Rachel Moran
@rachelmoran.bsky.social
Assistant Professor in Ecology & Evolution at UChicago. Evolutionary genomics and behavior in fishes. (she/her)
https://rachelmoranlab.com
https://rachelmoranlab.com
Pinned
Rachel Moran
@rachelmoran.bsky.social
· Jun 2
Our lab is moving! I’m thrilled to be joining the Department of Ecology & Evolution at the University of Chicago this fall. I’ll be recruiting PhD students so please spread the word and reach out if interested!
Reposted by Rachel Moran
🐟🌱🧪🌐🌎
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 7:50 PM
🐟🌱🧪🌐🌎
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Excited that our new collaborative work on Amazonian frogs with giant meiotic chains of 8–12 😲 #SexChromosomes now is out in @commsbio.nature.com! 🐸🧬
Investigating the evolution of large meiotic rings of multiple X and Y chromosomes in two Leptodactylus species
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s42...
Investigating the evolution of large meiotic rings of multiple X and Y chromosomes in two Leptodactylus species
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s42...
November 22, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Excited that our new collaborative work on Amazonian frogs with giant meiotic chains of 8–12 😲 #SexChromosomes now is out in @commsbio.nature.com! 🐸🧬
Investigating the evolution of large meiotic rings of multiple X and Y chromosomes in two Leptodactylus species
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s42...
Investigating the evolution of large meiotic rings of multiple X and Y chromosomes in two Leptodactylus species
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s42...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
In #GENETICS, @alan-aw.bsky.social et al. introduce models for how individual variant effects in admixed individuals may be influenced by ancestry, contributing to work on the genetic architecture of complex traits and their implications for polygenic prediction. buff.ly/34ZvEil
November 19, 2025 at 11:02 PM
In #GENETICS, @alan-aw.bsky.social et al. introduce models for how individual variant effects in admixed individuals may be influenced by ancestry, contributing to work on the genetic architecture of complex traits and their implications for polygenic prediction. buff.ly/34ZvEil
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Wisconsin Evolution is accepting applications for our Seminar Series' Early Career Scientist Award. Come share your evolution research and visit UW-Madison's evolution community. Open to grad students and postdocs (<5 yrs post PhD) from outside UW-Madison.
Apply by Dec 15th here: shorturl.at/4a4O6
Apply by Dec 15th here: shorturl.at/4a4O6
Early Career Scientist Awards 2026
Application to the UW-Madison Evolution Seminar Series - Early Career Scientist Awards.
urldefense.com
November 19, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Wisconsin Evolution is accepting applications for our Seminar Series' Early Career Scientist Award. Come share your evolution research and visit UW-Madison's evolution community. Open to grad students and postdocs (<5 yrs post PhD) from outside UW-Madison.
Apply by Dec 15th here: shorturl.at/4a4O6
Apply by Dec 15th here: shorturl.at/4a4O6
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Science People: We at NSF are still recovering/catching up/getting our lives together. But the agency posted these FAQs about post-shutdown resumption of operations which might answer a lot of Qs for you: www.nsf.gov/resumption-o...
Resumption of Operations at NSF
Information for NSF staff and the research community regarding the agency's resumption of operations after a lapse in appropriations.
www.nsf.gov
November 18, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Science People: We at NSF are still recovering/catching up/getting our lives together. But the agency posted these FAQs about post-shutdown resumption of operations which might answer a lot of Qs for you: www.nsf.gov/resumption-o...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
How do four-eyed fish see above & underwater? 🌤️🌊 Our new preprint reveals how Anableps rewired its retina for dual vision- evolution at work 👁️👁️ Kudos to @perezlouise.bsky.social @josanesousa.bsky.social @keylapruett.bsky.social + team!
🔗 tinyurl.com/3a8r9xy5
🔗 tinyurl.com/3a8r9xy5
November 4, 2025 at 3:56 PM
How do four-eyed fish see above & underwater? 🌤️🌊 Our new preprint reveals how Anableps rewired its retina for dual vision- evolution at work 👁️👁️ Kudos to @perezlouise.bsky.social @josanesousa.bsky.social @keylapruett.bsky.social + team!
