Eric Ekdale
@eekdale.bsky.social
I teach Biology at San Diego State University. And I study the ears of dead things. And whales. And mammals in general. And other things paleontological, comparative anatomical, and evolutionarily biological that strike my fancy. Opinions are my own.
The sensory world of the Dodo and Solitaire revealed by endocast and skull anatomy academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/a...
The sensory world of the Dodo and Solitaire revealed by endocast and skull anatomy
Abstract. The Dodo (Raphus cucullatus) and its close relative, the Rodriguez Solitaire (Pezophaps solitaria), are two of the most recognized symbols of hum
academic.oup.com
#whalewednesday Tokarahia kauaeroa, a large eomysticetid whale from the Oligocene (~26 myo) Otekaike Limestone of New Zealand - long-snouted 'surfboard' whale, early filter-feeder. Small in comparison to modern whales, but one of the largest early baleen whales - published from my PhD thesis in 2015
🚨New Pub!🚨Early Paleocene (earliest Torrejonian) mammals from the Tullock Member of the Fort Union Formation, northeastern Montana, U.S.A.🦴🇺🇸by Hovatter & Mantilla www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Early Paleocene (earliest Torrejonian) mammals from the Tullock Member of the Fort Union Formation, northeastern Montana, U.S.A.
The Hell Creek Formation and overlying Tullock Member of the Fort Union Formation in northeastern Montana are well known for preserving an exceptional fossil record of mammals leading up to and acr...
tandfonline.com
SMM FIELDWORK SERIES ✨ This field season, Drs. Emily Sperou and Sarah Kienle are traveling across Australia to uncover the life histories hidden within museum collections, one leopard seal skull at a time 🦭
Exhilarated to share a 2nd @science.org cover article this month from our lab @ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social! A collaboration with US & Mexico colleagues on the role of a Mexican biogeographic holding pen in shaping the Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI)(1/11) www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
The Effects of Post‐Divergence Gene Flow on Simultaneous Divergence Time Testing - Tofflemire - 2026 - Molecular Ecology Resources - Wiley Online Library onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
The Effects of Post‐Divergence Gene Flow on Simultaneous Divergence Time Testing
Estimating simultaneous divergence across multiple taxonomic groups from genetic data is a common approach in phylogeographical studies, providing insight into the historical and evolutionary factors...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
I am beyond excited to share that our paper, "Neurodivergent Perceptions, Experiences, and Perspectives in Academic Biological Sciences Spaces" has been published! A 🧵incoming because this paper is so special to me and the co-authors. doi.org/10.1093/icb/...
Neurodivergent Perceptions, Experiences, and Perspectives in Academic Biological Sciences Spaces
Abstract. Neurodiversity has received considerable attention recently from the general population and academic researchers, coinciding with an increase in
doi.org
Sustained investment in specimen-based taxonomic research is key to moving towards effective conservation. iucn.org/news/202607/...
From collections to conservation: the indispensable role of natural history museums
The IUCN Species Survival Commission has published a Position Statement on the vital role of biological collections in biodiversity conservation: a formal acknowledgement that natural history museums,...
iucn.org
Historical Perspective: Sridhar et al. use the backstories of famous scientific papers in Ecology and Evolution to uncover the background roles of natural history that are written out of papers. Available now ahead of print! www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...
Taxonomy is far from complete but it also is not "complete enough" to warrant the disinvestment seen in ithe field and natural history generally. Museums and herbaria need funds to store, curate, and describe species and taxonomists need to be paid to do it www.nature.com/articles/s44...
The flounder effect: disparities in taxonomic and ecological study intensity across extant and fossil marine organisms hamper conservation - npj Biodiversity
npj Biodiversity - The flounder effect: disparities in taxonomic and ecological study intensity across extant and fossil marine organisms hamper conservation
nature.com
Marc A. Milne@forthespiders.bsky.social · 2w agoIt may be surprising to some that there are thousands of undescribed species just sitting in museums awaiting description. One of the main reasons this problem exists is that taxonomy is undervalued and underfunded, a trend that coincides with the devaluing of studies on natural history.
