John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 05/03/2026The great buildings of the Ancestral O'odham at Siwañ Wa'a Ki and Se'edav Va'aki survive thanks to the ingenuity and engineering of their builders as well as the desert soil from which they were built. This soil is rich in caliche, from which the O'odham created a durable concrete-like material. 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 05/03/2026I was in Arizona last weekend, which is a great place to ensconce yourself in the interface between culture and nature. At Taliesin West, an alluvial fan gave Frank Lloyd Wright the gentle hill he wanted for his masterpiece of a home and studio in a land of jagged mountains and flat deserts. 120 2
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 17/02/2026Happy Year pf the Horse from my occasionally equid-focused lab! 020 2
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 14/01/2026I tried my hand at a little amateur videography in the Open Sea exhibit at the @orcoastaquarium.bsky.social and really lucked out! (The music is Debussy's 'La Mer,' which I added because the original background audio included other people's conversations, and darned if it doesn't fit perfectly) 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 15/08/2025Happy #FossilFriday from the Bonavista Peninsula of Newfoundland, home of several important Ediacaran localities within the fantastic Discovery Global Geopark! 081 8
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 12/08/2025Longtime wildlife-viewing aspiration achieved (at Port au Choix National Historic Site, Newfoundland)! 020 2
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 07/08/2025What does a paleontologist do when they’re on vacation? Go look at fossils! Is it healthy? Probably not, but when a museum does as fantastic a job with their exhibits as the @romtoronto.bsky.social, how could I resist spending part of a long Toronto layover there? 030 3
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 19/07/2025Always a pleasure to find myself back "home" at the @burkemuseum.bsky.social, especially on #FossilFriday! 071 7
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 19/06/2025Denisovan was a man. I mean, he was a Dragon Man.nature.comFirst ever skull from ‘Denisovan’ reveals what ancient people looked likeAncient proteins and calcified dental plaque identify heavy-browed fossil from China as a Denisovan. 010 1
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 11/05/2025A few glimpses of a Salish Sea spring before jetting off to an African savanna winter (taken at Seattle's Ballard Locks and the Anacortes ferry terminal) 000 0
Reposted by John OrcuttMorphology & Ecology Across Time Lab @meatlabpaleo.bsky.social · 04/04/2025As of this #FossilFriday, I'm officially hosting a symposium on Afrotheria at next year's IPC in Cape Town! There's still a lot to work out, but if you work on elephants, sea cows, aardvarks or any of their relatives (and can make it to South Africa) please consider being a part of this session! 023 3
Reposted by John OrcuttMorphology & Ecology Across Time Lab @meatlabpaleo.bsky.social · 14/03/2025One of the perks of doing research at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is getting to stroll through the exhibits afterwards. Besides telling a great story about climate change and evolution, they are a textbook example of how great paleoart can elevate a paleontology display. 182 8
Reposted by John OrcuttMorphology & Ecology Across Time Lab @meatlabpaleo.bsky.social · 12/03/2025The lab is working on describing some carnivores from Oregon's John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, so I had an excuse to run down to one of our planet's more dramatic fossiliferous landscapes (and my old stomping grounds) over our Spring Break. 042 4
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 05/03/2025Following up on my earlier announcement of a lab Bluesky page, I wanted to share our first post, which naturally had to feature long-time friend of the lab Teleoceras. 020 2
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 05/03/2025In the interest of fully divesting from the Tech Bro social media sites, I just started a BlueSky page for my lab! Give us a follow for research updates and news!bsky.app 031 3
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 23/02/2025A weekend trip across the state to visit family culminated in finding myself in the midst of one of the Northwest's greatest natural spectacles. 010 1
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 17/02/2025Ex Africa semper aliquid novi! Egypt's Fayum is an incredible window into a crucial interval in mammalian evolution. Thanks to a team led by researchers at Mansoura University, the Fayum bestiary is now one species larger. Absolutely love the Ancient Egyptian-inspired name Bastetodon! 041 4
