Tessera

Juan Liu

@liujuan.bsky.social

🎣 Paleontologist diving into the deep-time story of fish evolution 🐟 | Exploring functional morphology, fossil records, and the origins of vertebrate diversity 🦴 | PI of FAM Lab (Fish and More) at UC Berkeley

29 Posts162 Follower 107 Folgt

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 5h ago

Know an outstanding early-career scientist? 🐟🐠🦴 Nominations for the Miller Postdoctoral Fellowship at @UCBerkeley (2027–2030) are now open! ⏱ Term: 3 years (starts July–Sept 2027) 🗓 Deadline: Sept 10, 2026 Details: miller.berkeley.edu/nominate-app... #Postdoc #HigherEd #ScienceJobs

Miller Research Fellowship | Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science

miller.berkeley.edu

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 6d ago

Nice work!! Second Sicence cover article of this month from Jack’s Lab!

Z. Jack Tseng@tsengzj.bsky.social · 6d ago

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/...

Cover of Science magazine for July 30, 2026. Caption from Science reads: A three-dimensional rendering shows the land bridge connection between North and South America. Research on the fossil record of mammals in Mexico suggests that the geographic region acted as a biodiversity “holding pen” for 10 million years, buffering the pace of both northward and southward movements of mammal species leading up to the Great American Biotic Interchange.

University of California Museum of Paleontology @ucmpberkeley.bsky.social · 2w ago

Happy #FossilFriday! 🐟New fish species described from Professor Juan Liu and Jiang-Yong Zhang! In their paper published in the Canadian Journal of Zoology, they describe Jianghanichthys huachongensis sp. nov., a fresh water cypriniform fish found in Guangdong, China. doi.org/10.1139/cjz-...

Juan Liu@liujuan.bsky.social · 2w ago

New fossil fish dropped! Meet Jianghanichthys huachongensis sp. nov. Despite fragile, swampy origins, exceptional preservation of its head sensory canals is shedding new light on Cypriniformes evolution! cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full/10.... #Paleontology #Ichthyology #Fossil #NewSpecies #Evolution

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 2w ago

Narimane Chatar @narimanechatar.bsky.social · 3w ago

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/...

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 3w ago

Congrats @tsengzj.bsky.social and @narimanechatar.bsky.social for the hot off the press Science paper!

Z. Jack Tseng@tsengzj.bsky.social · 3w ago

Our newest paper on mammalian dental evolution, out today as the cover article in @science.org, lead by @narimanechatar.bsky.social with a team of fantastic early career scientists!!! 🎉🥳 “Performance trade-offs define a fundamental dental dichotomy in mammals” www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Cover image of Science Magazine, with images of carnivore jaws and teeth on black background.

Z. Jack Tseng @tsengzj.bsky.social · last mo.

New publication from UCMP scientists out in Science: fruity plants began to diversify their reproductive strategies prior to the K-Pg extinction. For early #FossilFriday! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Diversification of angiosperm reproductive strategies predated the end-Cretaceous extinction

Angiosperm reproductive evolution is traditionally linked to the end-Cretaceous biotic crisis and subsequent ecological restructuring. Here, we report diverse and unexpectedly large diaspores (dispers...

science.org

Journal of Systematic Palaeontology @journalsystpal.bsky.social · 3mo ago

New paper out in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology! Taxonomic reassessment of tristichopterid materials (Sarcopterygii, Tetrapodomorpha) from Middle Devonian Red Hill, Nevada, USA by Leong and Liu (2026). Read the full study here: buff.ly/kqHxf4E #PaleoSky #NewResearch #Devonian

Matt Friedman @friedmanlab.bsky.social · 3mo ago

New study clears up a longstanding taxonomic problem with tetrapodomorph fishes from Red Hill, NV, and argues that Tinirau is a tristichopterid. Congrats to Derrick Leong and @liujuan.bsky.social of @ucmpberkeley.bsky.social!

Journal of Systematic Palaeontology@journalsystpal.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 3mo ago

May the fish be with you! ✨🐟

Fossil fish bones surrounded by rocks and found by CSVP attendees

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Humbled to see my work and opinion included in this study, alongside some of the best female paleoichthyologists across continents. Our resilience is written in the fossil record 💪🐟🐠🐡 www.researchgate.net/publication/...