My Bachelor's thesis has been published! We examined the problematic taxonomy of Zygorhiza kochii and Dorudon serratus, with implications for the wider taxonomy of the basilosauridae. A small thread:
On the identity of historical specimen TM 8501 and the taxonomy of North American Basilosauridae (Mammalia, Cetartiodactyla, Archaeoceti)
Phylogeny and taxonomy of early whales have always been a complicated matter, partly due to confusing nineteenth-century descriptions and diagnoses and a profusion of given names. A largely complete c...
sciencepress.mnhn.fr
preprint here: doi.org/10.64898/202...
Headbutting goats self-inflict traumatic brain injury
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a characteristic feature of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Small animal models have been used to establish...
doi.org
The larvae of a beetle native to South and Central America, the critters are the perfect solution to sticky problem: How to prepare an animal skeleton for scientific use.
A bug commonly sold at pet stores is helping scientists with a vexing task
The larvae of a beetle native to South and Central America, the critters are the perfect solution to sticky problem: How to prepare an animal skeleton for scientific use.
n.pr
Join SICB's Zoom for July with Dr. Selina-Viktor Robson , a #paleontologist who specializes in the #evolution of even-toed hoofed #mammals (i.e., artiodactyls) including well-known species such as llamas, cows, and pigs. www.icp.cat/index.php/es... iobopen.com/2026/01/12/r... #science
Nelson 𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘭. (2025) show the cranium, atlas and axis of 𝙀𝙤𝙨𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙙𝙤𝙣 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙬𝙞𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙞, revealing features linked to feeding behaviour: an enlarged temporal fossa, a dorsoventrally tall coronoid process, and a pronounced fossa for jaw‑adductor musculature: buff.ly/43FWxpK #FossilFriday #PaleoSky
The seminar below is about ears, which makes it inherently interesting. But a seminar about the ears of marine mammals? Bliss!
Dr James Rule@palaeo-jrule.bsky.social · 3w agoI recorded a seminar for the Royal Society on our study on the Evolution of amphbious hearing in seals 🦭🔊🧪 cassyni.com/events/7cKKw...
For the first time ever at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, two echidna "twins" have hatched in the same breeding season 🤎
In 2016, video captured invasive tree snakes in Guam climbing to reach their feathered prey—with a never-before-seen lassolike gripping technique. Learn more on #WorldSnakeDay: https://scim.ag/4hbb0Zy
If you want an up-to-date summary of whale and dolphin evolution, have a read of my new review paper in @natrevbiodiv.nature.com! I’ve tried to cover as much research as possible in this, so apologies if I’ve missed you! doi.org/10.1038/s443...
The evolution and diversification of Cetacea - Nature Reviews Biodiversity
Cetaceans are a highly diverse and enigmatic group of animals with a well-documented evolutionary history. This Review describes the macroevolutionary and palaeobiological history of Cetacea, from the...
doi.org
Excited to share our latest study highlighted on the cover of @science.org 🥳Combining a 3D dataset representing 250 taxa spanning the whole Cenozoic, 3D modelling & printing and material testing; we deciphered the form-function relationship in the lower 🦷 of mammals www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
As feeding fin whales expel water from their mouths, krill could build up clogging the baleen sieves, but if that happened it would take 16mins to empty whale mouths, not 31s. The whales must be doing something to keep the krill afloat to stop clogging journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
#whalewednesday A beautiful molar of the extinct toothed baleen whale Coronodon from the Oligocene (~30 myo) of South Carolina - very similar to the teeth of ancestral basilosaurid whales from a few million years prior. 🦖🐋🧪
Seals have a superpower: they are the only mammals with amphibious hearing! They hear well both in-air and underwater. My collagues and I have a new study in Proceedings B on the origins and evolution of amphibious hearing in pinnipeds 🦭🔊🧪 doi.org/10.1098/rspb...
The origin and evolution of amphibious hearing in pinnipeds
Abstract. Pinnipeds (true seals, eared seals and walruses) are the only mammals that can hear effectively in both air and water. How and when they achieved
doi.org
TBH, elephant seals look like 1970s Doctor Who villains no matter what angle you're looking at them.
Oregon 🕎🎲@oregonthedm.bsky.social · last mo.Gotta love unusual perspective photography this is an Elephant Seal lol
whatcameradoyouhave 📍SoCal x Baja 📷 Ocean + Adventures: captured in 4K+ "Baird’s beaked whales are one of the most exotic cetaceans to encounter and one of the rarest you can see in California and Baja."
