Kristen Behrens, PhD
@behrenskristen.bsky.social
she/her | postdoctoral fellow of fisheries bioinformatics @ UMich | coregonine genomics and cichlid sex chromosomes | bioinformatician
🖤🩶🤍💜
My views are my own.
https://kristenbehrens.weebly.com/
🖤🩶🤍💜
My views are my own.
https://kristenbehrens.weebly.com/
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
data centers are driving up electricity prices for households — and price relief may not be coming anytime soon… Residential retail electricity prices in September were up 7.4%, to about 18 cents per kilowatt hour, according the Energy Information Administration... www.cnbc.com/2025/11/26/a...
AI data center 'frenzy' is pushing up your electric bill — here's why
Energy-hungry data centers that underpin artificial intelligence are contributing to higher residential electricity bills, say experts.
www.cnbc.com
November 27, 2025 at 12:40 AM
data centers are driving up electricity prices for households — and price relief may not be coming anytime soon… Residential retail electricity prices in September were up 7.4%, to about 18 cents per kilowatt hour, according the Energy Information Administration... www.cnbc.com/2025/11/26/a...
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
I am searching for a lab manager/researcher to come and work with a friendly, collaborative, and interdisciplinary group of students, postdocs, and staff on the microbial ecology of cyanobacterial blooms. careers.umich.edu/job_detail/2...
Research Lab Specialist | U-M Careers
careers.umich.edu
November 26, 2025 at 5:58 PM
I am searching for a lab manager/researcher to come and work with a friendly, collaborative, and interdisciplinary group of students, postdocs, and staff on the microbial ecology of cyanobacterial blooms. careers.umich.edu/job_detail/2...
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
🚨🚨 WeeooWeeoo 🚨🚨
Black Friday deals at the Squid facts shop are LIVE!
Here's the deal: When you buy calendars, stickers, and posters, you get the satisfaction of supporting science education FREE!
Wow!
What a deal!
Who could pass this opportunity up? not me! That's for sure.
SquidFacts.net
Black Friday deals at the Squid facts shop are LIVE!
Here's the deal: When you buy calendars, stickers, and posters, you get the satisfaction of supporting science education FREE!
Wow!
What a deal!
Who could pass this opportunity up? not me! That's for sure.
SquidFacts.net
November 26, 2025 at 1:44 PM
🚨🚨 WeeooWeeoo 🚨🚨
Black Friday deals at the Squid facts shop are LIVE!
Here's the deal: When you buy calendars, stickers, and posters, you get the satisfaction of supporting science education FREE!
Wow!
What a deal!
Who could pass this opportunity up? not me! That's for sure.
SquidFacts.net
Black Friday deals at the Squid facts shop are LIVE!
Here's the deal: When you buy calendars, stickers, and posters, you get the satisfaction of supporting science education FREE!
Wow!
What a deal!
Who could pass this opportunity up? not me! That's for sure.
SquidFacts.net
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Part 1 version 1 of my Malawi cichlid ID guide is out now. 2 more parts for follow, with my intention being to revise, expand and improve each over time. This one is essentially a companion to our whole genome sequence paper in Science (Blumer et al. 2025). ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...
Identification of the Cichlid Fishes of Lake Malawi/Nyasa Part 1: Cyrtocarina (the ‘benthic’ or ‘hap’ sub-radiation).
ecoevorxiv.org
November 26, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Part 1 version 1 of my Malawi cichlid ID guide is out now. 2 more parts for follow, with my intention being to revise, expand and improve each over time. This one is essentially a companion to our whole genome sequence paper in Science (Blumer et al. 2025). ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
You know those labs that keep harming students, again and again? Some reflections on why it's so hard to stop this from happening and where our responsibilities lie.
scienceforeveryone.science/bad-mentors-... 🧪
scienceforeveryone.science/bad-mentors-... 🧪
Bad mentors hurt people
What to do about bad mentors?
