iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

I spent my first thirty years across Wyoming (1982-1992), Texas (1992-2000), Idaho (2000-2005), Arkansas (2005-2007), and Washington State (2007-2011), and I'm always impressed these things triangulate that background reasonably well. But crayfish/crawfish/crawdad is a trap for me.

Dialect map with warm colors (match) to the western US grading to coldest or mismatched colors in the southeast and especially northeast

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

With colleagues across museums in the US and Canada, we recently asked: what is North America's largest crayfish species? Which led to a more interesting follow-up question: why do the contenders all cluster at a similar upper size limit? New in Ecology at: doi.org/10.1002/ecy....

Dorsal view of a crayfish in a glass jar centered on its carapace. It is not a contender for largest in North America.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

A half century of invasive crayfish monitoring in northern Wisconsin continued this week with Cornell's recently retired David Lodge and first year University of Illinois PhD student Kaylin Wallen

Two researchers sit in the bow of a john boat with a bucket full of crayfish and a lake in the background under overcast skies

Roughly two dozen rusty crayfish in a shallow white bucket

A flowage between two lakes in northern Wisconsin with bright green vegetation on both shores under a sunny sky with scattered clouds

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Marianne Alleyne @cotesia.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

My Department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign invites applications from entomologists with research portfolios in which INSECT BIODIVERSITY LOSS is a key element (at the assistant professor level). illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/caree...

Picture of a green tree-lined quad at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, with Foellinger Hall in the background. Skies are often this blue.

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🌾 Dr. Liz Anna Kozik 🌾 @chaseprairie.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

now THIS is a paper to get excited about!!!!! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment
Volume 159, October 2026, 105522

Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment
Roadside native species seeding practices of Midwestern US departments of transportation

Wesley J. Bollinger, Rabin Bhattarai, Jeffrey W. Matthews

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

Another summer looking for the rare, native Pilose Crayfish (Pacifastacus gambelii) throughout the Bear River watershed of Wyoming, Idaho, and Utah

A researcher kicks through substrate while another researcher stands downstream holding a seine in a shallow, wadeable creek

A mottled red crayfish seen in the bottom of a white five gallon bucket

Upstream view of a small cascade in a creek with an arid mountain in the background under overcast skies

Two researchers measuring the width of a rocky stream with scattered cottonwoods on the floodplain in the middle distance

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

Always nice when the Society for Freshwater Science meeting is directly on a river #2026SFS

Wide, blue river passes under a tall concrete arch bridge

Clock tower over a placid, impounded river pool beneath a blue and pink dusk sky

Waterfall with a small rainbow in its mist looking across to a tall, concrete arch bridge on the opposing bank

Cobble seen on a riverbed through a still pool with a square clock tower on the opposite bank

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

Was fantastic to celebrate David Lodge's career and outsized impact in invasive species research and policy at #2026SFS this week, and catch up with so many friends and colleagues working on these important topics

Roughly a dozen conference attendence standing on a stage before a project screen, from left to right: Matt Barnes (Texas Tech), Lindsey Reisinger (University of Florida), Eric Larson (University of Illinois), John Drake (University of Georgia), Bill Perry (University of Minnesota Duluth), David Lodge (Cornell), Romi Burks (Southwestern University), Kristy Deiner (Simplex DNA), Kara Andres (Illinois State University), Jon Bossenbroek (University of Toledo), Reuben Keller (Loyola University Chicago), Andy Mahon (Central Michigan University), and Chris Jerde (University of California Santa Barbara)

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Nature @nature.com · 18/04/2026

Scientists have long pulled DNA from water and soil, but they have only just started to see the air as a source of genetic information go.nature.com/4tUdRcA

go.nature.com

The air is full of DNA — here’s what scientists are using it for

Nature - Airborne genetic material can be used to paint a picture of ecosystem health, watch for invasive species and even identify humans.

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Reposted by Eric R. Larson

Steve Carpenter @steve-carpenter.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Mechanisms for regime shifts differ in shallow versus deep lakes - commentary - tinyurl.com/4wepyjbu

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

Multi-metric indices are used to measure biological integrity in response to the US Clean Water Act. But can environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding plug into these existing tools? Our attempt for streams and rivers of Alabama now open access at the journal Environmental DNA: doi.org/10.1002/edn3...

