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Dr Susannah Lydon

@susieoftraken.bsky.social
5.1K followers 1.4K following 2.4K posts

Palaeobotany | Scicomm | Associate Prof in Plant Science, Nottingham, UK | Vogon poet | Views my own | She/her

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Reposted by Dr Susannah Lydon
Per Ahlberg @perahlberg.bsky.social · 1h
Another paper, this from a team featuring our own @captain-colosteid.bsky.social. A Late Carboniferous (Pennsylvanian) tetrapod burrow from New Brunswick, Canada. www.mdpi.com/2813-6284/4/...
mdpi.com
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Dirk Maggs @dirkmaggs.bsky.social · 10h
The coolest thing you’ll see today.
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Ferwen @ferwen.bsky.social · 5h
#FossilFriday Gertrude Lilian Elles (1872-1960)was a field geologist, stratigrapher and palaeontologist. In 1919 she won the Murchison Medal and became one of the first female Fellows of the Geological Society 🧪⚒️ #FeministFriday #WomenInSTEM paleonerdish.wordpress.com/2016/10/19/f...
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Ausarchosaur @ausarchosaur.bsky.social · 9h
Eurypterus remipes in the fossil collection of the Academy of Natural Sciences. #FossilFriday Save the Academy. Eurypterids in, dragons out.
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Neil Norman And His Cosmic Orchestra @fubsyshabaroon.bsky.social · 4h
Sill time to chuck them a few Ningis or a Triganic Pu.
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Dr Susannah Lydon @susieoftraken.bsky.social · 4h
It was a perfect description!
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Dr Susannah Lydon @susieoftraken.bsky.social · 4h
10/10 for the alt text
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Ben Miller @extinctmonsters.bsky.social · 4h
But here’s the fossil that made me gasp: a *carbonized* conifer cone stem. I’ve never seen anything this gorgeously preserved and diagnostic in the lignite at the Muirkirk site!
Bumpy pointy black thing in a case
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Ben Miller @extinctmonsters.bsky.social · 4h
At the MNCPPC paleo office this #FossilFriday. Love what they’ve done with the place! Here are the nodosaur tail verts that got a bunch of press in 2023: they’re ugly, but outrageously big. This guy was easily 40-50 feet long.
Sorta trapezoidal thick slab of bone in a tray, next to a rectangular slab of boneAnother lumpy slab in a tray
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Ferwen @ferwen.bsky.social · 4h
#FossilFriday Suffragettes and paleontologists: The Newnham quartet #womeninstem paleonerdish.wordpress.com/2016/10/19/f...
paleonerdish.wordpress.com
Forgotten women of Paleontology: The Newnham quartet.
Women have played  various and extensive roles in the history of geology. In the 18th and 19th centuries women’s access to science was limited, and science was usually a ‘hobby’ for intelligent wea…
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Talia "ATTACK DOGS is out now!" Bhatt ⚢ @taliabhatt.itch.io · 6h
In the United Kingdom, bigots are protected by law while persecuted minorities are banned from bathrooms. All of this makes perfect sense when you realize the British elite's ideological fixation is on punishing the untermenschen for ever daring to presume we deserved dignity and equal treatment.
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Dr Susannah Lydon @susieoftraken.bsky.social · 6h
Always repost the dinosauroid
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GHOULology Johnson @geologyjohnson.bsky.social · 6h
Good tour today. The storms have covered the beach in nodules and exposed the till and bed rock beneath the beach. Clients found many good #fossils and I distributed some good #ammonites to kids (of all ages). #geology #paleontology #whitby
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Will Maclean @willmac23.bsky.social · 7h
Here's me talking about my "process" - no wait, come back! - here's me talking about the best way of destroying a blameless notebook, in service of writing a book like Solace House, with the good people at Lithub lithub.com/will-maclean...
lithub.com
Will Maclean on F*cking Up a Notebook to Write a Novel
This first appeared in Lit Hub’s Craft of Writing newsletter—sign up here. There’s a great artist called Bobby Fingers whose YouTube channel documents him making insanely detailed sculptures of cel…
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Mark Witton @markwitton.bsky.social · 7h
...that was figured by @tetzoo.bsky.social and @tattersdill.bsky.social in their recent paper on the dinosauroid story: www.researchgate.net/publication/... (Very much essential and recommended reading if you have any interest in this strange thought experiment)
researchgate.net
(PDF) Art, Anatomy, and the Stars: Russell and Séguin’s Dinosauroid
PDF | It takes a bold, innovative mind to publish an exercise in speculative evolution pertaining to an alternative timeline. Dale Russell’s studies of... | Find, read and cite all the research you ne...