scienceforeveryone.science
November 25, 2025 at 6:38 PM
You know those labs that keep harming students, again and again? Some reflections on why it's so hard to stop this from happening and where our responsibilities lie.
scienceforeveryone.science/bad-mentors-... 🧪
scienceforeveryone.science/bad-mentors-... 🧪
Had the brilliant thought to do some Christmas shopping in small business Saturday, and then remembered we are playing Ohio State at home 😅 so uh, maybe not
November 26, 2025 at 1:19 AM
Had the brilliant thought to do some Christmas shopping in small business Saturday, and then remembered we are playing Ohio State at home 😅 so uh, maybe not
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Dear grad students,
Reminder: it’s also totally fine to ignore your [uncle] who thinks your research is a waste of time and resources. You don’t owe people an explanation! They don’t have to get it!
Or, as someone told me as a life-changing piece of advice: reasons are for reasonable people.
Reminder: it’s also totally fine to ignore your [uncle] who thinks your research is a waste of time and resources. You don’t owe people an explanation! They don’t have to get it!
Or, as someone told me as a life-changing piece of advice: reasons are for reasonable people.
Every year around Thanksgiving, I see tons of grad students post heartbreaking messages on social media about how their loved ones don’t understand or support their decision to study what seems like something pointless or silly.
Perhaps my American Scientist essay can help!
🧪🌎🦑 #SciComm
Perhaps my American Scientist essay can help!
🧪🌎🦑 #SciComm
“Why Are We Funding This?”
Long-standing myths about “silly science” have contributed to the reckless slashing of government-supported research.
www.americanscientist.org
November 25, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Dear grad students,
Reminder: it’s also totally fine to ignore your [uncle] who thinks your research is a waste of time and resources. You don’t owe people an explanation! They don’t have to get it!
Or, as someone told me as a life-changing piece of advice: reasons are for reasonable people.
Reminder: it’s also totally fine to ignore your [uncle] who thinks your research is a waste of time and resources. You don’t owe people an explanation! They don’t have to get it!
Or, as someone told me as a life-changing piece of advice: reasons are for reasonable people.
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Hats! Collector Urchin (Tripneustes gratilla)
#TidalFarce #SciArt #comic 🦑 more info about this critter -> tidalfarce.com/index.html?p...
#TidalFarce #SciArt #comic 🦑 more info about this critter -> tidalfarce.com/index.html?p...
November 24, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Hats! Collector Urchin (Tripneustes gratilla)
#TidalFarce #SciArt #comic 🦑 more info about this critter -> tidalfarce.com/index.html?p...
#TidalFarce #SciArt #comic 🦑 more info about this critter -> tidalfarce.com/index.html?p...
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
November 24, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Huh, so there's at least species of New World killifish that's sometimes protogynous. Now THAT'S cool! 🌍🌿⚒️🐟
Alternative social and reproductive niches linked to intra-sexual color variation in a facultatively protogynous North American annual killifish, Millerichthys robustus - Scientific Reports
Scientific Reports - Alternative social and reproductive niches linked to intra-sexual color variation in a facultatively protogynous North American annual killifish, Millerichthys robustus
www.nature.com
November 24, 2025 at 12:57 PM
Huh, so there's at least species of New World killifish that's sometimes protogynous. Now THAT'S cool! 🌍🌿⚒️🐟
Github please stop showing me the angry pink unicorn error page I have stuff to do
November 24, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Github please stop showing me the angry pink unicorn error page I have stuff to do
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
🎶From Atlantic to Pacific, gee the fish facts are terrific!🎶
#25DaysofFishmas is hitting the road! While there's no place like H.O.M.E.S. for the holidays, we'll be traveling beyond the #GreatLakes this year to learn about freshwater fishes from across the US. The road trip kicks off December 1!
#25DaysofFishmas is hitting the road! While there's no place like H.O.M.E.S. for the holidays, we'll be traveling beyond the #GreatLakes this year to learn about freshwater fishes from across the US. The road trip kicks off December 1!
