Rachael Funnell
@rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social
Journalist and writer: @iflscience | http://iflscience.com | Literary agent: http://theliteraryoffice.com
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Excited to announce that my second manuscript, “Fossilised Melanosomes Reveal Colour Patterning in A Sauropod Dinosaur” has been published in
@royalsociety.org !! Diplodocus scales are complex and diverse, and it turns out their color patterning was even more so. A 🧵🦕 1/26
@royalsociety.org !! Diplodocus scales are complex and diverse, and it turns out their color patterning was even more so. A 🧵🦕 1/26
December 10, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Excited to announce that my second manuscript, “Fossilised Melanosomes Reveal Colour Patterning in A Sauropod Dinosaur” has been published in
@royalsociety.org !! Diplodocus scales are complex and diverse, and it turns out their color patterning was even more so. A 🧵🦕 1/26
@royalsociety.org !! Diplodocus scales are complex and diverse, and it turns out their color patterning was even more so. A 🧵🦕 1/26
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Why Do Cuttlefish Have Wavy Pupils? - @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social @iflscience.com
www.iflscience.com/why-do-cuttl...
www.iflscience.com/why-do-cuttl...
Cuttlefish Have Seriously Freaky Eyes. Why Are Their Pupils Shaped Like A "W"?
Is it camouflage, or something more?
www.iflscience.com
December 11, 2025 at 6:47 AM
Why Do Cuttlefish Have Wavy Pupils? - @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social @iflscience.com
www.iflscience.com/why-do-cuttl...
www.iflscience.com/why-do-cuttl...
If an ancient scroll’s to be believed, a 110-year-old magician who sank 100 jars of beer daily once wowed a Pharaoh by bringing a decapitated goose back to life www.iflscience.com/does-this-an... @iflscience.com
Does This Ancient Egyptian Scroll Recount The World’s Oldest Magic Trick?
The decapitated goose trick is as wild as it sounds.
www.iflscience.com
December 11, 2025 at 12:28 PM
If an ancient scroll’s to be believed, a 110-year-old magician who sank 100 jars of beer daily once wowed a Pharaoh by bringing a decapitated goose back to life www.iflscience.com/does-this-an... @iflscience.com
In 1979, a pair of magicians infiltrated a study into the paranormal, using tricks to test the scientific rigor of the experiments in a hoax that lasted three years. www.iflscience.com/project-alph...
Project Alpha: What Happened When Magicians Infiltrated Research Into The Paranormal?
From ghosts appearing in photographs to a lot of bent spoons, things got pretty weird when the “Alpha Kids” crashed a study.
www.iflscience.com
December 10, 2025 at 10:03 AM
In 1979, a pair of magicians infiltrated a study into the paranormal, using tricks to test the scientific rigor of the experiments in a hoax that lasted three years. www.iflscience.com/project-alph...
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Thank you @iflscience.com and @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social for featuring our research!
By: @begus.bsky.social, Ronald Sprouse, Andrej Leban, Miles Silva and Shane Gero.
By: @begus.bsky.social, Ronald Sprouse, Andrej Leban, Miles Silva and Shane Gero.
Vowel Sounds "Thought To Be Unique To Humans" Discovered In Sperm Whales For The First Time
www.iflscience.com/vowel-sounds...
www.iflscience.com/vowel-sounds...
Eavesdropping On Sperm Whales Just Revealed They Use Vowel Sounds "Thought To Be Unique To Humans"
Sperm whales can alter the frequency of their clicks to make “a” and “i” sounds.
www.iflscience.com
November 18, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Thank you @iflscience.com and @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social for featuring our research!
By: @begus.bsky.social, Ronald Sprouse, Andrej Leban, Miles Silva and Shane Gero.
By: @begus.bsky.social, Ronald Sprouse, Andrej Leban, Miles Silva and Shane Gero.
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
“Behold The GARLIATH!”: Enormous “Living Fossil” Hauled From Mississippi Floodplains Stuns Scientists
www.iflscience.com/behold-the-g...
By @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social @iflscience.com on that big Alligator Gar tagged & released @garlab.bsky.social #GarWeek
www.iflscience.com/behold-the-g...
By @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social @iflscience.com on that big Alligator Gar tagged & released @garlab.bsky.social #GarWeek
“Behold The GARLIATH!”: Scientists Catch (And Release) An Enormous River Monster On Mississippi Floodplains
Alligator gars: putting the “gar” in gargantuan for 100 million years.
www.iflscience.com
November 5, 2025 at 3:54 PM
“Behold The GARLIATH!”: Enormous “Living Fossil” Hauled From Mississippi Floodplains Stuns Scientists
www.iflscience.com/behold-the-g...
By @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social @iflscience.com on that big Alligator Gar tagged & released @garlab.bsky.social #GarWeek
www.iflscience.com/behold-the-g...
