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Christian R Voolstra

@reefgenomics.bsky.social

1K followers 160 following 42 posts

Dedicated Marine Scientist, Reef Genomicist, Computer/Musiq/Travel lover, Dad of 3, Professor of Genetics of Adaptation in Aquatic Systems, President International Coral Reef Society (ICRS), Scientific Coordinator Tara Pacific Expedition .. more

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Environmental science 52%

Geography 16%

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Sep 9

new work: fascinating study demonstrating rapid viral activation & subsequent rapid antiviral innate immunity response by cnidarians under heat stress .. response conserved across symbiotic/non-symbiotic hexacorallia -> link to bleaching!? onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... @uni-konstanz.de

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Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra

Schulenburg Lab Kiel @schulenburglab.bsky.social · Sep 8

We are welcoming applications for a full professorship on Molecular and Evolutionary Zoology at Kiel Univerdity, Northern Germany, with fantastic facilities and infrastructure! @uni-kiel.de @crc1182.bsky.social @transevo.bsky.social www.nature.com/naturecareer...

W 3 professorship in Molecular and Evolutionary Zoology - Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein (DE) job with Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel | 12844416

Kiel University aims to attract more qualified women to professorship positions. The Institute of Zoology at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural...

www.nature.com

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Aug 28

New paper: Do corals keep their thermal tolerance in nurseries? #CBASS assays show A. cytherea lose then recover, while A. florida retain tolerance=>To inform restoration, screening should be conducted prior to nursery propagation www.nature.com/articles/s42... @uni-konstanz.de @coralku.bsky.social

Species-specific retention vs. recovery of coral thermal tolerance following nursery propagation - Communications Biology

Standardized acute thermal assays (CBASS) of Acropora species reveal that nursery-reared corals either retain or recover thermal tolerance over time, suggesting adaptive traits are...

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra

Stacks Journal @stacksjournal.bsky.social · Oct 12

It's happening! We're finally creating a modern publishing platform that frees scientists to collaboratively publish peer-reviewed research without the gatekeeping.

Follow us for updates as we launch! stacksjournal.org

Stacks Journal | Create better science, together.

Create better science, together. The Stacks puts the focus of publishing where it should be: science and scientists.

stacksjournal.org

Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra

MaRHE Center @marhecenter.bsky.social · Jul 23

🪸 CBASS Workshop – Maldives 🌡️
24 Nov–2 Dec ’25 @ MaRHE Center, Magoodhoo
Hands‑on CBASS experiments, lectures, snorkeling & SCUBA with Prof. Christian Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social
Deadline: 17 Sep ’25 | Limited spots!
🔗 en.unimib.it/news/2nd-edi...
#CBASS #CoralReefConservation #MarineWorkshop

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Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra, Gavin L. Foster

Tropical Climate Variability & Coral Reefs (SPP 2299) @climatereefs.bsky.social · Jul 6

SPP 2299 members @thomasfelis.bsky.social @reefgenomics.bsky.social and Christian Wild contributed to a recent article lead by Andrea Grottoli on the "Future of coral bleaching research" url: academic.oup.com/bioscience/a...

Future of coral bleaching research

Abstract. Coral bleaching is the largest global threat to coral reef ecosystem persistence this century. Advancing our understanding of coral bleaching and

academic.oup.com

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Jun 30

Heya. Yes I agree. We currently write a perspective on the importance of a ‘universal Coral health index’ (and what could go into it). But to my knowledge, nothing out there yet.(??)

Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Jun 16

pumped that CBASSED50 R package now officially released on CRAN cran.rstudio.com/web/packages... ... easy for everyone to install package for R Studio processing! #CBASS #coral #bleaching #ThermalTolerance

CBASSED50: Process CBASS-Derived PAM Data

Tools to process CBASS-derived PAM data efficiently. Minimal requirements are PAM-based photosynthetic efficiency data (or data from any other continuous variable that changes with temperature, e.g. r...

cran.rstudio.com

Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Jun 11

How would that affect the issue at general? Are you suggesting that researchers look for a shortcut to amp their pub record? The portrayed case goes against all research ethics. Of course, fixing one issue doesn’t fix all issues, if that is your larger point.

Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Jun 10

pretty amazing how much money publishers make, how they pay little to zero to their reviewers/editors , and how they do not invest better in ensuring fair, transparent, and quality peer-review .. paying your reviewers/editors, entails pathway to identity check: www.science.org/content/arti...

‘It felt very icky’: This scientist’s name was used to write fake peer reviews

Elsevier retracts dozens of journal articles that were published based on “fictitious” reviews

www.science.org

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Jun 3

And so it begins #OOSC let’s make it count and kick into decisive action!

Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · May 13

new work: "Spatially restricted coral bleaching"-> why do corals (start to) bleach in one place but not another? what implications does it hold if bleaching susceptibility differs across a colony surface? read on: www.nature.com/articles/s42... thanks to coauthors! @uni-konstanz.de @icrs.bsky.social

Spatially restricted coral bleaching as an ecological manifestation of within-colony heterogeneity - Communications Biology

This perspective highlights spatially restricted coral bleaching as an underexplored ecological phenomenon that offers critical insight into within-colony heterogeneity.

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra

Dr. Wyatt Million @run4coral.bsky.social · Mar 6

Our new work in Environmental Microbiology on Symbiodiniaceae diversity between reef habitats and across the coral holobiont. Sediment, seawater, and turf algae-associated communities were distinct while the coral mucus and tissue showed nearly identical ITS2 type profiles.

tinyurl.com/mr2hasb5

Resolving Symbiodiniaceae Diversity Across Coral Microhabitats and Reef Niches

We characterised the Symbiodiniaceae ITS2-based diversity across a tropical coral reef to quantify the connectivity between seawater, turf algae, sediment, coral tissue and coral mucus communities. A...

tinyurl.com

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Mar 6

OUT NOW 'coral reef microbiome' by Springer Nature link.springer.com/book/10.1007... .. some 2.5 years in the making, jam packed: check out Ch.16 on Assisted Restoration as the sum of approaches required to deliver effective ecological restoration! Many thanks to all contributors @uni-konstanz.de

Coral Reef Microbiome

This book focuses on Structure, Function and Ecology of the coral microbiome and associated active interventions to conserve and restore coral reefs.

link.springer.com

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Feb 28

Don't miss out, October 22-25, 2025: International Symposium – Trends in Marine Host-Microbe Symbioses with an exciting lineup of speakers marinesymbioses.eu/invited-spea...; looking forward to insightful & inspiring discussions; registration: marinesymbioses.eu/register/ @uni-konstanz.de

Invited speakers – Trends in Marine Host-Microbe Symbioses Symposium

marinesymbioses.eu

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Feb 27

putting effort shows :D

Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra

Rachel Alderdice @alderdicer.bsky.social · Feb 8

Interested in current & upcoming #standardization practices to accelerate discoveries of #heatstress impacts on #marine life?

Review paper @annualreviews.bsky.social
—> shorturl.at/kVuh9

@reefgenomics.bsky.social @amyapprill.bsky.social @uni-konstanz.de

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Jan 18

new work: deep dive into microbiome differences of coral exhibiting thermally resilient & susceptible phenotypes, long time coming, great team effort @unikonstanz.bsky.social www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... #coral #bleaching #microbiome

Inherent differential microbial assemblages and functions associated with corals exhibiting different thermal phenotypes

Key multidomain microbial members of thermal resistant corals represent putative avenues for conservation strategies.

www.science.org

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Dec 19

new ms, to all shark lovers out there: distinct bacterial niche habitats within the ‘microbial landscape’ of black-tip reef sharks @unikonstanz.bsky.social kudos to @cpogoreutz.bsky.social & team link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Microenvironments of black-tip reef sharks (Carcharhinus melanopterus) provide niche habitats for distinct bacterial communities - Coral Reefs

Animal holobionts constitute diverse yet interconnected landscapes of microenvironments that harbor specific bacterial communities with distinct functions. An increasing body of literature suggests a ...

link.springer.com

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Dec 19

new ms: Coral thermal tolerance changes seasonally for some species, but not others. Such detail provides insight re. diff. coral ecologies & informs thermal tolerance screenings. Nice use case of CBASS acute thermal assays! Kudos to the team! @unikonstanz.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s42...