November 24, 2025 at 2:20 PM
🎶From Atlantic to Pacific, gee the fish facts are terrific!🎶
#25DaysofFishmas is hitting the road! While there's no place like H.O.M.E.S. for the holidays, we'll be traveling beyond the #GreatLakes this year to learn about freshwater fishes from across the US. The road trip kicks off December 1!
#25DaysofFishmas is hitting the road! While there's no place like H.O.M.E.S. for the holidays, we'll be traveling beyond the #GreatLakes this year to learn about freshwater fishes from across the US. The road trip kicks off December 1!
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Working on invertebrate #paleoart at the moment, knowing I'm probably making mistakes despite best efforts, consulting primary literature etc. Inverts are much like fossil plants: there are few accessible resources on their appearance so we must wing it, or go down deep rabbit holes to restore them.
November 24, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Working on invertebrate #paleoart at the moment, knowing I'm probably making mistakes despite best efforts, consulting primary literature etc. Inverts are much like fossil plants: there are few accessible resources on their appearance so we must wing it, or go down deep rabbit holes to restore them.
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Tell your undergrads about this. It’s a fantastic short-course in Ann Arbor, all expenses covered. Do some experiments in developmental biology and learn about careers in research and life as a grad student 🧪
Applications are now open for the 2026 Developing Future Biologists Short Course at the University of Michigan!
Visit our website or email [email protected] to learn more and apply. #GoBlue
Visit our website or email [email protected] to learn more and apply. #GoBlue
November 24, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Tell your undergrads about this. It’s a fantastic short-course in Ann Arbor, all expenses covered. Do some experiments in developmental biology and learn about careers in research and life as a grad student 🧪
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
I'm recruiting a new master's student for fall 2026 in my lab at Northern Michigan University @bionmu.bsky.social ! Students with interests in evolution of freshwater fish are encouraged to apply. Please see our lab website lizmandeville.github.io and the attached advertisement for more information.
Mandeville Lab
Fish are so delightfully weird. We study the evolutionary genetics and ecology of freshwater fishes, plus a few more things, at Northern Michigan University
lizmandeville.github.io
November 24, 2025 at 2:35 PM
I'm recruiting a new master's student for fall 2026 in my lab at Northern Michigan University @bionmu.bsky.social ! Students with interests in evolution of freshwater fish are encouraged to apply. Please see our lab website lizmandeville.github.io and the attached advertisement for more information.
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
How and for whom can genetics education reduce beliefs in genetic essentialism? pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41267401/
"We also find that the 3 intervention curricula are highly effective across sociodemographic group characteristics [...] we offer evidence-based strategies for curriculum development"
"We also find that the 3 intervention curricula are highly effective across sociodemographic group characteristics [...] we offer evidence-based strategies for curriculum development"
November 24, 2025 at 2:57 PM
How and for whom can genetics education reduce beliefs in genetic essentialism? pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41267401/
"We also find that the 3 intervention curricula are highly effective across sociodemographic group characteristics [...] we offer evidence-based strategies for curriculum development"
"We also find that the 3 intervention curricula are highly effective across sociodemographic group characteristics [...] we offer evidence-based strategies for curriculum development"
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Drowned river mouth lakes are winter foraging habitats for the expanding Lake Michigan cisco Coregonus artedi population
#GreatLakes 🧪
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#GreatLakes 🧪
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Drowned river mouth lakes are winter foraging habitats for the expanding Lake Michigan cisco Coregonus artedi population
Characterizing fish movements is required for understanding habitat use, energy flow, and trophic structure and can inform fisheries management. Drown…
www.sciencedirect.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Drowned river mouth lakes are winter foraging habitats for the expanding Lake Michigan cisco Coregonus artedi population
#GreatLakes 🧪
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#GreatLakes 🧪
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Lake whitefish are spawning this time of year, so commercial season is closed. The eggs will overwinter and then hatch early in the spring.
