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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 20h

Hard agree with Doctor Dave--this is one of Australia's best birds. It's worth your time to try find them, especially the blingy males.

Dave Watson @ecosystemunraveller.com · 22h

Time for another #AwesomeBirds #WildOz edition. This distinctive jobbie is found throughout mainland Australia, but rarely sits still. Often in pairs, these dim sim sized champions can be tricky to spot, but once you key in on their sharp notes, you’ll notice them all over.

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 1d

There are a few places (in the drier areas) where bee-keepers take their hives and the birds line up along the fence. Probably can't believe their luck!

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 1d

What a gorgeous photo of a gorgeous bird! I see them now and then in the garden, perched on the fence, watching for insects.

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Leo @leo-in-merimbula.bsky.social · 1d

Rainbow Bee-eater at Cullyamurra Waterhole near Innamincka (from the archives) #birds #WildOz

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Schmidt Ocean Institute @schmidtocean.bsky.social · 3d

In celebration of World Octopus Day, we wanted to revisit one of our favorite cephalopod sightings, the glass octopus — Vitreledonella richardi filmed during a month-long #PhoenixIslandsCoral expedition in 2021.

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Perry Beasley-Hall, PhD @pbeasleyhall.bsky.social · 2d

The Cook Strait giant wētā (Deinacrida rugosa) is an anostostomatid from New Zealand. It's one of the largest insects in the world! Major threats to this cutie include land clearing and predation by rats. It's listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. #EverydayEnsifera

📸: d_kluza (iNaturalist)

Source: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/6343096

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 3d

Geelong!

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Ecology Group Basel - Sabine Rumpf @ecologybasel.bsky.social · Sep 8

*Job alert*

We have a 5-year postdoc position on #mountain non-native species & #macroecology in our group @unibas.ch. Great opportunity to join us!

Details here: jobs.unibas.ch/offene-stellen/postdoc-position-in-mountain-macroecology/6c5a8906-354f-43c6-bc9b-1156d21725a5

Please share!

Universität Basel: Postdoc position in mountain macroecology

The research group Ecology at the Department of Environmental Sciences at the University of Basel in Switzerland invites applications for a postdoc position within the ERC project 'Global status, tren...

jobs.unibas.ch

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Guardian Australia @australia.theguardian.com · 3d

Nobody hates trees more than coastally adjacent narcissists. Here’s how we should deal with them | First Dog on the Moon

A deterrent is one thing but I want revenge! * Sign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are published * Get all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and prints Continue reading...

www.theguardian.com

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 3d

Look at the birds that have been pushed out contention for the Australian Bird of the Year! Every one is magnificent. Every one was worth voting for. (Also I think the sunbird has already been split and ours is Sahul Sunbird.)

Anyway, vote for the others here: www.theguardian.com/environment/...

A list of the birds that didn't make the cut in the previous two rounds of voting for the Guardian's Australian Bird of the Year 2025. There are 10 species, all illustrated with a small and now forlorn image. The species names and pics are surrounded by a chestnut brown box, which is almost but not quite like a funeral notice. In order, the birds are:
Australasian Bittern
Australian Fairy Tern
Budgerigar (honestly, who doesn't vote for the budgie?)
Channel-billed Cuckoo
Cockatiel (who are these people who don't vote for Cockatiels?)
Emu (still smarting from losing the Emu War, eh?)
Olive-backed (should be Sahul) Sunbird
Weebill (Australia's smallest bird and full of attitude)
Welcome Swallow (somehow now unwelcome)
White-winged Chough (mad lads)

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Bluesky Wagtail @angrywagtails.bsky.social · 4d

Australian orchids suffer rapid pollination decline since the 1970s, study suggests

www.abc.net.au/news/science...

One hundred years of Australian flower data reveals pollination drop

Researchers behind a new study examining thousands of flower specimens collected over the past century say temperature increases could be behind a pollination decline in native orchids.

www.abc.net.au

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Dave Watson @ecosystemunraveller.com · 5d

This paper is now in press at Oikos, and I can submit an image for the journal cover. I have various crappy photos of mistletoe munching tyrannoids; if you have a great shot you can donate to the cause, I’ll shout you a quality beverage at the very next opportunity
www.authorea.com/doi/full/10....

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 5d

I'm not telling you how to vote in the Australian Bird of the Year poll.

But Red Goshawk are absolutely magnificent and they're under threat.

