iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Today was a brilliant day. I got to watch a webinar by Rosemary Grant about the evolution of Darwin's finches hosted by @bes-evolecol.bsky.social. Her insight into the challenges she faced in starting her career were as captivating as the findings of recent studies she is involved in.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Maybe weirdly specific but does anyone else absolutely love the look of juvenile starlings? Obviously the adult iridescent plumage and spots are gorgeous. But I think the pointy, jet black beak and pale brown is so cool. They really make me happy when I see a ton of them together.

A juvenile starling standing on a post. Pale brown body plumage, no spots. Black beak.

Sourced from: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/European_Starling/id

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Mike Dickison @adzebill.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

In a decade, when there is a distinct lack of (modified-emu-fake-)moa running around, the handful of researchers who sacrificed their reputations to back up this scam will have to ask if the money was worth it. www.rnz.co.nz/news/science...

rnz.co.nz

Can we de-extinct the moa and more importantly, should we?

Colossal Biosciences calls itself an advanced genetics company that's developing the science that will save us all.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

I've started eating sunflower seeds for a snack as a source of fiber and my autism councillor (not actually what it is but basically) was like '...are you trying to copy birds?'

static.klipy.com

Malreynolds Firefly Speechless Reaction

ALT: Malreynolds Firefly Speechless Reaction

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Jess O'Thomson @jessothomson.co.uk · 15/08/2026

We are writing to the Prime Minister, and the Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, calling for an immediate public inquiry into the British press, following the tragic death of Jason Arday. Sign here 👇

goodlaw.social

Jason Arday Letter | Good Law Project

Commission an immediate public inquiry into how to ensure a responsible press given its contribution to Dr Arday’s tragic death.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Bird n' boardgame lovers, good news, you can now annoy everyone with a version of Wingspan you can bring to the pub. Friends of bird lovers, bad news, you won't have a social interaction go by where this doesn't get suggested to play.

Copy of Wingspan Pocket, a quicker version of Wingspan that fits in a box small enough to carry on your bag and play on the go. I am not on commission.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

We love science with museum specimens 😍 this is so cool

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

Learned about the Scopes Trial. This was included on wiki as an example of a fundamentalist cartoon against 'modernists', who believed evolutionary theory and the bible were compatible. If it's meant to make them look bad, why did they draw them looking so fucking cool descending those damn stairs 😭

"The Descent of the Modernists", by E. J. Pace, first appearing in the book Seven Questions in Dispute by William Jennings Bryan, 1924, New York: Fleming H. Revell Company.

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Ferran Sayol @ferransayol.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

New paper out! 🖨️ Glad to be part of this study, out in Science Advances: "Emergent patterns of island biodiversity in the Anthropocene" www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... Much of what looks natural in island biodiversity is a legacy of human impacts going back millennia. See main findings 👇🧵 (1/8)

science.org

Emergent patterns of island biodiversity in the Anthropocene

Human impacts substantially affect our ability to detect and understand natural biodiversity patterns.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

So lucky to be alive at the same time as this footage. I do love sunfish, but THIS IS AWESOME WHAT THE HECK

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Dr James Rule @palaeo-jrule.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Seals have a superpower: they are the only mammals with amphibious hearing! They hear well both in-air and underwater. My collagues and I have a new study in Proceedings B on the origins and evolution of amphibious hearing in pinnipeds 🦭🔊🧪 doi.org/10.1098/rspb...

doi.org

The origin and evolution of amphibious hearing in pinnipeds

Abstract. Pinnipeds (true seals, eared seals and walruses) are the only mammals that can hear effectively in both air and water. How and when they achieved

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

Sad to see the last episode of @perfect-specimen.bsky.social! I loved the lost media tidbits, I was lucky to see 007 loggerhead shrike in person. As a fan of comparatively very small and very big taxa (ISLANDS!), I hope the podcast continues and Josh and Natalie get to use 'COMPARE' as a word soon!

youtu.be

What's been our favourite specimen? | The 'Perfect' Specimen Ep29

YouTube video by Natural History Museum

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Walked into the natural history section of The Hancock Museum in Newcastle. Kākāpō senses were tingling. I was correct. 10/10, very nice museum with lovely exhibits.

