Auriel Fournier
@rallidaerule.bsky.social
Forbes Bio Station Director
Wetland Bird/Waterfowl @ Illinois Natural Hist Survey
Posts do not represent my employer
President @wilsonornithsoc.bsky.social
Gardening
she/her
aurielfournier.github.io
forbes-bio-station.inhs.illinois.edu
Wetland Bird/Waterfowl @ Illinois Natural Hist Survey
Posts do not represent my employer
President @wilsonornithsoc.bsky.social
Gardening
she/her
aurielfournier.github.io
forbes-bio-station.inhs.illinois.edu
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
One of the interesting consequences about running a community D&D program is that I occasionally encounter adults who, very clearly, genuinely cannot separate fantasy from reality. They truly believe the kids are casting spells and summoning demons out of a book published by Hasbro.
I've long suspected that certain MAGA types literally cannot tell the difference between fiction and reality.... The Movie That Shaped the Former Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Gregory Bovino www.newyorker.com/culture/the-...
The Movie That Inspired Gregory Bovino to Join Border Patrol
Years before he led the Trump Administration’s immigration-enforcement effort in Minneapolis, Bovino saw the 1982 Jack Nicholson film “The Border.”
www.newyorker.com
February 10, 2026 at 1:58 PM
One of the interesting consequences about running a community D&D program is that I occasionally encounter adults who, very clearly, genuinely cannot separate fantasy from reality. They truly believe the kids are casting spells and summoning demons out of a book published by Hasbro.
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
They’re all gonna say “packages are being stolen from my doorstep.” Which demands the question: why have we picked a path where we isolate ourselves so thoroughly that we need to surveil our surroundings instead of going to a store?
February 9, 2026 at 12:02 PM
They’re all gonna say “packages are being stolen from my doorstep.” Which demands the question: why have we picked a path where we isolate ourselves so thoroughly that we need to surveil our surroundings instead of going to a store?
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
If you want to know what's going on in Minnesota, I recommend following & listening to Minnesotans. I recommend reading the articles we share. Believe us when we tell you what's happening.
Check out stories from local outlets & this curated list of stories:
www.standwithminnesota.com/stay-informed
Check out stories from local outlets & this curated list of stories:
www.standwithminnesota.com/stay-informed
Stay Informed — Stand With Minnesota
Stay updated with local and independent news, firsthand reports, and curated links highlighting developments around Minnesota community defense efforts and immigration enforcement occurrences.
www.standwithminnesota.com
February 9, 2026 at 9:21 AM
If you want to know what's going on in Minnesota, I recommend following & listening to Minnesotans. I recommend reading the articles we share. Believe us when we tell you what's happening.
Check out stories from local outlets & this curated list of stories:
www.standwithminnesota.com/stay-informed
Check out stories from local outlets & this curated list of stories:
www.standwithminnesota.com/stay-informed
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
I hear from people who are surprised I'm still talking about ICE, they thought they'd withdrawn from MN.
No, they have not. In some respects they've escalated.
Some asked why MN is a target. Are there are there a lot more illegals or criminals here?
No, it's not about that. It's about a grudge.
No, they have not. In some respects they've escalated.
Some asked why MN is a target. Are there are there a lot more illegals or criminals here?
No, it's not about that. It's about a grudge.
February 9, 2026 at 9:15 AM
I hear from people who are surprised I'm still talking about ICE, they thought they'd withdrawn from MN.
No, they have not. In some respects they've escalated.
Some asked why MN is a target. Are there are there a lot more illegals or criminals here?
No, it's not about that. It's about a grudge.
No, they have not. In some respects they've escalated.
Some asked why MN is a target. Are there are there a lot more illegals or criminals here?
No, it's not about that. It's about a grudge.