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Mark Witton @markwitton.bsky.social · 7h
A portrait of Dale Russell's "dinosauroid" for #FossilFriday. The creation of this iconic #specevo concept is stranger than most of us realise, being inspired not only by science but also (probably) Russell's faith and worldview, too. This artwork is based on a maquette created by Ely Kish...
A portrait of Dale Russell's "dinosauroid", essentially a reptilian humanoid, holding a small pot and a paintbrush. The pose is based on a maquette created by palaeoartist Ely Kish, who rendered this figure from posterior view as a cave-painting, Palaeolithic dinosauroid (see https://cdnsciencepub.com/cms/10.1139/cjes-2020-0172/asset/images/large/cjes-2020-0172f8.jpeg).
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Charlotte Lydia Riley @lottelydia.bsky.social · 9h
father Jack saying “that would be an ecumenical matter” except it’s just me repeating “that would be a breach of the 2010 equality act” from now until the end of time
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Asher HELLbein @asherelbein.bsky.social · 7h
It's #fossilfriday! Meet Cotylorhynchus, your sumo-shaped distant cousin from Permian Oklahoma and Texas! Huge body! Vegetarian habits! Teeny-tiny head! Survival Verdict: MAYBE. You don't want to catch a bodyslam from this guy. HOW TO SURVIVE PREHISTORY. Preorder now! bookshop.org/p/books/how-...
A very large, powerful, round Cotylorhynchus rests on a desert rock, whisps of steam emerging from its nostrils in the cold morning. Somehow its tiny head doesn't look quite as comedic as in other depitctions. Art by Stieven Van Der Poorten.
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Jane Hill @janehill.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Oh btw. I'm doing a show called Spunk In My Eyes at the inaugural Plymouth Comedy Festival in February. It’s about dealing with ovarian cancer as an exhausted woman in my sixties with an intense hatred of positive mindsets and spiritual woo-woo. www.plymouthcomedyfestival.com/events/jane-...
plymouthcomedyfestival.com
Jane Hill: Spunk In My Eyes | Plymouth Comedy Festival, Plymouth Comedy Festival, University of Plymouth
Jane Hill brings Spunk In My Eyes to the SU Lounge at Plymouth University Students’ Union. Jane’s candid, blackly comic show tackles cancer, courage and the exhausting pressure to stay positive with h...
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Andres Elgorriaga @elgorriaga.bsky.social · 9h
No recuerdo la última vez que compartí algo para un #FossilFriday, pero ahí va una licofita del Pérmico de Chubut, #Patagonia, Argentina. I don't remember my last FossilFriday post, but here's a nice lycophyte fossil from the Permian of Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina. #Fossils #Plants
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Mostly Harmless @whalepetunias.bsky.social · 9h
and then noticed something close to it on the ground, half covered in mud. She picked it up and wiped the mud off it. It was some kind of electronic device the size of a small book. Feebly glowing on its cover, in response to her touch, were some large friendly letters. They said DON'T PANIC.
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ESCONI @esconi.bsky.social · 9h
Fossil Friday #339: A Breathtaking Lycopod Cone #fossils #paleontology #MazonCreek #FossilFriday #lycopod #pennsylvanian #carboniferous We saw quite a few very nice Mazon Creek fossils last week at the 2026 Mazon Creek… esconi.org/2026/10/fossil-friday-33…
esconi.org
Fossil Friday #339: A Breathtaking Lycopod Cone
We saw quite a few very nice Mazon Creek fossils last week at the 2026 Mazon Creek Fossil Day. One of the most notable was the lycopod cone brought in my Merry Jo Montgomery. The fossil was found earlier this summer by her daughter, Laura Adamczyk.
