Infographic showing the main steps in the preparation and publication of 3D datasets.
How should I publish my digital fossil? Recommendations for the publication of comprehensive 3D datasets in palaeontological studies onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... @daniajinn.bsky.social @mfnberlin.bsky.social @dfg.de @datadryad.bsky.social #FossilFriday
Close-up of a spiny-tailed iguana (Ctenosaura brachylopha) with its mouth open, showing detailed scales and a blue-grey head against a neutral background.
Alt-Text: Spiny-tailed iguana (Ctenosaura brachylopha) resting on dark lava rocks in a barren, pale gravel landscape, looking alert to the left.
¡Viva 𝘊𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘴𝘢𝘶𝘳𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘺𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘢! 🦎
New #research suggests that Spiny-tailed Iguanas on Clarion Island in #Mexico, previously considered invasive species and planned to be eradicated, are part of the native fauna and should be protected! 🌎
🔗 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
📸 Daniel G. Mulcahy
🐸 Rare fossils from Tanzania have revealed the oldest known ancestors of modern frogs found in Africa, dating back to the Jurassic period.
🦴 These specimens were discovered in the Tendaguru Formation.
Read more here: doi.org/10.3897/fr.29.175525
@mfnberlin.bsky.social
Brown-and-white patterned tree toad (Nectophrynoides luhomeroensis) sitting front-facing on a green leaf; its skin shows high-contrast mottling and its large eyes face forward.
Black-and-white tree toad (Nectophrynoides uhehe) on the forest floor
Small, uniformly brown tree toad (Nectophrynoides viviparus) perched sideways on a fern leaf; smooth skin and compact body shape are clearly visible.
Toads without tadpoles? Some give birth to fully developed young! 🐸
Researchers discovered new species from #Tanzania using specimens from our wet collection, some over 120 years old. Their habitats are rapidly disappearing. 🌍
🔗 doi.org/10.3897/vz.7...
📸 M. Menegon (1, 2), J. V. Lyakurwa (3)
A birch branch placed in a measuring cylinder collects water during an experiment to study the tree’s water use.
Researchers and volunteers measure a fallen birch tree in a forest using a long measuring tape during a citizen science field activity.
Close-up of a person holding a freshly cut cross-section of birch wood while taking a bark sample during field research.
Last year’s winner: Dirk Knoche – PlanBirke plus C 🌳
Researchers and volunteers studied the ecological potential of birch forests. Citizen scientists collected field data on water balance, carbon storage and #biodiversity. 📲
🔗 www.mitforschen.org/blog/forschu...
📸 Plan Birke plus C
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Last year's winner Dirk Knoche speaks into a microphone on stage during the “Wissen der Vielen” Citizen Science research award event while a moderator stands beside him and an audience listens.
All eyes on #CitizenScience! 👀
Nominations are open for the 2026 "Wissen der Vielen" research award. Researchers at German institutions can be nominated by others or nominate themselves until 7 April. 🤝
🔗 Submit here: bit.ly/citizen-scie...
📸 Sandrino Donnhauser
🧵 1/2
#science #sciencenews
Researchers gathered around a table with animal specimens during a biodiversity research lab visit and scientific discussion.
A scientist examining a preserved animal specimen in a biodiversity research laboratory with jars from a zoological collection.
A researcher is analysing small animal bones at a laboratory workstation as part of biodiversity and zoological specimen research.
What did the North Sea and Baltic Sea ecosystems look like over 100 years ago?
Researchers from Ecologic Institute visited the @mfnberlin.bsky.social to study historical specimens and collections that help reconstruct past #MarineBiodiversity and ecological baselines.
More: www.ecologic.eu/20377
A second species of the rare ant genus Ishakidris in Peninsular Malaysia has been discovered, providing new data on a group previously known from just one specimen.
Read more here: doi.org/10.3897/jhr.99.166509
@mfnberlin.bsky.social
#newspecies #ants
Ever wondered what our #micrometeorites look like up close, in color? This composite shows optical close-ups of FLUX samples captured by Dr. Thilo Hasse from @mfnberlin.bsky.social! Thanks, Thilo & the MfN, for these amazing results! More of their work: www.micrometeorites.org
@amgc-vub.bsky.social
Close-up of several greater mouse-eared bats hanging together in a roost, with one bat in the center facing the camera, mouth open and teeth visible while others cluster around it.
Male bats have a lot to say – and every voice is unique! 🦇
A new study reveals 14 distinct call types in male greater mouse-eared bats, allowing us to distinguish individuals acoustically and helping to better protect their mating roosts. 🌍
🔗 bit.ly/fighting-and...
