Ben Vernasco
@verntasco.bsky.social
📤 1750
📥 759
📝 47
Research Scientist/Adjunct Assistant Professor @WhitmanCollege
pinned post!
New paper published in collaboration with Kira Long, Mike Braun and Jeff Brawn! We examined the relationship between genetic and telomeric variation in a manakin hybrid zone. Especially stoked because our paper got featured on the issue’s cover!!!
doi.org/10.1111/mec....
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Genetic and telomeric variability: Insights from a tropical avian hybrid zone
Telomere lengths and telomere dynamics can correlate with lifespan, behaviour and individual quality. Such relationships have spurred interest in understanding variation in telomere lengths and their....
https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17491
over 1 year ago
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Kevin Bennett
6 days ago
📢New warbler research!📢 A phylogeny of Myioborus (the youngest genus of warblers) plus a hypothesis for how they diversified in South America and a gene causing a color difference between hybridizing species. It was great co-leading this with Laura Céspedes Arias.
doi.org/10.1093/evol...
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Diversification and divergence in Myioborus warblers: insights into evolutionary relationships and plumage genetics
Abstract. Genomic data can provide valuable insights into the evolutionary history of rapidly diversifying groups and the genetic basis of phenotypic trait
https://doi.org/10.1093/evolut/qpag085
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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈
8 days ago
Millions of acres of national forests are set to open up for more logging
www.npr.org/2026/05/24/n...
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Millions of acres of national forests are set to open up for more logging
The Trump administration is set to repeal a decades-old conservation mandate known as the Roadless Rule, opening up millions of acres of national forests for more logging.
https://www.npr.org/2026/05/24/nx-s1-5821609/millions-of-acres-of-national-forests-are-set-to-open-up-for-more-logging
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Prosanta Chakrabarty
21 days ago
Smithsonian Fish Curator position announcement! Note the application dates of May 12 – June 2, 2026. Should be posted here tomorrow:
trustcareers.si.edu#js-careers-j...
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Ben Vernasco
High Country News
21 days ago
The future of Western forests depends on professional pinecone collectors. They’re slowly being starved out of existence.
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The plight of the pinecone cowboy - High Country News
As specialized forestry staff at the USFS vanish and pinecone cowboys—the highly skilled contractors sent out in the field to collect cones—face a collapsing industry, entire ecosystems are…
https://buff.ly/DoKhGPb
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Journal of Avian Biology
26 days ago
📣 The second issue of 2026 is now complete! Showcasing new cutting-edge
#ornithology
research ⬇️
vist.ly/537eq
Cover featuring the article by Paprocki et al on how disease outbreaks may reshape the cost of migration ➡️
vist.ly/537em
📷 Neil Paprocki
#birds
#openaccess
🪶
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www.nytimes.com/2026/04/30/c...
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As Wildfire Risks Rise, Forest Service Shutters Labs That Study Them
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/30/climate/forest-service-labs-wildfire-research.html
about 1 month ago
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Emily H. DuVal
about 1 month ago
The 2026 Lance-tailed Manakin webcam is live! Pro tip: click 'watch on you-tube' and scroll back in time to find the action, (today, see 8:23am). Or just enjoy the sounds of the tropical forest and see what's going on NOW in the world of the manakins.
www.allaboutbirds.org/cams/lance-t...
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Lance-tailed Manakins
Watch the Lance-tailed Manakin cam
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/cams/lance-tailed-manakins/
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Max M.
about 2 months ago
Solid and accurate reporting on our current situation.
add a skeleton here at some point
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Ben Vernasco
International Bio-Logging Society
about 2 months ago
You're invited to complete a short anonymous survey about device failures in bird biologger deployments! 📡🦆🦅 . 🗓️ Deadline within next 7 weeks (~25th of May). 🔗link:
lnkd.in/eKgPNX2m
info below!! 👇
#ornithology
#biologging
#birds
#birdresearch
#birdtracking
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Ben Vernasco
Association of Field Ornithologists
2 months ago
¡Descubre las últimas novedades en materia de ornitología! Ya salió el Volumen 97, Número 1 del
#JournalofFieldOrnithology
, con nuevas publicaciones de investigadores de todo el mundo. La revista es de acceso abierto. ¡Accede gratis al volumen completo
journal.afonet.org/vol97/iss1/
!
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Phil Manlick
2 months ago
This would fund entire US Forest Service for 20 years and USFS Research and Devlopment branch for 666 years 😈
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This issue includes my first paper wherein my thesis student is the first author, stoked to see the study species (WHWO) featured!
