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Allan McDevitt

@shrewgod.bsky.social

590 followers 340 following 67 posts

Lecturer in ATU 🇮🇪 Shrews are my thing but work on all sorts of critters across land and water! Molecular ecologist by trade, doing a lot of eDNA work these days! Lab website: https://sites.google.com/view/mcdevittlab/home .. more

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Environmental science 47%

Biology 30%

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Allan McDevitt @shrewgod.bsky.social · Jun 25

Citizen scientists are better at this #eDNA craic than we are 😆 But that's not the main point! A passion project of @hollybroadhurst.bsky.social, where she delves into their motivations and experiences of engaging in eDNA surveys theoryandpractice.citizenscienceassociation.org/articles/10....

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Pritam Banerjee @pritam8683.bsky.social · 15h

My first post here 🙂

👩‍🔬💧 Can a few drops of water reveal hidden rice-field pests?
Our new bioRxiv preprint shows how low-cost eDNA can help farmers track native & invasive species efficiently—no long surveys needed.

🌾 Read more: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
#eDNA #Agroecology #PestMonitoring

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Reposted by Julie L. Lockwood, Allan D. McDevitt

Brent Emerson @brentcemerson.bsky.social · 1d

!!!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Archived natural DNA samplers reveal four decades of biodiversity change across the tree of life - Nature Ecology & Evolution

This study explores four decades of biodiversity change across the tree of life in Germany’s terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems by sequencing standardized biota samples from a long-term pollution monitoring archive.

www.nature.com

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Allan McDevitt @shrewgod.bsky.social · 2d

1st PhD chapter from @jjackman27.bsky.social on comparing #eDNA filtration methods in a hyper-tidal estuary. Although some methods outperform others, all are generally effective in recovering fish biodiversity, including the passive metaprobe. Paper here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Hannah Scharf @hannah-scharf.bsky.social · 2d

Today I heard a pair of great tits just outside my office window, followed by a loud thump of something against the windowsill. I rolled up my blinds and to my surprise, there was a bat! This tit had knocked a bat from her roost and looked like he was thinking about lunch…

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Ciara | Ciaraíoch 🎨 @ciaraioch.bsky.social · 2d

Parents, please teach your offspring to swim and to drive before they're in their 20s because it's SO much harder (and consequently more expensive) as adults. Ideally, they should be swimming comfortably as a young child and able to drive an articulated lorry cross country by age six

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Colin Simpfendorfer @sharkcolin.bsky.social · 7d

New #sharkscience out in @currentbiology.bsky.social by @seaprinceaaron.bsky.social and colleagues.
Deep-sea mining risks for sharks, rays, and chimeras. A must read for this looming threat to many already threatened species.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
@iucnshark.bsky.social

Deep-sea mining risks for sharks, rays, and chimeras

Judah et al. identify 30 species of chondrichthyans that overlap with proposed deep-sea mining activities, nearly two-thirds of which are already threatened with extinction. Precautionary management o...

www.cell.com

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Reposted by Smith, Allan D. McDevitt, Southern Africa

Michelle A. Rodrigues 🐒 @marspidermonkey.bsky.social · 7d

As a primatologist, Jane Goodall was a huge inspiration to me. I admired the way she describes chimpanzee behavior with such detail and empathy, and she’s inspired so many people and advocated for chimpanzee conservation and welfare.

However, I'm dismayed at what her narrative leaves out (1/10)

Photo of Jane Goodall in the center, signing a book, with three women standing slightly hunched behind her. A very young Michelle is to the right, smiling.

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Reposted by Julie L. Lockwood, Allan D. McDevitt

Dave Hemprich-Bennett @davehb.bsky.social · 8d

New preprint alert! We DNA barcoded 95 thousand Ghanaian arthropods, more than doubling the number of BINs (a species proxy) available online from West Africa. In doing so we’ve released a huge amount of new data to scientists studying the region 🧪 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Characterising a species-rich and understudied tropical insect fauna using DNA barcoding

Background: West Africa has high biodiversity that is relatively understudied, especially for insects. Studies of West African arthropod diversity can therefore help address important questions regard...

www.biorxiv.org

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Reposted by Lisa W. Fazio, Rebecca Solnit, Graeme S. Cumming , and 24 more Lisa W. Fazio, Rebecca Solnit, Graeme S. Cumming, John K. Pinnegar, Ken Caldeira, Grant D. Stentiford, John R. Hutchinson, Mark D. White, Alex Callinicos, Dawn J. Wright, Parliamentary Library, Cathy N. Davidson, Margaret Johnston, Jussi T. Eronen, Trevor A. Branch, Andrew L. Whitehead, Jonathan Birch, Jennifer A. Johnson, Allan D. McDevitt, Anthony Burke, Halley E. Froehlich, Andrew M. Riggsby, Kathleen Kennedy, David H. Price, Charles T. Mathewes, Richard Moorhead, Vincent Raoult