A four panel (2 x 2) image of streams in northern Alabama with bedrock banks and forested riparian zones

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Bruce Webber @drbrucewebber.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

The interplay between climatic niche and spatial distribution can inform the management of non-native invasive species. Our findings reveal that the invasion risk for species with small geographic ranges may be greater than assumed. Read more (OA): doi.org/10.1016/j.ec... #bioinvasions 🌐🌏🧪

CLIMEX Match Climate Composite Match Index (CMI) overlaid with Tipuana tipu distribution location records, projected globally. Insets show the native range, part of South America, part of southern Africa, southwest Australia, and an area of eastern Australia with high levels of cultivation and/or naturalisation. Areas with an orange-red colour (CMI 0.8–1) had high CMI values. Areas with a blue colour (CMI 0.6–0.8) had a climate with moderate CMI values. Records of T. tipu are shown as open circles. Pink circles represent records of plants within the native range. All other colours represent plant records in the non-native range, with purple representing cultivated plant records, yellow representing non-cultivated plant records, green representing records with both cultivated and non-cultivated plants and brown representing plant records where the cultivation status was indeterminate.

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DrZP @zarahpattison.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Love rivers?! Looking for an exciting PhD opportunity to better understand how to restore rivers at a landscape scale with multiple stakeholders?! Details below! @stir.ac.uk www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 12/01/2026

Do precipitation events have opposing effects on aquatic versus terrestrial environmental DNA (eDNA) recovered from streams and rivers? New from the lab at Ecological Applications: doi.org/10.1002/eap....

Linear mixed model predictions for aquatic (blue solid) and terrestrial taxa richness (brown dotted) in response to (A) rainfall (in centimeters) and (B) water temperature (in degrees Celsius) with 95% CIs.

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Julian Olden @oldenfish.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

National assessment of river protection in the U.S. Article: doi.org/10.1038/s418... Policy Brief: doi.org/10.1038/s418... Rivers Explorer: map.myriver.americanrivers.org Collaboration b/t American Rivers, Conservation Science Partners, Univ WA @americanrivers.bsky.social Thread 👇 | DM for PDF

Image of river protection status in the United States

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Joel Corush @jcorush.bsky.social · 04/12/2025

I'm recruiting a Ph.D. student for Fall 2026. Interested in comparative studies and trait evolution in fishes? Send me an email with a CV and research interests. Please take a look at my website (jcorush.github.io ) for more information about my research. #hybridization #minnows #mudskippers

jcorush.github.io

Corush Lab

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 06/12/2025

The Sangamon River of Illinois through the seasons. We visited this site every few weeks in 2025 to track changing stream communities with environmental DNA.

A red covered bridge over a river in winter with shallow snow on both banks and thin, clear ice covering most of the surface of the water

A red covered bridge seen from a river bank in early spring, with silver maple trees beginning to leaf out. The river is turbid, with sycamores visible on the far bank.

A red covered bridge seen from mid-channel of a turbid river in mid-summer, with forest on both banks

A red covered bridge in late fall with drifts of slush on its roof, seen from mid-channel of a wadeable river. Most trees have lost their leaves.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 04/12/2025

New OA study led by Dr. Caitlin Bloomer of U. Illinois: can you predict good habitat for burrowing crayfish even if your model is trained on data from different burrowing crayfish species (doi.org/10.1111/fwb....)? Highly relevant to these hard-to-detect and identify animals.

Two crayfish burrows seen from above or plan view

Two crayfish burrows seen from the side at an angle, where one burrow is about three times taller than its neighbor. The burrows are in surprisingly coarse or sandy substrate, with some fine, gray to orange pebble noticeable in the taller burrow.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

Riparian buffers help more than just streams and rivers in agricultural landscapes. Lab Masters student Olivia Reves used environmental DNA (eDNA) to quantify the benefit of riparian buffers to terrestrial wildlife in downstate Illinois; open access at doi.org/10.1111/1365...

A figure showing a stream without a forested riparian buffer in the top panel and a stream with a forested riparian buffer in the bottom panel. A cartoon water bottle with a DNA symbol in each water bottle directs to adjacent insets with silouttes of representative wildlife at each stream, with the forested stream having more species and including amphibians, reptiles, bats, and flying squirrels.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 10/11/2025

New invasion note from southern Idaho, where we've rediscovered the non-native red swamp crayfish after a half century without detection (doi.org/10.3391/bir....). Intensive burrowing by red swamp crayfish could be a risk to canals and other irrigation infrastructure.

