Henry North
@henrylnorth.bsky.social
Research Fellow at Girton College, Cambridge
Interested in population genomics, invasive species, hybridization, adaptation, speciation
Interested in population genomics, invasive species, hybridization, adaptation, speciation
Pinned
Henry North
@henrylnorth.bsky.social
· Jan 23
Rapid Adaptation and Interspecific Introgression in the North American Crop Pest Helicoverpa zea
Abstract. Insect crop pests threaten global food security. This threat is amplified through the spread of nonnative species and through adaptation of nativ
academic.oup.com
Reports of further spread of the H. armigera resistance allele CYP337B3 in native H. zea populations in the US — now fixed at some sample sites in Iowa: crops.extension.iastate.edu/cropnews/202...
Our most recent work on this outbreak here: academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
Our most recent work on this outbreak here: academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
Reposted by Henry North
New paper published together with John Welch on hybrid fitness and how it depends on ploidy and # of distinct ancestries, incl some remarkable fits of data & theory 😶. Keen to hear any thoughts/comments/questions! doi.org/10.1093/gene... Thanks to the team @ Genetics for the smooth experience :)
Predicting Hybrid Fitness: The Effects of Ploidy and Complex Ancestry
Abstract. Hybridization between divergent populations places alleles in novel genomic contexts. This can inject adaptive variation – which is useful for br
doi.org
November 9, 2025 at 1:04 PM
New paper published together with John Welch on hybrid fitness and how it depends on ploidy and # of distinct ancestries, incl some remarkable fits of data & theory 😶. Keen to hear any thoughts/comments/questions! doi.org/10.1093/gene... Thanks to the team @ Genetics for the smooth experience :)
Reposted by Henry North
Modestly, we decided to review a century's worth of theories of balancing selection :) onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
A century of theories of balancing selection
Traits that affect organismal fitness are often highly genetically variable. This genetic variation is vital for populations to adapt to their environments, but it is also surprising given that natur...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Modestly, we decided to review a century's worth of theories of balancing selection :) onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Nice to see experiments measuring the response to selection pressures potentially associated with the transport phase of biological invasion:
Chen et al. Genomic Insights Into Early‐Stage Selective Filtering During the Transport Stage of Biological Invasions pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
Chen et al. Genomic Insights Into Early‐Stage Selective Filtering During the Transport Stage of Biological Invasions pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
Genomic Insights Into Early‐Stage Selective Filtering During the Transport Stage of Biological Invasions
Marine biological invasions, increasingly facilitated by maritime transport, represent a major dimension of global change, threatening biodiversity, ecosystem services, and human well‐being worldwide. Although the factors shaping invasion success ...
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 12, 2025 at 10:49 AM
Nice to see experiments measuring the response to selection pressures potentially associated with the transport phase of biological invasion:
Chen et al. Genomic Insights Into Early‐Stage Selective Filtering During the Transport Stage of Biological Invasions pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
Chen et al. Genomic Insights Into Early‐Stage Selective Filtering During the Transport Stage of Biological Invasions pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
Reposted by Henry North
Come and join us here in Cambridge! Applications open for a new faculty position, for a researcher in computational and/or theoretical biology, based jointly in Genetics and Mathematics. Happy to answer questions about research, teaching and working here.
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/faculty...
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/faculty...
Faculty Position in Computational Biology
Applications are invited for an Assistant/ Associate Professorship in Computational Biology to commence on 1 April 2026 or shortly thereafter. This is a joint post between the Department of Applied
www.cam.ac.uk
November 11, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Come and join us here in Cambridge! Applications open for a new faculty position, for a researcher in computational and/or theoretical biology, based jointly in Genetics and Mathematics. Happy to answer questions about research, teaching and working here.
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/faculty...
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/faculty...
Reposted by Henry North
Interested in doing a PhD in how extinction processes can inform conservation? Do you see yourself working at the intersection of genomics, museums, conservation and butterfly biology. If so consider applying for the ILESLA PhD programme at Oxford Brookes: www.brookes.ac.uk/courses/rese...
PhD in The Oxford Interdisciplinary Life and Environmental Science training programme (ILESLA) at Oxford Brookes University
The 4 year MPhil/PhD provides the opportunity to undertake research accross the full breadth of biological and environmental science. This tailored programme includes taught courses in interdisciplina...
www.brookes.ac.uk
October 21, 2025 at 10:33 AM
Interested in doing a PhD in how extinction processes can inform conservation? Do you see yourself working at the intersection of genomics, museums, conservation and butterfly biology. If so consider applying for the ILESLA PhD programme at Oxford Brookes: www.brookes.ac.uk/courses/rese...
