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Reposted by Dax Kellie

Richard McElreath 🐈‍⬛ @rmcelreath.bsky.social · 1h

Looks like a good guide - the general data cleaning part is a lean intro to some very common issues in all sorts of data. Would be great if every phd who touches raw data was offered a short course in these basics (in R or Python or whatever HipsterScript) cleaning-data-r.ala.org.au/2_general-cl...

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · 38m

Thanks Richard! I definitely agree - we realised (after lots of reshuffling) that general cleaning fixes *many* problems, *then* you get to ones that require domain expertise

Lots of resources exist on general data cleaning, but we figured it’s foundational + nice to have it in one searchable place

Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · 4h

Thanks so much David!

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · 6h

See the full list of updates here:
github.com/AtlasOfLivin...

Release 0.2.0 · AtlasOfLivingAustralia/cleaning_data

Updated data for September 2025 #53 Fixed broken {taxize} examples in Taxonomic validation chapter #38 Added content about taxonomic mismatching scenarios to Taxonomic validation chapter #51 Edited...

github.com

Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · 6h

Still want to make cleaning biodiversity data shrimp-ler? 🦐

Good news: We just updated our Cleaning Biodiversity Data in R book, so you still can! We've updated data for 2025, added new content & fixed lots of silly typos 😀

Live the shrimp-le life:
cleaning-data-r.ala.org.au

#rstats #ecology 🧪🌏

The cover of the Cleaning Biodiversity Data in R book. It has an illustration of an Pacific Cleaner Shrimp in the middle of a navy background. The shrimp has a bright red-orange shell, pale-yellow body and white whiskers.

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · 13h

Was listening to D’Angelo just yesterday talking about how he’s one of the greats. Huge loss 💔 RIP

pitchfork.com/news/dangelo...

D’Angelo, Groundbreaking R&B Artist, Dies at 51

From his 1995 debut Brown Sugar to his 2014 comeback Black Messiah, he helped define the neo-soul movement

pitchfork.com

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Reposted by Dax Kellie

Diana Fisher @dianafisher1080.bsky.social · 1d

Southern emu wren is a good one for targeted conservation action too. It needs immediate saving from a tenth of it's habitat being converted to a rocket launching facility

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Ronni🧂Salt @ronnisalt.bsky.social · 1d

Vote now, if you haven't already, for the Guardian's Bird of the Year 2025

It helps to nominate a bird that's endangered, giving it a much higher profile - like Baudin's black cockatoo for example

Please vote - this is a wonderful environmental exercise

🙏🏽 🦜

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Australian bird of the year 2025: vote for your favourite #birdoftheyear in the Guardian / BirdLife Australia poll

From little penguins to (very big) cassowaries, every bird has its fans. Vote for your favourite in the 2025 Guardian/BirdLife Australia poll

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Dax Kellie

Perry Beasley-Hall, PhD @pbeasleyhall.bsky.social · 3d

Field crickets (Gryllinae) aren't just plain brown chirping things in backyards - the group is actually pretty diverse, with >3,000 species. Maybe the weirdest are in the genus Sciobia, which all have these delightful Pikmin-like "hats" 🥺

📸: Sciobia barbara, Pierre-Henri Fabre

#EverydayEnsifera

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Kate Laskowski @katelaskowski.bsky.social · 5d

So much this!! Code is so valuable and literally the thing that creates your results. When you include it in your paper it can be such a valuable resource to everyone (plus earn you a couple more citations).

Daniel Bolnick @danielbolnick.bsky.social · 5d

This:
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Absolutely yes. And I'm proud that @asn-amnat.bsky.social has led the way on this with requiring code and data editors checking code for about five years now!

Stop treating code like an afterthought: record, share and value it

Scientists, research institutions, funders, libraries and publishers must all improve software practices.

www.nature.com

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Oregon 🕎🎲 @oregonthedm.bsky.social · 9d

Pink empress Mantis

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Our World in Data @ourworldindata.org · 12d

The threat of extinction is not spread evenly across the tree of life. To protect animals, it’s important to know which ones are most threatened and why.

Of all vertebrates (animals with a backbone and skull), amphibians are most threatened with extinction.

A bar chart showing that of all vertebrate groups (animals with a backbone and skull), amphibians face the highest risk of extinction. The data source is the IUCN Red List. The chart is licensed under CC BY to Our World in Data.

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · 14d

That’s me asking a question that appears to be causing everyone else in the audience to have an existential crisis 🥲

Thanks #WOMBAT2025! I had a great time listening to cool speakers and meeting many nice, passionate and impressive people. See ya next time 👋
#rstats

WOMBAT 2025 @wombat.numbat.space · 15d

Thank you so much too all the speakers and participants. #WOMBAT2025 was lovely and we hope to have you for #WOMBAT2026!
We'll share the recordings on youtube, so follow us for news!

#RStats #DataScience

Closeup photo of someone asking a question.

Photo of people standing, eating and chatting.

Photo of four people playing table tennis.

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Kate Laskowski @katelaskowski.bsky.social · 29d

SquidSim is the coolest package - it let's you build complex hierarchical data structures and then simulate data from the world you create. The best tool for doing proper power analyses and testing how well your models can uncover the 'truth'. I've been recommending it to everyone!

