Looking for an Associate Prof position? Interested in behavioural ecology & cultural evolution? Come join us at the Dpt of Ecology and Evolution in Lausanne🇨🇭 @dee-unil.bsky.social @unil.bsky.social! Great department & great place to live. Pls RP. Apply here: wwwfbm.unil.ch/releve/appli...

Trade-offs Between Intergenerational and Transgenerational Effects: experimental data and demographic simulation model of multigenerational trade-offs in evolution: academic.oup.com/evlett/advan...

Evolutionary trade-offs between intergenerational and transgenerational fitness effects

Abstract. Intergenerational and transgenerational fitness effects can shape evolutionary processes. Theoretically, however, intergenerational and transgene

academic.oup.com

Across arthropods, sperm often work in coordinated groups rather than alone. This cooperative strategy appears to have evolved repeatedly over roughly 600 million years, but why it arises remains unclear. doi.org/hcdbx9

A cooperative approach to reproductive success

Fertilization is often imagined as a frantic race, with millions of sperm competing for a single prize. But new research by a team of evolutionary biologists from Syracuse University, the University of Siena in Italy and the University of Szeged in Hungary reveals a more surprising reality, where success can depend less on competition and more on cooperation.

phys.org

#ActuSapiens juillet 2026 : les biologistes contre-attaquent ! En biologie évolutive, le sexe se définit (encore et toujours) de façon binaire : petits gamètes pour les mâles et gros pour les femelles. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.70426

Across 35 North American bird species, adult females had 12.4% lower survival than males on average. The gap was strongest in long-distance migrants, but no clear explanation emerged. doi.org/hcc5sd

Female birds have shorter lifespans than male birds across 35 North American species, researchers find

Birds have a lot to do in their short lives: defend territories, build nests, raise chicks and feed themselves. But the toll of these activities may be greater for female birds than for male birds.

phys.org

Why do some deep-sea anglerfish males become permanent parasites? This #ProcB study finds that parasitic males evolve when mating opportunities are rare. doi.org/10.1098/rspb... | #Evolution #TheoreticalBiology

.The very talented and fun Jonathan Henshaw has two positions to offer! If you like theoretical eco-evo questions, don't hesitate. Also, Freiburg is a very pretty place PhD: uni-freiburg.de/stellenangeb... Postdoc: uni-freiburg.de/stellenangeb...

Opinion article co-authored with Peter Thrall: "AI will reorganize science. Will research remain a human enterprise?" www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

AI will reorganize science. Will research remain a human enterprise? | PNAS

AI will reorganize science. Will research remain a human enterprise?

pnas.org

Avocados come in 2 varieties - A-types start each day female and switch to male midday. B-types do the reverse. In work just published from the last chapter of my PhD, we show this system evolved 40+million yrs ago and is regulated by alleles of 1 transcription factor www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Balanced polymorphism in a floral transcription factor underlies the ancient rhythm of daily sex alternation in avocado | PNAS

In avocado and certain wild relatives in Lauraceae, a highly synchronized daily rhythm of floral sex timing promotes cross-pollination between two ...

pnas.org

Our paper is now out! Thanks to @annecharmantier.bsky.social , Samuel, Ségolène, Emilie, Baptiste, the whole zoo team, and the Montpellier tit team 🕊️

Evolution Letters@evolletters.bsky.social · last wk.

Are city birds genetically adapting to urban life? A common garden experiment in great tits reveals hidden evolutionary changes masked by environmental effects in the wild. doi.org/10.1093/evle... Image by G. Laurent, wikimedia

🧪 ETHOLOGY: Can female birds hear if a male is already taken? 🐦🎶❤️ Lampe et al. show female pied flycatchers distinguish between songs of unmated and already-mated males, preferring bachelors and avoiding polyterritorial males trying to attract a second mate. #OpenAccess: doi.org/10.1111/eth.70088

Female Pied Flycatchers <fi>Ficedula hypoleuca</fi> Can Discriminate Between Songs of Unmated and Mated Males and Avoid Being Deceived Into Polygyny

We recorded songs of male pied flycatchers when they were unmated (twice) and when the same males were mated and displaying on a secondary territory. The syllable switching was much higher after mati...

doi.org

Females hyenas have greter reproductive inequality due to social inheritance of privilege! The study I presented at @isbe2026.bsky.social and done with the @hyenaproject.bsky.social came out finally!! Check it out! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

After six generations, virtually all spotted hyenas in a clan trace back to an alpha female line. Across generations, reproductive inequality shifts toward females, a pattern far weaker through fathers. doi.org/hccfsz

When mothers make the winners: How alpha female lineages dominate hyena clans

In mammals, males are usually stronger and more competitive than females. Males also show greater inequality in reproductive success—the number of offspring they produce—than females.

phys.org

New research in red flour beetles shows that sexual conflict is condition-dependent: high-condition males inflict more harm, while high-condition females resist it better. Findings reveal sex differences in adaptation may shape evolutionary outcomes: doi.org/10.1093/jeb/... Gómez-Llano 2026

Individual condition mediates the costs of sexual conflict through both male harm and female resistance

