Earth BioGenome Project 🌍

Environmental Bioinformatics Focus on the group's mission To protect and restore the environment that sustains humankind we need to understand it. The Environmental Bioinformatics Group, led by Robert W...

If you are working on developing a consortium to respond to the upcoming call HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-BIODIV-01 Understanding and tackling the decline of insects ... please get in touch www.sib.swiss/environmenta...

Majority of local insect biomass decline linked to species loss A new study shows that over 90% of insect biomass declines are driven by shrinking species numbers, posing a risk to ecosystem function.

A new study shows that over 90% of insect biomass declines are driven by shrinking species numbers, posing a risk to ecosystem function. www.idiv.de/majority-of-... #biodiversity

YouTube video by BGI Group ICG-20HZ x Harris Lewin: The Earth BioGenome Project & Preserving Life

💡EBP Chair Dr. Harris Lewin explains why the Earth BioGenome Project matters: these genomes are vital for confronting the biodiversity crisis, advancing bio-economies, improving agriculture, and unlocking countless innovations. 🌍🧬

youtu.be/Zb4MzYH9GoA?...

Thank you Beijing Genomics Group (BGI)! 🙌🌍

📸 Pictured: Axolotl (huge genome + regeneration genes); comb jellyfish (unexpected gene content); marine diatoms & dinoflagellates (wild chromosome biology); fungi cup (metabolic gene clusters); Paris japonica (57× human genome); mangroves (stress tolerance); giant sequoias (polyploid giants).

🌍✨ Thanks for following along! EBP projects worldwide are driving the mission to sequence all eukaryotic life — and we’re so glad you’re here.
Want more insights and updates? Explore our website and more here: linktr.ee/earthbiogeno...
And don’t miss our new website updates and the EBP Newsletter!

🔬These challenging genomes give us insights we simply can’t get anywhere else. They help us understand how adaptation really works, how species thrive in extremes, and how Earth’s ecosystems knit themselves together. 🌍💡
And they do something else too:
They push the boundaries of what’s possible.

🧬 Why are EBP-affiliated projects tackling the most difficult biodiversity genomes?
Because the species with the biggest, weirdest, and most complex genomes often hold the biggest evolutionary secrets. ✨
🧬 #genomics 🔬 #genomesequencing 🧩 #complex 🧬 #difficultspecies 📚 #referencegenomes 🦎 #Axolotl

🧽 “The Squeeze” – Enrichment of Intact Sponge Cells🔬🌊
How it works:
Manually squeeze the sponge tissue with wide forceps to release intact cells into buffer to form a suspension enriched with sponge cells while leaving skeletal material behind.
👉 read the blog highlight: bit.ly/3INcrOA

Some EBP-affiliates are embarking on ambitious R&D to tackle some of the hardest genomes on Earth. 🌍🧬

Great science starts with shared ideas — sometimes over coffee. 💥🤝☕️
Soak up the Sanger Tree of Life sponge protocol 👇
www.protocols.io/view/sanger-...

@seagrassliz.bsky.social #Biodiversity

🚨🧬 #Breakthrough alert! 🧬
Caroline Howard and the Tree of Life Core Laboratory at the @sangerinstitute.bsky.social are releasing powerful new extraction methods designed for the toughest #species on Earth. These #innovations are helping #genome scientists crack samples once considered impossible.

Huge congratulations to everyone who made this milestone possible! 🎉🦋 Field teams out exploring 🥾🌿 and lab teams powering the sequencing 🧬 — every single contribution mattered. 🙌✨

📸 Pictured: mosaic of diversity 🐞, white orchid mantis on a flower ✨🌸, hummingbird hawkmoth 🦋, mosquito 🦟, bumblebee 🐝, leafcutter ant 🐜🍃, bee-eating beetle 🪲🍯, European rhinoceros beetle 🪲🦏

🙌 Thanks to all involved and here’s to the next 1,000 genomes as we wrap up the year!
go.bsky.app/CRvXDF4

Insects make up 80% of all known animal life — and their genomes capture millions of years of innovation, resilience, and ecological superpowers. Unlocking their DNA helps us protect ecosystems, track change, and discover new biology. 🐞🧬✨

#InsectLovers #TreeOfLifeProject #GlobalGenomics #LifeCodes

EBP groups tracking down and sequencing insects include the @invertebrates.bsky.social, @ergabiodiv.bsky.social, @canadianbiogenome.bsky.social, @projectpsyche.bsky.social, @catbiogenoma.bsky.social, @wiseancestors.bsky.social, @10klepgenomes.bsky.social, @biogeneurope.bsky.social, and many more!