🔗 tinyurl.com/3a8r9xy5
🔗 tinyurl.com/3a8r9xy5
Reposted by Rachel Moran
I am so excited to share new work on a TE insertion that regulates iridescence in swordtails, led by fantastic grad student @nadiahaghani.bsky.social and with help from many coauthors! In a time that has been so difficult to navigate, this & other projects have kept my spirits up: shorturl.at/NE65A
Insertion of an invading retrovirus regulates a novel color trait in swordtail fish
For over a century, evolutionary biologists have been motivated to understand the mechanisms through which organisms adapt to their environments. Coloration and pigmentation are remarkably variable wi...
shorturl.at
November 12, 2025 at 8:34 PM
I am so excited to share new work on a TE insertion that regulates iridescence in swordtails, led by fantastic grad student @nadiahaghani.bsky.social and with help from many coauthors! In a time that has been so difficult to navigate, this & other projects have kept my spirits up: shorturl.at/NE65A
Reposted by Rachel Moran
[8 Nov 2025] Another roundup of #ConservationJobs, mostly in 🇨🇦.
All postings include salary. I am not involved in these positions.
Please share to help others — working to conserve nature is rewarding and needed!
www.linkedin.com/posts/aerinj...
All postings include salary. I am not involved in these positions.
Please share to help others — working to conserve nature is rewarding and needed!
www.linkedin.com/posts/aerinj...
November 9, 2025 at 5:05 PM
[8 Nov 2025] Another roundup of #ConservationJobs, mostly in 🇨🇦.
All postings include salary. I am not involved in these positions.
Please share to help others — working to conserve nature is rewarding and needed!
www.linkedin.com/posts/aerinj...
All postings include salary. I am not involved in these positions.
Please share to help others — working to conserve nature is rewarding and needed!
www.linkedin.com/posts/aerinj...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Just a few days left to apply to our TT position in Plant Physiology in the Dept. of Biology @UMassAmherst! Join a great group of plant scientists (and physiologists 😉) AND fall in love with small town New England! Please repost. careers.umass.edu/amherst/en-u...
Details - Assistant Professor - Plant Physiology | Human Resources | UMass Amherst
careers.umass.edu
October 29, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Just a few days left to apply to our TT position in Plant Physiology in the Dept. of Biology @UMassAmherst! Join a great group of plant scientists (and physiologists 😉) AND fall in love with small town New England! Please repost. careers.umass.edu/amherst/en-u...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
UCell
A R package for single-cell gene signature scoring
bioconductor.org/packages/rel...
Mann-Whitney U stat
Depend only on the relative gene expression in individual cells, not dataset composition
Higher comput efficiency than AUCell
#ComputStructBiotechnolJ 2021
www.csbj.org/article/S200...
A R package for single-cell gene signature scoring
bioconductor.org/packages/rel...
Mann-Whitney U stat
Depend only on the relative gene expression in individual cells, not dataset composition
Higher comput efficiency than AUCell
#ComputStructBiotechnolJ 2021
www.csbj.org/article/S200...
October 29, 2025 at 10:58 AM
UCell
A R package for single-cell gene signature scoring
bioconductor.org/packages/rel...
Mann-Whitney U stat
Depend only on the relative gene expression in individual cells, not dataset composition
Higher comput efficiency than AUCell
#ComputStructBiotechnolJ 2021
www.csbj.org/article/S200...
A R package for single-cell gene signature scoring
bioconductor.org/packages/rel...
Mann-Whitney U stat
Depend only on the relative gene expression in individual cells, not dataset composition
Higher comput efficiency than AUCell
#ComputStructBiotechnolJ 2021
www.csbj.org/article/S200...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
New preprint led by the brilliant @aleksandra-marconi.bsky.social on cichlid brain diversification, fgf8a signalling and regulatory divergence with TEs on the mix! All part of a wonderful collaboration with @ebablab.bsky.social
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
@camzoology.bsky.social
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
@camzoology.bsky.social
October 24, 2025 at 8:45 PM
New preprint led by the brilliant @aleksandra-marconi.bsky.social on cichlid brain diversification, fgf8a signalling and regulatory divergence with TEs on the mix! All part of a wonderful collaboration with @ebablab.bsky.social
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
@camzoology.bsky.social
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
@camzoology.bsky.social
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Commentary by @needhibhalla.bsky.social et al. on the recent attacks on DEI in biomedical research. Data show that diversity in the science increases creativity & success in tackling challenging problems.
🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
October 25, 2025 at 8:42 PM
Commentary by @needhibhalla.bsky.social et al. on the recent attacks on DEI in biomedical research. Data show that diversity in the science increases creativity & success in tackling challenging problems.
🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Proud of the latest edition of my free intro biostats book.
gitrepo: github.com/ybrandvain/b...
book: ybrandvain.github.io/biostats/
Not complete but at a good point to take a break, and I think its quite usable
dm me with comments , ideas etc
gitrepo: github.com/ybrandvain/b...
book: ybrandvain.github.io/biostats/
Not complete but at a good point to take a break, and I think its quite usable
dm me with comments , ideas etc
Applied Biostatistics
ybrandvain.github.io
October 24, 2025 at 2:33 PM
Proud of the latest edition of my free intro biostats book.
gitrepo: github.com/ybrandvain/b...
book: ybrandvain.github.io/biostats/
Not complete but at a good point to take a break, and I think its quite usable
dm me with comments , ideas etc
gitrepo: github.com/ybrandvain/b...
book: ybrandvain.github.io/biostats/
Not complete but at a good point to take a break, and I think its quite usable
dm me with comments , ideas etc
Work from @brynnjohnson13.bsky.social's thesis investigates why neighboring hybrid zones between orangethroat and orangebelly darters followed different trajectories: long-term coexistence vs. collapse. Warming amplifies competitive asymmetry, influencing whether hybrid zones persist or collapse.
October 24, 2025 at 6:33 PM
Work from @brynnjohnson13.bsky.social's thesis investigates why neighboring hybrid zones between orangethroat and orangebelly darters followed different trajectories: long-term coexistence vs. collapse. Warming amplifies competitive asymmetry, influencing whether hybrid zones persist or collapse.
Reposted by Rachel Moran
The effect of environmental enrichment on whole-brain gene expression in an imperiled fish https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.18.683224v1
October 20, 2025 at 7:18 PM
The effect of environmental enrichment on whole-brain gene expression in an imperiled fish https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.18.683224v1
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Does #SexualSelection fuel #Speciation?
Our new #meta-analysis of comparative studies finds support for a positive relationship, but the rather moderate global effect suggests it’s not necessarily a dominant force.
doi.org/10.1093/evle...
Our new #meta-analysis of comparative studies finds support for a positive relationship, but the rather moderate global effect suggests it’s not necessarily a dominant force.
doi.org/10.1093/evle...
Sexual selection and speciation: a meta-analysis of comparative studies
Abstract. Understanding the drivers of biodiversity is a central goal in evolutionary biology. In particular, sexual selection has long been proposed as a
doi.org
October 22, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Does #SexualSelection fuel #Speciation?
Our new #meta-analysis of comparative studies finds support for a positive relationship, but the rather moderate global effect suggests it’s not necessarily a dominant force.
doi.org/10.1093/evle...
Our new #meta-analysis of comparative studies finds support for a positive relationship, but the rather moderate global effect suggests it’s not necessarily a dominant force.
doi.org/10.1093/evle...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
1/9 New in @science.org www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ado8005
How does genetic architecture constrain evolutionary trajectories? To address this question, we inferred the genetic architecture of convergent plumage coloration and its evolutionary history in wheatears.
How does genetic architecture constrain evolutionary trajectories? To address this question, we inferred the genetic architecture of convergent plumage coloration and its evolutionary history in wheatears.
A mosaic of modular variation at a single gene underpins convergent plumage coloration
The reshuffling of genomic variation from multiple origins is an important contributor to phenotypic diversification, yet insights into the evolutionary trajectories of this combinatorial process and ...
www.science.org
October 17, 2025 at 5:50 AM
1/9 New in @science.org www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ado8005
How does genetic architecture constrain evolutionary trajectories? To address this question, we inferred the genetic architecture of convergent plumage coloration and its evolutionary history in wheatears.
