Jay Stafstrom

Blind cave spiders~

This occurs due to the process of regressive evolution. In an environment without light, vision provides no advantage in finding prey or avoiding predators. The loss of their eyes means that energy and resources once used for eyes are instead allocated to other traits.

Appreciated :) it'll be weird to no longer roam the halls of Corson-Mudd at night...

Thanks man, if you're ever in the neighborhood, I'll have some spiders to show off! Hope to see you in Vancouver?

Thanks Peter :) hope all is well in your neck of the woods.

photo of IU campus

Deadline for grad apps is December 1.
For interested parties: here are some quick links on the Biology department and admissions at IU
biology.indiana.edu/student-port...
biology.indiana.edu/graduate/evo...

Net-casting spider stretching it net

enlarged forward facing eyes of Asianopis subrufa

🚨Good news, everyone!
1) I'm thrilled to be joining the behavior powerhouse that is Indiana University!! So stoked, starting Jan 2026.
2) I'm recruiting grad students! Are you (or your trainee) interested in sensory ecology? behavior? evolution? fieldwork? spiders? Drop me a line Jstafstr(at)iu.edu

🚨 Uh-oh!!! A suuuper hot #PhD opportunity just dropped! My friend and collaborator Massimo De Agrò is looking for someone to explore jumping spider vision and neurophysiology! #psychophysics #jumpingspiders #greatPI - apply!!!! (Deadline December 17th) 🚨

Shades of blue and red in a slice through an immuno stained brain showing some deliciously lovely looking mushroom body lobes - ripe for investigation during a funded PhD - and the central complex. Image credit: Dr Max Farnworth

🚨RA/PhD position available in evolutionary neurobiology 🚨

Working on a deep dive into circuit changes during mushroom body expansion in Heliconius butterflies @camzoology.bsky.social

- employment benefits
- 4 years funding
- 1000% fun

Deadline: 14/1/2026

Details:
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...

Light pollution is a major factor in insect population declines. Switching to narrow-band LED lighting and shaded outdoor lighting could make a major difference. 🧪
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

An inspirational Darwin quote: "How I shall enjoy getting back to Down with renovated health, if such is to be my good fortune, & resuming the beloved Barnacles." -Charles Darwin 28 March 1849

An inspirational Darwin quote: "I hate a Barnacle as no man ever did before, not even a Sailor in a slow-sailing ship." -Charles Darwin 24 October 1852

Charles Darwin the barnacle taxonomist, a story in two parts

Hey All: Google is pulling the "automatically on for anyone over 18" bullshit with Gemini that the Dropbox did for its AI, but I can't afford to ditch Google Drive/Docs/Workspace.

If you have a personal Google Account, first go to gemini.google.com/extensions and turn everything off...

Man...do you ever wonder if like...WE are the weird ones??

*dislike*

We just re-locate our twitter/X-history with the help of @blueark.app and then our moving will be final. Please help us to build a new #neuroethology community here by asking colleagues to follow us and by using hashtags or linking @neuroethology.org so that we can share your content 🧪🧠🦋🪲🐝🦑🐟🦐🐜🐦🐸🐢🦈🪼

Olfaction with legs—Spiders use wall-pore sensilla for pheromone detection | PNAS The sense of smell is a central sensory modality of most terrestrial species. However, our knowledge of olfaction is based on vertebrates and insec...

doi.org/10.1073/pnas...
Olfaction in spiders. We found that the wall pore sensilla in spiders look similar from the outside to those of insects, but differ ultrastructurally in various ways. Independent evolution!
🧪

A drawing of a fuzzy nautilus, its shell covered in green growth along the bottom half. It is surrounded with golden stars.

A drawing of the ogre-faced spider standing on its legs, its massive eyes and legs on display.

A drawing of a Drake Mackerel, an orange and black insect with its wings flared out and long front legs stretched forward.

A drawing of three pink feather millipedes, two adults and one juvenile.

#Insertaninvert2024
October theme: Eyes

Lensless: Fuzzy Nautilus (Allonautilus scrobiculatus)

Lens eyes: Ogre-faced Spider (Deinopis spinosa)

Compound eyes: Drake Mackerel (Ephemera vulgata)

Eyeless: Feather Millipede (Brachycybe lecontii)

Frontiers | Dolomedes fishing spider biology: gaps and opportunities for future research

My first time being part of a published article! Everything about Dolomedes in one place. I wrote the section on parental care. 🕷️

I am very grateful to all of the collaborators on this paper especially Dr. Chrissie Painting and my advisor Eileen.

www.frontiersin.org/journals/ara...

Alright arachnologists and arachnid enthusiasts, let’s get this started! Drop a comment below if you would like to be added or have people to add. Let’s make the official AAS starter pack 💪🕷️🦂🕸️

go.bsky.app/8Nb8974

I made a starter pack for animal behaviour researchers / ethologists! please share and feel free to self-nominate or suggest others to be added as this is very much still a work in progress and not an exhaustive list 🌍🧪😊 #SciSky #BioSky #AnimalBehaviour #AnimalBehavior #Ethology
go.bsky.app/Tr8VZpV

Hi! Could you please add me if there's still room in pack 2?

Digitally altered image of a snow flake made out of spider legs and silk.

Unaltered photograph of Net-casting spider stretching its net.

Okedoke, giving this app another shot. Really miss the art and science I used to see on Twitter.

Here's a quick contribution: Net-casting spider + radial symmetry = seasonally appropriate image from upstate NY.

Posting the original image too because I think it's also pretty cool :)

Hi! I'm a senior undergrad entomology major at Cornell in the Hoy lab working with @jaystafstrom.bsky.social on the downward-facing eyes of ogre-faced spiders! Interested in sensory biology & behavior - especially with arthropod study systems (spiders haha). Looking forward to meeting new people :)

Unfortunately no, she was just chillin. Was also at night though, so she was probably a bit surprised when I rolled up with my headlamp that shines with the light of a thousand suns.

same vibes:

Oh boy, you were in for a treat then. There are some super cool studies that show Portia is probably the smartest spider around (or at least tested so far). The fact they can stalk prey, go on a little detour, and get back to it is just...yea, mind blowing for a spider.

Thanks a bunch! Definitely more floofy than I was expecting, too.

Friday the 13th in #Arachtober...gotta share something worthy of the occasion. Here's the first Portia I ever saw :) She was a delight.

It is an easy way to find my people, though

Are folks doing #Arachtober over here?