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2 months ago
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Emily Dolhansky
2 months ago
thinned stand on the left, with its unthinned neighbor on the right 🤌
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Dustin Reichard
2 months ago
My department at OWU is hiring a full-time Visiting Assistant Professor for next year! The job would be perfect for anyone interested in working at a small liberal arts college. Please share broadly (repost!). More details to follow...
www.owu.edu/about/office...
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Job Openings
https://www.owu.edu/about/offices-services-directory/human-resources/career-information/job-openings/
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Jente Ottenburghs | Avian Hybrids
3 months ago
New story on the Avian Hybrids blog! A colorful mess: Widespread exchange of pigmentation genes across the Parulidae phylogeny
avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2026/03/11/a...
Based on the PLoS Biology paper by Kevin Bennett and his colleagues |
#ornithology
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A colorful mess: Widespread exchange of pigmentation genes across the Parulidae phylogeny
Featured image: Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia) © Cephas | Wikimedia Commons
https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2026/03/11/a-colorful-mess-widespread-exchange-of-pigmentation-genes-across-the-parulidae-phylogeny/
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Ben Vernasco
Wilson Ornithological Society
3 months ago
There's a new guest post on the WOS blog! WJO author Kevin Bennett describes the work that went into definitively identifying an "Uncommon Mourningthroat," a Mourning Warbler x Common Yellowthroat hybrid.
#ornithology
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Guest Post: Sequencing the “Uncommon Mourningthroat”
A fun challenge for birders, once we’ve become familiar with common bird species, is recognizing hybrids.
https://wilsonsociety.org/2026/03/09/guest-post-uncommon-mourningthroat/
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I am happy to announce a major milestone in my career. I have successfully transferred all my references and their corresponding PDFs from Mendeley to Zotero. Thank you to Mendeley for its consistent support through the years.
3 months ago
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Ben Vernasco
Journal of Avian Biology
3 months ago
✨ New Special Issue Out! "New frontiers in avian physiology: what’s migration got to do with it?" This special issue highlights emerging frontiers across scales, from molecules to whole organisms, in relation to the physiological mechanisms behind birds’ migratory feats ➡️
vist.ly/4u94s
🪶
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Marko Prokic
3 months ago
📢 Postdoc position available Join the lab of Peter Dijkstra at Central Michigan University. 🧬 NSF-funded research on behavior, aggression, and stress resilience in East African cichlid fish, combining genomics, cognition & neurobiology. 📅 Start: June 2026
www.jobs.cmich.edu/postings/44560
Share!
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Richard K Broughton
3 months ago
New paper! Bird nests (Wood Warblers) are hubs of invertebrate biodiversity on forest floor, hosting more species/individuals than leaf litter. Probably due to heat & food detritus. Losing Wood Warblers = ecological networks lost.
#ornithology
resjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
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Bird nests support a diverse, dynamic and distinctive macroarthropod community on the forest floor
Nests built by vertebrates, such as birds and mammals, constitute diverse microhabitats that are inhabited by many arthropod taxa and represent important hubs of local biodiversity. Compared to leaf...
https://resjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/icad.70067
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Max M.
3 months ago
HEY‼️ Come work with my team this summer! We're hiring 2 crew leads and at least 4 crew members to work on ecological research projects across OR, WA, and CA. Postings below 👇
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Ben Vernasco
SICB journals
3 months ago
"Understanding how organisms respond to environmental challenges is a fundamental
#biological
question that is dependent on integrative studies bridging different levels of biological organization..."
@verntasco.bsky.social
et al
doi.org/10.1093/iob/...
#birds
#avian
#ecology
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I have previously shared the following link to people applying through USAjobs. It sounds like the system has changed quite a bit, does anyone know of an updated resource?
jabberwocky.weecology.org/2021/06/14/u...
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USAJobs Guide for Biologists and Ecologists
Authors: Shawn Taylor, Jessica Burnett This guide accompanies this post highlighting careers in the US Government. The US federal jobs site, USAJobs, is notoriously difficult to use. This guide aim…
https://jabberwocky.weecology.org/2021/06/14/usajobs-guide/
3 months ago
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Ben Vernasco
SICB journals
3 months ago
IOB, Now in issue! State-Dependent and Social Modulation of Circulating
#Glucocorticoids
in a Nomadic
#Songbird
, the Red
#Crossbill
(Loxia Curvirostra) (cover photo) Neil Paprocki Vernasco et al
doi.org/10.1093/iob/...
#birds
#biology
#hormones
#ecology
#endocrine
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"Intact tropical forests are seeing mysterious bird declines. Is another “silent spring” brewing?"
www.science.org/content/arti...
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Birds are vanishing from tropical forests. Is another ‘silent spring’ coming?
