iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Czech Centre of Cognitive Ethology @ckecz.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

From rivals ⚡️ to neighbours 🤝 🤔 How has the #competition between the two #woodpecker species changed over the last 20 years? 👩🏻‍🔬 Alena & team found that while D. major has adapted to coexist, D. medius still behaves aggressively. 💪 🔗 link.springer.com/article/10.1... #rivals #newpaper 🥳

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Czech Centre of Cognitive Ethology @ckecz.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

❗️New PhD position in our lab ❗️ Nest defence in passerines: parental quality, investment and fitness 🐦 ➡️ 4 years, fully funded position 🗓️ Start: July 2026 ⏳ Application deadline: May 10, 2026 ✉️ veselp03@jcu.cz, krausl07@jcu.cz #PhD #PhDjobs #ornithology #ethology #cognition

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ManyBirds Project @themanybirds.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

🐦 Exciting news! Our new paper is out in PLOS Biology: “A large-scale study across the avian clade identifies ecological drivers of neophobia.” Led by the #ManyBirds Project - 129 researchers, 82 institutions, 24 countries 🌍 🔗 journals.plos.org/plosbiology/... @themanybirds.bsky.social

journals.plos.org

A large-scale study across the avian clade identifies ecological drivers of neophobia

Neophobia (the aversive response to novelty) varies considerably across species and individuals, and can impact adaptability and survival. This study assesses neophobia in 1400 subjects from 136 bird ...

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

😍🦅 An absolutely fantastic project and the best collaboration. I am very happy that it was successful on such a scale. We are glad that we could contribute on behalf of our Czech team from @prfju.bsky.social 🪶 🙏 #BirdCognition @ckecz.bsky.social

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

🎓✨ It’s official – I am now a Ph.D. 🎓✨ After years of research, fieldwork, writing, and countless discussions, I successfully defended my dissertation on predator recognition in birds. I couldn’t have done this without the support of my colleagues, mentors, friends, family and birds. Thank you! 🦅🙏

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 24/08/2025

🤩 Both amusing and informative! #BirdCognition #Ornithology 🪶

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orsolars.bsky.social @orsolars.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

Our new review on numerical cognition in birds, just out in Nature Reviews Psychology! 🐦🧠 Behavior, neurobiology & field studies across avian species Very fond of the neurobiology part :) 📖 Read it here: rdcu.be/eyErI

rdcu.be

Numerical cognition in birds

Nature Reviews Psychology - Birds demonstrate complex numerical abilities at levels similar to primates. In this Review, Regolin and colleagues describe the contribution of laboratory, field and...

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Elli Leadbeater @ellileadbeater.bsky.social · 26/06/2025

Selection Shapes Diverse Animal Minds: our special issue of @royalsocietypublishing.org Phil Trans B on the diverse evolutionary processes underlying cognitive evolution is out today. Thanks to all our contributors! royalsocietypublishing.org/toc/rstb/202...

royalsocietypublishing.org

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences: Vol 380, No 1929

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

😍 Thank you, Maja, for the wonderful summary of our research. I would like to add that this is not all—another batch of crazy bird scarecrows will be coming soon. Stay tuned 🤩🪶🦅🧪 @ckecz.bsky.social #BirdCognition #Ornithology

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Goffins, shrikes, tits — I had the pleasure of talking about all of them at #VetMedUni in Vienna! 🇦🇹🪶🦜🦅 Thanks to @mohara.bsky.social and @bmioduszewska.bsky.social for the invitation. 🤩 It was fantastic to catch up with this wonderful group of brilliant people over good 🍻 #ComparativeCognition

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Tay (Antonio J. Osuna Mascaró) @biotay.bsky.social · 19/04/2025

Horror monsters for birds By modifying the eyes of the sparrowhawks, great tits find them: either harmless like a pigeon (with no eyes), or absolutely terrifying (with frontal eyes in line or under the beak). (paper) www.researchgate.net/publication/... @laniusondrej.bsky.social

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Tay (Antonio J. Osuna Mascaró) @biotay.bsky.social · 18/04/2025

1/7 Alternatives for a complex mind Look at the image, it shows the proportion of neurons in the pallium (in blue) and in the cerebellum (red). Primates (including humans) have a rodent-like proportion (paper) www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... by @gallinaciega.bsky.social via @Raccoonologist

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 16/04/2025

🧠🦅 Facial configuration matters 🦅🧠 We tested if wild #GreatTits recognise predators not just by what facial elements are present (eyes, beak), but also how they’re arranged. 👁️🔄 Rotate the eyes 90° = more fear 👁️↩️ Rotate them 180° = same fear 👁️🚫 No eyes/beak = no fear #BirdCognition 🐦🪶🧪 #JCOMP

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Jamie Dunning @j-dunning.net · 09/04/2025

Our paper, on viewing condition and the evolution of plumage colour, is published! This was several years of work, building on our study of woodcock communication. Working with @sheardcat.bsky.social and John was a particular privilege. 🪶🧪#ornithology royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

royalsocietypublishing.org

Viewing conditions predict evolutionary diversity in avian plumage colour | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Animals communicate using multiple sensory channels, including via vision. The colourful plumage of birds is a model system to study visual communication, having evolved through a complex interplay of...

