banner
LightNews
drgodwit.bsky.social
Nathan Senner
@drgodwit.bsky.social
390 followers 400 following 48 posts
Mass Audubon Bertrand Chair for Ornithology in Dept. Environmental Conservation at UMass Amherst. Fan of all things godwits. Oh, and other birds, and ecology, and evolution, and just cool science generally.
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
Reposted by Nathan Senner
thelabandfield.bsky.social
Dr Alex Bond @thelabandfield.bsky.social · 16h
It's also not "just another" extinction, it's the first from mainland Europe in centuries. CENTURIES.

And there will be others within our lifetime.

That's biodiversity loss.

We'll never hear this sound, ever again xeno-canto.org/398794
XC398794 Slender-billed Curlew (Numenius tenuirostris)
Awful wind noise in the original! See sonogram and notes of the recording circumstances on p12 of Gretton A. (1991) The ecology and conservation of the Slender-billed Curlew (Numenius tenuirostris). ...
xeno-canto.org
4 74 130
drgodwit.bsky.social
Nathan Senner @drgodwit.bsky.social · 13h
When I hear about AI I think about: 6 new AI data centers would triple the energy usage of the state of Montana. A 150-word email written with AI uses 1,500ml of H2O. Does AI fixing your R code or telling you inane versions of thoughts you already had cover those costs? www.mtpr.org/montana-news...
NorthWestern Energy plans to power a massive new data center
Montana’s largest utility company has signed on to provide power to a proposed data center. It would use more than the entire amount of energy used by all residential NorthWestern Energy customers in ...
www.mtpr.org
2
Reposted by Nathan Senner
thelabandfield.bsky.social
Dr Alex Bond @thelabandfield.bsky.social · 16h
Well, it's official. After our paper last year (onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....), the Slender-billed Curlew is officially declared Extinct today.

Scientists dream of describing new species, not writing their obituary and epitaph, knowing that they are gone forever #ornithology
27 270 430
Reposted by Nathan Senner
davelevitan.bsky.social
Dave Levitan @davelevitan.bsky.social · 1d
EXTREMELY COOL BAT STUFF: A study out in Science today found that the greater noctule bat, Europe's largest, hunts and catches *migrating birds* while in flight. In at least one case, a bat climbed to more than 1200 feet, then chased a robin downward FAST until it caught it near the ground.
Greater noctule bats prey on and consume passerines in flight
Despite billions of passerines seasonally migrating during the night at high altitudes, only three bat species have been found to consistently tap into this rich prey resource. However, it remains unk...
www.science.org
8 63 190
Reposted by Nathan Senner
rosvall-lab.bsky.social
Kim Rosvall @rosvall-lab.bsky.social · 1d
Pumped to share our work on bird behavior and the 2024 Eclipse, in today's @science.org. 100k bird vocalizations + 10k continent-wide observations from the public = really fun collab led by Liz Aguilar, with @juncowren.bsky.social @mathcancer.bsky.social @imillercrews.bsky.social #NSF
2 28 84
Reposted by Nathan Senner
mascarell.bsky.social
Alex Mascarell Llosa @mascarell.bsky.social · 1d
🧪🪶🌍🕊 25 Critically Endangered Birds
All of these species are on the brink of extinction.
A poster to raise awareness and inspire action. Every effort counts. ✨
2 20 33
Reposted by Nathan Senner
bou.org.uk
BOU @bou.org.uk · 1d
Incorporating the full annual cycle when studying reproductive isolation and speciation | doi.org/10.1002/jav.... | Journal of Avian Biology | #ornithology 🪶
Incorporating the full annual cycle when studying reproductive isolation and speciation
As individual tracking devices and year-round genetic sampling become more accessible, research on the historically understudied nonbreeding period has exploded in the past decade. These studies are ...
doi.org
4 7
Reposted by Nathan Senner
catieivy.bsky.social
Dr. Catie Ivy @catieivy.bsky.social · May 6
Do you like songbirds? Are you concerned about how wildfire smoke may impact their physiology?

