Leilton Luna
LightNews LightNews
banner
leiltonluna.bsky.social
Leilton Luna
@leiltonluna.bsky.social
53 followers 75 following 8 posts
Population Genomics & Conservation 🧬 | Postdoc at Duke University | Wildlife 🐾, Amazonian-born 🇧🇷, BioOne Ambassador '23 🥇🌎
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
leiltonluna.bsky.social
Leilton Luna @leiltonluna.bsky.social · Jul 17
Happy to be part of this amazing cohort! Thank you,
@amornith.bsky.social, for the opportunity!
amornith.bsky.social American Ornithological Society @amornith.bsky.social · Jul 16
Congratulations to 2025 Kessel Fellow Leilton Luna, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Duke University americanornithology.org/aos-announce...
@leiltonluna.bsky.social
#ornithology #researchgrant #birds #conservation #AOSgrants
Reposted by Leilton Luna
bou.org.uk
Hybridization mitigates climate change risk in mountainous birds | www.nature.com/artic... | Nature Climate Change | #ornithology 🪶
Hybridization mitigates climate change risk in mountainous birds
Nature Climate Change - Using population and ecological genomic approaches, the authors demonstrate the potential for interspecific introgression—the transfer of genetic material following...
www.nature.com
November 14, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
vertebrategenomes.bsky.social
Looking forward to collaborating with Andrew Carroll and Google Research as we work to develop AI tools for genome sequencing and assembly!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Wfn...
Decoding Life on Earth | Google and the Earth Biogenome Project
YouTube video by Google Research
www.youtube.com
November 12, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
lauradbertola.bsky.social
Genetic offset and vulnerability modeling under climate change scenarios: common misinterpretations and violations of evolutionary principles
academic.oup.com/evolut/advan...
Genetic offset and vulnerability modeling under climate change scenarios: common misinterpretations and violations of evolutionary principles
Abstract. Genetic offset models have become a popular component of the landscape genetics toolbox, with over 600 peer-reviewed publications applying these
academic.oup.com
November 13, 2025 at 9:59 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
amornith.bsky.social
#AOSMembers: Join us for "Revealing migration strategies of high-latitude breeding myrtle warblers using multi-sensor geolocators & stable isotopes" on 11/17 at Noon (ET) with Steph Szarmach; AOS Student Research Grant, 2022.
REGISTER: americanornithology-org.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
#AOS_SRGS
November 12, 2025 at 7:36 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
bou.org.uk
Parental Age, Inbreeding and Incubation Method Influence Extremely Low Hatching Success in the Ex-Situ Population of the Extinct in the Wild Sihek | doi.org/10.1111/acv.... | Animal Conservation | #ornithology 🪶
Parental Age, Inbreeding and Incubation Method Influence Extremely Low Hatching Success in the Ex‐Situ Population of the Extinct in the Wild Sihek
Reproductive success rates are a key parameter determining the recovery potential of ex-situ managed threatened species, with high rates often being required to produce offspring for wild releases wh...
doi.org
November 10, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
thatlionlady.bsky.social
Genomes from museum specimens reveal hidden lineages and ancient connections in the endangered Pacific pocket mouse—reshaping what 'historic range' means for it's recovery.

academic.oup.com/jhered/advan...
Past Genomes Guide Future Conservation: Insights from Extinct Populations of the Endangered Pacific Pocket Mouse
Abstract. Efforts to recover endangered species often rely on restoring populations to their historical range, yet reestablishing lost genetic variation is
academic.oup.com
November 11, 2025 at 7:24 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
gamaevo.bsky.social
Happy to see this out in early view in Evolution! We tested the roles of signaling and camouflage in the evolution of iris color in Tyranni songbirds. Our findings suggest that bright irises are social/sexual signals mostly associated with species less vulnerable to predation
doi.org/10.1093/evol...
Evaluating the roles of signaling and camouflage in the evolution of iris color in Tyranni passerines
Abstract. Iris color is a conspicuous and diverse trait across animals, but its evolutionary drivers are poorly understood. In over 1000 species of Tyranni
doi.org
November 10, 2025 at 10:20 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
lukemusher.bsky.social
Our paper on tinamou evolution is finally out in @systbiol.bsky.social. academic.oup.com/sysbio/advan...
November 9, 2025 at 4:26 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
davetoews.bsky.social
Super excited to release this virtual field / lab experience called "VRmivora":
davetoews.com/vrmivora/

It's free to download via SideQuest for a Meta VR headset:
sidequestvr.com/app/44760/vr...

