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Eric Scott

@captainfossil.bsky.social
4K followers 2.5K following 2.5K posts

Vertebrate paleontologist, specializing in Plio-Pleistocene megafauna (horses & bison, mostly), extinctions, etc. He/him. Views my own.

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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
We recently had to purchase a new cushion for our old papasan chair, and subsequently each of our kitties has laid claim to it as their own. (Missing: Buzz and Boris. But give them time.) Meanwhile, I'm hardly able to use the chair myself. 🙄 Ah, well, worth it. #Caturday #CatsOfBluesky
A bright-eyed and alert black kitty named Zorro sitting in a brightly colored papasan chair, watching events unfold.  The cover on the chair is actually a bunch of vividly-colored kitties.Our gorgeous Abyssinian girl Arya - whose coming home day is today! - lounging in our papasan chair, watching me with unwarranted caution.  The cover on the chair is actually a bunch of vividly-colored kitties, and there are dark red and black (w/ flamingos) pillows behind her.A bright-eyed and happy long-haired grey kitty named Sasha sitting in a brightly colored papasan chair, keeping an eye on things.  The cover on the chair is actually a bunch of vividly-colored kitties. There's an autumn-themed pillow and a dark red pillow behind Sasha and a black pillow w/ pink flamingos next to her.A handsome and terribly regal striped tabby cat named Tigger sprawled in a brightly colored papasan chair, deigning to hang out with us & hoping we don't notice that possibly he might lose a pound or two.  The cover on the chair is actually a bunch of vividly-colored kitties. There's an autumn-themed pillow and a dark red pillow behind him.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Here's an action that anyone who cares about the closure of the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia can take to maybe have an impact. Please consider this. Museums are important and what's happening here in Philly is a tragedy with national repercussions.
Holotype horn core of the Pleistocene species Bison antiquus, on display - for now - at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia.  Think on that - a *holotype* on display where everyone can see it!  How cool is *that*?!  Plus, the specimen is from the famed Big Bone Lick locality in Kentucky - "Birthplace of American Vertebrate Paleontology" - and was collected by William Clark of Lewis & Clark fame! What an amazing specimen - and how special that it's here *shared with the public" and not stored in off-limits collections!
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
For #FossilFriday: my first-ever visit to the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia, which is slated to close permanently this weekend unless some sort of miracle occurs. I'm thrilled to finally be here after a lifetime of wanting to visit, but heartbroken at the circumstances for my trip. 🦖🧪
Cast skeleton of Tyrannosaurus rex in the main gallery of the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
For #FossilFriday: holotype of the extinct Pleistocene bison species Bison antiquus, one of millions of specimens housed in the collections of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University - the oldest natural history museum in the US, now slated for permanent closure on 30 September. 🧪
Bison antiquus holotype (ANSP 12990) braincase with left horn core, shown in posterior view (top) and dorsal view (bottom). From McDonald & Scott (2023), The Pleistocene Fauna of Big Bone Lick, Boone County, Kentucky: A Rich History and Unanswered Questions
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Twenty five years ago, my wife and I were in Canada on 9/11 & were informed by a Starbucks clerk that there had been "some sort of kamikaze attack" back home. We found a local TV & watched in horror at what was transpiring. #NeverForget
youtu.be
Rare angle Of The 2nd Plane hitting the World Trade Center ( Twin Towers )
YouTube video by imJustTheGOAT
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
It's the 60th anniversary of Star Trek, & I'm looking around our home & seeing evidence of how Trek has been with me my whole life - books I still own from after the show ended & we fans *hoped* for another series (or even a movie!), signed photos on our wall from 1970s conventions, etc. #StarTrek
Shot of the covers of two old paperback books - "Spock Must Die!" by James Blish, and "Star Trek: The New Voyages" edited by Sondra Marshak and Myrna CulbreathFramed black and white photos on an off-white wall.  The left photo is of actress Grace Lee Whitney as Yeoman Janice Rand from Star Trek, and is signed, "To Eric, w love, Grace Lee Whitney". The right photo is of actress Nichelle Nichols as Lt. Uhura from Star Trek, and is signed, "Eric, Love, Nichelle Nichols"
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Very happy to see this! Well deserved and long overdue. Dorothea Bate was the first woman employee of the Natural History Museum @nhm-london.bsky.social , where she started at age 19 & then continued to work for 50 years. She became Curator of Ice Age birds and mammals in 1924. #MuseumMonday
bbc.com
Carmarthen fossil hunter Dorothea Bate recognised with blue plaque
Dorothea Bate discovered the dwarf elephant and the myotragus, an extinct goat-like antelope.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
The idea that the oldest natural history museum in the US is closing its doors, due to poor management & limited foresight, just shy of their bicentennial celebration is simply appalling. There is simply no legitimate excuse. This is a failure of vision and competence from Drexel University. Shame.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
This legal action is so good to see. The illegal land grab by the current US administration, & the conservative Utah politicians supporting this harmful action, will dramatically & adversely impact numerous significant fossil resources as well as multiple cultural & sacred Indigenous sites. 🦖🧪
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Solid article. And Cary @doublebeam.bsky.social likely isn't wrong in his prediction. (In fact, it has already happened, just not over a dinosaur; paleontologist Charles Repenning was murdered in his home in January 2005 by burglars looking to steal fossils among other things.)