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
Do you need some help covering travel costs to attend #AFOWOS2026 in Rhode Island this summer? Apply for a Travel Award by March 1! #ornithology
Awards and travel funding
Travel awards Funds are available for partial financial support to students and early professionals presenting at the AFO WOS joint meeting in Newport, RI July 7-9, 2026. This is a competitive appl…
afowos2026.org
February 9, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Do you need some help covering travel costs to attend #AFOWOS2026 in Rhode Island this summer? Apply for a Travel Award by March 1! #ornithology
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
February 9, 2026 at 3:04 PM
not everyone has the time/interest/capacity to garden
But I'm really glad to have that knowledge, so I can help folks learn more about their food, and empower them to eat a wider variety of things/know when their produce is still ok to eat
But I'm really glad to have that knowledge, so I can help folks learn more about their food, and empower them to eat a wider variety of things/know when their produce is still ok to eat
February 9, 2026 at 3:22 PM
not everyone has the time/interest/capacity to garden
But I'm really glad to have that knowledge, so I can help folks learn more about their food, and empower them to eat a wider variety of things/know when their produce is still ok to eat
But I'm really glad to have that knowledge, so I can help folks learn more about their food, and empower them to eat a wider variety of things/know when their produce is still ok to eat
I also spend a lot of time talking about how to store produce so it lasts, and helping people understand that if your potatoes fresh from the farm are a bit dirty (but dry!) that is good, and if you store them well they'll last longer then if you/the farmer washed them
blows peoples minds
blows peoples minds
February 9, 2026 at 3:21 PM
I also spend a lot of time talking about how to store produce so it lasts, and helping people understand that if your potatoes fresh from the farm are a bit dirty (but dry!) that is good, and if you store them well they'll last longer then if you/the farmer washed them
blows peoples minds
blows peoples minds
I volunteer with a local non profit focused on reducing food insecurity and we get some of our produce from local farmers during the growing season
and I spend a lot of time explaining that it doesn't look perfect, or might have dirt on it, because it grows, outside, and that is ok
and I spend a lot of time explaining that it doesn't look perfect, or might have dirt on it, because it grows, outside, and that is ok
February 9, 2026 at 3:20 PM
I volunteer with a local non profit focused on reducing food insecurity and we get some of our produce from local farmers during the growing season
and I spend a lot of time explaining that it doesn't look perfect, or might have dirt on it, because it grows, outside, and that is ok
and I spend a lot of time explaining that it doesn't look perfect, or might have dirt on it, because it grows, outside, and that is ok
I do think there is something to how little many folks know about their food, and folks then being very suspectible to misinformation about said food they know very little about
February 9, 2026 at 3:19 PM
I do think there is something to how little many folks know about their food, and folks then being very suspectible to misinformation about said food they know very little about
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
Botany valentine. Another oldie.
February 9, 2026 at 3:03 PM
Botany valentine. Another oldie.
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
...am informed that "as part of X (what I agreed to) everyone is expected to do Y (something time consuming that wasn't mentioned)" or "we need you to provide X (something necessary the day of the event) a week in advance (when there was no indication of this early deadline at the initial ask)" 2/n
February 9, 2026 at 2:12 PM
...am informed that "as part of X (what I agreed to) everyone is expected to do Y (something time consuming that wasn't mentioned)" or "we need you to provide X (something necessary the day of the event) a week in advance (when there was no indication of this early deadline at the initial ask)" 2/n
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
When asking someone to do something it's important to be clear about everything you are asking them to do, and when you are asking them to do it, up front.
Increasingly I'm asked to do something, I look at my schedule and other commitments and agree to the ask, and then weeks later... 1/n
Increasingly I'm asked to do something, I look at my schedule and other commitments and agree to the ask, and then weeks later... 1/n
February 9, 2026 at 2:11 PM
When asking someone to do something it's important to be clear about everything you are asking them to do, and when you are asking them to do it, up front.
Increasingly I'm asked to do something, I look at my schedule and other commitments and agree to the ask, and then weeks later... 1/n
Increasingly I'm asked to do something, I look at my schedule and other commitments and agree to the ask, and then weeks later... 1/n
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
One of the reasons I so greatly dislike the “can men and women be friends?” nonsense (yes, full stop, shut up) is that it casts suspicion on people with opposite-sex friends instead of where it more often belongs: on people with no opposite-sex friends.
Anyway, yeah. The overwhelming impression one gets from so many of these emails is that a lot of them are guys who have never had a real, serious friendship with a woman in their lives.
Which sucks for them, but also sucks for every woman who has to deal with them, ever.
Which sucks for them, but also sucks for every woman who has to deal with them, ever.
February 5, 2026 at 6:47 PM
One of the reasons I so greatly dislike the “can men and women be friends?” nonsense (yes, full stop, shut up) is that it casts suspicion on people with opposite-sex friends instead of where it more often belongs: on people with no opposite-sex friends.
oh interesting, he is the only candidate I'm hearing about unless I seek out information on the senate race
he's mailing me A LOT of stuff
he's mailing me A LOT of stuff
February 6, 2026 at 4:48 PM
oh interesting, he is the only candidate I'm hearing about unless I seek out information on the senate race
he's mailing me A LOT of stuff
he's mailing me A LOT of stuff
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
February 1, 2026 at 6:46 AM
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
This is exactly how librarians have been blamed for cuts to library budgets for decades. "You didn't do enough to communicate your value." What that really means is "you don't make any profit, and profit is the only legitimate value an organization can produce."
You hear this a lot on the left but it isn't true. USAID did not "fail to tell its story to Americans," the right targeted the agency with lies and misinformation.
Ultimately this narrative turns conservative attacks into even more calls for the left to reform.
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/29/o...
Ultimately this narrative turns conservative attacks into even more calls for the left to reform.
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/29/o...
June 30, 2025 at 4:15 PM
This is exactly how librarians have been blamed for cuts to library budgets for decades. "You didn't do enough to communicate your value." What that really means is "you don't make any profit, and profit is the only legitimate value an organization can produce."