Reposted by John OrcuttSteve Wang @stevewang251.bsky.social · 08/02/2025Just out: My first ever field-based paper in 25+ years in paleo Carbonaceous macrofossils from the Ediacaran–Cambrian lower shale member of the Soltanieh formation, NW Iran. Led by Najmeh Etemad-Saeed, w/ Shuhai Xiao, me, Kristin Bergmann, Andy Knoll free URL: authors.elsevier.com/c/1ka1c14fdH... 3262 26
Reposted by John OrcuttRussell Garwood @russellgarwood.co.uk · 31/01/2025For #FossilFriday may I present to you an amazing scorpion, Pulmonoscorpius kirktonensis. It may look like the moult of a modern species, but these are actually ~330 million year old fossils, dissolved out of a rock from 🏴 using acid. ⚒️🧪🦀🦑 #evosky 16520 65
Reposted by John OrcuttDr. Nick Famoso @drfamoso.bsky.social · 16/01/2025The Turtle Cove assemblage from John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is the theme for this year's #NationalFossilDay poster art! Check out the writeup on the NPS website! www.nps.gov/articles/000... 05212 52
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 18/01/2025I'm prepping a lecture on the afrotherian paleontology this #FossilFriday, so how could I not share the spectacular reconstruction of Arsinoitherium from the Fayum of Egypt on display at the Natural History Museum, London? 0296 29
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 12/01/2025Two related things that make me proud of my home town of Seattle: 1) We're a @unesconow.bsky.social City of Literature 2) We have a strong contender for World's Most Beautiful Bookstore in Arundel Books 020 2
Reposted by John OrcuttSami Mark @samimarkart.bsky.social · 11/01/2025I designed a sticker to raise money for California wildfire relief - I have been wanting to draw something involving garibaldi fish, and seeing as they’re the state marine fish of California I figured now was a fitting time. Preorder period ends in a week - find all details below #marinelife 219467 194
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 12/01/2025Last full day on the West Side before heading back to Spokane. Spending it with some surprising sunshine and the Space Age architecture of the Seattle Center (site of the '62 World's Fair). 040 4
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 11/01/2025As always, the Olympics made photography easy today. 010 1
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 10/01/2025Maybe the most beautiful place in the world is on the lands of the Makah Nation, where the open Pacific meets the northwestern tip of the US at Cape Flattery. 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 10/01/2025Not a video, but as a bonus, please enjoy this photo of Lake Crescent and its surrounding peaks. 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 10/01/2025Next, the now dam-free and (in the right season) salmon-full Elwha River, also in Olympic National Park. 100 1
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 10/01/2025For so many reasons, things are stressful right now. I've always found the waters of the Olympic Peninsula to be endlessly soothing and refreshing, and I hope these videos bring some of that calm to your feed. First, off, Madison Falls in Olympic National Park. 250 5
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 31/12/2024While I'm revisiting the highlights of 2024, I'd be remiss to not mention a very recent development that's my biggest personal news of the year: I got tenure!!! I'm thrilled to be able to spend the rest of my career at Gonzaga and in Spokane! 030 3
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 31/12/20242024 culture highlights: Frank Lloyd Wright's masterpieces across the Midwest, the glories of porteño architecture in Buenos Aires, the monumental Jesuit missions of the Guaraní in Argentina and Paraguay, and the brightly-colored seaport of Valpairaiso, Chile. 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 31/12/20242024 nature highlights: there are too many to list, but it's hard to beat seeing flocks of seabirds on the Salish Sea, the diverse ecosystems of Indiana Dunes, the grandeur of Iguazu Falls, and the wildlife of Iberá and Patagonia. 120 2
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 31/12/20242024 paleontology highlights: museums from Pittsbugh to St. Paul and South American megafauna on display and in situ in Argentina and Uruguay! 210 2
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 31/12/20242024 research highlights: taking the lab students to the GSA section meeting in Spokane and NAPC in Michigan, hosting the NW Scientific Association at Gonzaga, and collections visits to the great museums of the Midwest! 120 2
