David Thieltges

Unmasking the Sea Star Killer After a decade of carnage, we finally know what’s devastating sea stars along North America’s West Coast. Does that mean scientists can save them?

For @biographic.bsky.social, writer @craigwelch.bsky.social followed @hakai.org scientist @rhizalyssa.bsky.social's quest to unveil the the killer that decimated populations of sea stars off the West Coast. It took a few years but the lab's hard work paid off: www.biographic.com/unmasking-th...

Unmasking the Sea Star Killer After a decade of carnage, we finally know what’s devastating sea stars along North America’s West Coast. Does that mean scientists can save them?

We are so proud of our sea star wasting work that came out today. This interactive article is very complete and includes beautiful videos.
Unmasking the Sea Star Killer www.biographic.com/unmasking-th...

Very proud of the work from lab members and collaborators that coincidentally came out today www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... and www.nature.com/articles/s41.... A bacterial and viral pathogen associated with mass mortality in seastars and oysters. @kevinzhong2006.bsky.social @rhizalyssa.bsky.social

Nice to see this joint collaborative effort out now in the August issue of Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment ‪@esajournals.bsky.social‬

Open access

doi:10.1002/fee.2849

Long-term parasite decline associated with near extinction and conservation of the critically endangered kākāpō parrot Boast et al. analyze a unique fecal record of the endangered kākāpō parrot to reveal >800 years of changing parasite communities. Parasite losses occur during the species’ decline to near extinction a...

Some literally amazing research on parasite coextinction and recovery in the kakapo - makes me so happy to see this www.cell.com/current-biol...

Host–Parasite Trophic Interactions as Revealed by Stable Isotope Analyses: Determinants for Trophic and Isotopic Niches of Hosts and Their Associated Parasites The analysis of stable isotopes (SIA) in organisms, especially those of carbon (13C/12C) and nitrogen (15N/14N), is a well-established and powerful tool for analysing trophic interactions between free...

🧬🐛 What can parasites teach us about food webs?
Stable isotope analysis (SIA) as a powerful tool now also in parasitology! Our chapter dives into how SIA and compound-specific SIA (CSIA) reveal what parasites eat and how they impact hosts metabolism and entire food webs. doi.org/10.1007/978-...

Tangled communities: links between predation and parasitism through trophically transmitted digeneans in aquatic communities Many trophically transmitted digeneans (Platyhelminthes: Trematoda) benefit from prey–predator interactions to complete the last step of their life cy…

It's an incredible joy to see former mentees evolve into scientists who surpass me by far. There's no greater pride. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... 🧪

Hallo artist community, this one is for you! Together with @hanse-ias.bsky.social we are looking for an artist in residence in early 2026. Please share!
#artscience #artistinresidence #marinebiodiversity

The title of the paper: "A minimum data standard for wildlife disease research and surveillance" - and an example data table

NEW! 🎉 We need wildlife disease surveillance to predict epidemics, but data sharing is rare - we found that only 2-3% of studies share raw data. So, we spent three years developing a data standard and R package to help get wildlife disease data into FAIR repositories. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Parasite of the Month: #Pthirus #pubis, #pubic #louse, a #blood-feeding #ectoparasite transmitted through close physical/sexual contact, authored by J. Votýpka, J. Bulantová & J. Lukeš @sciencecharles.bsky.social‬ ‪@charlesuni.cuni.cz‬ ‪@czechacademy.bsky.social‬
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lIjN5Eb1x...

Our latest newsletter profiles IMPACT's student members. Find out how they contribute to our understanding of parasite biodiversity here 👉 www.nina.no/english/IMPACT

Anti-Autokratie-Handbuch: 26 Werkzeuge zur Verteidigung der Demokratie In einem Handbuch geben Wissenschaftler*innen aus den USA und Europa Ratschläge, wie sich Menschen im akademischen Betrieb gegen aufkeimenden Autoritarismus stemmen können – abgestuft nach Risiko-Leve...

In einem Handbuch geben Wissenschaftler*innen aus den USA und Europa Ratschläge, wie sich Menschen im akademischen Betrieb gegen aufkeimenden Autoritarismus stemmen können – abgestuft nach Risiko-Level. Das ist nicht nur für Forschende lesenswert.

netzpolitik.org/2025/anti-au...

In a synthesis of over 3000 population trends in the Wadden Sea, we show a substantial reorganization of biodiversity with over 38% of populations undergoing significant change (i.e., increases or decreases), identify winners and losers and critical time points of change! dx.doi.org/10.1111/gcb....

Everything you always wanted to know about parasites and stable isotopes in one book chapter:
link.springer.com/chapter/10.1...

From the new #openaccess book on Aquatic Parasitology, edited by @nicojsmit.bsky.social & ‪@berndsures.bsky.social
link.springer.com/book/10.1007...

Picture: The tongue replacement isopod Ceratothoa famosa in the mouth of the Cape bream (Diplodus capensis)

Recently published, the new comprehensive guide on Aquatic Parasitology edited by @berndsures.bsky.social and Nico Smit explores the role of aquatic #parasites in freshwater and #marineecosystems – for the first time on a global scale: www.uni-due.de/2025-06-11-t...

#UDE

<i>Sacculina pugettiae</i> Sacculina pilosella is a parasite of spider crabs ( Scyra ferox ), and while it is technically a barnacle, you're going to have to abandon ...

Two Barnacles, One Crab: 🦀
I've written a post about a pair of parasitic barnacles that infect spider crabs.