An irrigation ditch centered in the image that has dried to a single, isolated pool in the foreground. There are grassy banks on either side of the ditch, with two men standing on the right bank in an orange sweatshirt and blue shirt.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 24/09/2025

New faculty position in the University of Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences for an assistant or associate professor of agroecology: illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/caree.... Position closes October 31st. Happy to answer questions about the dept / university / town.

A prairie with a wetland in the middle distance and a tree line on the horizon under low, scattered clouds

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Corrie Moreau @corriemoreau.bsky.social · 19/09/2025

UPDATE: The 2025-2026 list of faculty and postdoc positions in ecology and evolutionary biology is out! Be sure to check out this active and helpful community run resources! docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

docs.google.com

ecoevojobs.net 2025-26

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 06/09/2025

Completed my annual trip to northern Wisconsin, continuing population monitoring of invasive rusty crayfish (Faxonius rusticus) that extends back to the 1970s. Populations remain down, at only ~25% of past peak abundances, with surprising catches of large native snails in our traps.

A slightly out of focus rusty crayfish (Faxonius rusticus) held between a thumb and forefinger with the calm surface of a lake in the background

Two boats docked in the foreground of a large lake with a yellow floating platform in the middle distance and a forested shoreline ~2 miles back on the horizon

Sunset on a large, calm lake as a band of orange below emerging stars

A square white bucket with ~16-20 rusty crayfish (Faxonius rusticus) waiting to be counted and measured

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Julian Olden @oldenfish.bsky.social · 27/08/2025

It was a real pleasure to participate in the Mazama Newt Workshop at Crater Lake hosted by the @oregonzoo.bsky.social and the National Park Service. Discussions focused on a recovery plan for the Mazama newt in light of an exploding invasive signal crayfish. Great to see @ericrlarson.bsky.social!

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 19/08/2025

Our search for invasive crayfish barriers includes more than just dams or irrigation diversions. Because the virile crayfish is intolerant of stream drying (doi.org/10.1086/725318), intermittent reaches could present barriers to upstream spread to permanent streams in the mountains.

An isolated stream pool above a culvert (not visible, where the photographer is standing) with a dry bed upstream. The pool is turbid and surrounded by dry steppe, with mountains visible in the distance under a mostly sunny sky.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

The manager at this property noted they have problems with the invasive crayfish clogging irrigation infrastructure downstream of the diversion. Economic damages to agriculture from invasive crayfish are well-known on other continents, but I wonder if we've missed an impact in the arid western US.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 06/08/2025

This irrigation diversion looked promising as an invasive crayfish barrier. The diversion gates didn't appear to be climbable. Water is diverted into a buried pipe with screens to prevent fish entrainment. Concrete retaining walls extend into the riparian zone. Can crayfish get over or around this?

An irrigation diversion in an arid landscape backing up water behind it, with a shallow, rocky stream below. The diversion consists of a series of concrete retaining walls and metal water controls that can be raised or lowered.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

A relief to add a new pilose crayfish site this week. This native species disappeared from the mainstem, low elevation Bear River in Wyoming between 1987 & 2007, replaced by the non-native virile crayfish (peerj.com/articles/5668/). Remnant populations are confined to higher elevation tributaries.

A pilose crayfish (Pacifastacus gambelii) held close to the camera with a five gallon bucket and clipboard out of focus in the background on a grassy river bank. The pilose crayfish is mottled olive brown and yellow, with distinctive strips of hair on the lateral, dorsal surface of its visible claw.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 31/07/2025

Freshwater invaders pose unique challenges to species distribution (or ecological niche) models used in risk analysis. New in Freshwater Science (doi.org/10.1086/737200), I identify strategies to improve predictions of suitable habitat for emerging, data-poor freshwater invaders using these tools.

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Long Term Ecological Research Network (United States) @uslter.bsky.social · 31/07/2025

The publications collected in this month's LTER Network News really demonstrated the wide range of impactful research the LTER does. Here's the list: mailchi.mp/lternet/lter...

mailchi.mp

LTER Network News | July 2025

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 30/07/2025

Here's another potential invasive crayfish barrier: a concrete structure extending across a river channel associated with a municipal water supply diversion. Can crayfish get over/around this, or not?