By @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social @iflscience.com on that big Alligator Gar tagged & released @garlab.bsky.social #GarWeek
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Do you know where your cat is? It's like that 60s PSA, but seriously, a free-roaming Mr Crumbles could be cooking up some wildcat hybrids - and that's a big problem. @iflscience.com www.iflscience.com/domestic-cat...
Domestic Cats Can Be A Nightmare For Conservation For A Weird Reason: They Keep Making Hybrids
Not again, Mr Crumbles.
www.iflscience.com
September 11, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Do you know where your cat is? It's like that 60s PSA, but seriously, a free-roaming Mr Crumbles could be cooking up some wildcat hybrids - and that's a big problem. @iflscience.com www.iflscience.com/domestic-cat...
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
This is infuriating. What is the point of a Marine Protected Area if trawlers are allowed to keep ploughing it?
Yet again, the government has succumbed to commercial lobbying.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Yet again, the government has succumbed to commercial lobbying.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Bottom trawling to continue in English protected waters, government rules
Defra says blanket ban on ‘destructive’ fishing practice disproportionate as MPs urge minister to reconsider
www.theguardian.com
September 9, 2025 at 6:15 AM
This is infuriating. What is the point of a Marine Protected Area if trawlers are allowed to keep ploughing it?
Yet again, the government has succumbed to commercial lobbying.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Yet again, the government has succumbed to commercial lobbying.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Introducing a crazy new look for Spicomellus, based on new osteoderms unlike anything we've ever seen before. I was brought in to produce a life reconstruction based on the new material, published today in Nature by Maidment et al:
Hi all, me, @richardjbutler.bsky.social and the amazing UK-US-Moroccan team are delighted to announce that.. we have a new specimen of Spicomellus AND IT'S WAY WEIRDER AND WAY COOLER THAN WE EVER IMAGINED!!
August 27, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Introducing a crazy new look for Spicomellus, based on new osteoderms unlike anything we've ever seen before. I was brought in to produce a life reconstruction based on the new material, published today in Nature by Maidment et al:
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Hi all, me, @richardjbutler.bsky.social and the amazing UK-US-Moroccan team are delighted to announce that.. we have a new specimen of Spicomellus AND IT'S WAY WEIRDER AND WAY COOLER THAN WE EVER IMAGINED!!
August 27, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Hi all, me, @richardjbutler.bsky.social and the amazing UK-US-Moroccan team are delighted to announce that.. we have a new specimen of Spicomellus AND IT'S WAY WEIRDER AND WAY COOLER THAN WE EVER IMAGINED!!
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Did you know that flies hate cocaine? These well-adapted creatures have evolved to avoid things that might do them harm by developing a distaste for bitter things.
Not these ones though. 🧪
www.iflscience.com/scientists-h...
Not these ones though. 🧪
www.iflscience.com/scientists-h...
Flies Hated Cocaine. Then Scientists Tinkered With Their Taste Receptors, And Now They’re Hooked
“This opens the door to testing human variants associated with cocaine use disorder."
www.iflscience.com
June 3, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Did you know that flies hate cocaine? These well-adapted creatures have evolved to avoid things that might do them harm by developing a distaste for bitter things.
Not these ones though. 🧪
www.iflscience.com/scientists-h...
Not these ones though. 🧪
www.iflscience.com/scientists-h...
To my science and writer pals, we've got a great opportunity tomorrow to speak with #neuroscientist
@docaustinlim.bsky.social, who recently wrote Horror On The Brain: The Neuroscience Behind Science Fiction. CURIOUS Live kicks off at 10amCST/4pmBST @iflscience.com www.iflscience.com/she-would-se...
@docaustinlim.bsky.social, who recently wrote Horror On The Brain: The Neuroscience Behind Science Fiction. CURIOUS Live kicks off at 10amCST/4pmBST @iflscience.com www.iflscience.com/she-would-se...
“She Would See That Face Morph Into The Face Of A Dragon”: Strange Tales From Neuroscience At CURIOUS Live
Join us as we talk Horror On The Brain with neuroscientist Dr Austin Lim.
www.iflscience.com
May 23, 2025 at 12:35 PM
To my science and writer pals, we've got a great opportunity tomorrow to speak with #neuroscientist
@docaustinlim.bsky.social, who recently wrote Horror On The Brain: The Neuroscience Behind Science Fiction. CURIOUS Live kicks off at 10amCST/4pmBST @iflscience.com www.iflscience.com/she-would-se...
@docaustinlim.bsky.social, who recently wrote Horror On The Brain: The Neuroscience Behind Science Fiction. CURIOUS Live kicks off at 10amCST/4pmBST @iflscience.com www.iflscience.com/she-would-se...