I'm searching for graduate students who are interested in looking at the effect of wildfire smoke on songbird physiology! Come join my lab @usaskartsci.bsky.social!

research-groups.usask.ca/ivy-lab/
The Ivy Lab! - Welcome to the Ivy Lab!
research-groups.usask.ca
47 37
Reposted by Nathan Senner
kasolari.bsky.social
Katie Solari @kasolari.bsky.social · 3d
Very excited to share that our work assessing the genomic diversity of snow leopards has come out today in PNAS! Spoiler alert - they have the lowest genetic diversity of all big cats!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
news.stanford.edu/stories/2025...
@petrovadmitri.bsky.social @elliecat.bsky.social
Exceedingly low genetic diversity in snow leopards due to persistently small population size | PNAS
Snow leopards (Panthera uncia) serve as an umbrella species whose conservation benefits their high-elevation Asian habitat. Their numbers are belie...
www.pnas.org
3 19 51
Reposted by Nathan Senner
katrinaphillips.bsky.social
Katrina Phillips @katrinaphillips.bsky.social · 3d
The 2026 Gulf Conference will be here in Mobile, AL from May 4-7

Open to coastal scientists & stakeholders in government, academia, non-profit, and private sectors to discuss current Gulf research and help plan for the future of the Gulf.

Abstracts due Nov 7

gulfofamericaalliance.org/gulfcon2026
Satellite image of the Gulf of Mexico
1 1 1
Reposted by Nathan Senner
jonlambert.bsky.social
Jonathan Lambert @jonlambert.bsky.social · 3d
In many parts of rural Africa, babies bop around on mom's back during the daytime, where they're exposed to malaria. Treating those baby wraps with permethrin cuts that risk drastically.

"It was a level of effect that was beyond even our wildest expectations."

www.npr.org/sections/goa...
Babies take a lesson from soldiers in the war against malaria
Inspired by a military strategy to ward off disease-carrying mosquitoes, researchers see if the technique will help cut malaria infections in little ones.
www.npr.org
3 10
Reposted by Nathan Senner
phypapers.bsky.social
phy_papers @phypapers.bsky.social · 6d
No Consistent Effect of Migration on Speciation Rates in Two Avian Superfamilies: A Check on the Robustness of Trait-Dependent Diversification Methods https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41042249/
2 1
Reposted by Nathan Senner
elisesaysallaz.bsky.social
Elise Say-Sallaz @elisesaysallaz.bsky.social · 7d
Very happy to share our new paper published in Current Biology !

We show that the “big bad wolf” actually fears humans for good reason.
It’s the first-ever playback experiment on wild wolves in Europe 🇵🇱🌲.
mripas.bsky.social
Mammal Research Institute PAS @mripas.bsky.social · 8d
Our new article shows: The 'big bad wolf' fears us. Would you have thought? authors.elsevier.com/c/1lt5E3QW8S...
Photo by Rafał Kowalczyk. @currentbiology.bsky.social
@kathikasper.bsky.social
4 19
Reposted by Nathan Senner
instbirdpop.bsky.social
The Institute for Bird Populations @instbirdpop.bsky.social · 9d
🪶 If you are able, you donate here: birdpop.org/pages/do...
We lost roughly $1 million in funding without warning. Projects cancelled included all of our bird monitoring work for the National Park Service & projects w/ the Bureau of Land Management on Gunnison's Sage-Grouse, Pinyon Jays & more. 1/4
Graphic with the following text followed by The Institute for Bird Populations logo: Emergency Appeal: Federal Funding Cut Last week 9 of our federal grants were abruptly cancelled without cause. If you can make a donation today, it will have a big impact. Thank you for your support, The Institute for Bird Populations
3 42 43
Reposted by Nathan Senner
jasondovemark.bsky.social
Jason Mark @jasondovemark.bsky.social · 8d
If conservationists work from a compromised baseline, our notions of abundance, scarcity, and ecological wellbeing will keep getting defined downward:
"The researchers show that using the 1970s as a baseline tends to normalize an already severely degraded state."
phys.org/news/2025-10...
Bird conservation threatened by shifting baseline syndrome
New research shows that populations of dozens of waterbird and seabird species have been declining for much longer than previously thought in Europe. The article "Shifting the baseline for waterbird a...
phys.org
2 30 62
Reposted by Nathan Senner
moore-evo-eco.bsky.social
Mike Moore @moore-evo-eco.bsky.social · 8d
Come work with us! My lab is looking for PhD student(s) to study elevational range shifts among dragonflies in Colorado. Reviewing applications now - apply by Nov 1 at the latest

You could spend your summers here!
Blue Lake in the Indian Peaks Wilderness near Ward, Colorado. A jagged peak towers over a serene alpine lake
11 11
Reposted by Nathan Senner
jonlambert.bsky.social
Jonathan Lambert @jonlambert.bsky.social · 9d
My first time appearing in the "Notables" section of a book I eagerly await each year!

