James Albert
@gymnotus.bsky.social
Ecology and Evolution of Amazonian Fishes
Pinned
James Albert
@gymnotus.bsky.social
· Nov 20
New paper alert: A time-calibrated phylogeny of Neotropical freshwater fishes, the most diverse continental fauna on Earth.
Built from a supermatrix of 51 genomic markers for 3,167 species, the most species-rich phylogeny of this fauna to date.
frontiersin.org/journals/bio...
Built from a supermatrix of 51 genomic markers for 3,167 species, the most species-rich phylogeny of this fauna to date.
frontiersin.org/journals/bio...
What an amazing resource, illustrating fundamental biogeographic patterns. Here are two closely related species of the minnow Alburnus, restricted to small areas of the Caspian sea and western Anatolia, respectively.
December 3, 2025 at 9:40 PM
What an amazing resource, illustrating fundamental biogeographic patterns. Here are two closely related species of the minnow Alburnus, restricted to small areas of the Caspian sea and western Anatolia, respectively.
Fish diversity of the Fertile Crescent, origin of civilization.
December 3, 2025 at 9:35 PM
Fish diversity of the Fertile Crescent, origin of civilization.
The book documents all 632 species of freshwater fish in the region, including 597 native species, 467 of which are endemic and 35 non-native species. What is fascinating is that 41 % of the species have been described since the year 2000.
December 3, 2025 at 9:25 PM
The book documents all 632 species of freshwater fish in the region, including 597 native species, 467 of which are endemic and 35 non-native species. What is fascinating is that 41 % of the species have been described since the year 2000.
From the Preface: "From the outside, West Asia is not a hostile place for freshwater biodiversity. It is largely an arid region facing increasing water stress caused by unsustainable water use and climate change... Not every visit to a water body is a pleasant one."
December 3, 2025 at 9:22 PM
From the Preface: "From the outside, West Asia is not a hostile place for freshwater biodiversity. It is largely an arid region facing increasing water stress caused by unsustainable water use and climate change... Not every visit to a water body is a pleasant one."
Yet another study supporting the rule of allopatry between sister species of continental vertebrates.
December 3, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Yet another study supporting the rule of allopatry between sister species of continental vertebrates.
Reposted by James Albert
🐢 The gigantic land-tortoises (living and extinct) in the collection of the British Museum
London: Printed by order of the Trustees, 1877.
[Source]
London: Printed by order of the Trustees, 1877.
[Source]
December 2, 2025 at 7:23 AM
🐢 The gigantic land-tortoises (living and extinct) in the collection of the British Museum
London: Printed by order of the Trustees, 1877.
[Source]
London: Printed by order of the Trustees, 1877.
[Source]
Reposted by James Albert
Huge News from the Western Amazon: it's the year 2025 and we are still describing entirely new, strikingly-distinctive large-bodied bird species! Behold Tinamus resonans sp. nov. the Slaty-masked Tinamou mapress.com/zt/article/v... #Ornithology @tetzoo.bsky.social 🪶
December 2, 2025 at 7:20 AM
Huge News from the Western Amazon: it's the year 2025 and we are still describing entirely new, strikingly-distinctive large-bodied bird species! Behold Tinamus resonans sp. nov. the Slaty-masked Tinamou mapress.com/zt/article/v... #Ornithology @tetzoo.bsky.social 🪶
Reposted by James Albert
And just a reminder that this isn't the last new terrestrial bird from the wider region.... #ornithology 🪶
December 2, 2025 at 11:25 AM
And just a reminder that this isn't the last new terrestrial bird from the wider region.... #ornithology 🪶
Reposted by James Albert
"The N.S.F. started the year with funding delays...it lost about a third of its employees in layoffs or forced retirements. The agency ended the year awarding 25 percent fewer new grants."
The nuanced impacts of internal budget decisions made due to fiscal crisis.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
The nuanced impacts of internal budget decisions made due to fiscal crisis.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
The U.S. Is Funding Fewer Grants in Every Area of Science and Medicine (Gift Article)
A quiet policy change means the government is making fewer bets on long-term science.
www.nytimes.com
December 2, 2025 at 1:51 PM
"The N.S.F. started the year with funding delays...it lost about a third of its employees in layoffs or forced retirements. The agency ended the year awarding 25 percent fewer new grants."