(PDF) Women from the Americas and Their Contribution to Fish Paleontology

PDF | Paleontological studies have traditionally been conducted by male researchers, and the study of fossil fishes, as well as extant ones, has been no... | Find, read and cite all the research you n...

researchgate.net

John Holbein @johnholbein1.bsky.social · 7mo ago

Experimental evidence that students are more likely to contest grades when they are delivered by an evaluator with a female-sounding name. "These findings suggest that women in evaluative positions face disproportionate resistance when delivering negative assessments."

Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌@chanda.blacksky.app · 8mo ago

Sigh www.news9.com/ou-essay-rem...

OU removes graduate teaching assistant after discrimination investigation

The University of Oklahoma has concluded an investigation into claims that a student was discriminated against by receiving a zero on an assignment for referencing the Bible. The University said the g...

news9.com

Society of Vertebrate Paleontology @societyofvertpaleo.bsky.social · 10mo ago

On National Fossil Day, we celebrate the scientific and educational importance of paleontology and our responsibility to conserve fossils for future generations. Today, October 15th, 2025, is the 16th Anniversary of National Fossil Day! #NationalFossilDay www.nps.gov/subjects/fos...

National Fossil Day (U.S. National Park Service)

nps.gov

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Excavated from the Pisces Point locality of Scollard Formation in Alberta, Canada, ~67 million years old, Acronichthys maccognoi, newly reported in @science.org, was recovered from ancient water body that flipped seasonally between fast-flowing channels and quiet, still pools.

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 10mo ago

New in @science.org, meet Acronichthys maccagnoi, a new species from Late Creatacous Canada that changes what we know about the origins and evolution of one of the most successful fish groups on Earth.

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Student’s life is not getting easier!

Science Magazine@science.org · 10mo ago

NSF today released instructions for the next round of applicants to its Graduate Research Fellowship Program. A key group—second-year Ph.D. students—is no longer eligible, and students who are still able to apply will face an unusually narrow timeframe. https://scim.ag/3KlQkQk

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 12mo ago

Fascinating catfish and a great report! Make sure to turn on the sound when you play the video. You won’t regret it! 😉

Science Magazine@science.org · 12mo ago

Researchers have filmed thousands of climbing catfish scaling waterfalls, providing a rare insight into the daring migration of an enigmatic fish. Learn more: https://scim.ag/4lDlFux

University of California Museum of Paleontology @ucmpberkeley.bsky.social · last yr.

Support science and the UCMP this Thursday during #CalBigGive! Pledge to support our Education & Outreach Program! Read more about our dedication to science and our diversity of STEM Ed resources on our blog:https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/2025/03/support-science-and-the-ucmp-during-cal-big-give/

joeymaier 🌊@joeymaier.bsky.social · last yr.

Further coverage, this time from @smithsonianmag.bsky.social www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/s...

See a Rare 'Super Pod' of More Than 1,500 Risso's Dolphins Spotted off the Coast of California

Whale-watching tour operators encountered the mass gathering of cetaceans while looking for migrating gray whales

smithsonianmag.com

joeymaier 🌊@joeymaier.bsky.social · 2y ago

There are 1500 rizzo's #dolphins gathered in a super pod off the coast of #California www.thetravel.com/marine-biolo...

Z. Jack Tseng @tsengzj.bsky.social · last yr.

The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology issues statement on the recent Executive Orders and their impact on the SVP community.

We are now facing unprecedented, systemic challenges to scientific enterprise, its infrastructure, and the diverse people and communities that make it possible. The recent executive orders issued by the Office of the President of the United States threaten to directly harm our discipline and the people in it.

As paleontologists, we know that in times of upheaval, ecological communities that fare the best tend to be the most diverse. Analogously, our varied backgrounds and perspectives and our willingness to listen to and learn from each other have enabled us to adapt to challenges facing our discipline and our Society in the past. We believe that the best approach to overcoming these new challenges is to turn to our fundamental values and our mission, which includes facilitating the cooperation of all persons concerned with the history, evolution, ecology, comparative anatomy, and taxonomy of vertebrate animals. We take this moment to specifically support and affirm the right of all of our members and our non-member colleagues to conduct science and live their lives in safety and harmony, no matter their gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, religion, age, or citizenship status.

