Tash Gillies

@tashgillies.bsky.social

Behavioural ecologist and seabird enthusiast, currently a Leverhulme ECF @sheffielduni.bsky.social studying the evolution of biparental care. Managing Editor @marineorno.bsky.social (she/her) https://www.natashagillies.co.uk

New PhD opportunities in behavioural ecology at the University of Tasmania and Macquarie University working with Geoff While and Martin Whiting plus multiple international collaborators on lizard sociality and communication. Please spread the word! #phd

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Thrilled to share this! None of it would have been possible without the persistence and passion of so many researchers going back to the Arctic. This is exactly why we keep going — even when the results feel far away 🐦‍⬛❄️ More thanks in the comments 🙏

Journal of Animal Ecology@animalecology.bsky.social · 3mo ago

25 years, 4 colonies across the Arctic: satellite snowmelt data & nest monitoring show that earlier snowmelt advances hatching in little auks — but fitness consequences are mixed. Will earlier breeding help in future? 📝 paper: buff.ly/G49YbQW 🎙️ podcast: buff.ly/LPMOT9w 🧊 blog: buff.ly/lMPDKkD

Migrated to Bluesky as I'm excited to share our new paper on collective route memories in homing pigeons: rdcu.be/e73Qk We found flocks remembered old routes better than pigeons flying alone, likely because different birds remembered different parts of the route!

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Behind schedule with this but it was also very nice to see one of my PhD chapters officially come out in @animalecology.bsky.social last week! This one felt like a long road but came from a great collaboration and highlights the importance of long-term time series! 🧵below...

Journal of Animal Ecology@animalecology.bsky.social · 6mo ago

🚨 new research! 🪽 "environmentally induced stress affects fitness of bold and shy alike: A long-term study of personality and feather corticosterone in Arctic-breeding kittiwakes" 🔍️ read it here: buff.ly/Zj9b7z0

@katrina-siddiqi.bsky.social & my review on same-sex partnerships in birds is now out in the JAVB Award Issue special, with a beautiful cover by @bertillemohring.bsky.social! 🐧🏳️‍🌈 Check it out along with other brilliant reviews by fellow ECRs on everything from microbiomes to the importance of sleep

Journal of Avian Biology@avianbiology.bsky.social · 7mo ago

🚨 Now out: Award Issue, collecting all seven mini-reviews included in the 2025 Review Competition written by early career researchers. Highlighting emerging or less explored topics in avian biology ➡️ vist.ly/4pzxr Cover: pair of female Laysan albatrosses by Bertille Mohring #ornithology

Award issue cover with an illustration by Bertille Mohring of a pair of female Laysan albatrosses.

🚨 PhD alert 🚨 We are looking for a highly motivated student to use 🧬 genomics 🧬 and 🛰️ bio-logging 🛰️ approaches to disentangle cultural and genetic contributions to seabird migration 🐣 Think this is you, or someone you know? Then come to our Q&A session at on 29/09 and check out the ad below!

UPDATE: We have data on >1000 terminated #NSF grants at grant-watch.us. Thanks to all who have been contributing data the past few days. We've also added a "Reports" section with some analyses. For NSF, we see that the STEM education directorate has been absolutely pummeled.

Screenshot of table showing number of grants and total value terminated by NSF directorate. STEM Education directorate is highlighted, with 417 terminations totaling 322 million dollars.

CSV of table:
Directorate,No. Terminated,Total Value
Biological Sciences,46,"$27,960,075"
Computer and Information Science and Engineering,85,"$44,630,113"
Engineering,94,"$33,472,485"
Geosciences,52,"$36,454,740"
Mathematical and Physical Sciences,30,"$6,418,312"
Office of the Director,7,"$4,859,738"
STEM Education,417,"$322,680,063"
"Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences",266,"$77,635,904"
"Technology, Innovation and Partnerships",46,"$62,231,309"

new preprint: ecoevorxiv.org/repository/view/9055 Code used in research is key to the methods and scientific output and we should ensure it’s not just "available" but easy to verify and build on. We present a practical tool to code review for scientists 🧪 work with @animalecol-nioo.bsky.social

Code review in practice: A checklist for computational reproducibility and collaborative research in ecology and evolution

ecoevorxiv.org