Eryn McFarlane
@erynmcfarlane.bsky.social
Happy assistant professor, mom, and pet mama. Working on hybridization of Scottish deer, American simulations, finally thinking about Canadian mice and butterflies. she/her
https://www.yorku.ca/science/profiles/faculty/eryn-mcfarlane/
https://www.yorku.ca/science/profiles/faculty/eryn-mcfarlane/
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
🚨 Come join the fantastic long-tailed tit team 🚨
🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds).
🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK.
🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025.
jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...
🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds).
🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK.
🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025.
jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...
November 5, 2025 at 9:32 AM
🚨 Come join the fantastic long-tailed tit team 🚨
🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds).
🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK.
🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025.
jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...
🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds).
🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK.
🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025.
jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
📢 We have an open position for a postdoc to join my lab. It's a great position @animecol-uu.bsky.social, fully salaried for 2.5 years with all benefits.
www.uu.se/en/about-uu/...
The project is about transmission patterns of bacteria and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in aquatic insects. 🧬🦠 (1/3)
www.uu.se/en/about-uu/...
The project is about transmission patterns of bacteria and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in aquatic insects. 🧬🦠 (1/3)
Postdoctoral researcher in molecular ecology - Uppsala University
Postdoctoral researcher in molecular ecology, Department of Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala University
www.uu.se
October 27, 2025 at 7:43 AM
📢 We have an open position for a postdoc to join my lab. It's a great position @animecol-uu.bsky.social, fully salaried for 2.5 years with all benefits.
www.uu.se/en/about-uu/...
The project is about transmission patterns of bacteria and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in aquatic insects. 🧬🦠 (1/3)
www.uu.se/en/about-uu/...
The project is about transmission patterns of bacteria and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in aquatic insects. 🧬🦠 (1/3)
🧪
Come join the team at Dryad! We're seeking a Data Curator to assess data and metadata submissions and work with authors to meet FAIR data guidelines. Open to remote candidates in the UK.
blog.datadryad.org/jobs/
blog.datadryad.org/jobs/
Jobs & opportunities | Dryad news
Dryad is a non-profit, mission-driven organization that envisions a world where all research data is openly available and fully re-used. Our multidisciplinary, fully curated open data publishing platf...
blog.datadryad.org
October 10, 2025 at 4:02 PM
🧪
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA
10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
September 24, 2025 at 8:30 PM
I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA
10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
I love a magic trait! I feel like @qvarnstromlab.bsky.social instilled the joy of these in me.
Magic traits may assist sympatric #Ecological speciation, but few examples exist & evidence for their role is rare. Yet, this study found #pleiotropy affected soil preference & flowering time in #Hawea, consistent with speciation!
Check out the full paper 🌍🧪👇
Check out the full paper 🌍🧪👇
Ecological speciation in sympatric palms: 5. Evidence for pleiotropic speciation genes using gene knockout and high-throughput phenotyping
Abstract. Theoretical models predict that sympatric, ecological speciation may be facilitated more readily when so-called ‘magic traits’ are present, linki
academic.oup.com
September 22, 2025 at 3:40 PM
I love a magic trait! I feel like @qvarnstromlab.bsky.social instilled the joy of these in me.
🧪 postdoc in Toronto in a very cool lab!
Please share broadly: I am looking for a postdoctoral fellow to work on a collaborative project on the temporal population genomics of invasive Capeweed (using contemporary and herbarium genomics), with @shaky-dingo.bsky.social and colleagues
August 27, 2025 at 2:16 PM
🧪 postdoc in Toronto in a very cool lab!
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
Today 14 scientific societies in #ecology #evolution and #marineScience are publishing the results of a survey that finds negative impacts of federal policies on food security, flood mitigation, infectious disease preparedness, and wildlife conservation: 🧪👩🔬 www.firsthandaccounts.org/impacts/2025...
August 25, 2025 at 12:55 PM
Today 14 scientific societies in #ecology #evolution and #marineScience are publishing the results of a survey that finds negative impacts of federal policies on food security, flood mitigation, infectious disease preparedness, and wildlife conservation: 🧪👩🔬 www.firsthandaccounts.org/impacts/2025...
I love city fieldwork. 17 colias samples today and back at my best for a late lunch and a student’s thesis to edit. #fieldwork #humblebrag
August 25, 2025 at 5:52 PM
I love city fieldwork. 17 colias samples today and back at my best for a late lunch and a student’s thesis to edit. #fieldwork #humblebrag
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
Many of us are using LLMs in coding and scientific writing. They are very helpful tools, but we need to be thoughtful as we integrate them into our work flows to preserve accountability, voice and trust. academic.oup.com/evlett/advan.... An editorial at @evolletters.bsky.social for discussion:
Editorial: Accountability, voice, and trust - responsible use of GenAI in scientific publishing
Over the last few years, the development and rapid advancement of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) and Large Language Models (LLMs) such as ChatG
academic.oup.com
August 22, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Many of us are using LLMs in coding and scientific writing. They are very helpful tools, but we need to be thoughtful as we integrate them into our work flows to preserve accountability, voice and trust. academic.oup.com/evlett/advan.... An editorial at @evolletters.bsky.social for discussion:
@hybridzones.bsky.social and @jenncoughlan.bsky.social - this looks super cool! Definitely on the to-read list.