The nuanced impacts of internal budget decisions made due to fiscal crisis.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
The nuanced impacts of internal budget decisions made due to fiscal crisis.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Reposted by James Albert
Time to publish responsibly: DAFNEE, a database of academia-friendly journals in ecology and evolutionary biology url: academic.oup.com/jeb/article/...
Time to publish responsibly: DAFNEE, a database of academia-friendly journals in ecology and evolutionary biology
Abstract. The current economics of scientific publishing reveal a profound imbalance: academia pays prices far exceeding the actual costs of publication. R
academic.oup.com
December 1, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Time to publish responsibly: DAFNEE, a database of academia-friendly journals in ecology and evolutionary biology url: academic.oup.com/jeb/article/...
Adult brains of human (A), Mormyrid (B), pigeon (C), and goldfish (D) are shown in lateral view (rostral to the left). Each animal has differentially developed specific parts of the brain.
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
November 24, 2025 at 1:37 AM
Adult brains of human (A), Mormyrid (B), pigeon (C), and goldfish (D) are shown in lateral view (rostral to the left). Each animal has differentially developed specific parts of the brain.
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
Then again, it does not always come down to microevolutionary causes. Species with extreme (large and small) body sizes have higher extinction risk, meaning ancestors tend to have intermediate body sizes. A similar pattern may exist for relative brain size too.
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
November 23, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Then again, it does not always come down to microevolutionary causes. Species with extreme (large and small) body sizes have higher extinction risk, meaning ancestors tend to have intermediate body sizes. A similar pattern may exist for relative brain size too.
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
Large brains are useful when conditions favor plastic behaviors, smaller brains when reliable behaviors increase fitness. Or: why are there so many minnows?
November 23, 2025 at 8:48 PM
Large brains are useful when conditions favor plastic behaviors, smaller brains when reliable behaviors increase fitness. Or: why are there so many minnows?
From the Abstract: "cooler and varying brain temperatures reduce brain performance and thus fitness"
But there are always trade-off, see:
Robin, E. D. (1973). The evolutionary advantages of being stupid. Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 16(3), 369-380.
scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=e...
But there are always trade-off, see:
Robin, E. D. (1973). The evolutionary advantages of being stupid. Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 16(3), 369-380.
scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=e...
November 23, 2025 at 8:45 PM
From the Abstract: "cooler and varying brain temperatures reduce brain performance and thus fitness"
But there are always trade-off, see:
Robin, E. D. (1973). The evolutionary advantages of being stupid. Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 16(3), 369-380.
scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=e...
But there are always trade-off, see:
Robin, E. D. (1973). The evolutionary advantages of being stupid. Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 16(3), 369-380.
scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=e...
Same problem with this other paper in the recent PNAS issue with a grandiose title and tremendous variance.
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
November 23, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Same problem with this other paper in the recent PNAS issue with a grandiose title and tremendous variance.
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
The title of this paper is silly, these are statistical correlations not evolutionary explanations. The trends are dwarfed by the exceptions (residuals), like the small brains of tunas and large brains of mormyrid fishes.
November 23, 2025 at 8:04 PM
The title of this paper is silly, these are statistical correlations not evolutionary explanations. The trends are dwarfed by the exceptions (residuals), like the small brains of tunas and large brains of mormyrid fishes.
Reposted by James Albert
If you need a professional terrestrial phototroph you need a symbiont of plant+fungi. Lichen (Spongiophyton sp) colonized the land already at least in the Early Devonian:
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
🧪 ⚒️ #Paleobio #EvoBio #Geology
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
🧪 ⚒️ #Paleobio #EvoBio #Geology
November 3, 2025 at 3:03 PM
If you need a professional terrestrial phototroph you need a symbiont of plant+fungi. Lichen (Spongiophyton sp) colonized the land already at least in the Early Devonian:
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
🧪 ⚒️ #Paleobio #EvoBio #Geology
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
🧪 ⚒️ #Paleobio #EvoBio #Geology
Reposted by James Albert
I’m stuck in bed between chemo treatments for metastatic coloncancer, wearing a take-home chemo pump attached to my chest.
I wanted to share my advice that you can benefit from ‘Letting Your Colleagues In’ don’t need to struggle alone
@insidehighered.com
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/care...
I wanted to share my advice that you can benefit from ‘Letting Your Colleagues In’ don’t need to struggle alone
@insidehighered.com
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/care...
Consider Sharing Health Challenges With Colleagues (opinion)
Being open with my colleagues about my cancer diagnosis has allowed me to access an enormous source of support and comfort.
www.insidehighered.com
November 6, 2025 at 3:15 PM
I’m stuck in bed between chemo treatments for metastatic coloncancer, wearing a take-home chemo pump attached to my chest.