Abstract. Sexual conflict arises when the reproductive interests of males and females diverge, leading to decreased female fitness due to male‐induced harm

doi.org

We refine & extend the Y-model heuristic (“mean invariance” hypothesis) to explain why resource limitation reveals tradeoffs + suggestions for what empiricists should measure (hint: it’s not average resource availability in a population, or solely variation in acquisition-allocation). Now in JEB

Influence of the resource acquisition–allocation Y-model’s parameters on the detection of phenotypic trade-offs

Abstract. Phenotypic trade-offs, predicted to occur due to resource limitation, are not commonly detected. For this, the Y-model provides a powerful heuris

academic.oup.com

Do humans and birds share an eye for design? 🐦🎨 For my Master's diss, I’m testing if we share aesthetic tastes with bowerbirds. I need 100 responses to finish! Visual, anonymous & under 5 mins. Link: exe.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_... 🧪 cc: @scienseed.com #AcademicSky #SciComm

Ever wondered what the bizarre dances of male birds of paradise look like to females? Check out our new preprint! @izziehb.bsky.social @fusanilab.bsky.social “The geometry of visual signaling in a bird-of-paradise” ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...

My latest Substack post: https://open.substack.com/pub/professoreriksvensson/p/on-the-diversity-of-females-in-the?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=5crvdy

On the diversity of females in the animal kingdom

Our recent article about the origin, genomics and evolution of female-limited polymorphisms in animals document a widespread phenomenon, with implications for evolutionary biology and society.

professoreriksvensson.substack.com

📢 New paper alert! 📢 We found that sex-specific loss, rather than independent evolution, drive plumage pattern dimorphism in Estrildidae, with João Pacheco, Gonçalo Cardoso @mostlywaxbills.bsky.social , and Michael Sorenson, at Evolution academic.oup.com/evolut/artic... (1/7)

Evolution of sexually dimorphic plumage patterns in estrildid finches

Abstract. Pigmentation patterns aid in camouflage and may also serve for communication. To understand the evolution of different types of within-feather pi

academic.oup.com

Why is there so much unconstructive and vitriolic rhetoric in the discourse about the definition of biological sex? Hooven & Byrne's recent paper “Sex, Medicine, and Moralization” offers some compelling answers: philpapers.org/rec/HOOSMA

In a new #Viewpoint we argue that the binary definition of #BiologicalSex based on gamete size is a scientifically robust framework that is entirely compatible with the diversity of sexual phenotypes and human gender identities. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Biological Sex Is Binary and Rooted in Anisogamy

Drawing on empirical evidence and evolutionary theory, we argue that biological sex is most coherently defined as a binary classification of reproductive strategies rooted in anisogamy (the productio....

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Do you have a background in behavioural ecology and are you interested in doing a PhD in Australia? I’m looking for new grad students so check out our website (BobWongLab.org) or come find me in Torino at #ISBE2026. 🐟🐠

🐦🌙 Happy to see this big collaborative paper out in @currentbiology.bsky.social! We address a seemingly simple question using geolocator data collected across many species and individuals: how much of bird migration actually happens at night? www.cell.com/current-biol... A short🧵

Join our symposium on Eco-evolutionary Dynamics of #SexualSelection and #SexualConflicts this afternoon (14h00 and 16h30, room ‘Montlouis’) @ece2026tours.bsky.social featuring keynote talks by @nataliepilakouta.bsky.social and @paucarazo.bsky.social plus many other fantastic speakers!

Ever wondered what female chickadees look for in a male? An ‘important’ study suggests these socially monogamous birds seek out additional males with better cognitive abilities than their nestmate, to help increase the fitness of their offspring. buff.ly/fQmQKCW

Inbreeding leads to fitness loss- using (Tribolium castaneum), we tested pre- and post-copulatory inbreeding avoidance mechanisms- Males courted related females more, "a surprising result"...here it is: doi.org/10.1371/jour... #insects #biodiversity #science @exeter.ac.uk #FathiAttia #tomtregenza

Jon's new study in @natecoevo.nature.com shows that genetic rescue can increase long-term fitness despite elevating putative genetic load. Interested? Check out our paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41... A short thread below 🧵 Coauthored by @jacek-radwan.bsky.social and @mkonczal.bsky.social

Genetic rescue increases long-term fitness despite elevating putative genetic load in a male-dimorphic mite - Nature Ecology & Evolution

An experiment with male-dimorphic mites shows long-lasting benefits of genetic rescue, regardless of type of male rescuer and despite introducing genetic load, in populations subjected to a thermal st...

nature.com

Our latest @ukri.org-funded work is out now in @pnas.org – Mating-dependent lifespan cost of sterol depletion in male Drosophila melanogaster. 4 years work from a terrific team of PDRAs, techs, students and collabs! @liverpooluni.bsky.social @livuniresearch.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Sexier in the city? Urban male great bowerbirds decorate bowers with human-made objects, creating brighter and more varied displays than rural males. Males strongly prefer human-made objects over natural ones, possibly boosting their appeal to females! shorturl.at/lcNY2 @royalsocietypublishing.org

"Sexually antagonistic selection: a review of the theory and its implications" doi.org/10.32942/X28M22