Special Issue on Genetic Rescue is out 🎉🎉🎉
The 21 papers on the SI highlight how evolutionary biology can enhance resilience & long-term survival of biodiversity. Introducing genetically diverse individuals can boost fitness in small, isolated populations 🧬🌿
doi.org/10.1111/eva.70225
Posts by Brenna Forester
A widespread gap in U.S. Endangered Species Act implementation: Risk of genetic erosion within populations
doi.org/10.32942/X2K...
Our #LandscapeGenomics course is back 😍
Join us this July to learn how to associate environmental and genomic data in a hands-on, practical course led by two absolute superstars in the field: Stéphane Joost & @brennaforester.bsky.social
www.physalia-courses.org/courses-work...
We have another publication out! 🎉🎉🎉
“Hybrids along a natural–anthropogenic gradient: improving policy and management across all levels of biodiversity.”
We explore how to deal with hybrids in conservation — scientifically and practically. A thread 🧵
conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
i am offering a post-doc position in my brand-new project TreeGD that will investigate genomic diversity of trees species in switzerland, with a special focus on gene conservation units, rare species (but not only), and seeds stands.
apply.refline.ch/273855/1782/...
A paper in Nature suggests a quarter of heatwave events from 2000-23 would have been near impossible without anthropogenic climate change. The paper also indicates that major carbon emitters are responsible for around 50% of the increase in intensity of these events. ⚒️ 🧪
The Department of Biology at Colorado State University is hiring an Assistant Professor in the area of plant-microbe interactions! Please spread the word!
jobs.colostate.edu/postings/165...
📢 Post doc! Want to join our team?
We are looking for 3 post docs in biodiversity science, genetic indicator assessment, and ecological statistics for a fixed term of 2 years!
Come unravel the drivers and consequences of global change on biodiversity with us!
DL 24.9.
#universityofhelsinki
Neat study from my colleagues at the @usfs.bsky.social National Genomics Center and Alaska Fish & Game. Using genomic CAPTURE, they found that wolves on Prince of Wales Island in SE AK exhibited significant inbreeding, similar to Isle Royale Wolves #ConsGen
About 15-20 yrs ago, a bunch of reviews (inc. 1 by me) made predictions about the future of genomics in conservation. 1 yr ago at ICISB, Robin Waples assessed which of those predictions had been fulfilled. Sam May & Sam Rosenbaum now led the effort to turn this into a review:
doi.org/10.1111/mec....
Don't forget to register for our Hackathon event! We'll be discussing and testing a protocol to check whether published data/code is actually reproducible...
Registration closes on the 15th September 🕤
Find out more and register here 👉 buff.ly/XTON0lV
Is Colossal a threat to Science or Is it Science's Last Hope for the Next Generation?
Just got a 🧪pitch from a PR claiming to work with Colossal (de-extinction chancers). It was a pre-written article claiming the science sector is carrying out "coordinated attacks" on the co. Spy the headline. They asked if I'd publish it on my Forbes column.
Not enough eye rolls on Earth for this 🙄
Conservation needs to focus better on maintaining & enhancing the processes that allow ecosystems to function & adapt in a rapidly changing world
In our new paper we explore key processes - such as evolution, movement & biotic interactions - metrics, & how to conserve them
doi.org/10.1073/pnas...
Seven pangolin species proposed for listing as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (gift link):
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/16/c...
Kym Ottewell presenting a slide featuring a large photo of a ghost bat
Next at #ICCB2025 our symposium on using non-invasive & museum genetic samples for conservation. First up is @kymottewell.bsky.social on using scat DNA for ghost bat individual ID and #consgen. The ghost bat is Australia’s largest carnivorous bat (*bat in photo not to scale!)
Interesting opportunity from AfricaBP: Genomics and Sustainable Solutions for East and Central Africa
To register, click here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
A Fungus Devastated North American Bats. A New Species Could Deliver a Killer Blow. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/28/s...
wrote about fake dire wolves and the real endangered species act for @highcountrynews.org: www.hcn.org/articles/de-...
Several of us share thoughts on the dire consequences of ripping NOAA apart:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
“Even though wildlife here have evolved to live in a landscape that burns…the animals are not equipped to survive fires so frequent and so ferocious — the by-product of a changing climate and encroaching human development.” Gift link below:
🧪 #consgen
I’m leaving NOAA on April 28. I never anticipated resigning at any time when I joined the agency 5 yrs ago to help modernize fisheries management and conservation with genomics. Making the work more effective and efficient was the central objective. I loved working at NOAA because… 1/x
How hot can tailed-frogs get? Forester et al. (2025) found that Ascaphus truei and montanus have different responses encoded in their genome. Read more of our #AWnews feature on our homepage AmphibiaWeb.org
Everything is absolutely awful right now but at least we still have tailed frogs - my colleague Amanda Cicchino’s photo is the AmphibiaWeb image of the week with a shout out to our recent tailed frog vulnerability paper: amphibiaweb.org
@amphibiaweb.bsky.social
Interested in conservation genetics news? @anitajnorman.bsky.social has started a monthly newsletter on #consgen here: open.substack.com/pub/conserva...
What do evolution and adaptation have to do with predicting vulnerability to climate change? Find out in our new paper led by the amazing Dr. @brennaforester.bsky.social and featuring the WORLD'S COOLEST 🐸 just published in Molecular Ecology: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...!
#congen
I'm super happy to share our newest preprint on whooping crane genomics 🐣🧬
🚨Persistent genomic erosion in whooping cranes despite demographic recovery🚨 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Extremely thankful to @hernmoral.bsky.social and all co-authors!
#conservationgenomics #genomics #whoopingcranes
Lukas Keller, @fieldgenomics.bsky.social and I asked 'What can genome sequence data reveal about population viability?'
Here's what we found: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.... 🧪 #consgen
Genomics job at NOAA Southeast Fisheries Science Center being hired off the fish biologist call. They are looking for scientists to lead, plan, and conduct research in the Marine Mammal Molecular Genomics program to support marine mammal conservation 🧬 🦭
#ConservationGenetics #marinemammals