How does genetic architecture constrain evolutionary trajectories? To address this question, we inferred the genetic architecture of convergent plumage coloration and its evolutionary history in wheatears.
Reposted by Rachel Moran
I am hiring a postdoc to examine the genomic and evolutionary basis of plant microbiome variation in legumes. There are opportunities to gain teaching experience. Chicago is a great city to live in! Please help spread the word.
share.google/gukbzS1zdIx6...
share.google/gukbzS1zdIx6...
Postdoctoral Researcher in Plant Evolutionary Genomics
The postdoctoral researcher will work in Dr. Michael Grillo’s plant evolutionary genetics lab. The goal of this research project is to understand the genomic basis of plant-microbiome variation in leg...
share.google
October 10, 2025 at 6:11 PM
I am hiring a postdoc to examine the genomic and evolutionary basis of plant microbiome variation in legumes. There are opportunities to gain teaching experience. Chicago is a great city to live in! Please help spread the word.
share.google/gukbzS1zdIx6...
share.google/gukbzS1zdIx6...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Nominations due December 1 for the Dobzhansky Prize! This award recognizes the accomplishments and future promise of an outstanding early-career evolutionary biologist. Submit your nomination package today: shorturl.at/p70wY
October 10, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Nominations due December 1 for the Dobzhansky Prize! This award recognizes the accomplishments and future promise of an outstanding early-career evolutionary biologist. Submit your nomination package today: shorturl.at/p70wY
Reposted by Rachel Moran
Attempted eradication of smallmouth bass promotes rapid evolution. Here's the study that is the focus of the Scientific American article: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
October 12, 2025 at 4:41 PM
Attempted eradication of smallmouth bass promotes rapid evolution. Here's the study that is the focus of the Scientific American article: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
No better reason to join Bluesky then to say the first chapter of my PhD is out as a preprint! New surgeonfish phylogeny, ecomorphological relationships, evolutionary shape correlations-with NEW method to accurately account for phylogenetic covariation among shapes!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Phylogenetic relationships and the evolution of fin and body shape in the surgeonfishes
Patterns of evolutionary change in the fin and body shapes of fishes are strongly related to dietary ecology and locomotor mechanisms, and associations between shapes affects ecomorphological relation...
www.biorxiv.org
October 11, 2025 at 12:44 PM
No better reason to join Bluesky then to say the first chapter of my PhD is out as a preprint! New surgeonfish phylogeny, ecomorphological relationships, evolutionary shape correlations-with NEW method to accurately account for phylogenetic covariation among shapes!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
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
October 9, 2025 at 6:54 PM
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
When sex chromosomes turnover, they can reset the rules of genomic conflict.
New preprint exploring how turnover reshapes barriers to gene flow through an “escape-hatch” model for mitonuclear conflict.
Any feedback would be welcome! ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...
New preprint exploring how turnover reshapes barriers to gene flow through an “escape-hatch” model for mitonuclear conflict.
Any feedback would be welcome! ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...
Resetting the rules: Sex chromosome turnover as an escape hatch for mitonuclear conflict
ecoevorxiv.org
October 10, 2025 at 3:54 PM
When sex chromosomes turnover, they can reset the rules of genomic conflict.
New preprint exploring how turnover reshapes barriers to gene flow through an “escape-hatch” model for mitonuclear conflict.
Any feedback would be welcome! ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...
New preprint exploring how turnover reshapes barriers to gene flow through an “escape-hatch” model for mitonuclear conflict.
Any feedback would be welcome! ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...
Reposted by Rachel Moran
I really hope this is successful! Please apply! Contact me if you have questions!
@sse-evolution.bsky.social just announced the following:
Call for Proposals: Research Synthesis Working Groups
The Society for the Study of Evolution (SSE) invites proposals for sponsored Research Synthesis Working Groups at the 2026 Evolution meeting (up to two in-person and one virtual). ...
Call for Proposals: Research Synthesis Working Groups
The Society for the Study of Evolution (SSE) invites proposals for sponsored Research Synthesis Working Groups at the 2026 Evolution meeting (up to two in-person and one virtual). ...
October 10, 2025 at 12:17 AM
I really hope this is successful! Please apply! Contact me if you have questions!