Chhaya Werner, PhD

A collection of six ominous bird valentines set against a background of pink hearts. In the first one, a Canada Goose looks angry and hisses and the text says "Baby, I'll make you fall head over heels if you approach within 10m of my nest." In the second, an American white pelican opens its mouth to eat the reader and the text says "There are plenty of fish in the sea, but I want this one." In the third valentine, a Black Vulture looks suspiciously at the reader and the text says "I will love you until you die. And after that, I'll love you even more." A Southern Cassowary stands proudly against the heart-covered background. The text says "My wattles are red. My head is blue. My deadly reputation has been somewhat overblown, but I'd kill for you." In the fifth valentine, a Northern Giant-Petrel stands open-billed next to a large brown furry object, and the text says "Let's seal the deal by sharing a 3000 kg elephant seal carcass." In panel 6, a happy-looking Bearded Vulture holds a bone in its beak, and the text says "I love every part of you, especially your bones."

Ominous bird valentines.

A four panel comic. In panel 1, there are three beautiful blooming roses, and the text says "Roses are red..." In panel 2, there are some lovely violets budding and blooming, and the text says "Violets are blue..." In panel 3, there are some terrifying red and flesh colored plants with toothy maws and the text says "Hydnora are leafless, bizarrely fleshy, and incapable of producing chlorophyl..." and in panel 4 there are some cute hearts and the text says "And so are you. Happy Valentine's Day"

Botany valentine. Another oldie.

😬

Cool new paper showing that prescribed + managed fire can restore historic fire regimes, using and validating new dendro methods to re-construct area burned histories. esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

The lack of snow in our mountains is pretty scary. And in case, like me, you could use the reminder -- we have no direct control over whether or not it snows today.

That said, there are many things we can do to make our forests, communities, and watersheds healthier and more resilient 🌱🏔️🔥

I'm guessing you've already seen this, but there's a virtual office hours from DEB in two weeks that might be a good place to elevate these issues? @johnmola.bsky.social nsf.zoomgov.com/webinar/regi...

I'm sorry, this is so awful

Update -- six email threads later we have figured out the report name had been changed by one letter so the search couldn't find it anymore. Will it be there tomorrow? Who knows!

Thanks -- I'm a professor of fire ecology in Southern Oregon, so I am actually connected to this network and others already. The purpose of this post was to highlight the need for our ongoing work

Zeke's fire communication work is great. There are amazing folks in Southern Oregon with decades of work on this effort too--it's a fabulous community!

Map from Watch Duty of prescribed burns in Northern California and Southern Oregon, with active burns in most counties but none in Jackson or Josephine counties

Love sharing the WatchDuty app in my classes, but every time I open it Jackson and Josephine county breaks my heart. Where's our prescribed fire?🔥🔥

Paid Summer Internships...
Join us for a summer of ecological research at the Holden Arboretum.
Opportunities in restoration ecology, population ecology, plant ecophysiology, forest health, and more.
On-site housing available at low cost.
lnkd.in/gjWUznhj

Flyer states "Get paid to study bees!" The Forest and Rangeland Stewardship Bee Ecology and Education (FRSBEE) Lab is hiring five hourly technician positions this summer Available to Anyone: RMNP Bumble Bee and Butterfly Research Assistant Current CSU Students Only: Denver Parks Genetics Research Assistant (2 positions) Bee Ecology and Conservation Research Assistant Native Bee x Honey Bee CSU Extension Internship Links to positions available at frsbeelab.org/join-the-lab

Our lab is hiring summer positions!

frsbeelab.org/join-the-lab

So excited about this incredible fellowship program designed to empower students interested in tackling issues like climate change, wildfires, and more. Open to all majors, because all perspectives and skillsets are important to engage with these challenges!

SOU opens new fellowship program centered on Community Resilience through its Institute for Applied Sustainability - Ashland News - Community-Supported, NonProfit News Southern Oregon University’s Institute for Applied Sustainability is recruiting students for its new Community Resilience and Leadership Student Fellows program – an opportunity for a cohort of 15 of ...

Southern Oregon University’s Institute for Applied Sustainability is recruiting students for its new Community Resilience and Leadership Student Fellows program to help create meaningful solutions to urgent challenges facing local communities. ashland.news/sou-opens-ne...

I've been starting to use On1, which has a free one-month trial. It's done a good job so far with photo import/catalog organization, layers of editing options, and feeling similar enough to my old lightroom that the learning curve was quick. And a non-subscription option

Kestrels are The Best.

😅

📣 Job Opportunity | Reintroduction Planning Manager

This position will support a new 3-year grant focused on tribal-led sea otter reintroduction planning in Oregon.

🗓 Apply by: January 26, 2026
🔗 Full job description & application: www.elakhaalliance.org/employment/

#NowHiring #OceanJobs #Oregon

I've kept a running doc of how to do basic grant things throughout my institution's multi-year transition of core software programs, and at this point it reads like House of Leaves. Notes like "I've either lost access to this report or it never existed" abound 🫥

tired brain read this as "pirate mycologist" and was simultaneously confused and intrigued

Really looking forward to presenting some of our past, ongoing, and upcoming work on the underappreciated role of private urban trees at #BES2025 tomorrow morning (in the Nature and Humans session)! Hoping to see some friendly faces and new colleagues there. @britishecologicalsociety.org

Plant with orange flowers. One of the flowers is covered by a mesh bag.

Excited to attend my first BES meeting! Visit poster A4.29 tomorrow 6-7:30 pm to chat about nectar microbes! #BES2025

To be clear: the new, near-exclusive emphasis on natural causes of climate change on the U.S. EPA's website is now completely out of synch with all available evidence demonstrating overwhelming human influence on contemporary warming trends.

But seriously, look at that pollen production!

Opportunities ***PhD and MSc openings – Movement ecology and conservation*** I will periodically support graduate students, postdocs, and other staff through the Biology Department at the University of New…

I’m recruiting a PhD and MSC student for fall 2026 working on the movement ecology and conservation of Mexican spotted owls in SW forests and rocky canyonlands. Exciting partnership with Los Alamos National Laboratory. Great vibrant lab group, high impact research! 🦉

gavinmjones.com/opportunities/

When you're faced with an emergency like a wildfire, where do you turn for information?

As of today, everyone across 50 U.S. states can now rely on Watch Duty: Simple, clear, actionable alerts backed by a powerhouse team that combines cutting-edge technology with nonstop human monitoring.

A six-panel comic titled "Wildlife Tracking Tips". In panel 1, the text says "A white-tailed deer traveled through here," and there are white-tailed deer prints in fresh snow. In panel 2, the text says "An American Red Squirrel came by," and the leap marks of a red squirrel are in the snow. In panel 3, the text says "A Snowshoe Hare passed through," and there are the distinctive fluffy-footed marks from a snowshoe hare jumping across the snow. n panel 4, the text says "The Snowshoe Hare found a sword," and one of the front paw marks in the track has been replaced with a long thin line running alongside the track. In panel 5, the text says "The Snowshoe Hare is dual wielding," and both front paw marks have been replaced with long thin lines. In panel 6, the text says "The Snowshoe Hare tamed a mount, vastly increasing its jumping distance. You should run," and the Snowshoe Hare trail runs into a deer track and disappears.

Wildlife tracking! I'm reposting things I made this past year. If you look closely at the deer tracks you'll see I added the hint that they're double registering (hind foot is stepping into the same spot as front foot).

So sorry to hear this. I initially found your work through a web search on slime molds, and know I wouldn't be able to successfully search + find the same thing today