For a @quantamagazine.bsky.social story I wrote last fall about LUCA.
jaimealyse.beehiiv.com/p/basnw25
Coming soon! The Best American Science & Nature Writing 2025
Discover the 2025 Best American Science & Nature Writing anthology, curated by Susan Orlean and featuring exceptional science writing that explores the wonders of our natural world.
jaimealyse.beehiiv.com
1 2 17
Reposted by Nathan Senner
bou.org.uk
BOU @bou.org.uk · 10d
Latitude‐specific responses of European birds' population growth rates to temperature and water availability | nsojournals.onlineli... | Oikos | #ornithology 🪶
Latitude‐specific responses of European birds' population growth rates to temperature and water availability
Climate limits distribution of species and shows considerable regional variability. However, studies relating climate variation to species population growth rates in different climatic zones while ac...
nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
1 4
Reposted by Nathan Senner
mammalogists.bsky.social
American Society of Mammalogists @mammalogists.bsky.social · 11d
Climate change drives habitat specialization and local extirpation, causing niche reduction in an endemic chipmunk @JenniferKFrey
doi.org/10.1093/jmam...
The Organ Mountains Colorado Chipmunk has been extirpated from > 60% of historical sites due to niche reduction, rather than habitat loss
1 2
Reposted by Nathan Senner
jexpbiol.bsky.social
Journal of Experimental Biology @jexpbiol.bsky.social · Sep 10
Water anoles take a bubble of air down when they submerge, which they breathe like a tiny scuba tank, and now @lindseyswierk.bsky.social & co reveal that the reptiles may also be using the bubble like a gill, to breathe oxygen directly from the water

journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
A submerged water anole (Anolis aquaticus) with a bubble of air held on its head. Photo credit: Lindsey Swierk.
2 32 78
drgodwit.bsky.social
Nathan Senner @drgodwit.bsky.social · 12d
Wait, what?!
1
Reposted by Nathan Senner
chorlnev.bsky.social
Clemens Küpper @chorlnev.bsky.social · 12d
Something to look for in #wader nests. Blue eggs are becoming increasingly common in #ruff clutches @jellybb.bsky.social #IWSG2025 #shorebirds #conservation
1 3 12
Reposted by Nathan Senner
giantmolecular.cloud
dr℮w @giantmolecular.cloud · 14d
It seems the GRFP solicitation is FINALLY released (like 5 minutes ago)! Due dates have also been pushed back, thankfully! 🧪 🔭

www.nsf.gov/funding/oppo...
NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)
www.nsf.gov
2 36 35
Reposted by Nathan Senner
silasfischer.bsky.social
silas fischer @silasfischer.bsky.social · 14d
🐦 Never got around to posting about our paper on Gray Vireo #migration in @wilsonornithsoc.bsky.social (1 of my MS chapters), but better late than never!

We used light-level geolocators to track migration ecology of ♀ and ♂ Gray Vireos from 3 breeding sites in New Mexico and Utah USA… 👇 short🧵 1/
wilsonornithsoc.bsky.social
Wilson Ornithological Society @wilsonornithsoc.bsky.social · 16d
From the current WJO issue: Migratory connectivity and potential nonbreeding sexual segregation in Gray Vireos (Vireo vicinior). #ornithology doi.org/10.1080/1559...
Illustration depicting the full annual cycle ecology of the Gray Vireo (Vireo vicinior), including the breeding season, migration, and the nonbreeding season (a). Adult female Gray Vireo marked with a light-level geolocator (b). Oneseed juniper (Juniperus monosperma) savanna at Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico, USA (c).
1 3 6