As more people head outdoors to hike, bike, and explore, what does that mean for wildlife sharing those same spaces? Research by @claytontlamb.bsky.social et al in the mountains near Fernie, BC found that animals respond very differently to recreation:

The same trail. Different users. New paper examining how wildlife respond to hiking and biking trails near Fernie, BC using camera traps and GPS-collared grizzly bears. Elk, bears, and other species don’t all respond to recreation the same way. Makes mgmt hard. academic.oup.com/jmammal/adva...

Part 2/2: A “molecular passport” is like a travel document for each seed, recording its origin story—where it came from, who its parent was, and its unique genetic fingerprint. By combining this with location and climate data, scientists can follow each seed’s journey,…

Part 1/2: A very fun illustration project into the novel (for me!) world of plant genetics. I got to work with the amazing @jillhamilton.bsky.social on this manuscript

From 2025! Fruit flies change their pigmentation depending on temperature, becoming lighter in warmer conditions. By studying wild and experimental populations across space (ie: latitude) and time (ie: seasons)…

Freshwater habitats are in serious decline, and while many projects aim to restore them, it’s often unclear whether they actually work. This paper explains how measuring habitat quality can better show if restoration efforts are truly helping habitats recover.

Temperature sensing Part 3: Physiological processes and ecological conditions can alter thermoTRP channels, affecting temperature perception. Check out the latest from Currie and York! doi.org/10.1242/

Temperature sensing Part 2: TRP channels across fish from a wide range of thermal habitats show species-specific temperature activation thresholds. In this way, TRP channels are excellent targets for understanding evolutionary adaptation. Check out the latest from Currie and York! doi.org/10.1242/

Temperature sensing Part 1: Climate change is warming the environment faster than many animals can adapt, and ectotherms, like most fish, are especially at risk because their physiology depend directly on the surrounding temperature.

This piece was illustrated for Tigist et al.’s recent paper in Molecular Cell. The dynamic regulation and fine-tuning of proteins via phosphorylation can turn metabolism into a coordinated and often improvised rhythm.

Excellent piece by Matz @heatshok.bsky.social and colleagues discussing the dire status of Caribbean reefs, and potential plans and policies that can be implemented if these reefs are to have any chance. Check it out in PNAS!

🧪🌎 All western Atlantic coral reefs are on the same decline trajectory, although Florida is one of the most further along: doi.org/10.1111/cobi... illustration by @rushstudio.bsky.social

Gavin Foster@thefosterlab.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Very effective illustration of what has happened to Florida's coral reefs in response to anthropogenic climate and environment change. The loss of this important ecosystem is all but complete - attempts to rescue it discussed here: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... 🪸🧪🌊

Latest paper from Toews et al @davetoews.bsky.social. Their study into microenvironments within the forest canopy revealed that these warbler species opportunistically feed upon the spiders they encounter in their preferred strata in the canopy. Check it out in Ornithology!!! doi.org/10.1093/orni...

I could give you a great summary of our new warbler diet paper… but if a picture says a thousand words, this awesome graphical abstract by @rushstudio.bsky.social tells the whole story. 🦉🧪 academic.oup.com/auk/article/...

Life stages of Fundulus heteroclitus. Mummichog, killifish, call it what you want, but know it is among the mightiest inhabitants of North America’s east coast estuaries

The Waddinton epigenetic landscape… for salmonids! The concept is that cells can roll downhill to their “endpoint” differentiated state. However, the landscape itself can be modified by various factors, “nudging” the ball into different valleys. Figure for Schulte Lab.

Sturgeon #archives #fish

Logo for the Forest Genetics Conference 2025. The logo is a nod to the Western Forest Genetics Association (WFGA), the Southern Forest Tree Improvement Committee (SFTIC), & the Northern Forest Genetics Association (NFGA). June 23-27th, hosted by the Schatz Centre at Penn State, in State College, PA

Understanding animal physiology in all its forms necessitates asking hard-to-measure questions. Until his retirement last year, @zoology.ubc.ca was lucky enough to have Bruce Gillespie create custom equipment for over 25 yrs, assisting us in quantifying our research. Here are a few of his creations.

Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch)

From the archives - a little different from my usual projects, but a rewarding one: Van Kam is a Canadian company owned and operating out of Western Canada for almost 70 years. A while back they asked me to help them visualize their core values: Care, Achieve, and Develop.

Recent paper from the lab of @tfrasierdna.bsky.social. The endangered North Atlantic right whale suffer from low genetic diversity and high mutation load, which can impact recovery. However, genetic purging has reduced harmful mutations, potentially contributing to future recovery.

Great evening with some @y2y.bsky.social friends discussing wildlife conservation and coexistence in the Elk Valley and beyond. Awesome to have graphics from @rushstudio.bsky.social and Fuse consulting anchoring our discussions. Exciting solutions for highway collisions and bear conflicts brewing.

New paper by Lamb et al. (@claytontlamb.bsky.social). Southern mountain caribou exhibit both vertical and horizontal migration, but migratory behaviours are under threat due to disturbances, particularly at lower elevations.

NEW PAPER: looking into the erosion of southern mountain caribou migrations. Over 35 years, migration distances shrank 15-25%, and elevational migrations are collapsing. Habitat loss, not weather, likely the main culprit. A major conservation challenge ahead. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Happy Holidays! Due to the postal strike this card did not get the distribution it usually does, and those who get one expect it late. But the sentiment remains the same - I hope everyone has a kickass 2025! And on behalf of Kuma and Yider, don’t forget, #adoptdontshop.

Folks, did you know there's a whole bird nerd podcast? It's called "Warblers" by Birds Canada. Not only does have a great name, but it also features some quality content .. e.g. the 20:00 mark on the latest episode someone waxing poetic about bird hybridization 🦉🧪 www.birdscanada.org/warblerspodc...

Coming in December: Registration for the first joint conference between WFGA-SFTIC-NFGA June 23-27, 2025 in State College, PA - See you there!! #ForestGenetics2025 #climateadaptation #treebreeding #restoration #seedsourcing #biotechnology #conservation #foresthealth forestgeneticsconference2025.com

Happy Holidays from sunny Vancouver! The number one highlight of 2023 was arranging for the adoption of Yider for my parents (Free Korean Dogs) and Kuma for us (Adopt Korean Rescue). The upgrade to my life has been immeasurable, mostly because these goofballs are a laugh a minute.

Marine snails are vulnerable to climate change, and their limited mobility combined with the rapid rates of summertime warming in the Strait of Georgia increase exposure risk. Fiona Beaty explored this in detail in her recent work, out now in Ecology. It was a treat illustrating this one!