iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Chris Widga

Jake Berv @jakeberv.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

#Evol2026 I’m launching a new research group at UNC Charlotte in January 2027. Prospective students, postdocs, and collaborators are welcome to get in touch: jacob.berv@charlotte.edu More at jakeberv.com, lab website coming soon.

Announcement for a new Biodiversity Informatics Research Group at UNC Charlotte, launching January 2027. Dr. Jake Berv is launching a lab studying biodiversity across space and deep time, integrating phylogenomics, fossil and modern specimens, fieldwork, and comparative methods. A major near-term interest is developing and benchmarking human-guided AI research agents for rigorous, reproducible analyses in ecology and evolution. Prospective students, postdocs, and collaborators in macroevolution, computational biology and AI, natural history, and open science are welcome to get in touch at jacob.berv@charlotte.edu. More information: jakeberv.com. The graphic features McDowell Nature Preserve in Charlotte.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

They are always a great reminder to get out for a walk--sometimes I need that!

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authodizer @doktrock.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

🚨Job(s) Alert(s)🚨‼️at this link #Geology ⚒️🧪

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Tom Booth @boothicus.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

The parch marks at Stonehenge are really good for seeing all the mucking about that’s gone on and why it might be considered as several superimposed monuments rather than a singular one.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Sure would be nice to get some more good dates on pacificus...this one looks like it has potential.

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cenofreak88.bsky.social @cenofreak88.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Welcome to #gomphtober2026 . Kicking things off is the lower jaw of Torynobelodon, a shovel-tusker found in Cherry County, Nebraska. On diaplay at the University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln. #fossilfriday #universityofnebraskastatemuseum #prehistoricnebraska #elephant

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Journal of Systematic Palaeontology @journalsystpal.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

A bird’s eye view of the fossil record: perspectives on avian systematics by Benito & Steell. Read here: buff.ly/fJattSx This is the latest article in our collection of agenda-setting reviews in the systematics of major fossil groups - with many more articles coming soon! #FossilFriday

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steidlebot.bsky.social @steidlebot.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Burning Silica Brick Christian Jacob Walter Allegheny, Pennsylvania 1872-1938 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Date unknown | oil on canvas exhibitions.psu.edu/s/EMSMuseum-Ste… #bsmuseums #artbot #pennstate

Burning Silica Brick by Christian Jacob Walter
Allegheny, Pennsylvania 1872-1938 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Date unknown. oil on canvas.

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steidlebot.bsky.social @steidlebot.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Dredging the Monongahela Carl August Walberg Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1893-1982 Roanoke, Virginia | ca 1935 | oil on canvas exhibitions.psu.edu/s/EMSMuseum-Ste… #bsmuseums #artbot #pennstate

Dredging the Monongahela by Carl August Walberg
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1893-1982 Roanoke, Virginia, ca 1935. oil on canvas.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Hmmm. 00-04 (as a tangential hanger-on, the guy Larry got to take on all his crazy bison ideas--only a few semesters in prep, collections and exhibits over in anthro museum)

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Oof. Spelling and grammar is a thing. Evidently my brain and finger muscle memory took the day off.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

This is OUR collective history. Museum specimens belong to the world, not to a move star or tech bro. The academy has not only done the scientific work to investigate and curate these fossils for 200 years (no small feat!) but shares the science with Philadelphians, every day.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Many of these fossils are classics...and detailed in this great report from Academy scientists in the 1990s. This was THE place to think about N.A. paleontology in the 1800s and it set the stage for full development of the science in the 20th century.

Cover of a book, titled "A study of fossil vertebrate types in the academy of natural sciences of philadelphia"

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Oh. And the type of Euceratherium collinum, SHRUBOX! From Burnet Cave, NM. The ANSP has the trifecta of North American muskox holotypes. (there may be more that I'm missing in my photos).

Fossil shrubox skull with long slender, swooping horns.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Not from a cave, but still in the ANSP collections...this massive snoot of an Atlantic walrus dredged from coastal New Jersey. Now present no further south than the the Canadian Arctic.

Round donut-shaped muzzle of an atlantic walrus fossil.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

...and Smilodon gracilis--yes, also the type for this iconic Irvintonian species is also Port Kennedy Cave.

A pair of Smilodon gracilis mandibles...

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Port Kennedy at ANSP also has...hands down, the best sample of the Irvintonian ground sloth Megalonyx wheatleyi anywhere in the world.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Port Kennedy Cave is filled with fossils from the mid-Pleistocene (ca. 1.5 ma to 250ka). There aren't many of these sites, especially in the eastern US. So it is an important record, even for animals that are common during other time periods. Like mastodons!

