Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
@bennyborremans.wildlifehero.org
Quantitative wildlife ecologist (PhD)
Bat virus #spillover, sea lion disease outbreaks and other wildlife health projects #diseaseecology
@wildlifehero.org | www.wildlifehero.org
Husband, dogdad, runner, ironmanner, climber, musician
Bat virus #spillover, sea lion disease outbreaks and other wildlife health projects #diseaseecology
@wildlifehero.org | www.wildlifehero.org
Husband, dogdad, runner, ironmanner, climber, musician
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
NSF GRFP applicants (and mentors): Was your application Returned Without Review and deemed ineligible despite fitting in the allowed topics?
1) Write NSF
2) Write your Congressperson
3) CC us at grfp@grant-witness.us so we can compile + follow up
Details and template at grant-witness.us/grfp-letter
1) Write NSF
2) Write your Congressperson
3) CC us at grfp@grant-witness.us so we can compile + follow up
Details and template at grant-witness.us/grfp-letter
February 2, 2026 at 5:58 PM
NSF GRFP applicants (and mentors): Was your application Returned Without Review and deemed ineligible despite fitting in the allowed topics?
1) Write NSF
2) Write your Congressperson
3) CC us at grfp@grant-witness.us so we can compile + follow up
Details and template at grant-witness.us/grfp-letter
1) Write NSF
2) Write your Congressperson
3) CC us at grfp@grant-witness.us so we can compile + follow up
Details and template at grant-witness.us/grfp-letter
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
📘 New book out soon !
I’m excited to share that 𝐁𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞-𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐨𝐯 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐬: 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐑 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐍𝐈𝐌𝐁𝐋𝐄 is being published by Chapman & Hall / CRC Press
Hope it’s useful to students, researchers, and practitioners
#StatisticalEcology #NIMBLE
I’m excited to share that 𝐁𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞-𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐨𝐯 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐬: 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐑 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐍𝐈𝐌𝐁𝐋𝐄 is being published by Chapman & Hall / CRC Press
Hope it’s useful to students, researchers, and practitioners
#StatisticalEcology #NIMBLE
February 1, 2026 at 11:38 AM
📘 New book out soon !
I’m excited to share that 𝐁𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞-𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐨𝐯 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐬: 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐑 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐍𝐈𝐌𝐁𝐋𝐄 is being published by Chapman & Hall / CRC Press
Hope it’s useful to students, researchers, and practitioners
#StatisticalEcology #NIMBLE
I’m excited to share that 𝐁𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞-𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐨𝐯 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐬: 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐑 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐍𝐈𝐌𝐁𝐋𝐄 is being published by Chapman & Hall / CRC Press
Hope it’s useful to students, researchers, and practitioners
#StatisticalEcology #NIMBLE
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
The final piece of my PhD work is now published in Science Translational Medicine! We present a new framework to jointly infer epidemiological and antigenic parameters from multi-pathogen population serological studies🦠
www.science.org/stoken/autho...
www.science.org/stoken/autho...
December 18, 2025 at 10:04 AM
The final piece of my PhD work is now published in Science Translational Medicine! We present a new framework to jointly infer epidemiological and antigenic parameters from multi-pathogen population serological studies🦠
www.science.org/stoken/autho...
www.science.org/stoken/autho...
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
🦇 Two PhD positions available on our new ARC Discovery Grant: "From Diversity to Disease: Viral Ecology, Evolution and Persistence in Bats"
The project will investigate how viral diversity evolves and persists, with a particular focus on recently discovered henipaviruses in Australian flying foxes.
The project will investigate how viral diversity evolves and persists, with a particular focus on recently discovered henipaviruses in Australian flying foxes.
December 16, 2025 at 1:44 AM
🦇 Two PhD positions available on our new ARC Discovery Grant: "From Diversity to Disease: Viral Ecology, Evolution and Persistence in Bats"
The project will investigate how viral diversity evolves and persists, with a particular focus on recently discovered henipaviruses in Australian flying foxes.
The project will investigate how viral diversity evolves and persists, with a particular focus on recently discovered henipaviruses in Australian flying foxes.