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
the Epstein files are really devastating because they remind me of how many girls and women miss out on professional opportunities, mentorship and careers because of how many powerful, rich and influential men only view girls and women — and interactions with them — through the lens of sex
February 5, 2026 at 5:05 PM
the Epstein files are really devastating because they remind me of how many girls and women miss out on professional opportunities, mentorship and careers because of how many powerful, rich and influential men only view girls and women — and interactions with them — through the lens of sex
indeed!
do some men behave this way, yes, yes they do
and we should never ever send students their way
a significant part of my job mentoring students in my field is guiding them away from men who choose not to behave appropriately (which is a CHOICE they are making!)
do some men behave this way, yes, yes they do
and we should never ever send students their way
a significant part of my job mentoring students in my field is guiding them away from men who choose not to behave appropriately (which is a CHOICE they are making!)
February 5, 2026 at 2:46 PM
indeed!
do some men behave this way, yes, yes they do
and we should never ever send students their way
a significant part of my job mentoring students in my field is guiding them away from men who choose not to behave appropriately (which is a CHOICE they are making!)
do some men behave this way, yes, yes they do
and we should never ever send students their way
a significant part of my job mentoring students in my field is guiding them away from men who choose not to behave appropriately (which is a CHOICE they are making!)
Reposted by Auriel Fournier
We are seeking sponsors at multiple levels for #AFOWOS2026! Support our conference and reach an engaged audience of #ornithology professionals. Please share!
Sponsors
About the conference The 2026 conference is a joint meeting of two professional societies, the Association of Field Ornithologists, and the Wilson Ornithological Society. The conference will offer …
afowos2026.org
February 5, 2026 at 2:02 PM
We are seeking sponsors at multiple levels for #AFOWOS2026! Support our conference and reach an engaged audience of #ornithology professionals. Please share!
it was....an experience
February 5, 2026 at 1:50 PM
it was....an experience
last election we ran out of stickers because we had such high turn out (hotly contested township road commissioner race, yes I live in rural Illinois)
which yay high turn out
but the sadness, at the lack of stickers
seriously, people love those stickers
which yay high turn out
but the sadness, at the lack of stickers
seriously, people love those stickers
and all the stress is really outweighed by the JOY on people's faces when they get their 'i voted' sticker
or when a kid gets one for coming along with their parent/adult
PEOPLE LOVE STICKERS
or when a kid gets one for coming along with their parent/adult
PEOPLE LOVE STICKERS
February 5, 2026 at 1:49 PM
last election we ran out of stickers because we had such high turn out (hotly contested township road commissioner race, yes I live in rural Illinois)
which yay high turn out
but the sadness, at the lack of stickers
seriously, people love those stickers
which yay high turn out
but the sadness, at the lack of stickers
seriously, people love those stickers
and all the stress is really outweighed by the JOY on people's faces when they get their 'i voted' sticker
or when a kid gets one for coming along with their parent/adult
PEOPLE LOVE STICKERS
or when a kid gets one for coming along with their parent/adult
PEOPLE LOVE STICKERS
February 5, 2026 at 1:48 PM
and all the stress is really outweighed by the JOY on people's faces when they get their 'i voted' sticker
or when a kid gets one for coming along with their parent/adult
PEOPLE LOVE STICKERS
or when a kid gets one for coming along with their parent/adult
PEOPLE LOVE STICKERS
and like, the probability that you'll have to drive ballots to the drop off location for the county during a tornado the first time you work an election, is low
its not 0, as that did happen to me, but it is low
so like its probably not as stressful as you imagine
its not 0, as that did happen to me, but it is low
so like its probably not as stressful as you imagine
February 5, 2026 at 1:46 PM
and like, the probability that you'll have to drive ballots to the drop off location for the county during a tornado the first time you work an election, is low
its not 0, as that did happen to me, but it is low
so like its probably not as stressful as you imagine
its not 0, as that did happen to me, but it is low
so like its probably not as stressful as you imagine
please if you can be an election judge
its hard and tiring work, but its so important, and most places need more folks
signed, an illinois election judge
its hard and tiring work, but its so important, and most places need more folks
signed, an illinois election judge
I know we're all bundles of fear and rage but I am begging some of y'all to "touch grass" and by, touch grass, I mean volunteer as an election judge or with local Dems or league of women voters, FFS. YOU have power. Use it. It will make you feel less scared.
one thing i have noticed is a lot of folks do not seem to understand the difference between a presidential election and 435+ legislative elections. i have seen any number of people say that you could subvert the outcome this november by targeting “swing states,” which does not make any sense.
February 5, 2026 at 1:43 PM
please if you can be an election judge
its hard and tiring work, but its so important, and most places need more folks
signed, an illinois election judge
its hard and tiring work, but its so important, and most places need more folks
signed, an illinois election judge