@berlinbatlab.bsky.social
Im Hintergrund sind Umrisse einer Trophäe. Text: Forschungsarbeit einreichen bis zum 7. April! Logos: Wissen der Vielen Forschungspreis für Citizen Science und mit:forschen!
Exzellente partizipative Forschung verdient Anerkennung & Sichtbarkeit! Erneut lobt unser Projekt mit:forschen! deshalb den Wissen der Vielen – Forschungspreis für Citizen Science aus 🏆 Gesucht werden wissenschaftliche Publikationen. Einsendefrist: 7. April 2026
www.mitforschen.org/ein-preis-fu...
New study alert! Female Daubenton’s bats foraging at the cold edge of their range take turns using the same feeding spots at different times of night, thus reducing competition and helping them cope with the cold.
Read the full story here: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Close-up of a large, layered coral specimen with wavy, plate-like formations displayed on a transparent acrylic shelf inside a dark exhibition case at the Humboldt Lab.
A large museum display case arranged like a grid of transparent shelves shows numerous coral specimens of different shapes and sizes, from branching to dome-shaped, against a dark background at the Humboldt Lab.
The collection soon slipped into obscurity. Now it’s re-emerging: around two thirds of our Cuban corals are on public display nationwide – with a new diorama in the making. ✨
See them:
• Bundeskunsthalle Bonn ⬆️
• Humboldt Lab, Humboldt Forum #Berlin ⬇️
• upcoming in #Stralsund
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📸 Philipp Plum
A museum display case at the Bundeskunsthalle with a bright blue interior shows various coral specimens arranged on stepped shelves. At the center sits a large wooden crate labeled “Zoologisches Institut Berlin – Habana,” suggesting the collection’s origin. Surrounding it are different coral forms—branching, rounded, and textured—presented as scientific specimens. The lighting highlights the contrast between the pale corals and the vivid blue background.
A long-hidden coral collection – now visible across Germany! 🪸
In 1967, a team from the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin travelled to the coast of #Cuba to extract an entire reef. The plan failed – but they returned with ~50 crates of coral (8–10 tonnes!). 🧵 1/2
📸 Mick Vincenz
Das @mfnberlin.bsky.social sammelt eure Stimmen zur Wasserzukunft in Berlin und Brandenburg. Wir unterstützen das Projekt rund um den #Masterplan Wasser Berlin. Euer Beitrag zählt: Kommt vorbei, bringt euch ein. Auch online: Auf naturderdinge.de könnt ihr euer Wasserobjekt hochladen.
When #science meets polarised #public issues, communication matters. In #encore, we dedicate a full chapter to shifting conditions of #scicomm, public trust & #democracy. Featuring @jeah.bsky.social + impact from #KAPAZ strengthening resilience to #hostility.
✨ Explore chapter: www.hiig.de/encore/
Chancengleichheit bei Leibniz - Heute wie an jedem Tag! Unsere Institute beschäftigen sich in in unterschiedlichen Formaten das ganze Jahr über mit dem Thema Chancengleichheit. Schaut auf ihren Kanälen vorbei - einen kleinen Auszug der Aktivitäten findet ihr in den Slides. Happy #WomenInScienceDay ❤️
Book cover of “Urbane Mikrometeorite – erkennen und unterscheiden” by Thilo Hasse, featuring micrometeorite with a textured, partly translucent surface in purple and golden tones against a light background.
Micrometeorite showing a porous, bubble-like surface structure with a lighter interior cavity, shaped by melting and rapid cooling.
Magnified micrometeorite with an irregular, dark, partially melted surface and sculpted flow textures formed during atmospheric entry.
Cosmic particles on the rooftops of #Berlin! ✨
Since 2018, Thilo Hasse researches #micrometeorites, now as a guest scientist at the museum. He also contributed to our #CitizenScience project "Cosmic dust on Berlin's rooftops". His new book shares the methods behind it! 🔬
🔗 bit.ly/urbane-mikro...
#SuperbOwl @mfnberlin.bsky.social
Figure plate designed as a collage of digitised material showing a specimen of Anthracoceros malayanus (black hornbill) alongside its original collection labels.
Figure plate designed as a collage of digitised material showing a specimen of Macrobrachium idae (freshwater prawn) and its original collection labels.
Figure plate designed as a collage of digitised material showing a specimen of Prionailurus bengalensis (leopard cat) together with its associated collection labels.