As mysterious bird declines crop up in the Amazon and beyond, scientists suspect climate change may be to blame
https://www.science.org/content/article/birds-are-vanishing-tropical-forests-another-silent-spring-coming
3 months ago
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Field job in the beautiful mountains of NE Oregon doing passive acoustic monitoring and woodpecker demography just went live. Please share!
jobs.rwfm.tamu.edu/view-job/?id...
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USFS Wildlife Technician | Natural Resources Job Board
https://jobs.rwfm.tamu.edu/view-job/?id=113978
3 months ago
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Ben Vernasco
Nathan Senner
4 months ago
Please repost! We are looking for two field technicians to work on our deer mouse project in the Colorado Rockies this spring-fall. Learn about physiology, ecology, and evolution, all in one project! Not to mention that you get to be in the ⛰️. Reach out if you have any questions.
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Alexander Lees
4 months ago
New paper links Salmonellosis disease dynamics to avian irruptions mediated by transmission at bird feeders - with subsequent spillover to humans causing severe illness and death 🪶🌎
#ornithology
#UKBirding
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
#BirdFeeding
#Rethink
@mwtingley.bsky.social
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Dr Mark E Hauber
5 months ago
Update on some of our decades long cowbird research in
@audubon.org
magazine:
www.audubon.org/magazine/got...
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Got Beef With Cowbirds? This Researcher Wants to Change Your Mind
The nest parasites get a bad rap for making other birds raise their young, but study by study, Mark Hauber and his “Cowbird Lab” have revealed a species worthy of respect.
https://www.audubon.org/magazine/got-beef-cowbirds-researcher-wants-change-your-mind
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Jessie Williamson
5 months ago
The Wyoming Game & Fish Dept. is hiring two Black Rosy-Finch technicians to conduct alpine surveys in Wyoming's high elevation mountains during June 1st to Aug 31st 2026:
www.governmentjobs.com/careers/wyom...
. Spread the word!
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Job Opportunities | .
https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/wyoming?pagetype=jobOpportunitiesJobs&jobId=5189461&jobName=black-rosy-finch-survey-technician-2026-00033&tab=1
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www.cpr.org/2026/01/11/u...
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Fed agency looking for wildlife refuges that 'no longer align with the mission'
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it's looking for ways to make hundreds of wildlife refuges and dozens of fish hatcheries more efficient.
https://www.cpr.org/2026/01/11/usfws-reviewing-national-wildlife-refuges-fish-hatcheries/
5 months ago
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Ben Vernasco
Steph likes native plants
5 months ago
Update: the mini bus package that includes USDA passed the House.
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Ben Vernasco
Antoine Stier
5 months ago
Please repost: 🚨Field assistant position 🐧 We offer a 14-months field assistant position through the French Polar Institute to work on king penguin ecophysiology and behavioral ecology. Requirements: EU citizen < 30yo having experience with harsh fieldwork & wild bird/mammal handling/sampling.
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Ben Vernasco
Bonnie Flint (she/her)
6 months ago
New ornithological method just dropped: capture only the birds needed for your study with the click of a button. Pub from me &
@verntasco.bsky.social
Bye-bye bycatch: a remotely closing trap for targeted songbird capture. Journal of Field Ornithology.
journal.afonet.org/vol96/iss4/a...
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Journal of Field Ornithology: Bye-bye bycatch: a remotely closing trap for targeted songbird capture
Capturing and marking animals is often an essential component of studying wild populations, but the process of capturing and marking can have detrimental effects on captured birds. For instance, resea...
https://journal.afonet.org/vol96/iss4/art8
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Do you trap songbirds at a bird feeder, with a focus on particular species or individuals? Consider trying out our new design which uses a key FOB to remotely close the trap!
journal.afonet.org/vol96/iss4/a...
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Journal of Field Ornithology: Bye-bye bycatch: a remotely closing trap for targeted songbird capture
Capturing and marking animals is often an essential component of studying wild populations, but the process of capturing and marking can have detrimental effects on captured birds. For instance, resea...
https://journal.afonet.org/vol96/iss4/art8/
6 months ago
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Kevin Bennett
6 months ago
New paper out. If you like colorful birds, hybridization, and phylogenetics, read on! 🧵https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3003501
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A colorful legacy of hybridization in wood-warblers includes frequent sharing of carotenoid genes among species and genera
Introgression between species can shape evolutionary trajectories in important ways. This study of the entire family of the colorful wood-warblers (Parulidae) uses whole-genome sequencing to reveal fr...
