darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him)
@darrenirwin.bsky.social
590 followers 460 following 130 posts
UBC Professor of Zoology; student of birds, genomes, evolution. Pro-democracy. Pro-sanity. Pro-humanity.
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · Jun 11
Hi y'all. In the midst of [gestures all around], I managed to write a thing.

If you work with mitochondrial DNA sequences in groups such as birds, butterflies, or snakes, you might find it interesting.

Feedback welcome.

The "Driving W Hypothesis" for low mtDNA diversity:

doi.org/10.1101/2025...
The Driving W Hypothesis for Low Within-Population Mitochondrial DNA Diversity and Between-Population Mitochondrial Capture
The fields of evolutionary biology, molecular ecology, genetics, and taxonomy have been profoundly influenced by studies of variation in mitochondrial DNA. Here I propose a hypothesis that will likely...
doi.org
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 1d
that one seems to like you more than the last one did
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
jenteo.bsky.social
Jente Ottenburghs | Avian Hybrids @jenteo.bsky.social · 2d
Your daily Avian Hybrids story!

Mitochondrial capture in the Chestnut Quail-thrush: Neutral or adaptive introgression?
avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2020/11/21/m...

#ornithology
Mitochondrial capture in the Chestnut Quail-thrush: Neutral or adaptive introgression?
Genetic study tries to solve this mitochondrial mystery.
avianhybrids.wordpress.com
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 3d
Should I or should I not tell my Ornithology and Herpetology students about the new species of frog discovered in Portland?
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 3d
And for those of you in British Columbia / Canada:

bccancerfoundation.com/news-and-med...
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
jevbio.bsky.social
Journal of Evolutionary Biology @jevbio.bsky.social · 6d
Evidence for ancient #selectivesweeps followed by differentiation among three species of #Sphyrapicus #sapsuckers,” by Libby Natola and @darrenirwin.bsky.social:

doi.org/10.1093/jeb/...
Evidence for ancient selective sweeps followed by differentiation among three species of Sphyrapicus sapsuckers
Abstract. Genomic differentiation usually accompanies speciation, but that differentiation is often highly heterogeneous across the genome. Understanding w
doi.org
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
moore-evo-eco.bsky.social
Mike Moore @moore-evo-eco.bsky.social · 6d
Come work with us! My lab is looking for PhD student(s) to study elevational range shifts among dragonflies in Colorado. Reviewing applications now - apply by Nov 1 at the latest

You could spend your summers here!
Blue Lake in the Indian Peaks Wilderness near Ward, Colorado. A jagged peak towers over a serene alpine lake
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
evoldir.bsky.social
EvolDir @evoldir.bsky.social · 6d
The Weir Lab at the University of Toronto seeks PhD students for Fall 2026 to study avian genomics and speciation. Competitive funding, diverse training, and a collaborative environment are offered. Apply: [email protected]. More info: https://www.utsc.utoronto.ca/~jweir/index.html #phd
Jason Weir's research page
Jason Weir's research page
www.utsc.utoronto.ca
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
jacquelyngill.bsky.social
Jacquelyn Gill @jacquelyngill.bsky.social · 7d
I am filled with so much love and gratitude that I cannot grieve. Dr. Goodall worked tirelessly in her gentle, hopeful way for a better world for all life on Earth. She has laid down her field notebook for the last time; now it is for us to fill with wonder, joy, and connection, into infinity.
rebeccasolnit.bsky.social
Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 7d
Jane Goodall's work insisting, with evidence from her brilliant and tenacious fieldwork, that we were not so separate from animals, and they were much more like us than the Eurocentric theorists asserted, was so important.
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
bmatb.expmicromech.com
Prof Ben Britton @bmatb.expmicromech.com · 8d
Today is #OrangeShirtDay, and also the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

There may be many days in which you recognize the importance of this day - e.g. listening to survivors, taking part in action, making donations, and reading the TRC report
irshdc.ubc.ca/orange-shirt...
Orange Shirt Day at UBC - Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre
Orange Shirt Day at UBC Every Child Matters Orange Shirt Day, September 30, is a day to honour and uphold Survivors and Intergenerational Survivors of the Indian Residential School system, and to comm...
irshdc.ubc.ca
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 10d
that'll be a good one for your life list
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
genetics-gsa.bsky.social
Genetics Society of America @genetics-gsa.bsky.social · 12d
📢 NEW GENOME ALERT

In #G3journal, @squarehare.bsky.social, @judithmank.bsky.social, and team generated a genome assembly of the Amazon guppy, Poecilia bifurca and showed how this species shares sex chromosomes with related species, albeit with substantial Y chromosome degeneration. buff.ly/lM7etkw
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 14d
this checks out
Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
jeymccreight.bsky.social
Dr. Jey McCreight 🧬🏳️‍⚧️ @jeymccreight.bsky.social · 15d
Proud to announce the project I've been working on 🏳️‍⚧️🧬

Had hoped to have more ready, but the events of the last week stressed the importance of speaking up against fascism NOW

