#Bats in Churches research reveals ancient buildings as vital wildlife refuges. Crucially, the research also found that 90% of church communities feel positively about their resident bats. ⛪🦇 #naturepositive www.bats.org.uk/news/2025/10...

There are 1500 described species of bat in the world with more being added all the time. Each species is unique in its requirements and the role they play in the ecosystem. In the UK we have 18 resident species www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/w...

I just got an email from a former mentee telling me that one dinner conversation changed how he writes papers♥️ I told him: “just write the paper, get it out—the next one will be better, and the next even better.” Perfectionism is a trap (and a way to procrastinate...:))

Reptiles confined to islands are facing a double jeopardy 🦎 New research from @ricardonature.bsky.social shows that 30% of island reptiles are threatened with extinction (compared to 12.1% of reptiles overall) - but only 6.7% of reptile-focused research since 1960 has studied them 👇 bit.ly/3LqQo1F

When beavers build dams and reshape streams, they generate habitats for #bats and other species: phys.org/news/2025-11... A new study from Switzerland showed at activity at beaver‐dammed stream sections was 2.3 times higher than at comparable stream sections without beaver influence.

Six new species of tube-nosed #bats (genus Murina) in the Philippines. The Philippines already had ~79 known bat species - now six more are added, underlining how much biodiversity still remains undocumented. scitechdaily.com/scientists-d...

From trade offs to synergies: Aligning climate and biodiversity policies. Reps from Oxford Biology joined experts from government, academia and NGOs at COP30 at this side event. With Greenpeace, SOS Atlantic Forest foundation, WWF and @oxfordgeography.bsky.social. 📸 L.Jardim & A.Vasconcelos

New OA 🦇 research 📄 Testing a bat fatality detection system at wind turbines journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...

Our new study shows that island populations of grey long-eared #bats have distinct DNA haplotypes compared to mainland populations, reflecting long-term isolation & independent evolutionary trajectories: link.springer.com/article/10.1... @iccs.bsky.social @jesusoxford.bsky.social @biology.ox.ac.uk

NEW: An Oxford-led study has found that reptiles confined to islands face double jeopardy - they’re more likely to go extinct than mainland species, yet remain largely overlooked by researchers. Read more ⬇️

🦎 Quase 30% dos répteis insulares estão ameaçados - mais do dobro da média global. E muitos correm risco antes mesmo de serem estudados. Sem investigação podemos perder espécies únicas para sempre. 👉 wilder.pt/historias/repteis-das-ilhas-correm-mais-risco-de-extincao-mesmo-antes-de-serem-estudados

Did you know that #island‐restricted #reptiles are more threatened but less studied than their mainland counterparts?🦎 Interested in learning why?🧐 Find out in Nunes et al's #recentlypublished article! doi.org/10.1111/csp2...

How do large native trees and leaf litter promote amphibian diversity in Malagasy agroforests? See the first PhD chapter of Lovasoa Rakotozafy, just out in @jappliedecology.bsky.social! doi.org/10.1111/1365...

To mark the 50th anniversary of coeducation at Jesus, we’re delighted to share a brilliant new student-made documentary about the first women undergraduates to step through our Turl Street gates in 1974. 💚🎥 Watch the full film via link👇🏻 www.jesus.ox.ac.uk/new-document...

"Illegal wildlife trade affects thousands of species of wild plants, animals and fungi, and has been reported in 162 countries, including Canada, which is far from a passive bystander." Michelle Anagnostou @oxmartinschool.bsky.social in @uk.theconversation.com 👇 theconversation.com/new-study-re...

The UK Government has vowed to ‘build, baby, build’ to deliver 1.5 million homes across the country by 2029. Can this be achieved without worsening the biodiversity and nature crises? Dame E.J. Milner-Gulland, Professor of Biodiversity @biology.ox.ac.uk explains ⬇️ www.ox.ac.uk/news/2025-10...