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Celebrating the publication of our big collaborative spatial-social meta-analysis of density-dependent transmission effects, out now in Nature Eco Evo! doi.org/10.1038/s415... (or rdcu.be/eD6eB)
September 8, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Celebrating the publication of our big collaborative spatial-social meta-analysis of density-dependent transmission effects, out now in Nature Eco Evo! doi.org/10.1038/s415... (or rdcu.be/eD6eB)
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Last week the drone pilots in my lab captured this image (photo 1) of a large sea lion haul out @ San Carlos Beach in Monterey during our monthly surveys. Last year (photo 2) a large sea lion haul out was seen at the same beach. This might be turning into a new haul out site. @uwsafs.bsky.social
September 5, 2025 at 6:40 PM
Last week the drone pilots in my lab captured this image (photo 1) of a large sea lion haul out @ San Carlos Beach in Monterey during our monthly surveys. Last year (photo 2) a large sea lion haul out was seen at the same beach. This might be turning into a new haul out site. @uwsafs.bsky.social
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
New review out in @thelancetplanet.bsky.social from our rodent-borne zoonoses workshop @ciddpsu.bsky.social 🐭🌍
Humans & rodents share a long history and many pathogens -from plague to mpox. Outbreak prevention needs socially + ecologically grounded solutions
🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Humans & rodents share a long history and many pathogens -from plague to mpox. Outbreak prevention needs socially + ecologically grounded solutions
🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reducing the threats of rodent-borne zoonoses requires an understanding and leveraging of three key pillars: disease ecology, synanthropy, and rodentation
Rodents have co-existed with humans for centuries, and frequently exchange pathogens. Historically, rodent-driven plague outbreaks scoured the Old Wor…
www.sciencedirect.com
August 29, 2025 at 2:12 PM
New review out in @thelancetplanet.bsky.social from our rodent-borne zoonoses workshop @ciddpsu.bsky.social 🐭🌍
Humans & rodents share a long history and many pathogens -from plague to mpox. Outbreak prevention needs socially + ecologically grounded solutions
🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Humans & rodents share a long history and many pathogens -from plague to mpox. Outbreak prevention needs socially + ecologically grounded solutions
🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Using this new textbook to prepare disease ecology lectures, it’s just fabulous! Smooth and clear writing, excellent topics highlighted, and beautiful figures and layout throughout. If you have any interest at all in wildlife pathogens and disease ecology, GET THIS BOOK. Seriously.
August 29, 2025 at 3:20 PM
Using this new textbook to prepare disease ecology lectures, it’s just fabulous! Smooth and clear writing, excellent topics highlighted, and beautiful figures and layout throughout. If you have any interest at all in wildlife pathogens and disease ecology, GET THIS BOOK. Seriously.
Sharing this starter pack again with lots of great disease ecologists, contact me if you'd like to be added or know someone who should be on this list! Feel free to forward to fresh bluesky arrivals who may be interested. bsky.app/starter-pack...
August 27, 2025 at 10:27 PM
Sharing this starter pack again with lots of great disease ecologists, contact me if you'd like to be added or know someone who should be on this list! Feel free to forward to fresh bluesky arrivals who may be interested. bsky.app/starter-pack...
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Preprint and the website by @dingdingpeng.the100.ci and @vincentab.bsky.social are great, and I got inspired to illustrate Bayesian workflow for model checking and comparison *before* model interpretation following their friendship importance example users.aalto.fi/~ave/casestu...
August 27, 2025 at 10:11 AM
Preprint and the website by @dingdingpeng.the100.ci and @vincentab.bsky.social are great, and I got inspired to illustrate Bayesian workflow for model checking and comparison *before* model interpretation following their friendship importance example users.aalto.fi/~ave/casestu...
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Excited to announce a search for an Associate or Full Professor in Infectious Disease Modeling at Penn State's Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics. Details at link and below.
psu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/PSU_Ac...
psu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/PSU_Ac...
Full or Associate Professor in Infectious Disease Modeling
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS: CURRENT PENN STATE EMPLOYEE (faculty, staff, technical service, or student), please login to Workday to complete the internal application process. Please do not apply here, a...
psu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com
August 26, 2025 at 12:40 PM
Excited to announce a search for an Associate or Full Professor in Infectious Disease Modeling at Penn State's Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics. Details at link and below.
psu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/PSU_Ac...
psu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/PSU_Ac...
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Last chance to get your abstracts in for the 20th International Bat Research Conference (IBRC) in Australia in August!
It's shaping up to be an exciting program, in an incredible world heritage location, with diverse workshops and field trips.
Abstracts due this Wednesday 14th May!!
www.ibrc.org
It's shaping up to be an exciting program, in an incredible world heritage location, with diverse workshops and field trips.