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 09/04/2025

🧠🦅 Czech interview about bird intelligence in Czech Radio České Budějovice 🦅🧠 @irozhlas.cz budejovice.rozhlas.cz/moudry-jako-... #Ornithology #AnimalCognition 🪶

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

❗️🧠 I'm reminding this starter pack, anyone who wants to be added, let me know. #BirdCognition 🧪🪶🦜🦅🦉🐦‍⬛🦆🐥

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Ben Sheldon @sheldonbirds.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

Coming later this year, the 10th hole-nesting bird conference, from 10-12 Sept in beautiful Olomouc, Czech Republic. Held every 3-4 years, this is a great meeting bringing all those interested in cavity-nesting birds (natural & artificial) together. #ornithology zoologie.upol.cz/hnb-2025/

Attendees at the 9th Hole-nesting Birds Meeting, hosted in Oxford, Sept 2022 at the conference dinner at Jesus College

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Czech and Slovak Ethological Society @csets.bsky.social · 24/03/2025

🐝 According to the discovery of a new fossil hoverfly with a well-preserved mimetic color pattern, the occurrence of accurate wasp mimics preceded the dominance of passerine birds in Europe. 🐦 Read more in a new paper ⬇️ doi.org/10.1016/j.cu...

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Czech and Slovak Ethological Society @csets.bsky.social · 12/03/2025

‼️ CogEvo 2025 🧠 🚨 A unique workshop on cognition, neuroscience, evolution and development organized by the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences. 🗓️ July 17-18, 2025 📍 Rovereto, Italy 🇮🇹 🔗 Registration: event.unitn.it/cogevo/ #CogEvo2025 #CogEvo #Cognition #Neuroscience

event.unitn.it

CogEvo 25 - Workshop on Cognition and Evolution

CogEvo 25 Workshop on Cognition and Evolution will be held in Rovereto from 17 to 18 July 2025

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 07/03/2025

🦅🧠 Bird Cognition 🧠🦅 Anyone who studies or is just fascinated by how birds perceive, learn, remember and solve problems 🐦 Let's all meet in this cool new #starterpack 🤩 Let me know if you want to join in too 🦜🦤🦉🦆🐣🪺🪶🧪 🔗 go.bsky.app/V2K7HQM #Ornithology #Birds #AnimalBehaviour

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Maja Mielke (she/her) @maja-mielke.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

Have you ever wondered why #woodpeckers don't get stuck in trees? I answer that question in the latest post of my newsletter “Beaks & Bones”. 🪶🧪 You can read it here for free: beaksandbones.substack.com/p/woodpecker... #birds #ornithology #biology #nature

beaksandbones.substack.com

Why do woodpeckers not get stuck in trees?

Well, they actually do get stuck in trees quite often—but they free themselves within a blink of an eye. Here's how.

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Doug Hitchcox @dhitchcox.bsky.social · 06/03/2025

Check out the way this Long-eared Owl changes the shape of its facial disk when it hears a rodent below it:

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 03/03/2025

🥳 Successfully passed state doctoral examinations 🥳 Thank you to all the examiners and everyone who has helped me on this dream journey 🙏 🦅 All that's left is the dissertation. Let's do it! 💪 #AnimalBehaviour @malavika-m.bsky.social @sangeeth-sailas.bsky.social @ckecz.bsky.social

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Tay (Antonio J. Osuna Mascaró) @biotay.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

Der Erfindergeist der Tiere It is the first book by cognitive biologist Alice Auersperg (@auersperga.bsky.social), about the inventive capacity of other species. From bees to, of course, Goffin's cockatoos! Recommended for those who speak German www.brandstaetterverlag.com/buch/der-erf...

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Natalia (Nat) Zielonka @natbzielonka.bsky.social · 24/02/2025

Are you my successor? The @ibisjournal.bsky.social are looking for their next social media support officer to help deliver conferences, promote #ornithology and grow engagement across social media platforms Very happy to chat more about the role, just comment 👇 or message me! ☺️ 🧪 #AcademicSky #ECR

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Alice Auersperg @auersperga.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

We have an exciting new position in our lab for a PhD on parrot tool use! See below

