A widespread gap in U.S. Endangered Species Act implementation: Risk of genetic erosion within populations

ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...

I cannot believe our work is finally out there and in @journal-evo.bsky.social ! This was an enormous group effort!

We provide an updated estimate of the number of buzz pollinated angiosperm species, genera, and families, look at consequences for diversification, number of transitions, and more!

SSAR is now accepting applications for the 2025 Roger Conant Grants in Herpetology. Awards of up to $500 support research, education, or conservation in herpetology—especially by student researchers.
Deadline: Dec 15, 2025
Awards announced in March.
Apply via Dropbox:
www.dropbox.com/request/eA6R...

Color me surprised! Waldron et al. (2025) studied the evolutionary consequences polymorphism in Plethodonts using a complete phylogenomic tree of of the family paired with morphometric analyses. She the results of this #AWNews at AmphibiaWeb.org

Final NSF budget proposal jettisons one giant telescope amid savage agencywide cuts Trump’s 57% proposed cut to agency would drop grant success rates to 7% and gut education and training

www.science.org/content/arti...

‘Half the tree of life’: ecologists’ horror as nature reserves are emptied of insects A new point in history has been reached, entomologists say, as climate-led species’ collapse moves up the food chain even in supposedly protected regions free of pesticides

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Screen shot of the Greer fire from the Watch Duty app.

#Greerfire is still progressing towards the NE. High wind gusts have made it difficult for tankers and personnel to fight this fire. My son and his family went to a friend’s home last night. Their home is in the black circle.

Science Friday Covering the outer reaches of space to the tiniest microbes in our bodies, Science Friday is the source for entertaining and educational stories about science, technology, and other cool stuff.

Great interview with @simon-scarpetta.bsky.social on @scifri.bsky.social about his very cool research on North American iguanas rafting to Fiji!

pod.link/73329284/epi...

Distinguishing species boundaries from geographic variation | PNAS In an era of unprecedented biodiversity loss, the need for standardized practices to describe biological variation is becoming increasingly importa...

Very cool paper on leopard frogs in Mexico and Central America by @chamberea.bsky.social and colleagues.
Distinguishing species boundaries from geographic variation

www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...

Scientific naming conventions should keep in step with contemporary science A three-part Nature Podcast series explores the importance of scientific naming conventions — and talks to researchers looking at how to make them more inclusive.

Great @nature.com editorial and @naturepodcast.bsky.social series referencing ongoing coverage in @natureecoevo.bsky.social of the taxonomic furore regarding eponyms www.nature.com/articles/d41... (Check out rdcu.be/eja4P for the most recent NEE piece following last year's IBC votes)

Understanding Interindividual Social Networks in Mixed-Species Bird Flocks | The American Naturalist: Vol 205, No 5 Abstract Mixed-species flocks (MSFs) are an important form of animal social organization. Most studies examine MSFs at the species level, notwithstanding that social interactions occur between individ...

Why do birds of different feather flock together?
Bharadwaj et al. discover novel patterns of inter-individual association in Himalayan mixed-species bird flocks, and highlight the importance of individual-level studies to understand MSF formation.
Read now!
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...

Trump Laid Off Nearly All the Federal Workers Who Investigate Firefighter Deaths The cuts, which are part of Trump’s slashing of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, will also halt a first-of-its-kind study of the causes of thousands of firefighters’ cancer cases.

NEW: When a firefighter dies, a small team of federal health workers helps pinpoint what went wrong and identify how to avoid similar accidents in the future.

Trump laid off nearly all of them.

nice new paper by @lizardphd.bsky.social
Drought and Vegetation Lag Effects Influence Lizard Abundance: A 10-Year Study of Perennial and Intermittent Urban River Areas

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

Quantifying intraspecific variation in host resistance and tolerance to a lethal pathogen Our study highlights the importance of considering intraspecific variation in host tolerance and resistance to pathogens. We apply a multistate model as a new way to quantify host tolerance and resis...

Amidst *everything* going on, I'm still proud to see my 2nd chapter of my PhD out in full in the latest special issue of @animalecology.bsky.social! doi.org/10.1111/1365... (1/4)

I got the book a few days ago, it is awesome! Oh, and the t-shirt rocks, too!

:-)

Check out upcoming talks at www.EmilyTaylorScience.com/events

Cute chubby boi stickers #herpetology #frogs #amphibians #wildlifeart

North American herpetology: Philadelphia, J. Dobson;1842. https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/3991212

North American herpetology: Philadelphia, J. Dobson;1842. (source: https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/3991212 #nature #illustration #art

NAU Gartersnake Research | Bonfire Grab your limited edition NAU Gartersnake Research merchandise before the campaign closes. Featuring Black Classic Unisex Tees, professionally printed in the USA.

Like snakes? Help support an NAU graduate's research on threatened gartersnake species in Arizona!

www.bonfire.com/nau-gartersn...

😪

boo😥

NEWS These may be the world's first images of dogs—and they're wearing leashes

Dogs and humans have been together for a long time.

Learn more on #NationalPetDay: scim.ag/4cuRnYi

Twenty-four hours into his time, Sen. Booker just passionately defended public science and universities-- which, at their best, are cornerstones of democracy and a powerful tool for collective liberation (which is why they've been so aggressively attacked).

Thank you, Senator.

SSAR Press Release: The 9th edition of the Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico SSAR Press Release:  The 9th edition of the Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico has launched! The Standard Names for North American Amp…

For the Bluesky #herp nerds, the newest edition of the Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, published by Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, is out!

ssarherps.org/2025/03/ssar...

Increased heterozygosity and body condition result from admixed translocation of the threatened Mogollon Narrow-headed Gartersnake (Thamnophis rufipunctatus) - Conservation Genetics Enhancing gene flow through translocations can be a useful tool in recovering small and isolated populations. However, it is not devoid of genetic risks, such as outbreeding depression in future gener...

new #openaccess paper on Narrow-headed Gartersnake genetics from the Gila region in New Mexico. #snakes #Thamnophis

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Evolution in Real Time on Lizard Island from the pages of The Washington Post: What the secret lives of lizards tell us about evolution Scientists are studying natural selection in real time on a small Florida island. March 23, 2025 at 7…

www.anoleannals.org/2025/03/23/e...

Iguanas Floated a Whopping 5,000 Miles From North America to Fiji on Rafts of Plants in a Record-Setting Trip, Study Suggests Since most iguana species live in the Americas, biologists have long debated how they could have arrived on the remote Pacific island in the first place

This is so cool! Iguana's floated 5,000 miles across the Pacific from North America to Fiji.

www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/i...

Effects of invasive American bullfrogs and their removal on Northwestern pond turtles The American bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) is an invasive species globally significant for its role as a generalist predator in freshwater systems. Nati…

Cool new paper on the effects of removing invasive bullfrogs on Northwestern Pond Turtles in Yosemite National Park.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

The Herpetologists' League has extended the deadline for some of its awards. Deadlines for the Joseph C. Mitchell Grant in Herpetology and the HL Award for Distinguished Service in Herpetology have been extended to April 18. See the Herpetologists' League website for more details.

Chuliver et al. (2024) discovered a fossilized tadpole from the Middle Jurassic of Patagonia (~ 161 million years ago), representing the earliest known tadpole. Read more on this #AWnews on our homepage: amphibiaweb.org, which also has a link to the paper.