Abstracts due this Wednesday 14th May!!
www.ibrc.org
May 8, 2025 at 10:29 PM
Last chance to get your abstracts in for the 20th International Bat Research Conference (IBRC) in Australia in August!
It's shaping up to be an exciting program, in an incredible world heritage location, with diverse workshops and field trips.
Abstracts due this Wednesday 14th May!!
www.ibrc.org
It's shaping up to be an exciting program, in an incredible world heritage location, with diverse workshops and field trips.
Abstracts due this Wednesday 14th May!!
www.ibrc.org
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Does anyone know of a good brief overview/summary of bad for-profit publishing practices that people can use to share with co-authors who are on the fence about choosing a ‘lower-impact’ but ethically better alternative? I feel like everyone agrees things are bad, but worry too much about CV impact.
December 30, 2024 at 3:20 PM
Does anyone know of a good brief overview/summary of bad for-profit publishing practices that people can use to share with co-authors who are on the fence about choosing a ‘lower-impact’ but ethically better alternative? I feel like everyone agrees things are bad, but worry too much about CV impact.
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Excited to share this new paper led by PhD student Cinthia Pietromonaco, exploring age estimation in bats, with a focus on Australian flying foxes. doi.org/10.1071/WR24... 🦇
Turns out, that we don't all mean the same thing when we use the term "adult" or "juvenile".
Why should we care? 1/
Turns out, that we don't all mean the same thing when we use the term "adult" or "juvenile".
Why should we care? 1/
March 6, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Excited to share this new paper led by PhD student Cinthia Pietromonaco, exploring age estimation in bats, with a focus on Australian flying foxes. doi.org/10.1071/WR24... 🦇
Turns out, that we don't all mean the same thing when we use the term "adult" or "juvenile".
Why should we care? 1/
Turns out, that we don't all mean the same thing when we use the term "adult" or "juvenile".
Why should we care? 1/
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Welcome to Bluesky to my fab Bat One Health collaborators Raina Plowright @rainap.bsky.social & Tamika Lunn @tamika-lunn.bsky.social
🦇
Looking for more disease ecologists? Check out this starter pack by the equally fabulous Benny Borremans
🦇
Looking for more disease ecologists? Check out this starter pack by the equally fabulous Benny Borremans
Disease ecologist starter pack -- reply with people/organizations to be added or with related lists/feeds
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
March 3, 2025 at 9:08 PM
Welcome to Bluesky to my fab Bat One Health collaborators Raina Plowright @rainap.bsky.social & Tamika Lunn @tamika-lunn.bsky.social
🦇
Looking for more disease ecologists? Check out this starter pack by the equally fabulous Benny Borremans
🦇
Looking for more disease ecologists? Check out this starter pack by the equally fabulous Benny Borremans
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
New bat paper from our lab. Small changes in bats' diet can decrease influenza shedding and alter cytokine expression. doi.org/10.1098/rspb... #bats #influenza #iav photo credit: José Gabriel Martínez-Fonseca
February 19, 2025 at 1:38 PM
New bat paper from our lab. Small changes in bats' diet can decrease influenza shedding and alter cytokine expression. doi.org/10.1098/rspb... #bats #influenza #iav photo credit: José Gabriel Martínez-Fonseca
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Serological data provide key insights on pathogen circulation. We introduce a new R package, Rsero, which is a pipeline to store and analyze age-stratified sero data, estimate the history of pathogen circulation and compare different transmission models.
journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol...
journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol...
RSero: A user-friendly R package to reconstruct pathogen circulation history from seroprevalence studies
Author summary Antibodies are immune markers of past infections. Seroprevalence studies that characterize the seropositivity status in the population have been used for decades in epidemiological stud...
journals.plos.org
February 11, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Serological data provide key insights on pathogen circulation. We introduce a new R package, Rsero, which is a pipeline to store and analyze age-stratified sero data, estimate the history of pathogen circulation and compare different transmission models.
journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol...
journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol...
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
I just heard from a colleague that his friend's NSF panel was canceled last minute "to confirm they are in compliance with presidential directives". We know the NIH is being politically targeted; it seems the NSF may be affected as well. A goal of diminishing American science.
January 27, 2025 at 1:45 PM
I just heard from a colleague that his friend's NSF panel was canceled last minute "to confirm they are in compliance with presidential directives". We know the NIH is being politically targeted; it seems the NSF may be affected as well. A goal of diminishing American science.