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Tapir from Pennsylvania? Yes, this is the type of Cope's Tapir from Port Kennedy Cave, now in Valley Forge National Historical Park.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Yes. Another holotype of an Ice Age muskoxen, Symbos cavifrons. Until the 1980s, this was seen as a second american muskox running around during the Ice Age. Now synonymized with Bootherium (above). Without these collections we wouldn't have sorted that out...

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

The proof is in the...label. William Clark AND Thomas Jefferson involved in this one. The American mastodon may soon become our national fossil mammal (passed the house, still in the senate). This is a storied history for a national fossil mammal! houchin.house.gov/media/press-...

Museum label...showing collector as "William Clark for Thomas Jefferson"

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Near and dear to me (and a few of you)...are American mastodons. Although the type of M. americanum is in Paris, the Jefferson Collection of mastodon material provided key ammunition against Buffon's "theory of American degeneracy"

mastodon jaw from the Thomas Jefferson Collection at the ANSP

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Mammoths abound. As they often do. Mammoths from this same locality contributed DNA to our modern understanding of mammoth evolution. www.frontiersin.org/journals/eco...

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

...but you may ask...what was the OTHER head. It was our extinct stag-moose, Cervalces scotti. Yes, also a holotype in the Jefferson Collection.

Fossil with broken antlers...because they are always broken.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

And Muskoxen. This is the type specimen of the helmeted muskox (Bootherium) also from the Ohio valley. I love the original description of this specimen which was title "An Account of Two Heads Found in the Morass".

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

And #dogs, of course. Yes, they have the type specimen of Canis (=Aenocyon) dirus. Long before Game of Thrones and de-extinction (1850s), this chunky upper jaw of a dire wolf was found on the banks of the Ohio River near present day Evansville, IN.

Holotype of Canis dirus. Shiny brown fossil with canine dentition.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Not to be forgotten, there are some really cool carnivores in the Pleistocene of N.A. too. Here is the holotype of the American Lion described by Joseph Leidy in 1853 (across the aisle from the bison). Bigger than saber-toothed cats, it was THE apex predator in N.A. This from Louisiana. #cats

Fossil lion jaw...pointy teeth in a brown jaw.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

...and it's not just bison. The academy of was instrumental in figuring out what these odd American species were. Like the weird long-clawed critters with giant claws. Not lions (as Jefferson thought), but GROUND SLOTHS!

large fossil claws in white cavity mounts. Sloth claws...

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

But wait, there's more! This is the holotype of Bison antiquus (in the drawer above the latifrons; they were found in the same part of KY too). B. antiquus is found throughout North America. #Bison is our National Mammal, and the Academy curates the holotypes of 2 of 4 of our recognized species.

Same guy, new fossil. Still bison, but smaller horns. Still awesome.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

This particular specimen is in the Thomas Jefferson collection at the ANSP because Jefferson was really interested in Ice Age animals--bison, mastodons, mammoths, sloths. This particularly large bison comes from the Ohio River valley. Even today that are pretty rare in the Midwest.

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Museums are a social good. They preserve the collective history of our communities. In the case of the ANSP, that history happens to be a wonderful story of the dev of the natural sciences in this country. So we'll start here...this is the holotype specimen of Bison latifrons, the BIG #bison.

a person with grey hair and glasses pointing to fossil, a partial skull and base of really big horns, Bison latifrons!

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Although I can't be with those of you who are out in the rain advocating for your museum today...I thought I might be a good idea to post some Academy of Natural Sciences fossils to keep you warm and dry on the inside. @savetheacademy.bsky.social

An ammonite scultpure outside the side entrance of the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia.

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Jeanne Timmons @mostlymammoths.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

#FossilFriday In 2007, a fossil was discovered & offered as a donation to a local university, but languished until one prof expressed interest 5 yrs later. It turned out to be a rare (in N.America) preserved proboscidean cranium. Read more here: mostlymammoths.wordpress.com/2026/09/14/t...

Screenshot of four pictures of different proboscideans: Columbian mammoth at the La Brea Tar Pits; mastodons (adult and juvenile), also at the La Brea Tar Pits; Tetralophodon at the Henan Geological Museum in China; and a Columbian mammoth and Pacific mastodon display at the Western Science Center in California.

