Pretty cool to have this right on campus at UT Austin. And to think I only got this view because all the closer parking garages were full

My new small museums for mental health w'shop is on Sat 4 Oct Recent compelling research shows that collecting & arranging collections neatly alleviates anxiety & lifts mood. Includes: 🌿2 hr zoom-we'll make & photograph small museums 🗝️30% off my Etsy shop: workshops.emmamitchell.uk/courses/smal...

this iconic advertising copywriter named Kathy Hepinstall Parks died over the weekend and I wanted to share something from her website I thought Bluesky would like

if you wanna throw a little money at an Austin institution and certified cool queer spot, they have a kofi 💖 (linked in their insta bio if you want to verify) ko-fi.com/cheerupcharl...

There is more information about the invasive pentastome species in Florida here if you’re interested: slamconservation.weebly.com

If you'd like to follow some other trans people who work with nature too, I made a helpful starter pack! It's not exclusively scientists and it's opt-in so let me know if you'd like to be added.

New #symbiosky paper from Cory Bishop and collaborators (including me 😊) on the remarkable specificity of the symbiosis between spotted salamanders and the alga in their eggs. Cory organized colleagues to get egg fluid from NC USA to NS Canada. He found extremely low... tinyurl.com/2jmwce2s

Helped out with some Urosaurus ornatus (ornate tree lizard) fieldwork in West Texas 😍 @allyboville.bsky.social lassoing a lizard in photo 3!

Bird are not just birds - they are also whole communities of microbes, viruses, and parasites. Marcella Biaz shows differences in microbial and viral compositions between two warbler species and their hybrid. This info can help us understand the evolution of diseases and life histories. #AOS25

Pro tip for writers: A very bad first draft is not a failure—it’s a great start, Congratulations! You can’t revise a blank page, but you can shape a bad one into something really great 🌟Editing is easier than Creating🌟

In case it’s helpful, here is a baby lizard from my front porch

Fig 4 is very interesting 👀

Gar “Friends” teaser 😅👍 @garlab.bsky.social

Me to my mentees (and also me to me) at least once a week: Failure is part of the process You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take (yes the second is a Wayne Gretzky quote)

New paper out modelling how the nutritional content of wild bird foods could affect disease transmission - a nice follow-up application of our Molecular Ecology study showing that food quality can affect immune function and disease tolerance. doi.org/10.1093/icb/... @durantlab.bsky.social

broad-tailed hummingbirds built a nest atop a tea light on a friend's front porch. one bird fledged yesterday, and one kiddo (who I saw flying, too) was hanging around for more food from mom #birds

Short summary of Senate Appropriations hearing: Bipartisan agreement to keep funding at FY '24 levels for NASA/NSF passes 21-6 Van Hollen adds an amendment on FBI HQ which passes thanks to Murkowski Republican members change votes to no, threatening the bill. Now in... indefinite recess 🤷‍♂️

Don’t let elected officials lie to you and say this was a freak accident that wasn’t preventable. County officials knew automatic river gauges and sirens could protect people. They asked the state for them at least three times. The state refused to fund it: www.houstonchronicle.com/news/investi...

I'm recruiting a 2-yr postdoc to start in October or November of 2025! I'm looking for applicants interested in exploring amphibian disease ecology as it relates to climate change. Strong quantitative skills preferred, interviews start late July. More info: erinsauer.com

Two more presentations from our group at #ATBC2025 are done and dusted! 🐸🧪🌍Paul Kesseler presented a poster on Hg contamination in phytotelmata and their inhabitants at Nouragues (French Guiana), which he investigated during his Master’s (1/2)

And we talked a lot about seeds at the #ATBC2025! Thanks @caordonezparra.bsky.social for organizing this amazing symposium and delivering this great talk! @heloizazirondi.bsky.social summed up 10 years of our research about fire and seed ecology in the Cerrado! You guys rock!

Had an amazing time connecting with friends old and new at #ATBC2025. So many wonderful presentations on ecological and social dimensions of conservation, and incredible awardees who truly inspire 🌟 And to top it off I had a pretty special leopard frog encounter in Oaxaca

As an alum I can say that the Smith Fellowship offers amazing support and professional development, as well as access to an awesome network of past fellows and mentors! Please reach out if you are a prospective postdoc interested in working together 🐸

Developed from the #WCH10 symposium, we provide a guide for researchers & managers on current advances for assessing the vulnerability of reptiles 🐍 & amphibians 🐸 to water stress | doi.org/10.1093/conp... | Published in @conphysjournal.bsky.social

Helpful resource to those who want to write good alt text! Walkthroughs like this are really helpful because sometimes I over think, am I alt texting right? Am I being thorough enough? Over-describing things that aren’t helpful?

I'm beyond excited to announce that I will be joining the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Oklahoma as an Assistant Professor in January 2026! Belasen Lab @ou.edu coming soon 🐸 ❤️

“The return of wolves to New York is a story of hope, and this bill aims to give that story a happy ending,” said Tala DiBenedetto, a New York-based staff attorney at the Center.

The comment period for this ends in 3 DAYS. Please leave a comment telling them EVERYONE should be able to get covid boosters. www.regulations.gov/commenton/FD...

SHOULD I REPLY TO THIS STRANGER'S POST: a quick guide 1: is this post directly about or directly harming me? if yes, you may engage. if no, proceed to 2.

Episode 2 of Bugs that Rule the World tonight at 10pm est on @pbs.org, featuring @the-bug-hut.bsky.social! Can’t wait!

Texas peeps, let's stop this in its tracks!

Shout out to all of the faculty and students who made it through this semester in particular. What a time to be teaching and learning in spaces that are directly under attack from people who benefited from having access to the same resources themselves.

Wildflowers, bugs, and frogs are always a welcome boost! Thanks for a lovely ranch day @kzutaustin.bsky.social

This is some serious bullshit and completely unnecessary. The clear goal is demoralization of trainees and our #1 job as PIs is to make sure that we provide important affirmation that limit the effect of this "know your place" aggression

Join us in the evolution tri-societies Week of Action for NSF! Call/write congress, engage with colleagues, friends and family about the importance of NSF funding! Scan the QR code on the attached image for instructions and scripts. We must make noise! Pls RT!!!! #WithoutNSF #SaveNSF #SupportNSF

The Merlin Bird ID app wouldn’t exist #WithoutNSF. 🪶

#WithoutNSF - I wouldn't have a job - thank you PRFB! - I wouldn't have been able to research/publish on wildlife disease and conservation, both critical to human health - I wouldn't have been able to mentor students who are now pursuing their dreams in grad school and federal jobs

Crazy times, but I'll be advertising for a 2 year postdoc to work with me on new comp. methods to estimate evolutionary history soon - specifically to develop methods to handle missing data (e.g. ascertainment bias, allele dropout). Are you a comp. biologist graduating with a PhD soon? Reach out!

In the wake of what Judge Dugan did (100% legal), now is a good time for everyone to know what she knows: An immigration or administrative warrant is *not* a judicial warrant. You are not obliged to obey it. Indeed, you can let the person out the back door. docs.google.com/presentation...

A little wholesome academic content for your Sunday - The paper | The authors Writing a paper with my dad, brother, and sister is still one of my favorite "professional" things I've ever done 🥰

Thank you AGA! Very excited to do some more museomics 🐸🧬

Where are the global cold spots in genomic resources for amphibians and reptiles? And what can we do to ensure international collaborations are equitable? Check out our new Molecular Ecology paper, hot off the presses! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...