Dr Dave
@ecosystemunraveller.com
Professor of Ecology, educator, maker | birds, mistletoe, acoustics, conservation | updates on research, family & other beasts. Living on unceded Wiradjuri country More at https://ecosystemunraveller.com
Time for another #AwesomeBirds #WildOz edition. This dapper chappy just returned to el rancho from up North where they spend the cooler months. A hollow nester like all members of its family (and order), their repeated calls are prominent in soundscapes across Australia’s woodlands and dry forests.
Amyema quandang Loranthaceae Host - Acacia shirleyi Burra Range, White Mountains National Park, Queensland, Australia October 2026 #AmyemaQuandang #Loranthaceae #Mistletoe #ozplants #ozflora #Australiannature #botany #Flora #wildoz #Queensland #nature #photography #photographyofbluesky
Do i have anyone on here who is an expert on Anomalurus species? Particularly interested in diet. Send me a DM : )
"...I told a room full of students how important her writing is, I put her on reading lists, I cited her research in my papers. But the person whose work I was celebrating so heartily had absolutely no idea I was doing any of this". Let's tell them! 👇 www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Admire another researcher’s work? Tell them about it
A small act of appreciation won’t solve the structural problems of academic life. But it can’t hurt.
nature.com
Moth transits! I've been loving the Bogong moth resurgence in 2026, took a chance to capture a few of the many, many moths around Sydney passing in front of the Sun, like furry space stations! ASI585MM @90fps, 100-400mm lens at 300mm, focus shifted slightly between Sun and transiting moths.
Lots of animals get called "weird" (platypuses being the prime example- read #PlatypusMatters for the story behind that), but #deer seem to avoid this term. For me, few things are weirder than growing - & then dropping - several kilos of bone out of your head every year.🦌 #MammalWatching #UKwildlife
New paper in Glob. Change Biol. compiling a massive dataset on phenology of grassland birds in the Great Plains. Breeding seasons becoming shorter in the arid south but longer in the prairie potholes. Led by @ksellis.bsky.social with a big team of contributors. #ornithology doi.org/10.1111/gcb....
Yellow-vented Flowerpecker (Pachyglossa chrysorrhea) feeding on the fruit of Viscum ovalifolium (Oval-leaved Mistletoe). A new food item for the species. #BirdsSeenIn2026 #Perak #Malaysia #birds #nature #wildlife @birdsoftheworld.bsky.social
Some #birds are flying under the radar, literally. Low certainty in their #Conservation status means we might be missing the warning signs A third of species had low status certainty, including 48 #ThreatenedSpecies #EditorsChoice Read the full article by Watson et al here doi.org/10.1071/PC25...
Quantifying knowledge uncertainty in the conservation status of Australian birds
Australia may be underestimating the extinction risk facing many of its birds. Assessing 255 species, we found that 29% had highly uncertain conservation s
doi.org
My latest article for The Conversation! And if you happen to be in South-East New South Wales, I'll be on ABC local radio at 9.20 tomorrow morning, talking more about blackberries and their enemies. theconversation.com/over-40-year...
Over 40 years ago, a mystery vigilante released a fungus to control blackberry in Australia. But why?
Blackberries have long been a problem for Australian farmers and bushwalkers. But who would have illegally released a fungus as a biological control?
theconversation.com
Dingo pup on the way back to the den. I saw him and hid, but he caught a whiff and said no thanks!! #wildoz
Every seedling that following the last rains is emerging in this refuse dump of the harvester ant Messor capitatus (nest entrance in the center of the picture) is a harvest failure for the ant and a potential win for the mother plant. In seed dispersal jargon, this is named "dyszoochory"
Wetlands can be managed by ‘environmental water’ which can support ecological processes eg waterbird breeding. But may also affect virus transmission and spread. Overview of potential management levers and decisions and implications in context of HPAI 👉 link.springer.com/article/10.1...
A new species of fantail has been described from Indonesia's Babar Islands:
New fantail species described from Indonesia
A new species of fantail has been described from Indonesia's Babar Islands. The bird, which has a proposed English name of Cheerful Fantail, was previously considered to be a locally breeding population of the monotypic Cinnamon-tailed Fantail.
f.mtr.cool
I've been poking around the forest of @tapirvalley.bsky.social for six years, hoping to see this bird there. Today I got to see two Rufous-vented Ground-cuckoos working an ant swarm this morning. I hope they stick around for a bit. #birds #costarica #nature
Pied Currawong Strepera graculina with tick, likely Ixodes holocyclus. Photo by Robert Taylor.
A fab week of doing animal tracking in the desert. Bilby burrows and scats, great sunsets, impressive termite mounds and spot the bustard (bush turkey) in the last one. 🐾🔥🌅 #wildoz
Go on, get..!! Our resident Willie Wagtail not happy with this Spotted Harrier moving in on his territory..!! #birds #brucebirdlife
Bell Miner. A honeyeater found in coastal southeast Australia. They form large colonies and drive out other birds, but they do make a beautiful sound. 😊 #BirdOfTheDay #birds #WildOz
👇 This is not true as a universal statement. Many species across many groups from fish, to birds, dogs, bats and even humans sometimes demonstrate reciprocal altruism and calculated fairness.
Digital Brain@yourdigitalbrain.bsky.social · 5d agoNature has no concept of fair play. Ambushes, sneak bites and stealing prey are not cheating, they are just the most efficient survival strategy evolution rewards.