We encourage members in positions of safety and security to advocate for members who are not. Speak out in favor of research funding, evidence-based policies, and policies that ensure people of all identities receive equitable protections and opportunities. SVP leadership is actively working with other scientific organizations to respond to and mitigate the impact of these government actions on our members. We will continue to prioritize building and maintaining a diverse and inclusive vertebrate paleontology community where all feel welcome and are able to thrive.

The mission of our Society is primarily scientific in nature. We seek to advance the science of vertebrate paleontology throughout the world,

and foster the scientific, educational, and personal appreciation and understanding of vertebrate fossils and fossil sites. Several executive actions taken by the current presidential administration are antithetical to this mission, including the pause and audit of federal grant funding, the silencing of federal employees, the stripping of climate history data from government websites, the attempts to downsize the federal workforce, including departments charged with maintaining fossils and fossil sites, and attacks on academic freedom, climate change research, disabled people, transgender, intersex, and nonbinary people, immigrants, and endeavors for diversity, equity and inclusion. These actions, if successful, will impede our ability to carry out our mission and harm the broader practice of science.

The Society would like to gather additional information regarding the effects of recent federal action on paleontologists on the ground. To help us in this task, we ask that you share your experiences. We would like to know if you have been impacted or may be impacted by these executive actions. We recognize that at this point there is uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the federal funding audit, pending legal challenges, and other aspects of these executive actions, so you may not know the full impacts yet. This uncertainty itself is an impact. If you have been or might be impacted by these executive actions, please fill out this survey. Please also provide any ideas or suggestions, including areas of concern on which you believe the Society should focus.

Below we share some resources that you may find helpful when considering ways to support your colleagues and/or take action during these tumultuous times. We appreciate that this is a time full of uncertainty for many of you, especially those located in the United States, and we will do our best to keep you informed of Society actions.

In solidarity,
Stuart Sumida, SVP President, and the SVP Executive Comm.

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · last yr.

🚨Calling all undergrads!🚨 The IB SURE program at UC Berkeley is a great chance to dive into cutting-edge research in Integrative Biology! 🔬🐟🌿 My lab has hosted two IB SURE students in the past— fun research, hands-on experience, & mentorship! #ResearchOpportunity #IBSURE

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 2y ago

The remarkably similar-looking Noturus fish exhibit surprising variation in their Weberian ossicles, with significant associations to stem velocity and substrate type. This suggests that their auditory apparatus may adapt to specific microhabitats.

University of California Museum of Paleontology@ucmpberkeley.bsky.social · 2y ago

🐟 New research out today from UCMP PhD student, Jennifer Hoeflich (advised by Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social)! 🐟 anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

University of California Museum of Paleontology @ucmpberkeley.bsky.social · 2y ago

🐟 New research out today from UCMP PhD student, Jennifer Hoeflich (advised by Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social)! 🐟 anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Small fish, large variation: Morphological diversity of Weberian apparatus in Noturus catfishes and ecological implications

The Weberian apparatus is a hearing specialization unique to the otophysan fishes, and an unexpected degree of morphological variation exists in species of the Noturus catfishes. Our aim in this stud...

anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 2y ago

🎉 Published online today! 🐟 Thrilled to share FAM Lab PhD candidate Jennifer Hoeflich's thesis research! Using 3D GMM, she discovered that stream velocity & substrate influence ossicle morphology, suggesting acoustic adaptations to microhabitats. 🌊🪨🔬 #EcoMorphology #Ichthyology #Paleontology

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 2y ago

R.I.P. 💐 obits.csnh.com/william-bill...

William "Bill" N Eschmeyer Obituary 2024 - Cremation Society of New Hampshire

View William "Bill" N Eschmeyer's obituary, send flowers, find service dates, and sign the guestbook.

obits.csnh.com

Juan Liu @liujuan.bsky.social · 2y ago

A vertebrate hard at work … dreaming of fish? 🐱💤🐠