Joel Pick @joelpick.bsky.social · 29d

Interested in simulating the kind of data that you might commonly find in evolutionary and ecological studies?

Then we have the R package for you - squidSim!!

Check our new preprint:
ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...

squidSim: a flexible R package for structured and reproducible simulations in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

ecoevorxiv.org

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Reposted by Dax Kellie

Nature Portfolio @natureportfolio.nature.com · Sep 11

Octopuses can use any of their arms to perform tasks, but tend to use a particular arm, or arms, for specific tasks, according to a study in Scientific Reports. go.nature.com/4pjR34k 🌊 🧪

This is figure 3, which shows arm actions and their relationship to animal behaviors.

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Reposted by Dax Kellie

Randall Plant MD @rpfromak.bsky.social · Aug 31

That method is a bit confusing because the countries with which comparisons are being made are distorted. I like this method of comparison better, showing a country’s actual area compared with the Mercator projection.

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Aug 27

Even if you don't code (or use Python), the visual way we explain how locations of sensitive species are obfuscated (i.e. made less precise📍) in this post is something I'm very happy with in the end

It might be worth a look if you work with sensitive species data 🙂🧪🌏

Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Aug 27

🔍 Need to search for species in an area with a buffer? 🔵

Learn how to add a buffer in Python and see how to consider threatened species with obfuscated locations in a new ALA Labs post by Amanda Buyan & me 😀

labs.ala.org.au/posts/2025-0...

🧪🌏 #Python #matplotlib #geopandas #geospatial #quartopub

a map. An outline of Midwestern (a local government area in NSW, Australia) in black surrounded by a buffer zone in blue around it. Purple points (which are species observations) are speckled around the map

3 maps, each showing an black outline of Midwestern (a local government area in NSW, Australia) with a grid overlayed on each. Each map shows a purple dot representing a theoretical 'true' species location, and a yellow point representing the new point location due to generalisation (the process of making the location less precise). These three maps show 3 scenarios when a generalised point appears inside an area when its true location is outside, inside an area when its true location is inside, and outside an area when its true location is inside

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Aug 27

🔍 Need to search for species in an area with a buffer? 🔵

Learn how to add a buffer in Python and see how to consider threatened species with obfuscated locations in a new ALA Labs post by Amanda Buyan & me 😀

labs.ala.org.au/posts/2025-0...

🧪🌏 #Python #matplotlib #geopandas #geospatial #quartopub

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Aug 25

A stack of bricks 🧱 or a luxury frog sauna? 🐸

Many species seek out these warm enclosures and, excitingly, regular visits on warm days can help fight against deadly chytrid fungus too. The fungus is sensitive to heat. ~28°C (82°F) is enough to limit chytrid growth 🧪🌏

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A sit in the sauna can save endangered frogs

Anthony Waddle’s unconventional approach resulted in a stunningly practical solution to fight a deadly fungal infection.

www.nature.com

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Laura Helmuth @laurahelmuth.bsky.social · Aug 13

Sex-reversal in birds (genetically male/female but appear female/male) is surprisingly common. Best detail: A genetically male bird called a laughing kookaburra had recently laid an egg. (1/2)

By @phiejacobs.bsky.social on @science.org

‘Sex reversal’ is surprisingly common in birds, new study suggests

Survey of five Australian avians finds numerous discordant individuals, including a genetically male bird that had laid an egg

www.science.org

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Jul 30

A tree-ring dataviz where every ring represents that tree’s number of observations each year?? 🌳🤩🌳

Yet another stunning piece of work from @shandiya.bsky.social. This one leafs me speechless 🍃🫢 😜

#rstats 🌏🧪📊

Shandiya Balasubramaniam 🍉 @shandiya.bsky.social · Jul 29

It’s National Tree Day!* 🌴🌳🌲📊

I visualised patterns of records added to the Atlas of Living Australia over the last 50 years as tree rings for 4 iconic Australian species: Mountain Ash, Snow Gum, Moreton Bay Fig, and River Red Gum
#rstats

*well, two days ago but who’s counting

A two-by-two grid with concentric circles of different colours and thicknesses in each, representing numbers of records added to the Atlas of Living Australia over the last 50 years. The rings resemble cross sections of trees, and each is set against a different brightly coloured background.

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Jul 29

Whoa that was a fast turn around 😮
Looks great! 😀

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Jul 29

There's some nuance to this process to return exactly what you want, so hopefully this article helps! 😀

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Jul 29

This post is specifically written to help people who need species lists for reporting, whether it's:

📋 Government workers creating lists for monitoring or land assessment
🏘️ Industry workers conducting an Environmental Impact Assessment
📍 Researchers creating lists for their study area

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Dax Kellie @daxkellie.bsky.social · Jul 29

Need to make a species list for an area? 📋🌱

Learn how to download a list of species, cross-reference with conservation status lists, and visualise with {ggplot2} in a new ALA Labs post by me & Amanda Buyan

🔗 labs.ala.org.au/posts/2025-0...

#rstats 🧪🌏📊

A bar plot showing the number of critically endangered, endangered and vulnerable species observed in 2024 in the Shoalhaven region, New South Wales, Australia. The bar plot is themed with warm reddy-pink colours

A waffle chart, where each block represents one species, showing the taxonomic breakdown of threatened species in Shoalhaven, New South Wales observed in 2024. The waffle chart is themed with earthy colours

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