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Ada Palmer @adapalmer.bsky.social · 10h
In 2 years, the world protected an area of ocean larger than the EU. About 5 million km² of ocean came under protection in the 2 years to April 2026, lifting global coverage past 10% for the 1st time. That’s the target countries agreed for 2020, albeit 6 years late buff.ly/CR7liDj #ShareGoodNewsToo
buff.ly
World reaches milestone for nature: 10% of ocean now officially protected - UNEP-WCMC
Achievement is an urgent reminder that protected and conserved areas at sea need to triple by 2030
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David Connolly BAJR @bajr-badger.bsky.social · 14h
Heritage Mapping and Data Officer Forestry England Salary: £33,854 Closing Date: November 8, 2026 Location: based out of any of our regional offices www.bajr.org/job-ad/herit...
bajr.org
Heritage Mapping and Data Officer - BAJR - British Archaeology Jobs and Resources
Salary: £33,854Closing Date: 08/11/26Location: based out of any of our regional offices
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Duncan McIlroy @dmcediacaran.bsky.social · 10h
It is #FossilFriday again! This week we have been finishing a paper on Aspidella and Triforillonia. Aspidella is the most widely named #Ediacaran genus, though few occurrences resemble the type species A. terranovica. Aspidella sadly has become a bit of a wastebasket taxon synonymous with disc.
oval disc of Aspidella sensu stricto  with marginal rim and radiating ornament arising from a linear feature unlike other taxa attributed to “Aspidella” (sensu lato)
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🌴 Scott Zona, Ph.D. 🌴 @scottzona.bsky.social · 11h
Agave flowers are rich in nectar & important resources for bats. 📷: A. desmettiana flowers visited by a hungry bat; Marlon Machado CCBYNC2. #Agave #Asparagaceae #Botany 🌾🧪🌱 1/2
Nighttime photo of a bat visiting the clusters of green flowers of an agave. The flowers have strongly exserted yellow stamens.
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ianthemouthofmadness.fenrisgames @fenrisgames.com · 11h
always reskeeting not-actually fossilised bollocks
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Dr. Stephanie @punkrockscience.bsky.social · 11h
There are limits on how broadly it works - it’s an autograft, not an allograft, essentially - but this is wild. 🧪
nature.com
‘Incredible’: bleached corals thrive within days when touching healthy neighbour
A coral fragment can form a tissue bridge with a dying counterpart — and provide it with crucial microalgae.
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Dr Susannah Lydon @susieoftraken.bsky.social · 11h
Interestingly, I also get trypophobia from lots of things, but this one doesn't set me off at all. I think the flower-like shape of the individual holes for polyps makes a difference, weirdly.
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Dr Susannah Lydon @susieoftraken.bsky.social · 11h
Holocystis elegans, a very pretty 110 million-year-old colonial coral from the Lower Greensand on the Isle of Wight. On display in Dinosaur Isle museum. #FossilFriday 🌏⚒🧪🏵🌊🏵🌊
Holocystis elegans, a round fossil about 10cm across, covered with what resemble tiny pretty flowers
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European Geosciences Union (EGU) @egu.eu · 14h
Are you an expert in #mentoring and professional development🚀? The #EGU Outreach Committee is seeking a consultant to design, deliver, and evaluate EGU's first-ever online mentoring programme. 📅Friday 16 October 2026. 📩 outreach@egu.eu Learn more: egu.eu/47Y4AO 📸: Giacomo Corti on imaggeo.egu.eu
Image description: Thre people discussing and taking notes during fieldwork. Tesxt reads:  EGU seeks a consultant to assist with the new, 2027 mentoring programme.
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Folk Horror Revival 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @folkhorrorrevival.bsky.social · 14h
'A flapping mass of obscene reptilian life tall, gray, & withered, more like dead and dried specimens than actual living creatures, absolutely motionless save for the rolling of their red eyes or an occasional snap of their rat-trap beaks as a dragonfly went past them.' Conan Doyle, The Lost World
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Dr Sarah Jamison-Todd @whaleosaurus.bsky.social · 14h
Pavement geology in Sweden: Ordovician Orthoceras in Gothenburg train station.
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Mark Thompson @markreckons.bsky.social · 14h
And that's why I don't like cricket youtu.be/IExpXRsoEUc
youtu.be
Bob Fossil - And that's why I don't like Cricket
YouTube video by james skidmore
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duckweed-uk.bsky.social @duckweed-uk.bsky.social · 15h
After years of studying root development, I was drawn to duckweeds, as many species have lost roots. In this Tansley Insight in @newphyt.bsky.social , we explore other plants that have independently evolved rootlessness. nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/PYNXFP....
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Richard Fallon @richardfallon.bsky.social · 14h
An image (originally 1892, by Joseph Smit) unsubtly imitated in E. Ray Lankester's Extinct Animals (1905, left) through which it found its way into P. L. Forbes's artwork for Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World (1912, right).
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Ben Newmark @bennewmark.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
New. What those who find learning easiest can learn from those who find it hardest. I worked hard on this. bennewmark.wordpress.com/2026/10/15/w...
bennewmark.wordpress.com
What those who find learning easiest can learn from those who find it hardest.