PhD position in parrot tool use
Job offer: applications opening 19th of February 2025.
We are looking for a PhD student (funded by the Austrian Science Fund, FWF) for a doctoral project in the field of animal behaviour and cognition
Project Title:
Dexterity in the tool use of the Goffin’s cockatoo
https://www.fwf.ac.at/forschungsradar/10.55776/PAT2728324
Project Location:
The Messerli Research Institute is located at the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna. Its division on Comparative Cognition investigates cognitive abilities in both the social and physical domain of various, free-living as well as domesticated, animal species including Goffin’s cockatoos, keas, dogs, goats and pigs.
https://www.vetmeduni.ac.at/en/messerli
This PhD project will be conducted at the Goffin Lab in Lower Austria.
https://www.vetmeduni.ac.at/cognition/goffin-lab
Academic Supervision:
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alice Auersperg (University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna)
Project Description:
The Goffin’s cockatoo uses and builds tool -based technologies rivalling higher primates, both in captivity as well as in the wild. While we already understand a lot about what kinds of tools animals use in which context, we still know very little about the innovative process and fine-scaled mechanisms underlying such behaviour: how are the cockatoos able to innovate tool use in the first place?
Thereby, it is important to consider behavioural as well as physical barriers that animals face when using tools. We currently predict that tool use techniques are strongly affected by the different properties of the tasks the birds are operating their tools upon. This PhD project aims to test to what extent the tool use techniques invented by aviary cockatoos in Austria manifest in a predictable manner based on specific tool and task properties. To achieve this, we plan to blend behavioural analysis and material physics. The findings of this project will help to understand the onset and mechanisms underlyi…

Deadline and project start:
Please send your application before 1th of June 2025. The successful candidate can start in July at
the earliest (we would like to have started the project by September of this year).

Requirements
• A master’s degree
• A master’s thesis with a topic related to animal cognition/animal behaviour/comparative psychology or material science.
• Genuine Interest in animal behaviour and cognition
• At least some experience in direct interaction with animals (experience with animal testing is highly appreciated).
• Comfortable with direct contact with parrots
• Statistical knowledge (preferably experience in General Liner Mixed Models, PCA, Survival Analysis etcetera.)
• Experience with R.
• Excellent English skills written and spoken (additional German skills are highly appreciated)
• Excellent teamworking and communication skills

What we offer
• Employment at the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna via a FWF funding for a minimum of three years.
• Access to institutional support (administrative support, statistician, IT manager, technician for experimental apparatuses).
• Various scientific events including weekly seminars of comparative cognition researchers
• Opportunity to visit international conferences.
• Opportunity to visit social events for PhD students studying avian cognition in Vienna.
• An international and interdisciplinary work environment at the Messerli Research Institute for Human-Animal Interaction.

How to apply:
Applications (email: alice.auersperg@vetmeduni.ac.at) will be considered until the 1st of June 2025
Only complete submissions will be taken into consideration.

Your application should contain the following information:
1. A Cover Letter detailing your motivation for the research topic, relevant experience, and expectations for the position (max. 2 pages)
2. A Curriculum Vitae including copies of relevant university degree certificates
3. Contact details for two references (incl. email)

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Will Rose @willrose.bsky.social · 17/02/2025

After your tea, why not learn about what makes #woodpeckers so darned cool! Watch my brand new animated bird guide episode here youtu.be/GEQBrT-587Q?...

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Czech Centre of Cognitive Ethology @ckecz.bsky.social · 17/02/2025

🔬✨ How to best introduce ourselves on 🦋? Well, with our recent papers 🤩⬇️ 🦅 Does size matter when recognizing predators? 🧐 Do magpies recognize a juvenile goshawk? 👀 No weapons, no danger? 🐞 How do #birds respond to aposematic 🐞 in their diet? #Ornithology #AnimalBehaviour #RaptorResearch 🪶🧪

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Tay (Antonio J. Osuna Mascaró) @biotay.bsky.social · 15/02/2025

1/4 Flies play In this experiment, some fruit flies preferred to ride a carousel than to eat. The behavior is consistent with the criteria for playing (voluntary, non-essential, non-typical, repeated & flexible, and stress-free) (paper) www.cell.com/current-biol... by @wolfhuette.bsky.social

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Ondrej Fiser @laniusondrej.bsky.social · 07/01/2025

🥳 My second PhD chapter is out in #AnimalCognition 🥳 🦅⚔️ What happens if a feared predator loses its dangerous weapons or swaps them for harmless ones? 🤯 This study on predator recognition will both amuse and surprise you 🤩 #Ornithology @asab.org @ethoges.bsky.social doi.org/10.1007/s100...

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Jeroen Zewald @zewaldj.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

Do you like to dip your fries in ketchup before eating it? Our cockatoos do too! In a new study in Current Biology, we showed our cockatoos innovated a new way to flavour their food: they dunk noodles in blueberry soy yoghurt. Read about it and watch our video abstract: www.cell.com/current-biol...

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Czech Centre of Cognitive Ethology @ckecz.bsky.social · 15/02/2025

🥳 We're finally on #Bluesky 💙 Hi everyone, we are a team of ethologists from the Czech Republic 🇨🇿 who study all sorts of bird behaviour 🪶mainly in the field 🗺️ Such as predator-prey interactions 🦅 brood parasitism🥚bioacoustics ♪ foraging 🌰 or competition ⚔️ #Ornithology #AnimalBehaviour #Birds

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