I wanted to share my advice that you can benefit from ‘Letting Your Colleagues In’ don’t need to struggle alone
@insidehighered.com
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/care...
I wanted to share my advice that you can benefit from ‘Letting Your Colleagues In’ don’t need to struggle alone
@insidehighered.com
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/care...
Reposted by James Albert
Halloween logicals, still the best 10/31 venn
October 31, 2025 at 10:52 PM
Halloween logicals, still the best 10/31 venn
Reposted by James Albert
Sharing this cool animation of #Aquilolamna, a fossil shark from the Late Cretaceous Agua Nueva Formation of Mexico. This species was cosplaying as a manta ray long before the first manta rays appeared in the fossil record. #FossilFriday
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfdd...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfdd...
Aquilolamna - Eagle Shark [ 3D animation ]
YouTube video by Kiabugboy
www.youtube.com
October 31, 2025 at 10:35 PM
Sharing this cool animation of #Aquilolamna, a fossil shark from the Late Cretaceous Agua Nueva Formation of Mexico. This species was cosplaying as a manta ray long before the first manta rays appeared in the fossil record. #FossilFriday
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfdd...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfdd...
Reposted by James Albert
Although many ecosystems can weather several years of moderate drought, consecutive years of extreme dryness push them past a tipping point, resulting in dramatic declines in plant growth, researchers report in Science. https://scim.ag/4ogN9I8
Drought intensity and duration interact to magnify losses in primary productivity
As droughts become longer and more intense, impacts on terrestrial primary productivity are expected to increase progressively. Yet, some ecosystems appear to acclimate to multiyear drought, with cons...
scim.ag
October 21, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Although many ecosystems can weather several years of moderate drought, consecutive years of extreme dryness push them past a tipping point, resulting in dramatic declines in plant growth, researchers report in Science. https://scim.ag/4ogN9I8
Reposted by James Albert
An invited speaker told me today they share my paper with their students to show them what's possible, and I'm going to ride that validation for a while.
In this paper we applied comparative genomics to study genome evolution:
elifesciences.org/articles/65394
In this paper we applied comparative genomics to study genome evolution:
elifesciences.org/articles/65394
elifesciences.org
October 21, 2025 at 7:08 PM
An invited speaker told me today they share my paper with their students to show them what's possible, and I'm going to ride that validation for a while.
In this paper we applied comparative genomics to study genome evolution:
elifesciences.org/articles/65394
In this paper we applied comparative genomics to study genome evolution:
elifesciences.org/articles/65394
Reposted by James Albert
#Oregon: Just months after the historic removal of four major dams on the Klamath River, scientists and tribal leaders are stunned by what they’re seeing—salmon are returning in far greater numbers, and much faster, than anyone expected. www.activenorcal.com/salmon-are-s...
Salmon Are Surging Far Beyond Expectations After Klamath River Dam Removal
Just months after the historic removal of four major dams on the Klamath River, scientists and tribal leaders are stunned by what they’re seeing—salmon are returning in far greater numbers, and much f...
www.activenorcal.com
October 22, 2025 at 12:13 AM
#Oregon: Just months after the historic removal of four major dams on the Klamath River, scientists and tribal leaders are stunned by what they’re seeing—salmon are returning in far greater numbers, and much faster, than anyone expected. www.activenorcal.com/salmon-are-s...
Reposted by James Albert
Fewer grad students means less science, but many STEM PhD programs in the US are cutting back on admissions this year due to federal funding uncertainties. Words by me for @nature.com:
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
@emsque.bsky.social @ucsdcooperlab.bsky.social @julieposselt.bsky.social 🧪
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
@emsque.bsky.social @ucsdcooperlab.bsky.social @julieposselt.bsky.social 🧪
US PhD admissions shrink as fears over Trump’s cuts take hold
Some doctoral programmes are admitting no students at all amid uncertainty about federal science funding.
www.nature.com
October 21, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Fewer grad students means less science, but many STEM PhD programs in the US are cutting back on admissions this year due to federal funding uncertainties. Words by me for @nature.com:
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
@emsque.bsky.social @ucsdcooperlab.bsky.social @julieposselt.bsky.social 🧪
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
@emsque.bsky.social @ucsdcooperlab.bsky.social @julieposselt.bsky.social 🧪