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Stevie

@stevievalhalla.bsky.social

150 followers 110 following 80 posts

She/her | Biologist | Bioinformatics | MS student | Creepy fish fan https://slamconservation.weebly.com/

slamconservation.weebly.com

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Jul 17

Hi, I’m Stevie! I’m wrapping up my MS in biology at UCF. I’m currently building a draft genome for three species of pentastomes (weird crustacean parasites). I’ve also researched electric fish metabolism/physiology.

I like traveling, finding new donut shops, and playing low-stakes video games.

A woman with shoulder-length wavy hair, glasses, and a black top smiles while seated at a lab bench. She is wearing a circular pendant necklace and has one arm resting on the table with a blue-gloved hand beside her. Shelves behind her are stocked with lab supplies and equipment.

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 2d

Ah! Our samples were all female, so I’m still not sure 😔 but I’ll add it to the list of questions once this is completed!

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 2d

The pentastomes I am studying are sexually dimorphic with males being much smaller than the females. Sometimes the male cephalothorax isn’t as defined, and if you get them alive/recently deceased they are transparent enough to see the many many ova the females are carrying.

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 3d

**porocephalidae (still waking up lol)

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 3d

Raillietiella and porocephildae! I’m working on reference genomes for three species in Florida, two native and the invasive Raillietiella orientalis.

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 3d

First wives club may not be one of the “better” ones, but it is one of my favorites, what a loss, she was delightful.

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 3d

This was such a cool article and oddly specific to my background. I spent a couple of years researching electric fish from South America, and now I work with pentastomes (also in oligostraca). I had the same question, and my guess is that chitin isn’t conductive.

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 7d

[Your Name] is confusing. Is it meant to be a template? If yes, the beginning should be set up with “Hello [Name of Addressee],”.

Where does the body of the text go? Under or above the condescending instructions?

Dear Kevin,

Make it make sense.

Queerly and Sincerely,
The rest of us

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 18d

He looks a bit like Thomas Haden Church (sandman in Spider-Man no way home)

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 23d

#Florida is alright sometimes.

Grassy trail with saw palmetto and long leaf pine trees flanking both sides. The sky is cloudy and blue behind the trees.

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · 26d

Well, now I know why the other birds aren’t hanging out at the feeder #florida #birding

A red-shouldered hawk is perched on a bird feeder in a grassy backyard.

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Sep 1

MS thesis defense scheduled ✅
Genome annotation in progress ✅
Daily panic attacks ✅
Therapy appointments to keep the panic at bay ✅

It’s about balance, right?

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 29

I bit my nails after feeding fish bloodworms and mysid shrimp. I thought I had washed and scrubbed my hands enough after feeding. I did not. 🤢

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 29

Look at the stubby tail 😭

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 29

Baby raccoons are in the yard, I repeat baby raccoons are IN THE YARD!! 🥰

Two juvenile and one adult raccoon in a grassy back yard. There is a black metal fence behind them.

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 20

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

SNAKE LUNGWORM ALLIANCE AND MONITORING

The invasive lung parasite, Raillietiella orientalis , was first introduced in South Florida with Burmese pythons. It is now found in 34 counties and 18 native snake species, with infections...

slamconservation.weebly.com

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 20

Depends on the pentastome! The invasive Raillietiella orientalis seems to be not very picky about snake hosts, which is unfortunate. They were likely introduced to FL with Burmese Pythons. Some other pentastome species have been known to infect humans as well, so there is some unknown zoonosis 😬

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 20

Thank you!! I love it, my only complaint is that I don’t have cute animal photos to share like other biologists 😂

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 20

Hi Bluesky! I’m Stevie, an MS student at UCF working in the first nuclear genomes of three species of pentastomes (bizarre crustacean parasites that infect snakes). I’m especially interested in how invasive pentastomes are impacting native snake populations and how genomics can help us combat them.

Stephanie, a woman with brown hair and glasses, is smiling and holding a pipette in a gloved hand. Behind her are shelves filled with lab supplies.

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 16

Exploring how many frames from SpongeBob are relatable to the graduate student experience…

Every SpongeBob Frame In Order @esfio.bsky.social · Aug 16

Season 2 Episode 20 - Frame 1245 out of 2749

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 13

I realize that I may be a niche market, but I would love if Google maps would let me search and filter out options that require theme park admission. 😐

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 13

I always feel like I’m playing pretend saying things like “optimization” and “metrics” 😂

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 13

I’ve been holding down a (contract) senior marketing job while getting my MS. Code switching between academia and corporate tech start up is EXHAUSTING.

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Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 13

Fall semester starts next week, which means new trauma trying to find parking at #UCF

BUT…it’s my last fall semester, so at least I’ve got that going for me. 🚙

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 1

I meaaaaaan, c’mon.

Florida sunset, there is a dark treeline at the bottom, the sky has clouds and bright orange colors.

Stevie @stevievalhalla.bsky.social · Aug 1

I always hear the bats on campus, but last night I finally saw a bunch of them!

Also, Florida sunsets are always 🔥🥰 #UCF