I'd appreciate your support in spreading the word, esp if you work in life sciences research, healthcare, or biotech
beyondxandy.bsky.social
Beyond X&Y @beyondxandy.bsky.social · 15d
It's the scientific community's duty to fight misinformation, bioessentialism, and eugenics

That's why we're launching Beyond X&Y, an educational campaign combating the rise of unscientific political propaganda used to attack trans and intersex people

Subscribe to our newsletter at beyondxandy.org
Logo reading "Beyond X&Y" where the X and Y are part of the trans symbol. Beneath it reads "Trust the real science. Biology is nonbinary."
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
beyondxandy.bsky.social
Beyond X&Y @beyondxandy.bsky.social · 15d
It's the scientific community's duty to fight misinformation, bioessentialism, and eugenics

That's why we're launching Beyond X&Y, an educational campaign combating the rise of unscientific political propaganda used to attack trans and intersex people

Subscribe to our newsletter at beyondxandy.org
Logo reading "Beyond X&Y" where the X and Y are part of the trans symbol. Beneath it reads "Trust the real science. Biology is nonbinary."
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 15d
Now published in the October 2025 issue of Molecular Ecology:

"Biochemical and Genomic Underpinnings of Carotenoid Colour Variation Across a Hybrid Zone Between South Asian Flameback Woodpeckers"

by Rashika Ranasinghe, Jocelyn Hudon, Sampath Seneviratne, and myself

doi.org/10.1111/mec....
A diagram showing the molecular structure of a variety of carotenoid pigments found in the feathers of flameback woodpeckers (Dinopium genus) in Sri Lanka. These pigments can create feathers that look red (on left), yellow (on right), or orange (in centre).
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
seananderson.bsky.social
Sean A. S. Anderson 🍉 @seananderson.bsky.social · 16d
Friends: I'm recruiting at least one PhD student to join our lab in Atlanta in the Fall of 2026. Information about our research can be found at the link below. Please pass along to any students interested in the quantitative study of speciation, secondary contact, and the build-up of biodiversity!
The Anderson Lab at Georgia Tech
my academic website
seanasanderson.github.io
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
biologylu.bsky.social
Department of Biology, Lund University @biologylu.bsky.social · Sep 5
Migratory birds aren’t equally efficient at all speeds. A new Lund University study shows thrush nightingales fly most efficiently at 7–8 m/s – the speed they actually use on migration.
@pablomaciastorres.bsky.social & Prof. Anders Hedenström, Animal Flight Lab.

www.biology.lu.se/article/not-...
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
birdhistory.bsky.social
Robert Francis @birdhistory.bsky.social · 20d
Americans used to know birds by thousands of unique local folk names. Ruddy Ducks alone were called dummy duck, dinky, dipper, dopper, dumb-bird, and god-damn. My latest piece is on the joy of folk names and losing them to the bureaucratic formalization of knowledge about birds.
Chunk Ducks, Blatherskites, Butterballs, and Slug-toots
These used to be folk names for American birds. Where did they all go?
birdhistory.substack.com
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 20d
He listed some names including eponymous ones, and wrote "They are clumsy, meaningless, un-English and detrimental… If the ornithologists had set out definitely to build an eternal barrier to popular interest in birds, they could not have done it better than by establishing such impossible names"
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 20d
Really interesting piece--thanks for writing it. Sounds like Seton would have likely supported the #BirdNamesForBirds effort:
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
kevinbonham.com
Kevin Bonham @kevinbonham.com · Aug 19
I'm certainly a #julialang evangalist, but I've toned it down a bit - a lot of scientists don't have the time or inclination to go against the grain. Then again, when someone makes it this easy... #tidytuesday #rstats

nrennie.rbind.io/blog/introdu...
Introduction to Julia for R users – Nicola Rennie
This blog post will give R users an overview of what Julia is and why they might want to use it, introduce some data processing Julia packages, and show how they can incorporate Julia into existing R ...
nrennie.rbind.io
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 23d
Congrats Professor Toews!! Penn State is fortunate to have you. Looking great. Great choice of book. Very proud of you. :)
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
davetoews.bsky.social
David Toews @davetoews.bsky.social · 23d
The promotion and tenure celebration tradition at Penn State includes profs choosing an important book that has a deep, personal and professional meaning. I chose ‘The Beak of the Finch’ by Jonathan Weiner. Definitely check it out if you haven’t yet!
@psubiodept.bsky.social
David Toews standing in front of a table with a book displayed.
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Reposted by Darren Irwin (he / him)
martinebotany.bsky.social
Chris Martine | Plants are Cool, Too! @martinebotany.bsky.social · Jan 23
Incorporating Sex-Diverse and Gender-Inclusive Perspectives in Higher Education Biology Courses. Really glad to finally see this in print. And proud to have played a small role in writing it.

#sex #gender #STEMeducation

@sicbjournals.bsky.social #SICB2025

academic.oup.com/icb/article-...
First page of the journal article from the December 2024 issue of Integrative and Comparative Biology, which arrived in my mailbox yesterday.
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darrenirwin.bsky.social
Darren Irwin (he / him) @darrenirwin.bsky.social · 25d
nice campus you've got there
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