Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
@nicoleackermans.com
Assistant prof neuroscientist studying TBI in headbutters 🐏🐂🐐🪶 at U of Alabama CVN lab.
Science correspondent for DTNS.
I'll happily ID the random bone you found in the woods!
Science correspondent for DTNS.
I'll happily ID the random bone you found in the woods!
Pinned
Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
@nicoleackermans.com
· Nov 13
Time for a reintroduction!
I'm an assistant professor at the U of Alabama. I run the Comparative Vertebrate Neurodegeneration Lab (the CoVeN to friends), where our main research focus is modeling chronic TBI in headbutting goats and woodpeckers. 1/...
🧪👩🔬🧠
I'm an assistant professor at the U of Alabama. I run the Comparative Vertebrate Neurodegeneration Lab (the CoVeN to friends), where our main research focus is modeling chronic TBI in headbutting goats and woodpeckers. 1/...
🧪👩🔬🧠
If you missed it, my lab got featured in three separate press pieces this week!! My students & I are so excited that people are taking interest in our headbutting research! We are working on new and exciting ways to share it with the public!
They are linked here: nicoleackermans.com/press-covera...
They are linked here: nicoleackermans.com/press-covera...
January 9, 2026 at 9:26 PM
If you missed it, my lab got featured in three separate press pieces this week!! My students & I are so excited that people are taking interest in our headbutting research! We are working on new and exciting ways to share it with the public!
They are linked here: nicoleackermans.com/press-covera...
They are linked here: nicoleackermans.com/press-covera...
Now that's headbutting
January 9, 2026 at 8:52 PM
Now that's headbutting
This is such a nice feature, I didn't even know there was a reporter following the Livestream!
But I'm so glad our science communication has gotten some traction. The students really rocked it and want to do more! 🧪 🧠
But I'm so glad our science communication has gotten some traction. The students really rocked it and want to do more! 🧪 🧠
Feedback in @newscientist.com:
How often do goats headbutt each other? Wonder no longer: @nicoleackermans.com has the data.
(There is a purpose to this and it's clever, but we are here for the goats.)
https://loom.ly/NTyk6rs
How often do goats headbutt each other? Wonder no longer: @nicoleackermans.com has the data.
(There is a purpose to this and it's clever, but we are here for the goats.)
https://loom.ly/NTyk6rs
January 9, 2026 at 5:37 PM
This is such a nice feature, I didn't even know there was a reporter following the Livestream!
But I'm so glad our science communication has gotten some traction. The students really rocked it and want to do more! 🧪 🧠
But I'm so glad our science communication has gotten some traction. The students really rocked it and want to do more! 🧪 🧠
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
Feedback in @newscientist.com:
How often do goats headbutt each other? Wonder no longer: @nicoleackermans.com has the data.
(There is a purpose to this and it's clever, but we are here for the goats.)
https://loom.ly/NTyk6rs
How often do goats headbutt each other? Wonder no longer: @nicoleackermans.com has the data.
(There is a purpose to this and it's clever, but we are here for the goats.)
https://loom.ly/NTyk6rs
January 9, 2026 at 8:01 AM
Feedback in @newscientist.com:
How often do goats headbutt each other? Wonder no longer: @nicoleackermans.com has the data.
(There is a purpose to this and it's clever, but we are here for the goats.)
https://loom.ly/NTyk6rs
How often do goats headbutt each other? Wonder no longer: @nicoleackermans.com has the data.
(There is a purpose to this and it's clever, but we are here for the goats.)
https://loom.ly/NTyk6rs
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
Sitting here with friends, scheming to bring more beautiful things into the world.
I open bluesky, am met with more horror. Every day more horror.
On Sunday, I gave a talk to the scientists where I implored everyone to do *anything*.
It's easier to break than make things. Please make something.
I open bluesky, am met with more horror. Every day more horror.
On Sunday, I gave a talk to the scientists where I implored everyone to do *anything*.
It's easier to break than make things. Please make something.
January 7, 2026 at 6:55 PM
Sitting here with friends, scheming to bring more beautiful things into the world.
I open bluesky, am met with more horror. Every day more horror.
On Sunday, I gave a talk to the scientists where I implored everyone to do *anything*.
It's easier to break than make things. Please make something.
I open bluesky, am met with more horror. Every day more horror.
On Sunday, I gave a talk to the scientists where I implored everyone to do *anything*.
It's easier to break than make things. Please make something.