Thanks to all involved, especially the Center for Immersive Experiences: immersive.psu.edu
🦉🧪
VRmivora
This VR experience—created by Penn State and the National Science Foundation—drops you into a young forest to find wood-warblers. Explore the landscape as you find and identify wood-warblers, which…
davetoews.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:27 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
darrenirwin.bsky.social
New and improved! (as of today, now with page numbers and an issue number ;)

"Evidence for ancient selective sweeps followed by differentiation among three species of Sphyrapicus sapsuckers"

Led by Dr. Libby Natola:

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
November 6, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
natecoevo.nature.com
Our November Issue is now live: www.nature.com/natecolevol/...

Featuring research on 🧪

🦆Threats to migratory shorebirds
🌍Phosphorus constraints on global photosynthesis
🦠Evolution of the meerkat MHC

Cover shows a larva of an emperor moth, from Li et al. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Cover image of the November issue of Nature Ecology & Evolution. The image shows a caterpillar of the emperor moth Gonimbrasia belina feeding on a leaf. The cover headline reads "Tree growth and herbivory"
November 6, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
jbyoder.org
Cuckoo eggs match the eggs of their adoptive hosts thanks to (mostly) loci inherited from their mothers, who put them there — impressive multifaceted genomic study buff.ly/r8xpxaR
Fig 2 from the linked paper, captioned: Fig. 2. Matrilineal variation is associated with egg diversification in C. canorus. (A) Matrilineal W chromosome phylogeny (n = 60 canorus, 27 optatus), with corresponding autosomal groups (A), geographic groups (G), and egg morphs indicated below each tip, each representing an unrelated female with known egg morph. Diamonds indicate node support exceeding 95% (SHaLRT). (B) Phenotypic variation within canorus (ECC) and optatus (ECO) egg morphs. (C) Variation explained (pseudo-­ R2) by continuous pairwise distance matrices of matrilineal, geographic, or autosomal variation estimated with a distance-­ based redundancy analysis (compare figs. S13 and S14 for replicated analyses with mtDNA variation). (D) Egg phenotype matching among varying degrees of related canorus. (E) Egg morph predicted with machine learning using either autosomal ancestry cluster (A) and geographic group (G) alone (left) or with the addition of haplogroup (M) (right). Confusion matrix of predictive modeling shows the proportion of correct classifications across 100 bootstrapped replicates. The area under the curve (AUC) 95% confidence interval across replicates is indicated below each label. (F) Confusion matrix for optatus.
November 6, 2025 at 2:54 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
wilsonornithsoc.bsky.social
Latest articles from the WJO: Exploring the expression of genes potentially involved in stress response of the endemic Galapagos Yellow Warbler. #ornithology doi.org/10.1080/1559...
Gene expression patterns in anthropogenic and natural habitats. Boxplots show log₂ (fold‐change) values for six genes (a) EXO1, (b) MTR, (c) TLR4, (d) SCN4A, (e) LGALS3, and (f) SIRT1 for samples collected in natural (green boxes) and anthropogenic (orange boxes) habitats. In each panel, the x‐axis denotes habitat type (natural on the left, anthropogenic on the right) and the y‐axis represents log₂ (fold‐change) relative to the baseline (mean for natural habitats, horizontal axis at y = 0 represented by a dotted line). Boxplots show the median (thick horizontal line), interquartile range (box), and values within 1.5 × the interquartile range (whiskers). For each target gene, the green and orange boxes overlap substantially, indicating that the distributions of expression values are largely indistinguishable between habitat types (natural and anthropogenic). Red and blue dots indicate values for individual samples.
November 6, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
ibioconsultants.com
AAAS reports future-focused #conservation index suggests more emphasis must be placed on #reptiles over #amphibians as a priority 🌍

www.eurekalert.org/news-release...