Guardian Australia @australia.theguardian.com · 5d

Restricted now to the tropical north, the mysterious red goshawk is fast disappearing as a result of climate change and habitat loss. Find out more about this majestic bird – and vote for it now – in our Australian bird of the year 2025 poll.

Going extinct ‘right under our noses’: the quiet plight of Australia’s rarest bird of prey

Restricted now to the tropical north, the mysterious red goshawk is fast disappearing as a result of climate change and habitat loss

www.theguardian.com

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 6d

It's time to vote for Australia's Bird of the Year. This is the first round. There are some great birds in this list but sadly not the Pheasant Coucal.

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Australian bird of the year 2025: vote for your favourite #birdoftheyear in the Guardian / BirdLife Australia poll

From little penguins to (very big) cassowaries, every bird has its fans. Vote for your favourite in the 2025 Guardian/BirdLife Australia poll

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Deanna Kreisel 🌱 @doctorwaffle.substack.com · 9d

In honor of National Poetry Day, the greatest parody rewrite of all time:

Screen cap of parodic version of William Blake's "The Tyger" that begins:
Tyger! Tyger! Burning bright
(Not sure if I spelled that right)
What immortal hand or eye
Could fashion such a stripy guy?
What the hammer that hath hewn it
Into such a chonky unit?
Did who made the lamb make thee,
Or an external franchisee?

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 6d

Not a wasp expert at all, but it's one of the ichneumon wasps. (Narrows it down to a ridiculously large number of almost identical species!) They're parasitoids of other insects.

I'll now stand out of the way to let through people with more specific knowledge.

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

WA Orchids @wa-orchids.bsky.social · 7d

Endemic to southern parts of Australia, the carnivorous Pimpernel Sundew (Drosera glanduligera) with its lovely orange flower. This one was growing on a lush bed of moss and was covered in early morning dew drops

#ozflora #wildoz #fierceflora #nativeplants #inaturalist #nature

A picture of a small sundew with carnivorous leaves at the base and an orange flower at the top of a short stem. This plant is growing on a lush bed of moss and is covered in early morning dew drops

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 7d

These are a treat.

www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...

Supernovas, satellites and solar sprites: 2025 David Malin astrophotography awards – in pictures

Amateur astronomers and photographers from around Australia were invited to submit their out of this world photos for Central West Astronomical Society’s annual astrophotography competition, the David...

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Bronwen Scott

Dr Jacinta Humphrey @jacintahumphrey.bsky.social · 7d

Are you looking to attract native birds to your garden this spring? 🦜 🏡 Here's some top tips from @drkyliesoanes.bsky.social and yours truly!

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

#BirdsInBackyards #UrbanNature #WildlifeGardening #CitizenScience

Birds and cities don’t always mix well. But small changes in our behaviour can make a difference

Spring is a great time of year for noticing neighbourhood birds. Here are some simple ideas for helping the birds in Australian back yards, cities and towns

www.theguardian.com

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 7d

At least the lemon tree insights would be pithy.

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 8d

So easy to overlook!

Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 8d

They have such a beautiful call.

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 8d

You must have the sound up for this!

Cheryl @cherylp14.bsky.social · 8d

Noongar white-tailed black cockatoos refer to Carnaby's cockatoos (Ngolyenok/Ngoolarks), an endangered species endemic to southwest Western Australia gathering at Coogee.

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 8d

More about the discovery of the beetle here: stories.uq.edu.au/news/2024/ch...

Chance sighting reveals new species of fluffy beetle

A researcher from The University of Queensland has discovered a remarkable new genus of fluffy longhorn beetle while camping within rainforest in the Gold Coast hinterland.

stories.uq.edu.au

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Bronwen Scott @snailseyeview.bsky.social · 8d

My vote also goes to the Bird-dropping Beetle (Excastra albopilosa), a species I hadn't hear of until a minute ago and which I am now obsessed with. Although it looks less like bird poo to me than an insect that has fallen prey to one of those weird zombifying fungi.

Aussie Moths @wa-moths.bsky.social · 8d

It’s time to vote for the Australian Insect of the Year 2025 🪲🐞🪳🪰🦋

Cast your vote during October.

My vote definitely goes to the amazing Exastra albopilosa, a stunning longhorn beetle that was only described in 2024!
#ausinverts #wildoz #bugsky #inverts

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...

Vote for your favourite Australian Insect of the Year

Whether you love beetles or the giant mantis it's time to cast your vote for Australia's top insect.

www.abc.net.au

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