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
It is OK to put down your phone
You have seen the horror
You will not be able to do anything about it until you put your phone down
Put your phone down. Close your eyes. Say a prayer to whatever divine power you believe in, even if it’s just yourself
Don’t stop until you feel stillness
Then:
You have seen the horror
You will not be able to do anything about it until you put your phone down
Put your phone down. Close your eyes. Say a prayer to whatever divine power you believe in, even if it’s just yourself
Don’t stop until you feel stillness
Then:
January 7, 2026 at 7:24 PM
It is OK to put down your phone
You have seen the horror
You will not be able to do anything about it until you put your phone down
Put your phone down. Close your eyes. Say a prayer to whatever divine power you believe in, even if it’s just yourself
Don’t stop until you feel stillness
Then:
You have seen the horror
You will not be able to do anything about it until you put your phone down
Put your phone down. Close your eyes. Say a prayer to whatever divine power you believe in, even if it’s just yourself
Don’t stop until you feel stillness
Then:
Protect your space today. Some disturbing news and images are all around social media 🫂
January 7, 2026 at 6:43 PM
Protect your space today. Some disturbing news and images are all around social media 🫂
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
Today at @sicb.bsky.social, @wile-phylote.bsky.social told us bulbs were the worms from tremors so I had to do a quick lunch doodle (seriously neat talk thought)
January 6, 2026 at 11:17 PM
I saw a lot of beautiful posters this #SICB2026. Great job on some amazing graphic design!
"Curiously Chromatic" was my personal favorite
"Curiously Chromatic" was my personal favorite
January 7, 2026 at 6:04 PM
I saw a lot of beautiful posters this #SICB2026. Great job on some amazing graphic design!
"Curiously Chromatic" was my personal favorite
"Curiously Chromatic" was my personal favorite
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
After debunking an urban legend that headbutting animals don’t damage their brains, Nicole Ackermans now investigates how the behavior correlates with neurodegeneration.
By @callimcflurry.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
By @callimcflurry.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
Neuro’s ark: How goats can model neurodegeneration
Since debunking an urban legend that headbutting animals don’t damage their brain, Nicole Ackermans has been investigating how the behavior correlates with neurodegeneration.
www.thetransmitter.org
January 7, 2026 at 2:24 PM
After debunking an urban legend that headbutting animals don’t damage their brains, Nicole Ackermans now investigates how the behavior correlates with neurodegeneration.
By @callimcflurry.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
By @callimcflurry.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
#SICB2026 If you didn't manage to make it to my talk, this article is a great recap
My work was just featured in The Transmitter, as part of a series focusing on non-traditional model organisms!
I explain why our goats have potential as a model for neurodegeneration.
What evocative cover art! 🧪
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
I explain why our goats have potential as a model for neurodegeneration.
What evocative cover art! 🧪
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
Neuro’s ark: How goats can model neurodegeneration
Since debunking an urban legend that headbutting animals don’t damage their brain, Nicole Ackermans has been investigating how the behavior correlates with neurodegeneration.
www.thetransmitter.org
January 7, 2026 at 4:42 PM
#SICB2026 If you didn't manage to make it to my talk, this article is a great recap
My work was just featured in The Transmitter, as part of a series focusing on non-traditional model organisms!
I explain why our goats have potential as a model for neurodegeneration.
What evocative cover art! 🧪
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
I explain why our goats have potential as a model for neurodegeneration.
What evocative cover art! 🧪
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
Neuro’s ark: How goats can model neurodegeneration
Since debunking an urban legend that headbutting animals don’t damage their brain, Nicole Ackermans has been investigating how the behavior correlates with neurodegeneration.
www.thetransmitter.org
January 7, 2026 at 4:13 PM
My work was just featured in The Transmitter, as part of a series focusing on non-traditional model organisms!
I explain why our goats have potential as a model for neurodegeneration.
What evocative cover art! 🧪
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
I explain why our goats have potential as a model for neurodegeneration.
What evocative cover art! 🧪
www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...
I'm glad that I wasn't a grandma for once and went to the division social because @sternarchella.bsky.social taught me that flat fish have handedness preferences (!!?!!) and that parrotfish beaks are a hellscape amalgamation of teeth. Fish are wild.
I 🐟 #SICB2026
I 🐟 #SICB2026
January 7, 2026 at 5:45 AM
I'm glad that I wasn't a grandma for once and went to the division social because @sternarchella.bsky.social taught me that flat fish have handedness preferences (!!?!!) and that parrotfish beaks are a hellscape amalgamation of teeth. Fish are wild.