🦋 🐛🐜 Sequencing insect genomes reveals hidden species, uncovers wild adaptations (flight, metamorphosis, chemical defenses!), and exposes how ecosystems respond to climate change.
If we want to understand life on Earth — we must understand insect genomes.

💥🧬 Why sequence ALL insect genomes?
Because insects run the planet. They pollinate our crops, recycle nutrients, build soils, drive food webs, and shape ecosystems on every continent. 🌍
Yet we’ve only scratched the surface of their genomic diversity.
#InsectBiotech #BiodiversityMatters #InsectLovers

🌍 Don’t miss #GDS25 in Reykjavik, June 23-24! Get cutting-edge insights from industry leaders, network with top professionals, and explore the future of AI, machine learning, and data strategy.

🎟️ Early Bird Tickets available now: globaldatasummit.com

#AI #DataInnovation

#Biodiversity 🌍
#Conservation 🐾
#Wildlife 🦉
#SaveOurSpecies 🦋
#Genomics 🧬
#ConservationGenomics 🧬🌿
#BiodiversityGenomics 🌲
#OpenScience 🔓📚

These genomic insights are now helping conservationists design translocations and create “stepping-stone” habitats to reconnect fragmented ranges — giving the aquatic warbler a real fighting chance. 💧🧬🌿
This success — from sampling to assembly — was made possible by incredible collaboration. 🎉👏

Teamwork makes the genome work! 💪🧬
This study was a major collaborative effort led by Dr. Justyna Kubacka, supported by ERGA-BGE, similar to many population-level genomics projects across Europe. 🤝🔬

Real conservation action, guided by genomes!
@ergabiodiv.bsky.social @biogeneurope.bsky.social
Why go beyond the reference genome?
Because population genomics reveals hidden risks — low diversity, genetic drift, and declining gene flow. 🌍
Wetlands are disappearing… and so is genetic diversity.

🌍🧬 From feathers to fur to gills — the Vertebrate Genomes Project is decoding life’s full spectrum.
📸 Pictured: the grey wolf, chicken, yellow-crowned parrot, Scottish Highland cow, and brown-throated three-toed sloth — all sequenced by VGP in the global effort to sequence every vertebrate on Earth.

The Vertebrate Genomes Project (VGP) just rolled out rdeval — a new tool that evaluates sequencing reads at scale, helping researchers monitor quality across thousands of genomes. ⚙️📊
Innovation that scales with the data. 🌐💥

#Genomics #Bioinformatics #OpenScience
#DataInnovation #ResearchTools #VGP

🌍✨ As sequencing ramps up, how will EBP-affiliates keep quality high?
By building smarter, scalable tools and infrastructure to manage a global flood of genomic data. 💻🧬

📖👉Evaluation of sequencing reads at scale using rdeval: academic.oup.com/bioinformati...

@vertebrategenomes.bsky.social

Check out this map of megadiverse countries around the world! 🌍
EBP-affiliated groups are actively sequencing in several of these biodiversity hotspots as we move toward 5,000 high-quality reference genomes.

👉 Follow other EBP-affiliated projects — we’re in this together! go.bsky.app/CRvXDF4

🔬 Reference genomes help us:
• Spot population decline early
• Understand climate-resilience traits (heat, drought, disease)
• Guide smarter conservation

📸 Pictured: bamboo mushroom, giraffe weevil, red panda, Malagasy moon moth, ribboned sweetlips, thorny devil + common wombat, giant protea.

💡 Mega-diverse regions are also hotspots for finding new enzymes, medicines, natural products, and biotech innovation.

🌿 Sequencing here = huge #biodiversity insight with fewer resources — preserving evolutionary options for the future.
🌎 Because once these species are gone, they’re gone forever.

🌍✨ Why genome sequence mega-diverse countries?
A handful of countries hold >70% of Earth’s terrestrial biodiversity — packed with species found nowhere else. These places are evolution’s playground… and extinction’s front line.

#Biodiversity 🌿 #GenomeSequencing 🧬
#Genomics 🔬 #ConservationGenomics 🌍

YouTube video by Google Research Decoding Life on Earth | Google and the Earth Biogenome Project

Looking forward to collaborating with Andrew Carroll and Google Research as we work to develop AI tools for genome sequencing and assembly!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Wfn...

With every new global affiliate, we get one step closer to the EBP mission: sequencing all life on Earth. 🌍✨
Is your genome sequencing project ready to join?
Get in touch — our genomics community is growing fast as we ramp up sequencing to new heights! 🚀🧬