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
For #FossilFriday: sharing this thread from paleontologist Andy Farke, who emphasizes the critical importance of *basic fossil studies* in providing the foundation for larger-scale "Big Data" investigations. Field and collections work is so, so very critical to the science. 🧪
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
For #FossilFriday: a skull of the extinct horse Equus scotti under study in the collections at the Western Science Center in Hemet, California, US. The fossil was recently recovered from Pleistocene sediments (~ 500 ka) in Murrieta, CA, US, & will be showcased at the WSC's annual PaleoCon event. 🐎🧪
Fossil horse skull sitting on a black blanket. The skull is upside down, showing the cheek teeth facing upwards. A scale bar is next to the skull (for scale).
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
One of the greatest live albums ever released (in my opinion) came out 52 years ago today, on 19 August 1974. Recorded in February 1974 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California, US, it captured the group at the height of their success. It even reached No. 4 on the Billboard 200! #ELP
Front cover of the 1974 three LP live album from Emerson, Lake & Palmer - "Welcome Back My Friends To The Show That Never Ends, Ladies and Gentlemen, Emerson Lake & Palmer"
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
It's Black Cat Appreciation Day! Boris and Zorro want you all to be celebrating. (Apparently black cats have lower adoption rates, due to silly superstitions; we're so, *so* happy not to be so foolish, 'cause it means we have these two loves in our lives.) #BlackCatAppreciationDay #CatsOfBluesky
A handsome if somewhat frazzled black cat named Boris (as proclaimed proudly by his somewhat ostentatious name tag) sitting in a window getting some sun.  The window needs cleaning - yeah, I know - but there's a clearly-visible orange tree in the yard on the other side.An *adorable* black kitty named Zorro sitting in an empty plastic box on a day bed.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Describe your musical taste in three artists, no genres: 1.) Emerson, Lake, & Palmer 2.) Jethro Tull 3.) John Williams
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Jackie the bald eagle from Big Bear has died after illness from an unknown cause, and I am in tears.
Photo of Jackie the Bald Eagle in Big Bear, by Owen Pharis
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
It's a very special #Caturday since today is also International Cat Day! In honor of this auspicious occasion, here's the whole clowder (including our outdoor kitties) wishing all who celebrate a terrific day! #InternationalCatDay #CatsOfBluesky
Collage of *eight* cats of various colours and coat lengths
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Today is "Soft Rains Day" for those who remember this haunting 1950 Ray Bradbury piece. It's classic Bradbury, eerily accurate w/ its predictions in some respects (looking at you, Alexa), and well worth a few moments of your day to read if you're so inclined.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Without saying your age, what is your favorite movie from the year you turned 18?
static.klipy.com
Luke Skywalker vs. Darth Vader Lightsaber Duel
Alt: Luke Skywalker vs. Darth Vader Lightsaber Duel
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
This loss hurts. Sam Neill was a tremendous actor and, by all measures, a terrific human being, warm & caring & charming & funny. So many of my colleagues were inspired by his performance in Jurassic Park; I first watched him ten years earlier in the British series Reilly: Ace of Spies. RIP. 😔
Sam Neill as spy Sidney Reilly in "Reilly: Ace of Spies" (1983), dressed in a tuxedo, sitting at a table with piles of cash in front of him and a cigarette in his handSam Neill as paleontologist Alan Grant in the original "Jurassic Park" (1993), standing in the rain on Isla Nublar, standing in the rain with a broad-brimmed hat
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Buzz is not terribly motivated for the weekend. #Caturday #CatsOfBluesky
An orange and white cat named Buzz atop a bureau with a window behind him, yawning mightily
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
For #FossilFriday: posing with fossil bison skull from Orange County, California at the Ralph B. Clark Interpretive Center in Buena Park, CA. Bison were among the most abundant large mammals in late Pleistocene SoCal (& the rest of North America), but their remains from "the OC" need more study. 🧪
A bespectacled man in a black shirt and jeans crouching on a carpeted floor next to a plaster jacket with a big skull of an ice age bison along with other bison bones.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Excellent new study reviewing what we *actually* know about Clovis "kill" sites. (Spoiler alert: not as much as maybe we thought we did.) Congrats to @brianapobiner.bsky.social and the whole study team! 🧪
sciencedirect.com
Did Clovis foragers hunt megafauna, scavenge their carrion, or both – And can we tell the difference?
