering fish biodiversity, including the passive metaprobe. Paper here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Parents, please teach your offspring to swim and to drive before they're in their 20s because it's SO much harder (and consequently more expensive) as adults. Ideally, they should be swimming comfortably as a young child and able to drive an articulated lorry cross country by age six

New preprint alert! We DNA barcoded 95 thousand Ghanaian arthropods, more than doubling the number of BINs (a species proxy) available online from West Africa. In doing so we’ve released a huge amount of new data to scientists studying the region 🧪 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

As a primatologist, Jane Goodall was a huge inspiration to me. I admired the way she describes chimpanzee behavior with such detail and empathy, and she’s inspired so many people and advocated for chimpanzee conservation and welfare. However, I'm dismayed at what her narrative leaves out (1/10)

New #sharkscience out in @currentbiology.bsky.social by @seaprinceaaron.bsky.social and colleagues. Deep-sea mining risks for sharks, rays, and chimeras. A must read for this looming threat to many already threatened species. www.cell.com/current-biol... @iucnshark.bsky.social

Last chance to apply for this postdoc! deadline 12pm tomorrow.

I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA 10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)

Should I stay or should I go?🐦 Fancy a #PhD studying Pied flycatchers in the Peak District to help better understand what drives individual & population performance? Think #habitat #movement #ecology #genetics 🌍 Make use of this nestbox PIT tag study system and join us! Email me #LJMU #NationalTrust

Interested in giving a talk at the Plant and Animal Genome conference (PAG 33) in San Diego? Together with several colleagues, we are arranging 5 interconnected sessions. To submit an abstract, please fill out this Google Form before Oct 12th, 2025: forms.gle/q7j275Di6umY...

🦣🍖🧬 Fully funded 3-yr PhD in palaeogenomics & bioinformatics! Help me push non-model palaeogenomes beyond their limits @DTU in Denmark. Start: Feb 2026 (flexible) Application deadline: 24 Oct 2025 For details click here: tinyurl.com/BioExtPhD Reposts appreciated 😁

At last, #DNA #Divers is here! A blueprint for a transformative way of capturing #eDNA, from everywhere, through the engagement of #SCUBA divers - a huge team effort led by #ErikaNeave @ukri.org @ljmuimpact.bsky.social @bes-aquaticgroup.bsky.social besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

Fluorescent bats!! #NatBatConf

I will be recruiting two PhDs for my ERC Project HERDPATH - let's discover out how livestock and pathogens evolved together using #aDNA. Projects will be animal or pathogen focused but will be in dialogue. Details at my quaint website below. Deadline 3rd October. kevingdaly.github.io

Job opening! CSIRO @csiropublishing.bsky.social is currently hiring 2 #eDNA Postdoctoral Fellowships! sednasociety.com/2025/09/04/j...

A common type of ant in Europe breaks a fundamental rule in biology: its queens can produce male offspring that are a whole different species go.nature.com/4mOb5T9

I'm hiring a postdoc... By combining samples that are more than a million years old with the short generation time of small rodents, we hope to gain a unique window into evolution unfolding across millions of generations!

Version of record published today. Deliberate burial practices by extinct hominin Homo naledi. 128 pages of detailed multi-strand analyses underpinning the funerary behaviours, including comprehensive work on archaeothanatology and spatial taphonomy #homonaledi elifesciences.org/articles/89106

So sad to hear the Ollie Horgan news. The LOI is a tight community yet I never met the man he's been like a part of the furniture for over a decade or my life, working miracles with Harps, going mad on the sidelines, making fun one liners in interviews A legend we will miss 🫡

Grimsby deepen ridicule for Ruben Amorim as he ploughs on with flawed, final stand | Jonathan Liew

Cunha and Mbeumo both miss penalties, Šeško opts to go tenth. What a transfer window.

I am very happy to share our latest paper published: "First Assembly of a Draft Genome of the Critically Endangered Northern Muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus, Primates, Atelidae) Including Non-Invasive Genotyping Strategies for the Species" onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

One thing I love about pre-prints: shows everyone the story that the authors originally wanted to tell. What we sometimes end up with after peer review, sheesh.... 🤦‍♂️

New research has provided the most comprehensive analysis of predation events at birds' nests across the UK:

column on michael johnson’s failed attempt to reinvent athletics, and why just because you can breed a chicken without feathers, doesn’t mean you should www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/a...