Rebecca R Helm @rebeccarhelm.bsky.social · 15d

I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA

10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Dr Danni Hinchcliffe @dannihinchy.bsky.social · 17d

Should I stay or should I go?🐦 Fancy a #PhD studying Pied flycatchers in the Peak District to help better understand what drives individual & population performance? Think #habitat #movement #ecology #genetics 🌍 Make use of this nestbox PIT tag study system and join us! Email me #LJMU #NationalTrust

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Love Dalén @lovedalen.bsky.social · 20d

Interested in giving a talk at the Plant and Animal Genome conference (PAG 33) in San Diego?

Together with several colleagues, we are arranging 5 interconnected sessions.

To submit an abstract, please fill out this Google Form before Oct 12th, 2025:
forms.gle/q7j275Di6umY...

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Reposted by David N. Thomas, Allan D. McDevitt

Louise Firth @louisefirth.bsky.social · 24d

Postdoc opportunity at University College Cork Ireland 🇮🇪. Interdisciplinary approaches to urban coastlines & multispecies relations. 🚶‍♀️🐚👨‍⚕️🦀👩‍🔬🪸👤🐟 Open to EU & non-EU applicants 🌎 Deadline 3rd Oct. Interviews 9th & 10th Oct. #LivingSeawall #EcoEngineering #Sustainability my.corehr.com/pls/uccrecru...

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Reposted by Julie L. Lockwood, Allan D. McDevitt

The Mariani Lab @marianilab.bsky.social · Sep 10

At last, #DNA #Divers is here! A blueprint for a transformative way of capturing #eDNA, from everywhere, through the engagement of #SCUBA divers - a huge team effort led by #ErikaNeave
@ukri.org @ljmuimpact.bsky.social @bes-aquaticgroup.bsky.social
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

DNA Divers: Volunteer‐based eDNA capture for local and global marine biodiversity monitoring

Volunteer-based biodiversity recording is a powerful source of scalable data yet to be used to its full potential by the scientific community. Coastal ecosystems are varied and diverse, making it ...

besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

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Reposted by Matthew J. Collins, Allan D. McDevitt, Frédéric Delsuc

Mick Westbury @mick2474.bsky.social · Sep 9

🦣🍖🧬 Fully funded 3-yr PhD in palaeogenomics & bioinformatics! Help me push non-model palaeogenomes beyond their limits @DTU in Denmark.

Start: Feb 2026 (flexible)
Application deadline: 24 Oct 2025

For details click here: tinyurl.com/BioExtPhD

Reposts appreciated 😁

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Kit Stoner @kitstoner.bsky.social · Sep 7

Fluorescent bats!! #NatBatConf

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Reposted by Matthew J. Collins, Allan D. McDevitt, Catherine J. Frieman , and 1 more Matthew J. Collins, Allan D. McDevitt, Catherine J. Frieman, Joanna Brück

Kevin Daly @gingerhowley.bsky.social · Sep 5

I will be recruiting two PhDs for my ERC Project HERDPATH - let's discover out how livestock and pathogens evolved together using #aDNA. Projects will be animal or pathogen focused but will be in dialogue.

Details at my quaint website below. Deadline 3rd October.

kevingdaly.github.io

Ruminant Palaeogenomics - Kevin G. Daly: Ruminant Palaeogenomics

kevingdaly.github.io

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Reposted by Colin A. Simpfendorfer, Julie L. Lockwood, Allan D. McDevitt

Maarten De Brauwer @maartendb.bsky.social · Sep 4

Job opening! CSIRO @csiropublishing.bsky.social is currently hiring 2 #eDNA Postdoctoral Fellowships!

sednasociety.com/2025/09/04/j...

Job opportunities: 2 Postdoctoral Fellowships at CSIRO

CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, is currently recruiting two eDNA Postdoctoral Fellows. Applications close on October 5th. More information and links below. CSIRO Postdoctoral Fell…

sednasociety.com

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Reposted by Grant D. Stentiford, Trevor A. Branch, Allan D. McDevitt , and 1 more Grant D. Stentiford, Trevor A. Branch, Allan D. McDevitt, Frédéric Delsuc

Nature @nature.com · Sep 3

A common type of ant in Europe breaks a fundamental rule in biology: its queens can produce male offspring that are a whole different species

go.nature.com/4mOb5T9

‘Almost unimaginable’: these ants are different species but share a mother

Ant queens of one species clone ants of another to create hybrid workers that do their bidding.