Reposted by Henry North
A new genetic study in Science overturns the myth of the “London Underground Mosquito,” revealing that this common urban insect originated not below the cities of modern Europe, but in ancient Mediterranean civilizations more than a thousand years ago. https://scim.ag/43xWovB
Ancient origin of an urban underground mosquito
Understanding how life is adapting to urban environments represents an important challenge in evolutionary biology. In this work, we investigate a widely cited example of urban adaptation, Culex pipie...
scim.ag
October 28, 2025 at 7:38 PM
A new genetic study in Science overturns the myth of the “London Underground Mosquito,” revealing that this common urban insect originated not below the cities of modern Europe, but in ancient Mediterranean civilizations more than a thousand years ago. https://scim.ag/43xWovB
Reposted by Henry North
Herbarium specimens reveal shifts in species' elevational ranges
Zu et al.
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/VB8MUG...
Zu et al.
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/VB8MUG...
October 28, 2025 at 6:09 PM
Herbarium specimens reveal shifts in species' elevational ranges
Zu et al.
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/VB8MUG...
Zu et al.
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/VB8MUG...
Reposted by Henry North
I am hiring! - looking for a Staff Scientist to co-run my research group with me. Staff Scientist is a senior professional scientist role at EMBL. Please forward to people you might know who could be interested! embl.wd103.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/EMBL/j...
Staff Scientist
About EMBL-EBI EMBL’s European Bioinformatics Institute is a data powerhouse, utilised on a global scale to advance scientific discovery through bioinformatics and solutions to some of the world’s mos...
embl.wd103.myworkdayjobs.com
October 10, 2025 at 7:30 AM
I am hiring! - looking for a Staff Scientist to co-run my research group with me. Staff Scientist is a senior professional scientist role at EMBL. Please forward to people you might know who could be interested! embl.wd103.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/EMBL/j...
Reposted by Henry North
Applications for the MEME programme (www.evobio.eu
) are now open! MEME is a research- and mobility-oriented master’s in evolutionary biology (& I’m a proud alumna!), jointly run by the Unis of Groningen, Uppsala, Montpellier, and LMU Munich, with Harvard and Lausanne as partners. Spread the word!
) are now open! MEME is a research- and mobility-oriented master’s in evolutionary biology (& I’m a proud alumna!), jointly run by the Unis of Groningen, Uppsala, Montpellier, and LMU Munich, with Harvard and Lausanne as partners. Spread the word!
October 23, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Applications for the MEME programme (www.evobio.eu
) are now open! MEME is a research- and mobility-oriented master’s in evolutionary biology (& I’m a proud alumna!), jointly run by the Unis of Groningen, Uppsala, Montpellier, and LMU Munich, with Harvard and Lausanne as partners. Spread the word!
) are now open! MEME is a research- and mobility-oriented master’s in evolutionary biology (& I’m a proud alumna!), jointly run by the Unis of Groningen, Uppsala, Montpellier, and LMU Munich, with Harvard and Lausanne as partners. Spread the word!
Reposted by Henry North
We are in Bluesky and we are happy to share our two last consortium publications: the DrosEU expanded DEST dataset and a Continent-wide study of phenotypic differentiation among European #Drosophila melanogaster populations (1/7)
October 19, 2025 at 9:35 AM
We are in Bluesky and we are happy to share our two last consortium publications: the DrosEU expanded DEST dataset and a Continent-wide study of phenotypic differentiation among European #Drosophila melanogaster populations (1/7)
Reposted by Henry North
Wow, nature is too cool! Structures on stinkbug hind legs that used to be interpreted as ears are actually chambers with fungi. The bugs coat their eggs in those fungi to protect them against parasitoid wasps. 🧪
Defensive fungal symbiosis on insect hindlegs | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Defensive fungal symbiosis on insect hindlegs | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Defensive fungal symbiosis on insect hindlegs
Dinidorid stinkbugs were reported to possess a conspicuous tympanal organ on female hindlegs. In this study, we show that this organ is specialized to retain microbial symbionts rather than to perceiv...
www.science.org
October 17, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Wow, nature is too cool! Structures on stinkbug hind legs that used to be interpreted as ears are actually chambers with fungi. The bugs coat their eggs in those fungi to protect them against parasitoid wasps. 🧪
Defensive fungal symbiosis on insect hindlegs | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Defensive fungal symbiosis on insect hindlegs | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Henry North
1/9 New in @science.org www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ado8005
How does genetic architecture constrain evolutionary trajectories? To address this question, we inferred the genetic architecture of convergent plumage coloration and its evolutionary history in wheatears.
How does genetic architecture constrain evolutionary trajectories? To address this question, we inferred the genetic architecture of convergent plumage coloration and its evolutionary history in wheatears.