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Disease ecologist starter pack -- reply with people/organizations to be added or with related lists/feeds
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
December 27, 2024 at 10:26 PM
Disease ecologist starter pack -- reply with people/organizations to be added or with related lists/feeds
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
Lucid insights on where we’re at on actually understanding pandemics, and where we’re not (yet) at:
🚨😷🧪 NEW: A growing body of evidence shows that pandemics, biodiversity loss, and climate change are part of a broader polycrisis - but there are no simple solutions. A sweeping overview of "Pathogens and planetary change" for the first issue of @natrevbiodiv.bsky.social, out now 🔓 rdcu.be/d6lHl
January 15, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Lucid insights on where we’re at on actually understanding pandemics, and where we’re not (yet) at:
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Please share this postdoc position based at the Royal Vet College working on a very cool US-UK EEID project with some wonderful people: @jraghwani.bsky.social + Christina Faust, James Hassell, Oli Pybus, Dan Streicker, Sarah Knowles. Reach out to Jayna directly for questions and details.
Please share widely!
We are recruiting a 3-year postdoc at the RVC to develop new methodology to infer epidemic dynamics from wild animal viromes sampled across changeable environments.
Further details: jobs.rvc.ac.uk/vacancy.aspx...
Feel free to reach out with any questions. Deadline Feb 9th
We are recruiting a 3-year postdoc at the RVC to develop new methodology to infer epidemic dynamics from wild animal viromes sampled across changeable environments.
Further details: jobs.rvc.ac.uk/vacancy.aspx...
Feel free to reach out with any questions. Deadline Feb 9th
January 10, 2025 at 7:13 PM
Please share this postdoc position based at the Royal Vet College working on a very cool US-UK EEID project with some wonderful people: @jraghwani.bsky.social + Christina Faust, James Hassell, Oli Pybus, Dan Streicker, Sarah Knowles. Reach out to Jayna directly for questions and details.
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
New paper! 🦠🐭🦟 Perspectives on the route towards a 'people and nature' paradigm for biodiversity-disease research and action, with fantastic co-authors @profkatej.bsky.social, @dwredding.bsky.social and Sagan Friant. royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
Towards a ‘people and nature’ paradigm for biodiversity and infectious disease | Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Zoonotic and vector-borne infectious diseases are among the most direct human health consequences of biodiversity change. The COVID-19 pandemic increased health policymakers’ attention on the links between ecological degradation and disease, and sparked ...
royalsocietypublishing.org
January 9, 2025 at 10:25 AM
New paper! 🦠🐭🦟 Perspectives on the route towards a 'people and nature' paradigm for biodiversity-disease research and action, with fantastic co-authors @profkatej.bsky.social, @dwredding.bsky.social and Sagan Friant. royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
Disease ecologist starter pack -- reply with people/organizations to be added or with related lists/feeds
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
December 27, 2024 at 10:26 PM
Disease ecologist starter pack -- reply with people/organizations to be added or with related lists/feeds
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
#diseaseecology
🦠🐀🦠🦇🦠🦭🦠🦆🦠 go.bsky.app/RwAuiNT
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
The Oregon Department of Agriculture announced that Portland's Morasch Meat’s Northwest Naturals brand 2 lb. Turkey Recipe raw frozen pet food tested positive for a H5N1 strain of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) virus. 1/5
December 24, 2024 at 8:43 PM
The Oregon Department of Agriculture announced that Portland's Morasch Meat’s Northwest Naturals brand 2 lb. Turkey Recipe raw frozen pet food tested positive for a H5N1 strain of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) virus. 1/5
Reposted by Benny Borremans 🇧🇪🇺🇸
Bat-derived viruses have been afflicting humanity with disturbing frequency in recent decades.
Why bats? Why now? And how can we stop it?
My latest in @sciam.bsky.social
🧵 Some cool facts about bats and fascinating science
1/
www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...
Why bats? Why now? And how can we stop it?
My latest in @sciam.bsky.social
🧵 Some cool facts about bats and fascinating science
1/
www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...
December 22, 2024 at 8:58 PM
Bat-derived viruses have been afflicting humanity with disturbing frequency in recent decades.
Why bats? Why now? And how can we stop it?
My latest in @sciam.bsky.social
🧵 Some cool facts about bats and fascinating science
1/
www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...
Why bats? Why now? And how can we stop it?
My latest in @sciam.bsky.social
🧵 Some cool facts about bats and fascinating science
1/
www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...