This speech was given to Harris Westminster Sixth Form on Friday 9th October 2026. … Thank you for having me. It is an honour to speak to you – the adults in charge of one of the highest-perf…
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Spinky’s Mama @spinkysmama.bsky.social · 17/09/2025
A Brian Blessed convention story from @cooraysmith.bsky.social In 1998, there was airtight secrecy for The Phantom Menace. He was asked about the film, and span a ridiculous yarn. On release: Jim realises that Blessed had given a completely accurate summary of the story *from Boss Nass’s POV*
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Hastings Museum & Art Gallery @notjustabattle.bsky.social · 14h
New Acquisition! Head to the Dinosaurs Gallery to see something we recently added to the collection. It's a dinosaur's dinner! To find out more check out the website here www.hmag.org.uk/new-acquisition-a-d… #FossilFriday #DinosaurTown Hastings Borough Council
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sunyi @sunyidean.com · 14h
I’m seeking a specialist beta reader for my SF book. Someone who has knowledge of microbiology, specifically phage science, ideally in the context of pathogens / vaccinations / medicine / lab environments. I can offer some pay (self funded, not asking Tor to cover it) and would ofc give credit.
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Cass Morrison @cretaceous-cass.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
I am excited to announce Invictibellatrix amberina, the first megaraptoran from Europe (Wessex Formation, Isle of Wight) The name means unconquered warrior (in the feminine), with the species name being after Amber. royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article... Art Sergey Krasovskiy + Pedro Salas
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Paul D. Taylor @nhmbryozoa.bsky.social · 17h
#FossilFriday Fittingly, Philip Cambridge bequeathed his large fossil collection to Cambridge University, including an example of a cheilostome bryozoan named, equally fittingly, Goodonia cookae – “good on’ya Cookie” – to honour NHMUK scientist Pat Cook on her emigration to Australia.
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Andy Farke @andyfarke.bsky.social · 19h
The hollowing out of taxonomic expertise is the silent crisis in our profession. And the worse sin is those who aren't even the slight bit *curious* about learning basic identifications.
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Alom Shaha @alomshaha.bsky.social · 16h
“I have benefited from a supportive family, enjoyed good health and don’t have extensive care commitments that erode my energy and have had many opportunities other people haven’t had” - wonderful when “successful“ people see things this way and world would be better if more did the same.
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Dr Susannah Lydon @susieoftraken.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
Trainspotting for tax purposes.
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Rage Against the Miocene @organiccarbon.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
A lovely fly agaric mushroom, seen while out on a run through the ancient oak and beech woodlands of the Wye Valley.
Bright red mushroom with pyramid-shaped white warts. Nestled among brown leaves, mossy stones and a few bright green blades of woodrush.
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Nicola Lawrence @drnicolal.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
So pleased this is happening. Lyme Resource Centre are delighted to announce that a new dedicated research programme at the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research (CIMR), University of Cambridge, will explore the cell biology of Borrelia burgdoferi, the bacteria that cause Lyme disease.
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Kate Littler @palaeoclimate.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
I needed a 20-min break from the desk today, and decided to take a turn in our campus orchard. What a special place. So many different varieties of apple trees, young and old. Branches and twigs encrusted with lichen. Epiphyte ferns in the crooks of the oldest ones. A bee’s nest in the wall. ❤️
Pale green lichen and moss on the branches and twigs of an apple tree. Green grass in the background. Ferns and moss growing on the thick branch of an old apple tree. A segment of the orchard in the walled garden. Older tree to the left, and some newer specimens to the right.
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Woodland Trust Scotland @wtscotsocial.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
Aged 16–25? Got an idea to help woods, trees and people?💡Apply to #IgnitingInnovation for expert mentoring and £5,000 to bring it to life. Whether creative or practical, if it helps nature thrive, makes trees accessible, or gets people involved, apply now!👉️ buff.ly/j98brkd #YouthOpportunities
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Endless Bookshelf @endlessbookshelf.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
The Great God Pan & The White People by Arthur Machen a new edition with illustrations by Flora McLachlan, Afterword by Henry Wessells just announced by Suntup Press suntup.press/the-great-go...
suntup.press
The Great God Pan & The White People by Robert Louis Stevenson - Suntup Editions
Among the foundational works of supernatural fiction, Arthur Machen’s The Great God Pan and “The White People” venture beyond reality as we know it, and into something older, stranger, and infinitely ...
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