A portly man points at a specimen of a Kākāpō with an indescribable look on his face.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

I'm not the best at wikipedia-guessing game catfishing.net, so it's always very satisfying to get some evolution related article that less than 10% of players knew. Highly recommend this daily game!

A selection of categories for a Wikipedia article on catfishing.net

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

One of the most joyful and inspiring documentaries on YouTube. The little deck of cards that dictates everything is so fascinating! This is peak human whimsy, creativity and perseverance.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

Big speedquiz win in my first day back in Ireland for a week! Plus added 3 more Kākāpō shirts to the wardrobe. Overall a brilliant day.

Speedquiz results table with Pintmen at the top.

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Carl Bovis @carlbovisnature.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

Chaffinch on my Somerset lawn a couple days ago. 😍 Taken through the cat-flap. 😁🐦 #birds 🪶 Order your 2027 Birds and Puffin calendars here; www.carlbovis.com/2027-birds-c... ❤️

Male Chaffinch on a loan surrounded by daisies

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Embarrassed to admit, but how on earth did it take me this long to realise that moa only had two limbs and are the only birds to have ENTIRELY lost their wings?! I always assumed the wings were just vestigial... And how did I only find out from a Wikipedia category guessing game? This is insane!!

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Andrew Digby @digs.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

This nest wasn't usual: the first ever in which we couldn't access the chick. But Whetu-A3 has recently fledged from the nest in good health. As we transition to less intensive management for #kakapo, more nests will be treated like this (without ramps!). 📸: Petrus Hedman. #conservation

A kākāpō chick on a person's lap receiving a health check. Credit: Petrus Hedman.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

The staff at Triple Point Brewery in Sheffield are so awesome, they gave me this poster a few weeks back because I'm always wearing my Kakapo shirts and it lead to a conversation. They're currently serving it again at the brewery so worth trying! It's delicious. #kakapo

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Best thing about trains: Gorgeous views of scenery passing by :) Worst thing about trains: Catching fleeting glimpses of birds that I'm too amateur to ID at high speed :(

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

Another day in Sheffield, another Kākāpō. If anyone is aware of more Kākāpō specimens I can spot in museums up north, please let me know!

A fat man crouches down in glee pointing at a Kakapo specimen in Weston Park Museum, Sheffield. A partial dodo skeleton is also visible.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

Colossal Bollocksciences at it again in media. Fair play to all critics of this absolute mockery of diversity of life on our planet. Extinction is unequivocally irreversible. We need to focus on proven conservation methods and not this tech-bro snake oil.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Moved to Sheffield! Went for drinks in the spot we always go when visiting (shout-out Triple Point Brewery). Turns out they have a Kākāpō wheat beer! Shame it's one of the 2 out of 7 days of the week where I'm not wearing a Kākāpō shirt, but I'm treating seeing this as a sign of good times ahead 🦜

Very happy person holds a craft beer can with a Kakapo label on it in a brewery pub booth. Proudly posing with can as of it's a can they brewed themselves, but in reality they just love fat green parrots.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

New favourite wrong answer on a quiz show. Celebrity Mastermind, specialist subject was 'Sharks'. Q: 'Which geologic period, that ended around 300 million years ago, is sometimes known as "The golden age of sharks"?' Contestant's answer: 'The Metatarstical [sic] period.'

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 15/02/2026

www.doc.govt.nz/news/media-r... Thankfully they sent this out before midnight here because I audibly cheered when I got the email notification. Is this what football fans feel like when their team scores a goal? GWAN THE FECKIN' KĀKĀPŌ!

doc.govt.nz

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Kakapo at an all time high while I'm at an all time low mentally feels like it's a sign to help me, BIG KAKAPO 2026 is my driving force going forward this year LETS FUCKING GOOOOOO

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

I was so lucky to be part of @nhcooper123.bsky.social lab group when the 'greasefish' was an amazing topic of conversation. What a bizarre and unfortunately likely extinct creature! The folds instantly reminded me of the breadbugs in Pikmin... Really fun episode as always!