A view across a river channel centered on a small concrete dam or water control structure, which extends into the riparian zone and has a noticeable drop or plunge at its downstream end. The river is shallower and rocky below the dam and deeper above.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

More hints that one of our study sites is a good place to catch crayfish

A latrine pile of crayfish fragments with a low gradient river in the background

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

Here's another potential invasive crayfish barrier: a road crossing above a concrete slab with a drop to a downstream pool. In this case we couldn't assess if the barrier was passable because we found no crayfish up or downstream of the road, likely because the stream is intermittent.

Road crossing a stream above a concrete slab with a 2-3 foot drop above a downstream pool. The stream is not flowing and clumps of algae are visible in the standing water. A crayfish trap is visible in the bottom left corner.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 23/07/2025

Sometimes we know a crayfish is at a site before we even begin sampling. In this case, the hairy claws of the pilose crayfish had washed up on the shore of a reservoir from molts or mortalities.

A crayfish claw with hairy patches on the left and right dorsal surface, with an out of focus lake in the background

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 22/07/2025

This summer, my lab is working to determine whether we can protect the rare, native pilose crayfish in Wyoming from the widely invasive virile crayfish. For example, do irrigation diversions work as barriers excluding virile from pilose habitat? So: what do we think of this prospective barrier?

The pilose crayfish (Pacifastacus gambelli), a mottled crayfish with patches of dense hairs on the dorsal surface of its claws. It's native to the upper Snake River and Bonneville Basin watersheds of Idaho, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming, awfully hard to find, and largely replaced from its historic occurrences by the non-native virile crayfish.

The virile crayfish (Faxonius virilis), the most routine looking crawdad you've ever seen, held between a thumb and forefinger with a shallow stream in the background.

Half of an irrigation diversion showing water spilling through dam boards above a concrete spillway before a short drop to the downstream pool

The other half of an irrigation diversion showing a high rate of water flow through a culvert

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Milton Tan @mtanichthys.bsky.social · 17/07/2025

If I'm proposing to sequence a reference genome assembly and like 250 whole genomes to 10x coverage representative of the geographic scope planned, is that reasonable enough to build a reference panel for imputation? Also how do you do that?

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

New from my colleagues at the University of Illinois: a dataset of vascular plant species presence for 353 prairie remnants across the Midwestern United States (doi.org/10.3375/2162...)

A map of the historical extent of the tallgrass prairie (gray) and 319 sampled remnants (black circles) in RELIX across the Midwestern United States. 34 remnants are not shown on the map since they did not have precise location information.

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Dr. Dawn Wright @deepseadawn.bsky.social · 30/06/2025

Map of Ecosystems of North America Completed! @natureserve.bsky.social has released a first-of-its-kind map of ecosystems across the conterminous U.S. & nearby regions w/ a level of detail & consistency not previously available. 🧪 🌎 #GISchat geohub-natureserve.opendata.arcgis.com/maps/Natures...

geohub-natureserve.opendata.arcgis.com

International Vegetation Classification Groups v1.0

This layer presents information on the distribution of International Vegetation Classification (IVC) Groups for North America.

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Eric R. Larson @ericrlarson.bsky.social · 03/07/2025

Another example of the power of environmental DNA (eDNA): a positive eDNA detection led to the rediscovery of a freshwater mussel not found live in Illinois for over a century. New student-led, open access paper in Ecology with @markdavis79.bsky.social at doi.org/10.1002/ecy....

A four panel figure showing (a) a biologist wading in a turbid river with a water sample, (b) a real-time or quantitative PCR amplification plot with a positive environmental DNA detection, (c) a biologist searching concrete riprap on a river bank, and (d) two freshwater mussels that have been marked for future monitoring and recapture.

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Trevor A. Branch @trevorabranch.bsky.social · 02/07/2025

Foundations: please step up and take over the Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL). This is an absolutely essential scanned archive of all of the old journals and books from the 1500s to about 1920. Has been indispensable for my research. about.biodiversitylibrary.org/call-for-sup...

about.biodiversitylibrary.org

Call for Support: – About BHL

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Trevor A. Branch @trevorabranch.bsky.social · 01/07/2025

NOAA proposed budgets would eliminate science and management of marine mammals and sea turtles, firing 311 scientists and cutting the budget by more than $100m. Also a long list of program terminations... See pages 16-20 www.commerce.gov/sites/defaul...

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