#BiodiversityConservation #Herpetology #Ecology
Future-focused conservation index identifies reptiles as highest conservation priority
Reptiles could overtake amphibians as the highest priority for conservation among vertebrates as threats like climate change and invasive species worsen in the future, according to a new conservation ...
www.eurekalert.org
November 2, 2025 at 8:56 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
thecowbirdlab.bsky.social
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Genomic architecture of egg mimicry and its consequences for speciation in parasitic cuckoos
Host-parasite arms races facilitate rapid evolution and can fuel speciation. Cuculus cuckoos are deceptive egg mimics that exhibit a broad diversity of counterfeit egg phenotypes, representing host-ad...
www.science.org
October 30, 2025 at 10:17 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
biogeographynews.bsky.social
ECR Feature: postdoctoral researcher Axel Arango investigates how ecological specialization shapes #diversification in #Emberizoidea songbirds . Read more about his recent work and plans for further study here: biogeographynews.org/2025/10/30/e...
ECR feature: Axel Arango
Axel Arango is a postdoctoral researcher at the Universität Würzburg, Germany. He is a evolutionary biologist with special focus on Macroecology and Macroevolution. Here, Axel shares his recent wor…
biogeographynews.org
October 30, 2025 at 8:25 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
newyorker.com
One minute, you're just living your life, and the next, you're mimicking bird calls. Here’s how it happens: https://newyorkermag.visitlink.me/jSPKeM
October 30, 2025 at 3:00 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
jenteo.bsky.social
New story on the Avian Hybrids blog!

Flipping the script: Another inversion in the Common Quail genome
avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2025/10/29/f...

Based on the Molecular Ecology study by Sara Ravagni, Santiago Montero-Mendieta and their colleagues | #ornithology
Flipping the script: Another inversion in the Common Quail genome
What are the phenotypic effects of this newly discovered inversion?
avianhybrids.wordpress.com
October 29, 2025 at 7:45 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
sagitaninta.bsky.social
Our Q&A article on inbreeding for conservation is out in BMC Biology!

We discuss some important key concepts related to inbreeding in the light of new genomic tools and what it means for conservation when we want to improve species survival.

#consgen

bmcbiol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....
Q&A: inbreeding and its implications for conservation - BMC Biology
Inbreeding depression plays a role in the decline, endangerment, and extinction of small populations, and thus inbreeding has received much attention in conservation biology. The term inbreeding is us...
bmcbiol.biomedcentral.com
October 22, 2025 at 6:20 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
vekutschera.bsky.social
Happy to see my former @nbis.se advisory program student Zach Nolen's new pipeline PopGLen for analyses of short-read data using genotype-likelihood based methods out!

Github: github.com/zjnolen/PopG...
Paper: academic.oup.com/bioinformati...
PopGLen—A Snakemake pipeline for performing population genomic analyses using genotype likelihood-based methods
AbstractSummary. PopGLen is a Snakemake workflow for performing population genomic analyses within a genotype-likelihood framework, integrating steps for r
academic.oup.com
March 20, 2025 at 7:52 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
jlwilliamson.bsky.social
My lab is hiring a 2-yr hummingbird evolution and genomics postdoc and a 1-yr salaried research and lab tech. Both with full U. Wyoming benefits. Please spread the word! Info below. Best consideration date Nov 1, start dates early Spring 2026.
October 14, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
jenteo.bsky.social
🥳 My latest digest for Evolution is now available online!

Digest: Postzygotic isolation barriers stabilize a hybrid zone between two grosbeak species
academic.oup.com/evolut/advan...

Original paper: academic.oup.com/evolut/advan...

#ornithology
October 11, 2025 at 8:03 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
amcuervo.bsky.social
academic.oup.com/evolut/artic...
Correlated evolution between nest architecture and the visual system of Passerine birds
#nesting #evosky #ecology #ornithology
Digest: Complex influences on an adaptive trait in birds
Abstract. Ausprey et al. (2025) investigated the relationship between vision, an adaptive trait in birds, and nest construction. Eye size was correlated wi
academic.oup.com
October 11, 2025 at 11:16 AM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
newyorker.com
Haruki Murakami was about to turn 30 when a thought occurred to him: “You know what? I could try writing a novel.” Then he realized, “If I wanted to have a long life as a novelist, I needed to find a way to stay in shape.”
The Running Novelist
If I wanted to have a long life as a writer, I needed to find a way to stay in shape.
www.newyorker.com
October 2, 2025 at 10:23 PM
Reposted by Leilton Luna
jenteo.bsky.social
New story on the Avian Hybrids blog!

The hidden effects of genetic purging in Galápagos Mockingbirds
avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2025/10/01/t...

Based on the Molecular Ecology study by Jakub Vlček, Sebastian Espinoza-Ulloa and their colleagues | #ornithology
The hidden effects of genetic purging in Galápagos Mockingbirds
Exploring patterns of genetic load across island populations.
avianhybrids.wordpress.com
October 1, 2025 at 7:12 AM