Seasonal changes in coral thermal threshold suggest species-specific strategies for coping with temperature variations - Communications Biology

Seasonal variations of temperature modify coral thermal tolerance threshold for Pocillopora verrucosa species while Acropora spp. remain unchanged when exposed to the same in situ conditions.

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra

MaRHE Center @marhecenter.bsky.social · Dec 16

🔬The first edition of the "CBASS in the Maldives" workshop has just ended, with the collaboration of Prof. Christian Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social and his team.
A big thanks to everyone who made this workshop such a success! This is just the start—stay tuned for more updates on coral reefs. 🪸

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Nov 29

speaking truth to 'power' -> after all the recent bad press that restoration got, a more nuanced view was in order: let's not get lost in absolutes and mind the detail! rdcu.be/d1S5K @natureportfolio.bsky.social @unikonstanz.bsky.social cheers & hugs to my "partners in crime"

The critical role of coral reef restoration in a changing world

Nature Climate Change - Recent discussions have raised concerns about the long-term effectiveness of coral reef restoration efforts, questioning whether current interventions can effectively...

rdcu.be

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Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra

ICRS International Coral Reef Society @icrs.bsky.social · Nov 27

Our thanks to outgoing Officers and Council members. Treasurer Anderson Mayfield; Recording Secretary Anastazia Banaszak; Council Members Nicole Browne, Luis Eduardo Calderon, Sarah Davies, Ilsa Kuffner, Vikash Munbodhe, Kennedy Osuka, Raquel Peixoto, Nikki Traylor-Knowles

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Reposted by Christian R. Voolstra

ICRS International Coral Reef Society @icrs.bsky.social · Nov 27

Congratulations to the new ICRS Officers and Council members. Treasurer John Burt; Recording Secretary Mariana Rocha De Souza; Council Members Amy Apprill, Keisha Bahr, Ranjeet Bhagooli, Javier del Campo, Simon Harding, Maggie Johnson, Karen Neely, Alma Paola Rodriguez-Troncoso.

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Nov 27

worth a read: www.nature.com/articles/d41... .. bsky as a safe space from digital toxicity ..

‘A place of joy’: why scientists are joining the rush to Bluesky

Researchers say the social-media platform — an alternative to X — offers more control over the content they see and the people they engage with.

www.nature.com

Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Nov 27

new work: Red Sea Acropora hemprichii draft genome @natureportfolio.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41... .. yes, the pretty blue coral :D .. glad to see this out! kudos to coauthors! @unikonstanz.bsky.social @reefprokaryota.bsky.social etc pp

A draft genome assembly of the reef-building coral Acropora hemprichii from the central Red Sea - Scientific Data

Scientific Data - A draft genome assembly of the reef-building coral Acropora hemprichii from the central Red Sea

www.nature.com

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Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Nov 21

Tara Polar Station crowdfunding (raise remaining 300k of 21 mio): in any aspect this project is exceptional, paradigm-shifting, groundbreaking .. your chance to contribute www.kisskissbankbank.com/fr/projects/...

Tara Polar Station, notre avenir se joue en Arctique ! par Fondation Tara Océan

Contribuez à la finalisation de la première base française dérivante qui étudiera l'Arctique : l'ISS du pôle Nord !

www.kisskissbankbank.com

Christian R Voolstra @reefgenomics.bsky.social · Nov 21

.. I was about to post the same thing (the plot thickens, see X :D) .. doi.org/10.1038/s420... similar implications (nutrient cycling at heart of coral-algal symbiosis) as doi.org/10.1371/jour... (primer: doi.org/10.1371/jour...) showing how coral larvae counter heat stress & OA. congratulations!

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