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Andrew Digby @digs.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

Three more #kakapo nests found on Pukenui/Anchor Island yesterday. Here's Konini with her two eggs. We have found nests for 26 out of the 36 adult females on the island, with more to come in the next few days. It's a big year! #conservation #kakapo2026 A

A kākāpō on a nest with two eggs. Credit: Andrew Digby

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

I don't even know how I'm supposed to play Wingspan with over like 500 cards. Do I play with subsets of cards? Primary reason I bought them is because I just like looking at pretty bird art on cards. Well worth picking up.

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Conor O'Carroll @conorocarroll.bsky.social · 01/02/2026

The eagerness of some people for Ireland to follow the UK in its anti-trans crusade is genuinely worrying. If the UK jumped off a cliff are we supposed to follow?

A screenshot from yet another anti-trans opinion piece in the Irish media, this time from The Irish Times. It reads, "The department has not issued guidelines on transgender students since 2016. These guidelines are under review by Maynooth University, but the landscape has changed greatly since then. The UK Cass Review is central to that change. Not only does the Know Your Rights guide not reference it, but it also acts as if it never happened."

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

My favourite day of any conference I've been to! Thank you so much to the excellent speakers and organisers for some truly brilliant talks.

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British Ornithologists’ Union (BOU) @bou.org.uk · 18/11/2025

Our first Bluesky presenter of #BOUasm25, YaHsin’s Lu’s presentation “From Roadside to Research: How Public Engagement and Veterinary Science are Transforming Avian Specimen Collection in a Changing World” @cindy841123.bsky.social #BOUasm25 #ornithology #collections

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 27/08/2025

Yet more proof that ankylosaurs are the COOLEST extinct dinosaurs. Fascinating stuff, if I could be transported back to a point and place in time it would be a hard contest between going back to see this, Borealopelta or Jakapil (outside of Thyreophorans I'd go for Simosuchus and Desmatosuchus!)

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

No context chaffinch temperature check from today's lab meeting.

A photo of a Canary Islands chaffinch (Fringilla canariensis) facing towards the camera in a way that is comical. The text reads 'Despair'.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 19/08/2025

Listen to this episode of @perfect-specimen.bsky.social because it might be the best yet. Aardvark cucumbers, a specimen that most Irish people would call 'unreliable', and morbid space monkey deaths told in rapid succession to the point I couldn't tell whether to laugh or cry. RIP all the Alberts!

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Jamie Wood @larusnz.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

Parasite extinctions in threatened species may be far more prevalent than previous estimates suggest. Our new study of kākāpō dung spanning from ~1,500 years ago to present, finds >80% of parasite species were lost as the host species declined.

cell.com

Long-term parasite decline associated with near extinction and conservation of the critically endangered kākāpō parrot

Boast et al. analyze a unique fecal record of the endangered kākāpō parrot to reveal >800 years of changing parasite communities. Parasite losses occur during the species’ decline to near extinction a...

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The Perfect Specimen @perfect-specimen.bsky.social · 21/07/2025

It’s our most controversial episode yet! What do Josh and Natalie think is OVERRATED? Do you agree??? m.youtube.com/watch?v=2IKx...

m.youtube.com

Josh doesn't care about T. rex lips | The 'Perfect' Specimen Ep5

YouTube video by Natural History Museum

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 18/07/2025

My favourite thing about birds is I probably spend 60% of my time thinking about them and yet every day I find a new one. 'This can't be real' I say, 'I would have heard about this'. And it's always real and so weird and brilliant. Silly creatures with endless forms most wonderful.

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 09/07/2025

Must read regarding Colossal's moa news. I unfortunately find it hard to not just be angry at anything 'de-extinction' related (I think I resonate with the second comment most...), so it's always fantastic to have level-headed takes from experts on the issue!

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Jack Smith @jackmacgabhann.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

Gotta be capybara. Not even in Top 5 best cavy. Not even close to best rodent. Trying to get people to care about a mara in the same zoo as a capybara was a fool's errand.

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The Journal Investigates @investigates.thejournal.ie · 30/04/2025

Transgender people have been asked about pornography and their sex lives when accessing healthcare from the National Gender Service. They said this experience was traumatic and upsetting. Experts said questions like these are “completely inappropriate”. jrnl.ie/6690859

jrnl.ie

‘It left me traumatised’: The barriers to accessing transgender healthcare in Ireland

The HSE has admitted that transgender healthcare is ‘limited’ and is ‘not meeting people’s full range of needs’.

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