There are currently 15 well-documented Late Pleistocene localities in North America in which Clovis points are found associated with proboscidean rema…
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
If four SC justices are comfortable w/ ignoring the specific & (one would think) inarguable language of a *constitutional amendment* ... how do you think they'll respond when the felon tries to run for a 3rd term? As he will. Anyone thinking, "No, he can't, that's unconstitutional" needs to wake up.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
A mighty yawn from Tigger. #Caturday #CatsOfBluesky
A yawning striped kitty named Tigger on the back of a wooden rocking chair. It's a mighty yawn.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
Advertise your BlueSky account with a Simpsons GIF
static.klipy.com
Phillip and friend in control room
Alt: Phillip and friend in control room
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Good lord, this made me laugh out loud. A lot. (Somebody get this horse some cake!)
theonion.com
I Work Very Hard, And I Would Like To Try Cake
Hello. I am a horse. I work very hard at my job of being a horse. When humans say move the heavy thing, I move the heavy thing. When humans sit on top of me and pull on my head, I carry them where the...
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
One of our yard kitties, Otto (named by my wife for "A Fish Called Wanda"), somehow got a nasty burst abscess on his throat, so I've spent this week catching him, getting him to the vet, & caring for him. He's getting healthy again & is *quite* the affectionate sweetie! 🐈 #Caturday #CatsOfBluesky
Black and white kitty named Otto sitting comfortably on a tile floor in a bathroom, next to the tub and the discreetly just off-screen toilet
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
He was all twist, no shout.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
🐎🧪
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
Yeah, I'm gonna get work done today. Sure I am. #Caturday #CatsOfBluesky
An older man laying in bed with a black cat in his lap and a grey cat alongside his thigh.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
If you are so inclined, American Prairie can be found here: americanprairie.org
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
Okay, this is awesome.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
"Think back to your childhood. Do you remember when the anxiety started?"
static.klipy.com
Doomsday Machine Matt Decker
Alt: Doomsday Machine Matt Decker
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
This is why one should avoid using the abbreviation "T. rex" from here on out - 'cause now there are *two* of them. Welcome to science, Tylosaurus rex! (Take a back seat for once, tyrannosaurs.) #FossilFriday 🧪
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Absolutely.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Introduce yourself with 10 bands/musicians you've seen live! 1. Emerson, Lake, & Palmer (also Powell) 2. Rush 3. Jethro Tull 4. Yes 5. Rainbow 6. Deep Purple 7. Peter Gabriel 8. Oingo Boingo 9. Brian Setzer Orchestra 10. Lindsey Stirling 11. Monty Python (Hollywood Bowl)
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Re-re-upping for the west coast evening crowd.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
The ICE officer who allegedly shot a Venezuelan man, and who has been accused by Minnesota prosecutors of lying about the incident, one Christian Castro, has now been charged in Minnesota with assault and falsely reporting a crime. Please read this thread to learn the whole horrific story.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Sharing this! The linked page has a number of suggested actions one can take to help defend the monument.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
In the film "The Ring", one survives the curse by (spoiler alert) passing it along to others. In like fashion, now that I've had to listen to this, you do too.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
Also for #FossilFriday if a bit peripheral: today @metrolosangeles.bsky.social opened its new four-mile D Line w/ new stations along Wilshire Blvd. at La Brea, Fairfax, & La Cienega. Station excavations produced numerous Ice Age fossils - some of which are represented in on new tap cards! #RideTheD
A "tap card" for the Los Angeles D- Line Extension subway system that depicts Ice Age marine invertebrate fossils and a specimen tag along with the phrase, "History that moves us."
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Happy, happy birthday to Sir David Attenborough on his 100th birthday! (Such a pleasure to meet him way at Rancho La Brea in LA way back in 1988! That's me on the left.) #DavidAttenborough100 #TarPits #FossilFriday
Black and white photo of four people, including Sir David Attenborough, in a lab at the Rancho La Brea "tar pits", smiling at the camera.  Sir David is second from the left.  The others are a woman in a lab coat, a bearded man holding a sabre-toothed cat skull, and a young man with Elton John glasses and an Emerson, Lake, & Powell concert shirt.
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Six years with us today. We love you, Tigger. (Even though you pee on everything. You know better.) #CatsOfBluesky
Small tabby kitten looking sleepily at the photographerLarge tabby cat asnooze, completely oblivious to the photographer
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Slightly diminish a book. The Puppy of the Baskervilles
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Eric Scott @captainfossil.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
Our boy Buzz catching some warming morning sunlight, seen through the petals of one of my wife's orchids. #Caturday #CatsOfBluesky
Handsome orange and white cat looking at the photographer while sitting in sunlight in a window, seen through orchid petals
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