On Tuesday a special pre-COP30 event was held in Oxford, co-hosted by Aline Soterroni from Biology and @erikaberenguer.bsky.social from @ecioxford.bsky.social Brazil’s Ambassador to the UK, Antonio Patriota, opened the event, Forests and the Future: Brazil’s Path to Climate Solutions bit.ly/3JbgqW5

In 2010-2013, conservation teams on #Chichijima - 1 of the main islands in the #Ogasawara chain - captured & removed 131 feral cats. The goal was to reduce predation pressure on an endangered pigeon. The results were immediate: adult pigeon numbers rose from 111 to 966 www.nature.com/articles/s42...

'Six important Mexican long-nosed bat roosts are now actively protected by local communities across Mexico, and the initiative's education programme has reached over 1.5 million people.' 🦇🖤🦇 www.bbc.co.uk/future/artic...

🦇 There are more than 80 bat groups in the UK, all run by volunteers and all on the front line of bat conservation. To find your local bat group and get involved see:

Great blog to start the week: reflections from @sonakshis.bsky.social on the 2025 Interdisciplinary Conservation Network. "The highlight of ICN for me was the people. Their presence reminded me of what interdisciplinarity truly looks like and what it takes to build it." iccs.org.uk/what-interdi...

PhD opportunity: Examining the role of public acceptance on the success of island restoration initiatives 🏝️🐀🤝 w. @rspb.bsky.social * Project outline: e5-dtp.ed.ac.uk/project?item... * Deadline: Sunday 14th December 2025 * How to apply: e5-dtp.ed.ac.uk/applications... Happy to answer questions!

Our new paper (brilliantly led by @theflyingpat.bsky.social) shows that birds & bats can naturally suppress rice pests in West African rice landscapes - offering a sustainable solution as global rice demand grows. www.jesus.ox.ac.uk/research-rev... @jesusoxford.bsky.social @iccs.bsky.social

POSTDOC JOB AD: I'm hiring a Bayesian ecologist to build a (IMO, extremely fun) model of humpback whale spatiotemporal dynamics in California 2-year position starting fall 2026. in-person in Santa Cruz; collab w with Mevin Hooten's lab at UT Austin. ask me Qs or apply: recruit.ucsc.edu/JPF02003

🦇 We are recruiting: (1/3) Project Officer to deliver the Protecting Scotland’s Island Wonders project, part of the Species on the Edge project! Part-time + fixed term contract. Home based in the Inner Hebrides with regular field work on Skye. Apply by 9am, 28 Oct: www.bats.org.uk/the-trust/jo...

🌍 | Dame EJ Milner-Gulland, Tasso Leventis Professor of Biodiversity @biology.ox.ac.uk, discusses conservation, her career and the need to frame the climate conversation more positively. ⬇️ www.ox.ac.uk/climate-and-... #OxfordClimate

'Understanding how wildlife is marketed and consumed online is crucial to keep pace with these changes.' Rare and endangered wild animals in Togo are going viral online for all the wrong reasons - they are being sold on TikTok as meat ⬇️

Honouring the life of Sir John Gurdon, who died earlier this week: awarded the Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine for seminal work carried out in Oxford Zoology (now @biology.ox.ac.uk) showing that mature cells could be reprogrammed to become pluripotent. www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medic...

📢Closing on Monday: Associate Professor of Molecular Cell Biology But if you thought you had missed out... 🎉Extended till 22nd October: Associate Professor of Animal Behaviour Join us in the new state-of-the-art Life and Mind Building 👇 bit.ly/488CNW3

As we begin moving into our new base in the Life and Mind Building, @ejmilnergulland.bsky.social has been taking a look at her books and reflecting on those that have shaped her academic career. Read it on the @iccs.bsky.social website 👇 iccs.org.uk/e-j-milner-g...

🚨Women are central to tropical wild meat systems, yet too often overlooked🚨 A new paper led by @jasminwillis.bsky.social, Dr Lauren Coad, @orchiddelirium.bsky.social & @ejmilnergulland.bsky.social reviewed 334 studies across 54 countries, finding women occupy 36 roles, from harvesting to trade.