These barnacles grow roots that spread throughout the crab's body, some of which make their way into the host's brain.
#Invertebrate #crab 🧪
dailyparasite.blogspot.com/2025/06/sacc...

Vector of the Month: #Gnathia #Africana (#African #fish #gnat), a temporary #ectoparasitic #isopod & the vector transmitting #apicomplexan parasite #Haemogregarina #bigemina among #fish hosts in #SouthAfrica, written by Kerry Hadfield, Anja Erasmus & Nico Smit.

authors.elsevier.com/a/1kzle5Eb1x...

An image of two lionfish. Overlay text reads: Major New Resource, Global Impacts Dataset of Invasive Alien Species

🗞️Authors from the @ipbes.net #InvasiveAlienSpecies Report have published the Global Impacts Dataset of Invasive Alien Species derived from the report, creating a global resource for investigating and managing the impacts of invasive alien species. 🌍🧪

Read more in ‪@nature.com‬ bit.ly/43APoP7

Aquatic Parasitology: Ecological and Environmental Concepts and Implications of Marine and Freshwater Parasites A unique open access collection on ecological and environmental parasitology in marine and freshwater. Covers climate change and parasite conservation.

🚨 Thrilled and honoured to lead the chapter on using #eDNA for studying aquatic #parasites - a part of just-published book on #openaccess Aquatic Parasitology led by @berndsures.bsky.social & @nicojsmit.bsky.social with top parasitologists contributing!

link.springer.com/book/10.1007...

More ⬇️🧵

Two jobs at a wonderful Zoo Dept at the University of Otago - a very high quality of life

otago.taleo.net/careersectio...

otago.taleo.net/careersectio...

please repost and apply!

Aquatic Parasitology: Ecological and Environmental Concepts and Implications of Marine and Freshwater Parasites A unique open access collection on ecological and environmental parasitology in marine and freshwater. Covers climate change and parasite conservation.

Great News: Our book Aquatic Parasitology: Ecological and Environmental Concepts and Implications of Marine and Freshwater Parasites has been published online open access! link.springer.com/book/10.1007... @nicojsmit.bsky.social @unidue.bsky.social

Want to know more about aquatic parasitology? For free? Check out the link below for online open access ⬇️

Aquatic Parasitology: Ecological and Environmental Concepts and Implications of Marine and Freshwater Parasites A unique open access collection on ecological and environmental parasitology in marine and freshwater. Covers climate change and parasite conservation.

The wait is over!! Our Open Access @springernature.com book on Aquatic Parasitology was just published! 23 Chapters, 202 illustrations & 662pp with everything you ever wanted to know about the amazing world of marine & freshwater parasites. @berndsures.bsky.social link.springer.com/book/10.1007...

5th HIFMB symposium: Your ticket to talks, discussions, early career program, art and more.
Registration is free of charge.
➡️ www.hifmb.de/symp25

#marinebiodiversity
@hillebr1.bsky.social @ibaums.bsky.social @thilogross.bsky.social @merenbey.bsky.social

Considering a scientific career in Spain? Grants to Encourage the Incorporation of Established Talent 'ATRAE Program' 2025
www.aei.gob.es/en/announcem...

Record sea surface temperature jump in 2023–2024 unlikely but not unexpected - Nature Observations and climate models suggest that the global sea surface temperature jump in 2023–2024 was not unexpected and would have been&nbsp;nearly impossible without anthropogenic warming.

Why have the sea surface temperature suddenly risen in 2023/24? 🌊
Is it true that climate models cannot simulate such SST jumps? What is common to such jumps? How will SSTs evolve over the next months and years? Are we in uncharted territory? More from our recent study in Nature is here👇

#fellowships #funding #scholarships #researchfunding #grants #calls… | Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg Enjoy up to 10 months of complete freedom from academic chores while concentrating on your next scientific project? Apply for our junior and regular #fellowships at Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg - Institu...

This is a fantastic fellowship program for both early and more senior career researchers. Come visit @mpimarinemicrobio.bsky.social @marumunibremen.bsky.social @unibremen.bsky.social @hifmb.de @awi.de
www.linkedin.com/posts/hansei...
@hanse-ias.bsky.social

Junior faculty job alert in Germany - Marine Evolutionary Genomics @geomarkiel.bsky.social / University of Kiel www.geomar.de/en/karriere/... Marine study system of your choice (no microbes, sorry…), excellent infrastructure and ship access, moderate teaching requirements, closing date 6 June

Typology of the ecological impacts of biological invasions Biological invasions alter ecosystems by disrupting ecological processes that can degrade biodiversity, harm human health, and cause massive economic burdens. Existing frameworks to classify the ecological impacts either miss many types of impact or conflate mechanisms (causes) with the impacts themselves (consequences). We propose a comprehensive typology of 19 types of ecological impact across six levels of ecological organisation. This allows more accurate diagnosis of the cause of impact and can help triage management options to tackle each impact–mechanism combination. We integrated the typology with broad ecological concepts such as energy, mass, and information flow and storage. By highlighting cascading effects across multiple levels, this typology provides a clearer framework for documenting, and communicating invasion impacts, thereby improving management and research.

Online now: Typology of the ecological impacts of biological invasions

Our new paper is out in "Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment" ‪@esajournals.bsky.social‬ on

"Integrating #ClimateChange, #BiologicalInvasions, and infectious wildlife #diseases"

Free open access download here:
esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...