A mosaic of modular variation at a single gene underpins convergent plumage coloration
The reshuffling of genomic variation from multiple origins is an important contributor to phenotypic diversification, yet insights into the evolutionary trajectories of this combinatorial process and ...
www.science.org
October 17, 2025 at 5:50 AM
1/9 New in @science.org www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ado8005
How does genetic architecture constrain evolutionary trajectories? To address this question, we inferred the genetic architecture of convergent plumage coloration and its evolutionary history in wheatears.
How does genetic architecture constrain evolutionary trajectories? To address this question, we inferred the genetic architecture of convergent plumage coloration and its evolutionary history in wheatears.
Reposted by Henry North
We're excited to be recruiting an NIH funded postdoc to work in the Coop lab at UC Davis. We're specifically interested in candidates who are want to work at the intersection of human genetics, GWAS, and population genetics modeling. Please RT
October 15, 2025 at 3:53 PM
We're excited to be recruiting an NIH funded postdoc to work in the Coop lab at UC Davis. We're specifically interested in candidates who are want to work at the intersection of human genetics, GWAS, and population genetics modeling. Please RT
Evolutionary geneticists: I need your help! Can you think of examples of recurrent introgression of different alleles at the same locus into a single recipient population/species?
ie Allele A is introduced to taxon 1 from taxon 2, then allele A’ is introduced to taxon 1 from taxon 2
ie Allele A is introduced to taxon 1 from taxon 2, then allele A’ is introduced to taxon 1 from taxon 2
October 14, 2025 at 3:52 PM
Evolutionary geneticists: I need your help! Can you think of examples of recurrent introgression of different alleles at the same locus into a single recipient population/species?
ie Allele A is introduced to taxon 1 from taxon 2, then allele A’ is introduced to taxon 1 from taxon 2
ie Allele A is introduced to taxon 1 from taxon 2, then allele A’ is introduced to taxon 1 from taxon 2
Reposted by Henry North
Apply for our PhD program on Evolution Ecology Organismal Biology (Integrative! Biology)
Dec 1 2025 deadline
Check out the Flyer below for more information on our #MOILAB!
Link to Flyer
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
@ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social
@hhmi.org
Dec 1 2025 deadline
Check out the Flyer below for more information on our #MOILAB!
Link to Flyer
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
@ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social
@hhmi.org
October 13, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Apply for our PhD program on Evolution Ecology Organismal Biology (Integrative! Biology)
Dec 1 2025 deadline
Check out the Flyer below for more information on our #MOILAB!
Link to Flyer
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
@ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social
@hhmi.org
Dec 1 2025 deadline
Check out the Flyer below for more information on our #MOILAB!
Link to Flyer
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
@ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social
@hhmi.org
Reposted by Henry North
Temperature can reverse sexual conflict, facilitating population growth
doi.org/10.1093/evle...
Now in @evolletters.bsky.social by Roberto García-Roa et al.
doi.org/10.1093/evle...
Now in @evolletters.bsky.social by Roberto García-Roa et al.
Temperature can reverse sexual conflict, facilitating population growth
Abstract. Sexual conflict frequently gives rise to adaptations that increase male reproductive success at the expense of harming females (“male harm”) and
doi.org
October 13, 2025 at 5:31 PM
Temperature can reverse sexual conflict, facilitating population growth
doi.org/10.1093/evle...
Now in @evolletters.bsky.social by Roberto García-Roa et al.
doi.org/10.1093/evle...
Now in @evolletters.bsky.social by Roberto García-Roa et al.
Reposted by Henry North
Attempted eradication of smallmouth bass promotes rapid evolution. Here's the study that is the focus of the Scientific American article: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
October 12, 2025 at 4:41 PM
Attempted eradication of smallmouth bass promotes rapid evolution. Here's the study that is the focus of the Scientific American article: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Henry North
📢 New publication 'From Trees to Traits: A Review of Advances in PhyloG2P Methods and Future Directions' by Arlie Macdonald, Maddie James, Jonathan Mitchell and Barbara Holland in Genome Biology and Evolution 🧪
doi.org/10.1093/gbe/...
#Phylogenomics
doi.org/10.1093/gbe/...
#Phylogenomics
From Trees to Traits: A Review of Advances in PhyloG2P Methods and Future Directions
Abstract. Mapping genotypes to phenotypes is a fundamental goal in biology. Phylogenetic Genotype to Phenotype mapping methods are a relatively new set of
doi.org
October 6, 2025 at 11:42 PM
📢 New publication 'From Trees to Traits: A Review of Advances in PhyloG2P Methods and Future Directions' by Arlie Macdonald, Maddie James, Jonathan Mitchell and Barbara Holland in Genome Biology and Evolution 🧪
doi.org/10.1093/gbe/...
#Phylogenomics
doi.org/10.1093/gbe/...
