tim brown

weren't you meant to post this after our paper review meeting this afternoon?

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An interdisciplinary approach to improving conservation outcomes for parasites Parasites represent a significant proportion of Earth's biodiversity and play important roles in the ecology and biology of ecosystems and hosts, making them an important target for conservation. Des...

...and failing that, hopefully you can find out about some new species of delightful/disgusting worms and ticks

(link to our full research paper which expands on the blog post:
doi.org/10.1111/cobi...)

Parasites are ecological dark matter – and they need protecting Save the pandas, sure, but what about the worms in their guts?

We wrote this as a fun introduction to the strange and wonderful world of parasite conservation!

Hopefully it gets you thinking about how there's more than meets the eye with parasites and whether we should bring them into the fold of conservation concern

theconversation.com/parasites-ar...

Parasites are ecological dark matter – and they need protecting Save the pandas, sure, but what about the worms in their guts?

Save the pandas, sure, but what about the worms in their guts?

my extremely nuanced opinion on the woolly mice is that they are very cute (good), but mean basically nothing as far as conservation is concerned (less good) and are really just a PR exercise for a somewhat malevolent profit-making machine (bad)

Am I right in thinking that Colossal's (non-)conservation work allows them to patent a lot of genetic technology which they could then make massive profits from if/when those technologies are used for wider applications than woolly mammoth PR?

Paleorecords Reveal Biological Mechanisms Crucial for Reliable Species Range Shift Projections Amid Rapid Climate Change Climate change has created an urgent need for reliable projections of species distributions. By hindcasting forest tree range shifts across Europe over the last 12,000 years, we show that process-exp...

Ever wondered how reliable species distribution models (SDMs) are in the face of climate change compared to more mechanistic approaches? We did too, and our results are now published in Ecology Letters ⏬
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Interdisciplinary research is not only hugely valuable, it's also a hell of a lot easier than people make out - the hard part is fighting the institutions to get them to let you do it

In my section, I talk about:
- my own taxonomic biases in the field
- the mighty Manx shearwater flea
- the role of photography in conservation
- and whether photography might boost or buffer parasite conservation

(including a rare opportunity for me to cite the great John Berger...)

Really excited to share this paper which was the result of a big collaborative effort of PhD students @extinctionleeds.bsky.social!

It's full of incredible, original thoughts about how we view and interact with the world around us in a time of massive biodiversity loss 📷🍃

doi.org/10.1017/ext....

Phylogenetic map of wildlife trade; graphs showing overlap with other traits like synanthropy; path analysis showing impact on zoonotic host status

Huge analysis out as a preprint today! For every 9 years an animal spends in the wildlife trade, it shares an additional pathogen with humans. Clear long-term impacts based on 40 years of global trade data 🧪😷 biorxiv.org/content/earl...

A logo for the University of Leeds parasite conservation survey featuring 5 coloured hexagons containing icons of different parasites such as ticks, worms and protozoa.

Hey #WildlifeDisease & #conservation folk, please check out our survey on attitudes to parasite conservation.

Are parasites important for biodiversity, would you remove them to protect host welfare, or something more nuanced? We want to hear all views to improve guidance for practitioners 🪱🧪🌍🧵1/n

A poster for an exhibition. Features an animal skull on rocks with orange lichen.

Come and see some of the work we’ve been doing… SPIRIT: an exhibition of nature photography from the Scottish Small Isles. Parkinson Court, 4-6 Feb.

Really enjoyed this truly interdisciplinary paper on hookworm in early 20th c. Jamaica!

Jon historicises hookworm infection and extinction, showing how plantations (+ environment & individual factors) created the conditions for hookworm to thrive, but were also key in eradication/extinction efforts

A lot of awesome pictures in the full paper!

Saving the Ryukyu Rabbit Tick: The Posterchild of Parasite Conservation • The Revelator This endangered invertebrate is harmless to humans — and rabbits. Saving it from extinction might even benefit both species.

Parasite conservation sounds like a counterintuitive idea, but actually there are lots of reasons why this is important for the long term sustainability of biodiversity and ecosystem processes. #parasitology #ticks #ectoparasite 🪱🧪🌍
therevelator.org/ryukyu-rabbi...

We consider:
- The importance of human values and attitudes for conservation
- Unanswered questions over whether parasites merit conservation

Our solution? More interdisciplinary research on parasite conservation will lead to better conservation outcomes for parasites, hosts, and people 🌳🌍🥰

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We report on a LARGE gap 🚧 between parasite conservation research and parasite conservation practice.

E.g. Did you know only one animal parasite species, the pygmy hog-sucking louse, has been evaluated and listed on the IUCN Red List?

We then explore why this research-practice gap exists.

[2/3]

A panel showing three images of parasites. From left to right: a bat fly clinging to the face of a Mozambique long-fingered bat, a mass of helminths in the feces of a gray seal, botfly larvae from the stomach of a mountain zebra.

Ever heard of parasite conservation and thought "Why on earth would we want to do that 😱"?! Read our new paper to find out...

We cover key questions including: Why conserve parasites? How do you conserve parasites? & What parasite conservation is already happening?

doi.org/10.1111/cobi...

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How have freshwater fish populations responded to warming temperatures over the past 75 yrs?

We found a characteristic pattern of climate change-induced changes in river fish populations, with differing impact for different species depending on key characteristics.

See our new paper for more info!