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 31/12/2024Happy Holidays from the shore of the Salish Sea! To celebrate the new year, here are some of my favorite memories from 2024! 130 3
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 25/11/2024I think we could all use a sea otter in our feeds this #MarineLifeMonday. Famous for the role they play in maintaining kelp forests, they are equally at home in - and equally important members of - the West Coast's other cradles of biodiversity: eelgrass beds, like these in Morro Bay, California. 191 9
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 23/11/2024It's been a long #FossilFriday and I'm in no state to say anything profound, so please enjoy, with minimal comment, this photo of Miocene rhinoceros and Friend of the Lab, Teleoceras! (Photo taken in the Carnegie Museum) 1729 72
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 18/11/2024And because it's also #MuseumMonday, here's a southern elephants seal (and some cetacean companions) in the beautiful zoology galleries of Argentina's Museo de la Plata. 151 5
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 18/11/2024Is #MarineLifeMonday a thing here on Bluesky? If not, my argument for why it should be is that it gives us all a chance to nerd out about species like the world's largest carnivoran, the southern elephant seal (elefante marino in Spanish), seen here on Península Valdés, Argentina. 1187 18
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 16/11/2024And for the smaller subset of you that are also @unesconow.bsky.social World Heritage nerds, besides Messel, the same valley is also home to the Medieval abbey of Lorsch and the Jungendstil (Art Nouveau) architecture of Matildenhöhe. 050 5
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 16/11/2024For my fellow museum and paleontology nerds, the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt also has some incredible non-Messel fossils, including an entire rudist reef, a famous mastodon, and a diversity of Cenozoic mammals from across Europe. 2101 10
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 16/11/2024This #FossilFriday I'm flashing back to the epic day a decade ago when I visited one of our planet's great lagerstätten, the @unesconow.bsky.social World Heritage Site Grube Messel. As a bonus, I also got to see the amazing fossil halls at the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt! 2254 25
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 12/06/2024There are many things to love about the Carnegie Museum, but one of my favorites is the collection of half-fleshed-out fossil mammal sculptures. 020 2
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 12/06/2024The sun sets on the first of twenty days of road-tripping, collection-visiting, and conference-attending across the Great Lakes states. 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 15/05/2024What do these images have in common? They all appear on posters that lab students will be presenting today at the GSA meeting in Spokane! If you're here, swing by between 4 and 5:30 to hear about their research! Art: Charles R. Knight Ringtail photo: American Society of Mammalogists 030 3
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 17/04/20244 & 3) Two big anniversaries! A century ago, J Harlen Bretz introduced the world to what he called the Spokane (Missoula) Floods; 50 years ago Spokane hosted the environment-themed Expo '74. Come celebrate both events with NWSA and explore their legacies at Riverfront Park! 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 17/04/2024Paleontology/mammalogy/taxonomy colleagues! Does anyone have a complete citation (or, in a perfect world, a PDF) for Nordmann, 1850, the paper in which the Tribe Camelini was named? I have spent many frustrating hours trying to track it down and am at my wit's end! 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 15/04/20246 & 5) Our field trip destinations! Following the meeting, attendees will have the opportunity to visit either of two local biodiversity hotspots: Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge and Mount Spokane. www.northwestscience.org/nwsa-2024-an... 000 0
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 14/04/20247) The Falls! The waterfalls that gave Spokane its name, that mark an inflection point in the regional landscape, and that have been a gathering point since time immemorial are often near peak flow in May. 010 1
John Orcutt @jdorcutt.bsky.social · 12/04/20248) Spring flora and fauna! May is the best month to appreciate the lilacs that gave Spokane its nickname, wildflowers of all shapes and colors (like these Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area arrowleaf balsamroot), and mammals like the iconic marmots of the Gonzaga campus! 000 0