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Anne Kort | The Virtual Paleontologist @virtpaleo.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

I, like many in the paleontology community, have been devastated to hear about the planned closures for two major museums in the past two weeks. I have seen more coverage of ANSP, so I want to highlight the Sternberg Museum of Fort Hays State University in Kansas. sternberg.fhsu.edu

sternberg.fhsu.edu

Sternberg Museum of Natural History - Sternberg Museum of Natural History

Explore Great Plains natural history at the Sternberg Museum (Hays, KS): fossils, rotating exhibits, educational programs, tours, and camps.

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John Alroy @johnalroy.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

The Fossilworks database is now integrated with the Ecological Register and includes growing datasets on Cenozoic and Cretaceous vertebrates including mammals and dinosaurs. All of the 5000+ site inventories include specimen counts used to obtain GW species richness estimates. fossilworks.org

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steidlebot.bsky.social @steidlebot.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Off-Hand Glass Blowing M. Louise Pershing Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1904-1986 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | ca 1936 | oil on canvas exhibitions.psu.edu/s/EMSMuseum-Ste… #bsmuseums #artbot #pennstate

Off-Hand Glass Blowing by M. Louise Pershing
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1904-1986 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, ca 1936. oil on canvas.

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Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

If you care about keeping the Academy of Natural Sciences open to the public in Philadelphia, I need you to read and share this thread. Trish Wellenbach was sent from the mayor's office to oversee the Academy of Natural sciences situation. She needs to hear from us. Here comes the action item:

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Robert Boessenecker, Dr. of Whaleontology ™️ @coastalpaleo.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

#fossilfriday An example of why the ANSP and its collections must be saved. Atlantochelys mortoni, a giant protostegid sea turtle - named in 1849 by Agassiz based on the proximal humerus fragment. In 2012, someone found a large distal humerus that FIT ONTO THE SAME BONE in ANSP collections. 1/ 🦖🧪

The reunited humerus of the gigantic sea turtle Atlantochelys, on display in a museum: you can clearly see the break that happened sometime prior to the 19th century.

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Robin Hayward 🌳 🏳️‍⚧️ @canopyrobin.com · 25/09/2026

We're publishing new guidance to support trans people who do fieldwork (any work outside the office)! Now we need your help to get them seen so please share! inclusivefieldwork.leeds.ac.uk/trans/

a cartoon of three fieldworkers. One has a small trans flag. The logos of the university of leeds, research england, and canopy robin are shown, as well as the URL: InclusiveFieldwork (dot) Leeds (dot) AC (dot) UK (slash) trans

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Mostly coming from our collection that is dominated by historic ores. V relevant to crit min exploration (but under utilized). Calib remotely sensed spectrographic data. Rock weathering experiments. Will you be at GSA? I've got a talk along these lines. Could share the slides once I finish them!

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Bob Kopp @bobkopp.net · 22/09/2026

NEW PAPER: In a new paper, jointly published in @agu.org Earth's Future & @ametsoc.org BAMS, and co-led by Melissa Kenney, @costasamaras.com and me, 175 authors outline priorities to guide the future of scientific assessments of climate change in the United States. 🧵

doi.org

Research Priorities for Robust Climate Assessments in the United States

A network of climate assessments plays a critical role in synthesizing the state of science to support evidence-based decision-making To support future U.S. and sub-national climate assessments, ...

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

I've been thinking about this too... Could add a few more arms to your map! (So many arms)

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steidlebot.bsky.social @steidlebot.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Electric Welder Olive Harriette Nuhfer Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1901-1996 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | 1937 | oil on canvas exhibitions.psu.edu/s/EMSMuseum-Ste… #bsmuseums #artbot #pennstate

Electric Welder by Olive Harriette Nuhfer
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1901-1996 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1937. oil on canvas.

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Dr. Emma E. Bird @dremmabird.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

A number of 🚨Science & Museum Jobs🚨 available at different levels right now for the Distributed System of Scientific Collections UK programme 🪩 #DiSSCo 🪩 fab if you're into 🌳science digitisation🌳 #ScienceJobs #MuseumJobs jobs.nhm.ac.uk/internal/Job...

jobs.nhm.ac.uk

DiSSCo UK Digitiser:South Kensington

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Andy Farke @andyfarke.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Some Monday morning thoughts on museum closures, spurred in part by the recent Academy of Natural Sciences, but not necessarily specific to that. <thread>

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Chris Widga @widga.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

I approve of this use of my tax dollars.

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Esther van Hulsen wildlife art @esthervanhulsen.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Something I can finally share! I made a series of paitings and drawings of woolly mammoth and other species and landscapes from the North American Ice Age, whcih will be shwon at the Art House Blackhills Hot Springs Gallery from te 25th of September.

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