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
We had a little sneak peek ahead of #WalkingwithDinosaurs starting this week and chatted to the folks behind the scenes who made the science and (VFX) magic happen. And of course, people stole things from set 😏🪺. More scoops here 👇
Walking With Dinosaurs: How Do We Know What Dinosaurs Looked And Sounded Like?
YouTube video by IFLScience
www.youtube.com
May 21, 2025 at 3:00 PM
We had a little sneak peek ahead of #WalkingwithDinosaurs starting this week and chatted to the folks behind the scenes who made the science and (VFX) magic happen. And of course, people stole things from set 😏🪺. More scoops here 👇
just discovered my new favourite word
February 9, 2025 at 4:03 PM
just discovered my new favourite word
Reposted by Rachael Funnell
Incredible Footage Shows Ultra Rare All-Black King Penguin On South Georgia Island via @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social @iflscience.com
www.iflscience.com/incredible-f...
www.iflscience.com/incredible-f...
Incredible Footage Shows Ultra Rare All-Black King Penguin On South Georgia Island
“I don’t believe anyone has seen this all black penguin before.”
www.iflscience.com
January 22, 2025 at 10:39 PM
Incredible Footage Shows Ultra Rare All-Black King Penguin On South Georgia Island via @rachaelhfunnell.bsky.social @iflscience.com
www.iflscience.com/incredible-f...
www.iflscience.com/incredible-f...
it's got to be a high-scoring kind of spoonerism to accidentally call a spoonbill a spillboon
December 30, 2024 at 11:14 AM
it's got to be a high-scoring kind of spoonerism to accidentally call a spoonbill a spillboon
The jumping guabine is considered pretty common in its home of Trinidad, but it's secretly been pulling off one of nature's greatest expeditions using its tail to breathe. Check out the amazing sequence from #TheSecretLivesOfAnimals @iflscience.com www.iflscience.com/tail-breathi...
Tail-Breathing Killifish Can Travel 6,000 Times Their Body Length On Land
Fittingly, they’re known locally as jumping guabine.
www.iflscience.com
December 17, 2024 at 5:09 PM
The jumping guabine is considered pretty common in its home of Trinidad, but it's secretly been pulling off one of nature's greatest expeditions using its tail to breathe. Check out the amazing sequence from #TheSecretLivesOfAnimals @iflscience.com www.iflscience.com/tail-breathi...
and we're gonna put it in the bin
December 12, 2024 at 4:36 PM
and we're gonna put it in the bin
haunted by the way that modern culture has warped what it means to spend time with family, my saturday plans are now building a christmas tree out of gherkins
November 28, 2024 at 11:24 AM
haunted by the way that modern culture has warped what it means to spend time with family, my saturday plans are now building a christmas tree out of gherkins
When you see one chasing a human, the closest living relative of T. rex does kind of make sense #Paleontology @iflscience.bsky.social www.iflscience.com/what-is-the-...
What Is The Closest Living Relative To T. Rex? You Might Be Surprised
Sort of makes sense when they’re chasing you.
www.iflscience.com
November 27, 2024 at 9:56 AM
When you see one chasing a human, the closest living relative of T. rex does kind of make sense #Paleontology @iflscience.bsky.social www.iflscience.com/what-is-the-...
Ever heard of the squirting cucumber? It's high time you got uncomfortably familiar with the mechanism that allows it to spew seeds 10m in a way that might be unique in the plant kingdom @iflscience.bsky.social www.iflscience.com/explosive-st...
Explosive Study Reveals How Squirting Cucumber Engorges And Erupts, Shooting Seeds 10 Meters
“The seeds spurt out, even endangering the eyes.”
www.iflscience.com
November 26, 2024 at 9:47 AM
Ever heard of the squirting cucumber? It's high time you got uncomfortably familiar with the mechanism that allows it to spew seeds 10m in a way that might be unique in the plant kingdom @iflscience.bsky.social www.iflscience.com/explosive-st...
Do #chimpanzees have culture? Simple and complex tool use is seen across different groups, and it seems the most sophisticated toolsets spread as females switch groups. As for whether her new community wants to learn? That's another thing @iflscience.bsky.social www.iflscience.com/groundbreaki...
Groundbreaking “Genetic Time Machine” Reveals Evidence Of Cumulative Culture In Chimpanzees
When females switch social groups, they take all kinds of tricks with them.
www.iflscience.com
November 25, 2024 at 4:28 PM
Do #chimpanzees have culture? Simple and complex tool use is seen across different groups, and it seems the most sophisticated toolsets spread as females switch groups. As for whether her new community wants to learn? That's another thing @iflscience.bsky.social www.iflscience.com/groundbreaki...
has anyone given a name to the phenomenon of thinking things are AI when they probably aren't because I've been looking so closely at hands for so long that now they all look wrong
November 22, 2024 at 12:52 PM
has anyone given a name to the phenomenon of thinking things are AI when they probably aren't because I've been looking so closely at hands for so long that now they all look wrong