Davina
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davinagifford.bsky.social
Davina
@davinagifford.bsky.social
BSc Honours student at UQ. Marine Biology and Ocean Science. Obsessed with the deep sea, jellies and plankton.

Co-mod of @livestreamocean.bsky.social Discord

She/Her, autistic, ADHD 🏳️‍🌈


In Meanjin/Brisbane on Turrbal/Jagera land.
Reposted by Davina
Draw NUDIS with me next month!
Welcome to the 2025 #Nudivember art challenge!

Like last year, here is a list of some lesser known, yet always fabulous, nudibranch species.

Participate as much or as little as you want in any art form you like.

Make sure to use #Nudivember and use alt text!
October 30, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Submitted my honours thesis today!!! Time for a rest. 😅
October 31, 2025 at 4:23 AM
Reposted by Davina
MBARI’s Video Lab has developed the first benchmark dataset for multi-object tracking in deep-sea video. 🤖🌊DeepSeaMOT tests machine learning models in real ocean environments. This publicly available tool will help advance AI for ocean exploration. Learn more: arxiv.org/pdf/2509.03499
September 18, 2025 at 6:40 PM
Reposted by Davina
Kathleen Jennings – whose first novel, 2020’s ‘Flyaway’, won a British Fantasy Award and was shortlisted for the World Fantasy Award – imbues her narrative with a gloriously gothic sensibility. 'Honeyeater' is a book of real power and beauty. satpa.pe/Cc4uW0W
Honeyeater
Toni Morrison once observed that “all water has a perfect memory and is forever trying to get back to where it was”. Morrison was talking about writing, but her thinking was steeped in the fluvial, the tendency of rivers to reassert themselves in the face of human interference. As Morrison said, “ ‘floods’ is the word they use, but in fact it is not flooding; it is remembering”.
satpa.pe
September 21, 2025 at 7:19 AM
Reposted by Davina
Here's the #InverteFest art book August 2025 cover posted in full - how many species can you identify in this piece? I'll post the answer later when I have the time to annotate the image.
September 3, 2025 at 2:00 AM
Reposted by Davina
Today in "When researchers finally look at autistic adults":

"For [autistics] in midlife, menopause is a challenging transition. Many autistic people reported experiencing more severe physical & psychological menopause symptoms compared to non-autistic people."

theconversation.com/what-we-do-a...
What we do (and don’t know) about autism and ageing – new research
Less than 1% of autism research has focused on older autistic people.
theconversation.com
September 2, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Reposted by Davina
Fish is cute
August 16, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Reposted by Davina
happy to say my Man I Love Fish bumper stickers are back! These stickers are really so crazy cool in person (and funny too!) a repost to get this to any fellow fish lovers means a lot to me!
#bsnm

www.microbiomearts.com/product/man-...
August 15, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Reposted by Davina
Have you read the latest Deep Sea Round-Up?

We share updates from #DeepOcean including:
🔹 Monitoring seafloor macrolitter,
🔹The influence of the Amazon River’s on the #DeepSea
🔹Plus join the DOSI Instagram Team!

Read it here: buff.ly/NdmxPQ7
August 17, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Reposted by Davina
🌊 "The beauty of #Antarctica is really it's often seen as the bottom of the world, but it's really the centre of the world. It's one continent surrounded by an ocean that is connecting all the other oceans together." — Prof Delphine Lannuzel, AAPP @utas.edu.au

▶️ www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...
The 'centre of the world' and the global race for research
Lead the research and lead the way on Antarctica but as the US cuts environmental funding questions are raised about the future of science there.
www.abc.net.au
August 10, 2025 at 2:19 AM
Reposted by Davina
For your native bird print needs
July 31, 2025 at 9:06 AM
Earlier this month, I had the privilege to present the initial results from my Honours research project at the #AMSA2025 conference.

It was a daunting but amazing experience to be on stage, especially at a conference with so many outstanding presenters.
July 28, 2025 at 6:15 AM
Reposted by Davina
#SouthSandwichIslands Gorgonocephalus chilensis (brittle star or Ophiuroid distantly related to sea stars), w/amphipods and Sterecchinus neumayeri (urchin) hanging on a coral. Special thanks to @echinoblog.bsky.social for species IDs! Detailed caption on Instagram: www.instagram.com/reel/DMOYlDM...
July 17, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Reposted by Davina
So many podocopida ostracods (aka seed shrimp) in my last sample. Some were HUGE! And some were weeny! And they were all 100% adorable!
🦑 #plankton
July 17, 2025 at 5:42 PM
My presentation is today in the Physical Oceanography session! I'm talking about creating a biological index to track variability in the East Australia Current using copepod data! #amsa2025
July 17, 2025 at 3:54 AM
Reposted by Davina
And a teensy glass squid (cranchiid), Liocranchia
#SQXmas2025
July 16, 2025 at 8:48 AM
Reposted by Davina
Jellies on the beach! It’s jellyfish season, and jellyfish are PLANKTON!! So obviously I’m obsessed! There were a few jellies washed up on the beach this evening, including this tiny lion’s mane (Cyanea capillata) and Moon (Aurelia aurita). 🦑 #plankton
July 16, 2025 at 7:59 PM
Reposted by Davina
Just thinking about Supergiants today- and really loving on them- cuties 🥰

4x6 graphite on paper, 2023 #deepsea #deepseacreatures #deepocean 🐡🦑 #drawing #artist #biggestandbest
July 16, 2025 at 3:57 AM
Reposted by Davina
Snailfish from @schmidtocean.bsky.social dive 696. For anyone who has touched these fish, is the skin normally smooth or bumpy? The skin on this one looks diff from the others I've seen. #nazcahighseas #MarineLife
July 15, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Reposted by Davina
You ready for this year's advent calendar?

We're learning about EELS!!!!!

This year's artist @ehrenenglish.bsky.social absolutely knocked it out of the park. Look at these eels!!

These facts cover both biology & history of eels.

Dive in with us here:
squidfacts.bigcartel.com/product/eel-...
July 15, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Reposted by Davina
You can spend a life time on a boat - and still be looking at new things every single day! Here is a quick glimpse of what’s just under our feet/boat!!
July 13, 2025 at 6:35 PM
Forgot the tag! #amsa2025
Great talk by Oliver Peterson on mesophotic functional reefs and sponge grounds
July 15, 2025 at 4:07 AM
Great talk by Oliver Peterson on mesophotic functional reefs and sponge grounds
July 15, 2025 at 4:06 AM