James Robertson, PhD

Homing and feral pigeons differ in hippocampal formation neuron size: a Golgi study - Brain Structure and Function Artificial selection for behavioural traits can significantly affect the anatomy of brain regions related to the behaviour under selection. The homing pigeon (Columba livia) is a prime example of how ...

New paper out today on hippocampus neuron morphology in homing and feral pigeons. 🧵

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

#neuroskyence #neuroethology #anatomy

INTERVENTION!!

Absolutely delightful!! Save me one pls!

Beautiful ☺️

🤯

Haha! Not only am I an entomologist, I specialize in the evolution of Phasmatodea. Must be a friends issue 😆

Jealous!!!

I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA

10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)

The buff-tip moth (Phalera bucephala) has mastered a very particular kind of camouflage.

When they close their wings up, they resemble a broken twig.

Native to large parts of Europe, there's regional pattern variation that reflects the local tree species. This one best resembles birch twigs?

Having RFK Jr as Health Secretary is like having a flat-earther direct Google Earth

Molecular evolution of dietary shifts in ladybird beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae): from fungivory to carnivory and herbivory - BMC Biology Background Dietary shifts are major evolutionary steps that shape ecological niches and biodiversity. The beetle family Coccinellidae, commonly known as ladybirds, first transitioned from a fungivorou...

Molecular evolution of dietary shifts in ladybirds 🐞 expansions of digestive & detoxifying #gene families in the herbivorous ladybirds, & absence of most plant cell wall-degrading enzymes in the ladybirds from the transition to carnivory link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Robust and accurate Bayesian inference of genome-wide genealogies for hundreds of genomes - Nature Genetics SINGER is a method for creating ancestral recombination graphs to understand the genealogical history of genomes. The method has increased speed, and thus scalability, without sacrificing accuracy.

SINGER, our ARG inference method, is finally published and freely available online:

doi.org/10.1038/s415...

It was a long journey – 16 months from initial submission to acceptance. Is it just me, or has peer review gotten more arduous lately? 4+ rounds of review isn't so unusual these days...

Unparalleled aerial agility and control

Speechless

‘Almost unimaginable’: these ants are different species but share a mother Ant queens of one species clone ants of another to create hybrid workers that do their bidding.

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

Parandra are bizarre

Nice! Looks like Dasydactylus

Holy smokes!!!

Beautiful

BREAKING: Scientists are staging a “science fair” in the lobby of a Congressional building to tell elected officials about the critical knowledge the US will lose because their research grants have been canceled.

Pelecinus polyturator in an elegant black dress...because why not!

Pelecinus gothyturator.

She's attending the Hymenoptera ball. 👗

#Pelecinuspolyturator

That’s cool

Superficially resembles (strikingly so) some Neotropical Endomychidae

Bro can’t take a hint

Guess I’ll need to call in sick today.

Spectacular!

Such a cool group!

If being an Assistant Professor wasn’t challenging enough… can’t imagine trying to navigate tenure in this political climate.

Wow!!

🐛🕷️🕸️ @science.org Hawaiian caterpillar patrols spiderwebs camouflaged in insect prey’s body parts | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... #entomology