"We often focus on hunters... But there's a whole range of other people involved." Hear about the complexities of the #wildlifetrade from the course leaders of the Masterclass on Mitigating Wildlife, Amy Hinsley and Dan Challender, alongside E.J. Milner-Gulland https://ow.ly/tAHV50X3mql

A great example from earlier this year of research carried out by the Masterclass on Mitigating Illegal Wildlife Trade course co-leader, Dan Challender, and colleagues, exposed a disconnect between the media and public perceptions of wild meat in the wake of COVID-19 https://ow.ly/F1Zt50X3mnX

Applications are still open for the next Masterclass on Mitigating Illegal Wildlife Trade. Find out more about the course and apply here. https://ow.ly/qxGK50XaJM8 Feel free to ask any questions via the comments below or email (see address in the link above) #masterclass #westafrica

Hello bluesky! We are an LGBTQ+ Biology Journal Club at Uni of Oxford 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️. We are interested in topics relevant to queer ecology and amplifying queer voices in academia 🪲🌱. For those in Oxford, we meet every 2 weeks - get in touch for more details! 🥳

It’s finally out! The result of a huge team effort! ✨ We combined DNA metabarcoding and network analysis to uncover the diets and pest control potential of birds and bats in the rice fields of northern Guinea-Bissau! Check it out! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

🌱🕥🦇 Interested to know more about the habitat use & daily activity patterns of African island bats? New paper led by Ana Filipa Palmeirim conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... @ricardonature.bsky.social @anasofiabiology.bsky.social

Out last friday 📣 want to learn more about habitat use and diel activity of insectivorous bats 🦇 in different land-covers🏝️? Check our study in the endemic-rich Princípe Island, Central West Africa👇: @ricardonature.bsky.social @tallyyoh.bsky.social conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Someone's pet cat with the native wild red squirrel it just killed. Most cat owners have no idea of, or don't want to know, how much wildlife is slaughtered annually by domestic or feral cats. But it runs to 10s, possibly 100s, of BILLIONS of animals per year, and is a serious driver of extinction.

The 8th European Congress for Conservation Biology will take place in Leiden, NL! They will explore how #biodiversity can be safeguarded effectively in the long term. First call is open now! Check out: eccb26leiden.eu/calls/ for more info, we are looking forward to your contributions!

The #NatBatConf 2025 conference photo. Thanks to all our delegates, speakers, exhibitors and sponsors (Thermal Vision and @wildlifeacoustics.com)

The final talk of #NatBatConf is by Paula Reason reflecting on 30 years of being a bat consultant #NatBatConf

Education as well as research has been vital to bat conservation, something that Paula Reason has been doing for a long time #NatBatConf

A call from Paula Reason to use professional judgement to make better decisions #NatBatConf

Great closing talk by Paula Reason #NatBatConf

Look at the cute flying bat patterns! From a talk at the @batconservation.bsky.social conference, where are the cool kids hang (upside down)

Keynote by Ricardo Rocha. Very engaging talk about the diversity of bats in island ecosystems and the unique challenges they face (mostly due to human impact). Accompanied by beautiful photos highlighting the diverse and extraordinary nature of bats. #NatBatConf @batconservation.bsky.social 🦇🖤🦇

Dani Smith is joining the #NatBatConf remotely and sharing the findings from the Connect People and Landscapes in a changing climate funded by @lotterygoodcauses.bsky.social This partnership project is working with #farmers and surrounding communities. www.bats.org.uk/our-work/pro...

The Connecting People and Landscapes in a Climate Change looked at long term data from bat carers to explore the impact of #ClimateChange on #bats. #NatBatConf www.bats.org.uk/our-work/pro... @lotterygoodcauses.bsky.social

Connor Kelleher is announced as this year's winner of the Pete Guess award recognising his contribution to bat conservation www.bats.org.uk/our-work/awa... #NatBatConf #bats 🦇