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3003501
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New research in
@sicbjournals.bsky.social
on individual variation in glucocorticoid physiology. We examine intrinsic and extrinsic sources using a captive population of Red Crossbills. One cool result - we find adult telomere length predicts glucocorticoid concentrations
doi.org/10.1093/iob/...
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State-dependent and social modulation of circulating glucocorticoids in a nomadic songbird, the Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)
Abstract. Glucocorticoids facilitate the integration of environmental information and coordination of organismal responses to perturbations. Circulating gl
https://doi.org/10.1093/iob/obaf047
6 months ago
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gavin jones
6 months ago
I’m recruiting a PhD and MSC student for fall 2026 working on the movement ecology and conservation of Mexican spotted owls in SW forests and rocky canyonlands. Exciting partnership with Los Alamos National Laboratory. Great vibrant lab group, high impact research! 🦉
gavinmjones.com/opportunities/
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Opportunities
***PhD and MSc openings – Movement ecology and conservation*** I will periodically support graduate students, postdocs, and other staff through the Biology Department at the University of New…
https://gavinmjones.com/opportunities/
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Ben Vernasco
Digital Naturalism Laboratories
6 months ago
Also DNA PEOPLE!! We need your help!! Our cool friends collected the white witch caterpillar's poop but need to process it to find what kinds of plants it eats! Does your lab do some kind of poop plant analysis? Please let us know!! We have special poop!
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Alice Boyle
6 months ago
New OA paper today! This one is very important to me as is the culmination of over a decade of incredibly intensive field work in KS prairies. I will walk you through the take-homes... 1/n
#Tallgrass
#GRSP
#LTER
#Konza
#PopulationEcology
#Rain
dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3...
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Climatic Variability Threatens Population Growth and Persistence of a Declining Grassland Songbird
Determining the factors responsible for population change in threatened populations and the degree to which changing climates might put those populations at risk is one of the most pressing roles of ...
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.72195
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Dr Mark E Hauber
7 months ago
@fieldornith.bsky.social
new position search!
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Emily H. DuVal
7 months ago
We're hiring! Florida State University’s Department of Biological Science is seeking a tenure-track Evolutionary Geneticist. Our E&E group is outstanding - join us! Please share with anyone who might be interested!
#Evolution
#Genetics
#EvoDevo
#FacultyJob
jobs.sciencecareers.org/job/675930/a...
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Molly Schumer
7 months ago
Anyone looking for an undergrad research assistant this coming summer? I have a truly phenomenal undergrad with expertise in genetic mapping, long read sequencing & bioinformatics who wants experience in another lab before grad school. She has been in our lab for 3 years & writing her first paper!
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Dr. Amy Nusbaum
8 months ago
Looking for an adjunct to teach Indigenous Psychology in the spring. Could be asynchronous or via Zoom in the evening (Pacific). Very open to whatever approach/content you'd like to cover. Pay is $3,300 for the semester. We're a Native American Serving Non-Tribal Institution, as well as an HSI!
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news.cornell.edu/stories/2025...
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Bezos grant to fund AI innovations to monitor and protect wildlife | Cornell Chronicle
A $1.8 million grant from the Bezos Earth Fund will help the Cornell Lab of Ornithology develop acoustic sensors and artificial intelligence analytics to identify real-time threats to forests from ill...
https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2025/10/bezos-grant-fund-ai-innovations-monitor-and-protect-wildlife
7 months ago
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The perfect paper, the perfect grant proposal, the perfect fellowship application…
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7 months ago
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Mike Benard
8 months ago
New from CWRU alumn Troy Neptune, with Diana Koester (CLE Metroparks Zoo) in
@animalecology.bsky.social
. Gray treefrogs use daylength as a seasonal cue to prepare for winter. Autumn daylength triggers frogs to accumulate 14-fold more liver glycogen than summer photoperiod.
doi.org/10.1111/1365...
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Jessie Williamson
8 months ago
My lab is hiring a 2-yr hummingbird evolution and genomics postdoc and a 1-yr salaried research and lab tech. Both with full U. Wyoming benefits. Please spread the word! Info below. Best consideration date Nov 1, start dates early Spring 2026.
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Kim Rosvall
8 months ago
This is a nice IU short on our eclipse project.
#NSF
youtube.com/shorts/PrQGn...
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Indiana University scientists lead project on how birds responded to the 2024 Great American Eclipse
YouTube video by Kimberly Rosvall
https://youtube.com/shorts/PrQGnEXb3co?si=Bvsa3-CbTlG0Mehq
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Ben Vernasco
Wilson Ornithological Society
8 months ago
Latest articles from the WJO: Call rate and types of calls produced vary with flock movements in wild Pine Siskins (Spinus pinus).
#ornithology
doi.org/10.1080/1559...
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