Surprised to learn scientists can't agree on a definition of sex? Don't be! To be honest, we can't even agree on a definition of species. Many so-called natural categories are hard to define once we look at the evidence. Biology is too complex for simple definitions, which is a feature, not a bug.

There is No Consensus on Biological Sex At this critical moment when misinformation about sex is being applied to policy globally, scientific clarification on the definition of biological sex is valuable. Here, we evaluate the primary…

"The fact that there is no current consensus of biological sex is not
antithetical to science... However, the field urgently needs an ethical
and reproducible approach for discussing sex"

There is No Consensus on Biological Sex

First In Fish: 'Fully Warm-Blooded' Moonfish Prowls The Deep Seas "It's hard to stay warm when you're surrounded by cold water but the opah has figured it out," a NOAA Fisheries biologist says.

You don't only have to look up to be in awe of the moon(fish)! www.kpbs.org/news/2015/05...

new paper from my phd is now out as a pre-print @biorxiv-evobio.bsky.social!! we leverage a novel gt-seq panel to investigate a marine ecology “black box” — population connectivity!

read here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Where We Go From Here: Harnessing Queer Perspectives to Advance Practice in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Science and society continuously shape one another; this relationship determines what science is funded, which inquiries are pursued, and whose voices are included in the production and dissemination...

📣 A perspective with @allydefduf.bsky.social @madeline-eppley.bsky.social and others out in @ecol-evol.bsky.social 📣

Drawing from queer lived experiences, we offer new perspectives to confront existing biases in #ecology and #evolution.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...

screenshot of Andy’s google scholar page which shows 52 total citations!

hit a little scientific milestone today: 50 citations!!!!!

sometimes I am still in shock that I am living my childhood dream and get to be a ~scientist~

Where We Go From Here: Harnessing Queer Perspectives to Advance Practice in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Science and society continuously shape one another; this relationship determines what science is funded, which inquiries are pursued, and whose voices are included in the production and dissemination...

📣 A perspective with @allydefduf.bsky.social @madeline-eppley.bsky.social and others out in @ecol-evol.bsky.social 📣

Drawing from queer lived experiences, we offer new perspectives to confront existing biases in #ecology and #evolution.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...

#ecoevo #popgen #evolution

new paper from my phd is now out as a pre-print @biorxiv-evobio.bsky.social!! we leverage a novel gt-seq panel to investigate a marine ecology “black box” — population connectivity!

read here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Regional connectivity and viability selection in a range-expanding marine species www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.03...

Screenshot of the title page of an article in Ecology Letters TITLE: There is No Consensus on Biological Sex Madeline G. Eppley. A, Andy Lee Robert Dellinger, Ally Swank First published: 05 March 2026 | https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.70350 Editor: Greg F. Grether Madeline Eppley and Andy Lee contributed equally and are co-first authors. ABSTRACT There is ongoing scientific and societal discourse on the definition of biological sex. At this critical moment when misinformation about sex is being applied to policy globally, scientific clarification is valuable. Here, we evaluate the primary approaches to defining sex and synthesise the active discourse to conclude that there is no current consensus on a definition of sex that is free of assumptions and limitations. While there is no current consensus, we do not advocate for a single definition and contend that a lack of unanimity is not inherently problematic. No matter what definitional choices are used, we provide actionable recommendations to improve accuracy when describing sex. Most importantly, regardless of scientific debates, no biological definition of sex should be used to dictate human rights.

On this Trans Day of Visibility, please enjoy & learn something from this fascinating & clarifying read from @madeline-eppley.bsky.social, @andylee.bsky.social, Robert Dellinger & @allydefduf.bsky.social

Read👉 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

(🙏 for this excellent work & actionable recs!)

ok you’re right i should do it when i get some free time

no good philosophical reasons, but practically it means more time to grade and apply to jobs (😭)

I defended my PhD 10 years ago today. That was the least remarkable thing that happened that day. Sharing something I wrote about it last year. Since then "the horrors persist but so do we." And with dignity.

THANK YOU!!!! and they’re monarchs aka drag QUEENS!!! it was smart!!!!

Always enjoy reading a dissertation - I try to give it time and respect. We are all so rushed, but somebody worked their f**king ass off for this, and I'm so pleased for the person defending their work this week. So, diving in ahead of time.

It finally happened to me: I read this whole paper and was like "hell yeah this is great" and then saw I was thanked in the Acknowledgements, which I had forgotten about lollll

Faculty-brain is real

Where We Go From Here: Harnessing Queer Perspectives to Advance Practice in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Science and society continuously shape one another; this relationship determines what science is funded, which inquiries are pursued, and whose voices are included in the production and dissemination...

What is the relationship between science and society? How does culture impact the production and dissemination of knowledge? In this new paper, Eppley et al interrogate how systems of oppression bias our research, and how Queer perspectives can address these. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

so cool to see examples of this in wild systems!!!

Fantastic paper!

I was coincidentally thinking earlier today about how we sex baby juncos (genetic) and juveniles (wing size) and what the error rates are. I thought "at least we can tell for reproductive adults", but this paper reminded me that it's possible we're getting some of those wrong too.

ICYMI: in our new paper, we contend there is "no current consensus on a definition of sex that is free of assumptions and limitations... and most importantly,...no biological definition of sex should be used to dictate human rights" #evolsky #LGBTQSTEM #ecology #evolution #biologicalsex

I am still actively looking for postdoc positions — please lmk if you (or your friends and colleagues) need a hardworking postdoc with field, lab, and bioinformatic skills!

I am broadly interested in evolution in the ocean, conservation and population genetics, and rapid evolution.

There is No Consensus on Biological Sex At this critical moment when misinformation about sex is being applied to policy globally, scientific clarification on the definition of biological sex is valuable. Here, we evaluate the primary appr...

New paper out in ecology letters! with @andylee.bsky.social @allydefduf.bsky.social

We synthesized the active debate on how scientists define sex, including limitations and assumptions. We believe this discussion will lead to more accurate science.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Very proud of this perspective that came out of some really interesting and difficult conversations with friends and colleagues!

TLDR: how do scientists define sex? why does it matter??
#EcoEvo #Ecology #Evolution 🧪

Eppley et al (2026) "We believe that acknowledging limitations and assumptions of current definitions of sex will lead to more accurate science." 🧪

Very proud of this perspective that came out of some really interesting and difficult conversations with friends and colleagues!

TLDR: how do scientists define sex? why does it matter??
#EcoEvo #Ecology #Evolution 🧪

There is No Consensus on Biological Sex At this critical moment when misinformation about sex is being applied to policy globally, scientific clarification on the definition of biological sex is valuable. Here, we evaluate the primary appr...

Seems that the doi link is up yet -- should work in ~48 hours.

Here's the the journal link in the meanwhile: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

V. important perspective piece by @madeline-eppley.bsky.social & @andylee.bsky.social on biological sex and why a lack of scientific consensus should not be used to dictate human rights doi.org/10.1111/ele.... 🧪

Hey all @shaykeretz.bsky.social is a wonderful freshwater bivalve-focused colleague and she is managing a great new project partnering USFS with UGA, led by Dr Rachel Toczydlowski!

Did you know that the bees that need saving are NOT honeybees?

Honeybees are the dairy cows of bees. People brought them over from Europe to make us honey.

The problem with honeybees, esp in resource-limited ecosystems (like hey! cities!) is that they compete with our native bees for food.