go.nature.com

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Patrick Randolph-Quinney @kabweprq.bsky.social · Sep 2

Version of record published today. Deliberate burial practices by extinct hominin Homo naledi. 128 pages of detailed multi-strand analyses underpinning the funerary behaviours, including comprehensive work on archaeothanatology and spatial taphonomy #homonaledi

elifesciences.org/articles/89106

Evidence for deliberate burial of the dead by Homo naledi

Remains of the extinct hominin species Homo naledi were interred by members of their own species, the first time that burial has been documented in populations other than modern humans and Neanderthal...

elifesciences.org

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Reposted by Craig R. Primmer, Allan D. McDevitt

Centre for Palaeogenetics @cpgsthlm.bsky.social · Sep 2

🚨JOB ALERT!🚨

Postdoc position at #CpgSthlm on Microtine Palaeogenomics!

Join our deep-time genomics project, funded by @erc.europa.eu, and help us explore lemming and vole evolution using ancient DNA from fossils spanning the last 2.6 million years 🐭🦴🧬

Apply here:
su.varbi.com/en/what:job/...

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Barry Masterson @barrymasterson.com · Aug 28

So sad to hear the Ollie Horgan news.

The LOI is a tight community yet I never met the man he's been like a part of the furniture for over a decade or my life, working miracles with Harps, going mad on the sidelines, making fun one liners in interviews

A legend we will miss 🫡

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

The Guardian @theguardian.com · Aug 28

Grimsby deepen ridicule for Ruben Amorim as he ploughs on with flawed, final stand | Jonathan Liew

Carabao Cup humiliation is the latest setback for a coach who may actually be the last real thing at Manchester United

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Lewis @lgambrose.bsky.social · Aug 27

Cunha and Mbeumo both miss penalties, Šeško opts to go tenth. What a transfer window.

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Romina Batista @rominassbatista.bsky.social · Aug 25

I am very happy to share our latest paper published:
"First Assembly of a Draft Genome of the Critically Endangered Northern Muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus, Primates, Atelidae) Including Non-Invasive Genotyping Strategies for the Species" onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

First Assembly of a Draft Genome of the Critically Endangered Northern Muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus, Primates, Atelidae) Including Non‐Invasive Genotyping Strategies for the Species

First draft genome assembly of the critically endangered primate northern muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus) and complete mitochondrial genome assembly. Set of microsatellite markers developed for the....

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

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Allan McDevitt @shrewgod.bsky.social · Aug 25

One thing I love about pre-prints: shows everyone the story that the authors originally wanted to tell. What we sometimes end up with after peer review, sheesh.... 🤦‍♂️

Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

BirdGuides @birdguides.bsky.social · Aug 25

New research has provided the most comprehensive analysis of predation events at birds' nests across the UK:

Major new study examines nest predation in the UK

New research by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) and University of East Anglia, in collaboration with other partners, has given the most comprehensive analysis of predation events at birds' nests across the UK. The research examined camera studies of more than 2,000 wild birds' nests in England, Wales, Scotland and the Isle of Man.

bit.ly

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Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Jonathan Liew @jonathanliew.bsky.social · Aug 21

column on michael johnson’s failed attempt to reinvent athletics, and why just because you can breed a chicken without feathers, doesn’t mean you should www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/a...

Michael Johnson’s Grand Slam Track misses the vital village-fete feel of athletics | Jonathan Liew

Shearing off apparently extraneous matter is how the featherless chicken was hatched. But ditching field events is too much plucking

www.theguardian.com

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Allan McDevitt @shrewgod.bsky.social · Aug 18

It's becoming infuriating tbh. Even getting back what I would consider minor revisions to re-review. It's a clear sign that some editors are not even really looking at the ms or the response anymore, just shipping it out again. Clearly, some just want 'Editor' on their CV...

Reposted by Allan D. McDevitt

Romina Batista @rominassbatista.bsky.social · Aug 17

🚨🧬🦜 I'm proud to share this publication by a talented PhD student I had the pleasure of co-supervising at INPA. Congratulations to Waleska Barbosa on this fantastic contribution to Neotropical biogeography and phylogeography! doi.org/10.1016/j.ym... #Biodiversity #Amazonia #Ornithology

Redirecting

doi.org

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Reposted by Julie L. Lockwood, Allan D. McDevitt

Lucie Zinger @luciezinger.bsky.social · Aug 13

Our paper on using #eDNA from rainwater to study hidden biodiversity in #tropical #forest #canopies is now out in Science Advances! This method is a major step forward for the study and #conservation of this inaccessible compartiment. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Photo: J. Raynaud

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