Collaboration across continents! 🌏
Together with the #SIGNIFY team (Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum), we digitised 397 specimens from #Singapore, incl. 40 types. 🇸🇬
Highlights:
🐦 black hornbill
🐱 leopard cat (CR nationally)
🦐 𝘔𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘶𝘮 𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘦 (nationally extinct)
Full data online soon! 🌐
Artenschutz zum Hinhören: 14 Lauttypen, individuelle „akustische Fingerabdrücke“ & saisonale Muster bei der Fledermausart Große Mausohren.🦇 Lisa Printz zeigt im #DBUstipendium @mfnberlin.bsky.social, wie Bioakustik hilft, Paarungsquartiere zu erkennen www.museumfuernaturkunde.berlin/de/museum/me...
Cats’ purrs reveal who’s who better than their meows! 🐈
A new study shows: purrs carry more stable individual signatures than meows. Meows are more flexible, especially in human-cat communication. 👥
▶️ How meows cluster by species in acoustic space
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#science #cats
💧Das #Wasser und Wir👉Wie sichern wir Berlins Wasserzukunft? Bevölkerungswachstum, #Klimakrise und #Kohleausstieg stellen die Versorgung vor neue Herausforderungen. Zwei kostenlose Veranstaltungen im #Naturkundemuseum.
ℹ️ sohub.io/6rbc
#VHSBerlin @mfnberlin.bsky.social @bwassertisch.bsky.social
Three-dimensional longitudinal section model of the fossil flower Canarium leenhoutsii from Miocene Zhangpu amber.
3D models of fossil flowers help reconstruct past ecosystems. Such findings provide analogues to better understand how tropical biomes may respond to ongoing #climatechange. 🌏
Simon’s doctoral research was awarded the museum’s von Pawel-Rammingen Doctoral Thesis Award! 🏆 (3/3)
📸 2023 Beurel et al.
Fossil flower of Canarium leenhoutsii preserved in Miocene Zhangpu amber.
For his PhD, Simon Beurel (see above) studied fossil flower inclusions in 15-million-year-old amber from #China. Using X-ray imaging, he identified two previously unknown species of the tree genus 𝘊𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘮. 🌳 (2/3)
📸 2023 Beurel et al.
Researcher Simon Beurel in his office, holding one of the amber inclusions he studied.
When #amber becomes a time machine! ⏳
Fossilised resin can preserve insects and #plants for millions of years. These inclusions act as time capsules of Earth’s history – and as valuable sources of knowledge for #research. 🧵 (1/3)
#science #sciencenews
Digitale Mittagspause Fr. 27. Februar 2026, 12-13 Uhr. IQ Wasser: Artenvielfalt gemeinsam erforschen. Jetzt anmelden!
Wie steht es um die biologische Vielfalt in und um unsere Trinkwasser-Reservoire – und wie können Bürger*innen zur Forschung beitragen?
In der digitalen Mittagspause von mit:forschen! gibt Julia Flister vom @mfnberlin.bsky.social Einblicke in „IQ Wasser”.
ℹ️ www.mitforschen.org/veranstaltun...
Book cover showing a historical mineral specimen from Martin Heinrich Klaproth’s collection, associated with the discovery of uranium.
Did you know uranium was discovered in #Berlin? 🤔
In 1789, chemist Martin Heinrich Klaproth identified a new element in pitchblende – #uranium. The samples are part of our collection. A new museum book tells this and many more stories! 📘
📅 Book event on 28 January, 18:00
🔗 bit.ly/uranentdeckung
Pinned butterfly specimen of Olynthus hypsea with spread wings, photographed for scientific documentation.
Close-up of a velvet ant (Dasymutilla gloriosa), a wingless wasp, from the entomological collection of the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin.
High-resolution close-up of a metallic green flower chafer beetle (Potosia aeruginosa), a member of the subfamily Cetoniinae, from the collection of the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin.
Happy birthday, #Wikipedia! 🎉
To mark its 25th anniversary, we share 25 openly licensed images on #Wikimedia Commons. The specimens shown here highlight only a small part of this diversity.
🔗 View more: de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikiped...
📸 Eran Wolff (1, 3), Bernhard Schurian (2)
Several visitors stand in the museum around moving boxes filled with bird specimens and take part in a participatory workshop for the development of the special exhibition "ZUGvögel – Collection in motion".
How does 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 shape public engagement? 📍
The collaborative encyclopedia "Place in Engagement" explores how spaces and encounters influence collaboration and knowledge exchange. 🤝
🔗 zenodo.org/records/1796...
📸 Thomas Rosenthal
#publicengagement #openscience
#science #sciencenews