#Phylogenomics
Reposted by Henry North
This week we celebrated reaching 1000 lepidopteran genomes in the Tree of Life (ToL) programme @ the @sangerinstitute.bsky.social with butterfly crafts and cake! Many of these genomes were sequenced by the wonderful ToL teams as part of @projectpsyche.bsky.social & the Darwin Tree of Life project 🦋🧬
October 10, 2025 at 1:56 PM
This week we celebrated reaching 1000 lepidopteran genomes in the Tree of Life (ToL) programme @ the @sangerinstitute.bsky.social with butterfly crafts and cake! Many of these genomes were sequenced by the wonderful ToL teams as part of @projectpsyche.bsky.social & the Darwin Tree of Life project 🦋🧬
Reposted by Henry North
*Job alert*
We have a 5-year postdoc position on #mountain non-native species & #macroecology in our group @unibas.ch. Great opportunity to join us!
Details here: jobs.unibas.ch/offene-stellen/postdoc-position-in-mountain-macroecology/6c5a8906-354f-43c6-bc9b-1156d21725a5
Please share!
We have a 5-year postdoc position on #mountain non-native species & #macroecology in our group @unibas.ch. Great opportunity to join us!
Details here: jobs.unibas.ch/offene-stellen/postdoc-position-in-mountain-macroecology/6c5a8906-354f-43c6-bc9b-1156d21725a5
Please share!
Universität Basel: Postdoc position in mountain macroecology
The research group Ecology at the Department of Environmental Sciences at the University of Basel in Switzerland invites applications for a postdoc position within the ERC project 'Global status, tren...
jobs.unibas.ch
September 8, 2025 at 9:01 AM
*Job alert*
We have a 5-year postdoc position on #mountain non-native species & #macroecology in our group @unibas.ch. Great opportunity to join us!
Details here: jobs.unibas.ch/offene-stellen/postdoc-position-in-mountain-macroecology/6c5a8906-354f-43c6-bc9b-1156d21725a5
Please share!
We have a 5-year postdoc position on #mountain non-native species & #macroecology in our group @unibas.ch. Great opportunity to join us!
Details here: jobs.unibas.ch/offene-stellen/postdoc-position-in-mountain-macroecology/6c5a8906-354f-43c6-bc9b-1156d21725a5
Please share!
Reposted by Henry North
#newpreprint: "Climate Shaped the Global Population Structure of Leopards and their Extinction in Europe": www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...! Leopards are charming big cats but there are many mysteries around them. Thread 🧵
October 7, 2025 at 9:31 PM
#newpreprint: "Climate Shaped the Global Population Structure of Leopards and their Extinction in Europe": www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...! Leopards are charming big cats but there are many mysteries around them. Thread 🧵
Georeferenced database of invasive non-native species occurrences in Brazil
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Georeferenced database of invasive non-native species occurrences in Brazil - Scientific Data
Scientific Data - Georeferenced database of invasive non-native species occurrences in Brazil
www.nature.com
October 7, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Georeferenced database of invasive non-native species occurrences in Brazil
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Henry North
New preprint led by grad student, Yu Mo! We introduce new software to calculate evolutionary rates of quantitative characters in the presence of discordance
1/
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
1/
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Estimating the rate of quantitative trait evolution in the presence of gene tree discordance by calculating likelihoods across trees
Quantitative traits provide insights into how phenotypes evolve across species. However, standard comparative methods often assume a single species tree and overlook the discordant gene tree histories...
www.biorxiv.org
October 7, 2025 at 3:10 PM
New preprint led by grad student, Yu Mo! We introduce new software to calculate evolutionary rates of quantitative characters in the presence of discordance
1/
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
1/
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Henry North
We discovered an endogenous retrovirus that's still spreading in natural D. melanogaster populations! It was horizontally transferred from D. erecta in Central Africa, so we named it "Kuruka", which means "jump" in Swahili. Read its cool story here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
October 4, 2025 at 5:50 AM
We discovered an endogenous retrovirus that's still spreading in natural D. melanogaster populations! It was horizontally transferred from D. erecta in Central Africa, so we named it "Kuruka", which means "jump" in Swahili. Read its cool story here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Henry North
Delighted that our paper about the distribution of genomic spans of clades/edges in genealogies (ARGs), and using this for detecting inversions and other SVs (and other phenomena that cause local disruption of recombination) is out in MBE academic.oup.com/mbe/article/... (1/n)
The Length of Haplotype Blocks and Signals of Structural Variation in Reconstructed Genealogies
Abstract. Recent breakthroughs have enabled the accurate inference of large-scale genealogies. Through modelling the impact of recombination on the correla
academic.oup.com
October 3, 2025 at 9:54 AM
Delighted that our paper about the distribution of genomic spans of clades/edges in genealogies (ARGs), and using this for detecting inversions and other SVs (and other phenomena that cause local disruption of recombination) is out in MBE academic.oup.com/mbe/article/... (1/n)