I 🐟 #SICB2026
I 🐟 #SICB2026
I'm biased but @ananthsrinivas.bsky.social 's talk was so good! I'm a proud PI 🥹. Horns aren't everything, sutures help disperse shock too! #SICB2026
January 6, 2026 at 11:04 PM
I'm biased but @ananthsrinivas.bsky.social 's talk was so good! I'm a proud PI 🥹. Horns aren't everything, sutures help disperse shock too! #SICB2026
You're at the club, I'm at the Audubon Nature Center gift shop spending $70 on souvenirs and exploring the hiking trails. We are not the same.
January 6, 2026 at 9:42 PM
You're at the club, I'm at the Audubon Nature Center gift shop spending $70 on souvenirs and exploring the hiking trails. We are not the same.
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
Curious about the role of cranial sutures during headbutting behaviors in bovids? Join me for a discussion today at 2:45 in B110/111 at #SICB2026
January 6, 2026 at 5:42 PM
Curious about the role of cranial sutures during headbutting behaviors in bovids? Join me for a discussion today at 2:45 in B110/111 at #SICB2026
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
#sicb2026: @oceanfilly.bsky.social kicks off by asking the hard questions:
Males! What exactly is the point of them?
Males! What exactly is the point of them?
January 6, 2026 at 7:16 PM
#sicb2026: @oceanfilly.bsky.social kicks off by asking the hard questions:
Males! What exactly is the point of them?
Males! What exactly is the point of them?
If you need more headbutting in your life, you don't want to miss Ananth's talk. He's a postdoc in my lab working on the biomechanics of headbutting on skull sutures! 🐐
TODAY 2:45 #SICB2026
@ananthsrinivas.bsky.social
TODAY 2:45 #SICB2026
@ananthsrinivas.bsky.social
January 6, 2026 at 4:46 PM
If you need more headbutting in your life, you don't want to miss Ananth's talk. He's a postdoc in my lab working on the biomechanics of headbutting on skull sutures! 🐐
TODAY 2:45 #SICB2026
@ananthsrinivas.bsky.social
TODAY 2:45 #SICB2026
@ananthsrinivas.bsky.social
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
Hey Bluesky, send us your best ducks
(Happy #InternationalUnsolicitedDuckPicDay to all who celebrate)
(Happy #InternationalUnsolicitedDuckPicDay to all who celebrate)
January 6, 2026 at 9:56 AM
Hey Bluesky, send us your best ducks
(Happy #InternationalUnsolicitedDuckPicDay to all who celebrate)
(Happy #InternationalUnsolicitedDuckPicDay to all who celebrate)
Inviting artists to #SICB2026 was such a great idea @sarahmackattack.bsky.social ! I'm glad SICB worked with you to integrate it!
Today at SICB I listened to a fabulous talk about how Juncos behavioral plasticity in post-wildfire coniferous forests by Yiran "Ryann" Su and I've had this image stuck I'm my head all day inspired by their finding that birds in burned habitats exhibited higher levels of aggression
January 6, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Inviting artists to #SICB2026 was such a great idea @sarahmackattack.bsky.social ! I'm glad SICB worked with you to integrate it!
Reposted by Dr. Headbutt 🌈🧪
Biologists must display their most marvelous plumage if they are to be accepted by a flock of fellow biologists.
We are now witness to this rare yet beautiful phenomenon at the Society of Integrative of Comparative Biology conference in Portland, OR #SICB2026
We are now witness to this rare yet beautiful phenomenon at the Society of Integrative of Comparative Biology conference in Portland, OR #SICB2026
January 6, 2026 at 12:49 AM
Biologists must display their most marvelous plumage if they are to be accepted by a flock of fellow biologists.
We are now witness to this rare yet beautiful phenomenon at the Society of Integrative of Comparative Biology conference in Portland, OR #SICB2026
We are now witness to this rare yet beautiful phenomenon at the Society of Integrative of Comparative Biology conference in Portland, OR #SICB2026
January 6, 2026 at 3:13 PM
More proof that SICB is the best conference
#SICB2026
Plush Portland #tattoo joined us to celebrate our Inked in #Science issue 1 cover of ICB this year 🙌
They are doing some incredible henna #amphibians at the SICB journals booth
www.plushtattoo.me
Plush Portland #tattoo joined us to celebrate our Inked in #Science issue 1 cover of ICB this year 🙌
They are doing some incredible henna #amphibians at the SICB journals booth
www.plushtattoo.me
January 5, 2026 at 11:31 PM
More proof that SICB is the best conference