#GreatLakes
#GreatLakes
November 24, 2025 at 2:53 AM
Lake whitefish are spawning this time of year, so commercial season is closed. The eggs will overwinter and then hatch early in the spring.
#GreatLakes
#GreatLakes
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
November 24, 2025 at 5:15 AM
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Before farms and suburbs, the Great Black Swamp thrived. Restoring it could help curb Lake Erie’s harmful algal blooms today.
www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/11/the-...
www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/11/the-...
The history of taming the Great Black Swamp | Great Lakes Now
Before farms and suburbs, the Great Black Swamp thrived. Restoring it could help curb Lake Erie’s harmful algal blooms today.
www.greatlakesnow.org
November 24, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Before farms and suburbs, the Great Black Swamp thrived. Restoring it could help curb Lake Erie’s harmful algal blooms today.
www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/11/the-...
www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/11/the-...
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Pei et al. used SNP and linked read data from 20 wild and 7 captive zebra finches to characterize large segregating inversions. These findings highlight how inversions are maintained by weak heterosis with small fitness effects.
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf262
#evobio #molbio #inversions
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf262
#evobio #molbio #inversions
Evolution of Large Polymorphic Inversions in a Panmictic Songbird
Abstract. Chromosomal inversions have long been appreciated as an important source of genetic diversity, local adaptation, and speciation. However, selecti
doi.org
November 24, 2025 at 10:33 AM
Pei et al. used SNP and linked read data from 20 wild and 7 captive zebra finches to characterize large segregating inversions. These findings highlight how inversions are maintained by weak heterosis with small fitness effects.
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf262
#evobio #molbio #inversions
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf262
#evobio #molbio #inversions
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Here is a watercolor painting of a Bartail Parrotfish, Scarus caudofasciatus, for my Sunday Fish Sketch.
Reference photo(s) by Stephen Spangler, Scuba.Spanglers.com
#sciart #marinelife #coralreefs #oceanconservation
#parrotfish #spanglersscuba
#sundayfishsketch
Reference photo(s) by Stephen Spangler, Scuba.Spanglers.com
#sciart #marinelife #coralreefs #oceanconservation
#parrotfish #spanglersscuba
#sundayfishsketch
November 23, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Here is a watercolor painting of a Bartail Parrotfish, Scarus caudofasciatus, for my Sunday Fish Sketch.
Reference photo(s) by Stephen Spangler, Scuba.Spanglers.com
#sciart #marinelife #coralreefs #oceanconservation
#parrotfish #spanglersscuba
#sundayfishsketch
Reference photo(s) by Stephen Spangler, Scuba.Spanglers.com
#sciart #marinelife #coralreefs #oceanconservation
#parrotfish #spanglersscuba
#sundayfishsketch
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Some chibi fish rough sketches I forgot to post yesterday. Though now they’re just in time for #sundayfishsketch
#roughsketches #fishart #chibiart
#roughsketches #fishart #chibiart
November 23, 2025 at 4:29 PM
Some chibi fish rough sketches I forgot to post yesterday. Though now they’re just in time for #sundayfishsketch
#roughsketches #fishart #chibiart
#roughsketches #fishart #chibiart
Reposted by Kristen Behrens, PhD
Long‐Term and Regional‐Scale Data Reveal Divergent Trends of Different Climate Variables on Fish Body Size Over 75 Years
🔗 buff.ly/ZD7cqDk
@pjflood.bsky.social @kmalofs.bsky.social
🔗 buff.ly/ZD7cqDk
@pjflood.bsky.social @kmalofs.bsky.social
November 23, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Long‐Term and Regional‐Scale Data Reveal Divergent Trends of Different Climate Variables on Fish Body Size Over 75 Years
🔗 buff.ly/ZD7cqDk
@pjflood.bsky.social @kmalofs.bsky.social
🔗 buff.ly/ZD7cqDk
@pjflood.bsky.social @kmalofs.bsky.social