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Alex Maile

@anoplogaster.bsky.social

360 followers 420 following 67 posts

Ph.D. Candidate University of Kansas | Ichthyology | Evolution, Anatomy, and Phylogenetic anoplogaster.com

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 3

1/11 New #OpenAccess #anglerfish paper in @plosone.org! We combine genomic, mitochondrial, and morphological data to produce the most complete evolutionary hypothesis for anglerfishes! Includes new body shape, habitat analyses, and a new frogfish subfamily) 🦑
doi.org/10.1371/jour...

A total-evidence phylogenetic approach to understanding the evolution, depth transitions, and body-shape changes in the anglerfishes and allies (Acanthuriformes: Lophioidei)

The anglerfishes and allies (Lophioidei) are a diverse group of fishes with over 400 carnivorous species that are renowned for their remarkable hunting behavior employing a modified first dorsal-fin s...

doi.org

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 2d

Happy Monday from these three amigos
🦑 🌊

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 2d

It blows my mind how many have managed to escape even with some sort of cover…

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 2d

They are jumpers so I would suggest a lid of some sort.

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 2d

The man did have food 😉

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 3d

Just clown’in around
🦑 🌊 🧪

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 3d

New addition to the aquarium! A Longnose Hawkfish (Oxycirrhites typus). Loves the camera more than any other fish I’ve had.

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 7d

New urchin, who dis?

🦑 🌊

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 12d

Hoplostethus mediterraneus – the Mediterranean slimehead (Trachichthyidae). Remarkably, slimeheads have been documented to live for over 230 years.

This specimen is KU 42748 from the KU Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum.

🦑🌊

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · 12d

Ah nuts

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · Aug 26

Monocentris japonica — the Japanese pineapplefish (or pinecone fish)

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · Jul 19

Anyone else walk into the fish store and suddenly feel like handing over their wallet for a new tank?

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · Jul 9

Went to Duluth to celebrate wedding anniversary prior to #JMIH. Pretty cool aquarium and sturgeon touch tank!

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · Jun 28

Did you get a tour of the ichthyology collection? We could’ve given you the tour!

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · Jun 12

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · Jun 6

Returned from visiting family to see new leaves on my mangroves!
🧪🌊🦑

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 31

Forbidden cannoli

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 31

Always ask your doctor for a copy of your CT scan. You never know when it may come in handy, say for Halloween…

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 31

Such smol mouths 👄… Poor things don’t have typical tetrodontid beaks

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 22

Have you ever seen a sargassum frogfish (Histrio histrio) eat in slowmo? This is Freddy eating his favorite food: anchovies. #marinelife #anglerfish

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 7

Have you ever seen a juvenile Buffalo Trunkfish (Lactophrys trigonus)? I absolutely love their weird skeleton which forms this bony carapace making their body rigid.

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 3

New molecular + morphological anglerfish phylogeny! #marinelife

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 3

A total-evidence phylogenetic approach to understanding the evolution, depth transitions, and body-shape changes in the anglerfishes and allies (Acanthuriformes: Lophioidei)

doi.org

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 3

11/11 Natural history collections like @kunhm.bsky.social, #FieldMuseum, and @nhm.org where many anglerfishes in this study were examined are vital to advancing our understanding of biodiversity. Publicly funded research and collections like these make this work possible.

Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 3

10/11 A huge thanks to my coauthors and to @stcloudstate.bsky.social , @kunhm.bsky.social , and @kubiology.bsky.social for their support. I’m also grateful to the museum staff and collections, as well as the reviewers and editors at @plosone.org for helping bring this work to fruition.

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 3

9/11 Finally, for some cool morphology, we identified new traits to help diagnose monkfishes (Lophiidae), including elongated dorsal and pelvic fin elements, and we show that hinged teeth are a shared derived trait of all anglerfishes!

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Alex Maile @anoplogaster.bsky.social · May 3

8/11 We used geometric morphometrics to explore how depth transitions affect body form in anglerfishes. Frogfishes (Antennariidae) and deep-sea ceratioids (Ceratioidei) have the highest body shape disparity, despite living in vastly different environments.