Introgression and Parental Conflict Underlie Repeated Occurrences of Postzygotic Isolation https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.12.669975v1
August 18, 2025 at 2:53 AM
@hybridzones.bsky.social and @jenncoughlan.bsky.social - this looks super cool! Definitely on the to-read list.
Shirley Chen's paper from my lab on the dilution and amplification hypotheses regarding the biodiversity-disease relationship.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Reappraisal of the Dilution and Amplification Effect Framework: A Case Study in Lyme Disease
The biodiversity–disease relationship posits two hypotheses: the dilution effect (where there's a negative relationship between biodiversity and disease risk) and the amplification effect (where ther...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 13, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Shirley Chen's paper from my lab on the dilution and amplification hypotheses regarding the biodiversity-disease relationship.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
We need about 300 more scientists before we let teachers loose on the database!
Tell your colleagues, we need ya!
Tell your colleagues, we need ya!
Scientists!
@skypeascientist.bsky.social matches scientists with classrooms, libraries, & more for virtual Q&As! It's easy and fun!
We are looking for 750 more volunteers by 8/15
If you're down to chat with 1-5 classrooms this semester, sign up here
www.skypeascientist.com/sign-up.html
@skypeascientist.bsky.social matches scientists with classrooms, libraries, & more for virtual Q&As! It's easy and fun!
We are looking for 750 more volunteers by 8/15
If you're down to chat with 1-5 classrooms this semester, sign up here
www.skypeascientist.com/sign-up.html
August 11, 2025 at 7:46 PM
We need about 300 more scientists before we let teachers loose on the database!
Tell your colleagues, we need ya!
Tell your colleagues, we need ya!
I'm editing the proofs for my first undergrad student's first paper. I knew this was coming, but I have such a sense of joy, and also relief. I think this is the opposite of imposter syndrome, and it feels awesome.
I'll share the paper as soon as it's live.
I'll share the paper as soon as it's live.
August 11, 2025 at 2:40 PM
I'm editing the proofs for my first undergrad student's first paper. I knew this was coming, but I have such a sense of joy, and also relief. I think this is the opposite of imposter syndrome, and it feels awesome.
I'll share the paper as soon as it's live.
I'll share the paper as soon as it's live.
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
I'm thrilled to share more cool fish genetics, led by former MSc student Amanda Meuser, and with former student Amy Pitura and collaborator @erynmcfarlane.bsky.social. This one is about minnow hybrids!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Extensive multi-species hybridization between Leuciscidae minnow species
Anthropogenic disturbances can disrupt ecosystems and alter species population dynamics. Interspecific hybridization is common between genetically related organisms, especially once reproductive barri...
www.biorxiv.org
July 23, 2025 at 5:52 PM
I'm thrilled to share more cool fish genetics, led by former MSc student Amanda Meuser, and with former student Amy Pitura and collaborator @erynmcfarlane.bsky.social. This one is about minnow hybrids!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
"The myth of meritocracy in science collapses under the financial sacrifices expected at every career stage. From unpaid internships and self-funded conferences to underpaid positions, these hidden costs disproportionately exclude those without generational wealth, compounded by race and gender."
Too poor to science: How wealth determines who succeeds in STEM
From student to researcher, a career in science can come with a high price tag. This Perspective explores how persistent financial barriers limit who can succeed in science, revealing how wealth shape...
dx.plos.org
July 10, 2025 at 1:00 PM
"The myth of meritocracy in science collapses under the financial sacrifices expected at every career stage. From unpaid internships and self-funded conferences to underpaid positions, these hidden costs disproportionately exclude those without generational wealth, compounded by race and gender."
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
Delighted to post some cool science - a collaboration with my former grad students Cassandre and Jill, and collaborator extraordinaire @erynmcfarlane.bsky.social!
doi.org/10.1093/jher...
doi.org/10.1093/jher...
A novel sex-associated genomic region in Catostomus fish species
Abstract. Genomic regions that influence sex are hypothesized to play a key role in evolutionary diversification, as sex determination mechanisms may promo
doi.org
June 30, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Delighted to post some cool science - a collaboration with my former grad students Cassandre and Jill, and collaborator extraordinaire @erynmcfarlane.bsky.social!
doi.org/10.1093/jher...
doi.org/10.1093/jher...
Great discussion of when we should teach HWE in genetics classes. I don't have much to add, except that I actually prefer teaching the messy, variation based perspective (it's complicated) over the clean theory to students who might only take one genetics class.
The thread feels like old twitter 🧪
The thread feels like old twitter 🧪
What are people's thoughts on covering HW equilibrium in intro bio? Is it really necessary, or could it be left to upper-level genetics or evo classes?
June 26, 2025 at 2:21 PM
Great discussion of when we should teach HWE in genetics classes. I don't have much to add, except that I actually prefer teaching the messy, variation based perspective (it's complicated) over the clean theory to students who might only take one genetics class.
The thread feels like old twitter 🧪
The thread feels like old twitter 🧪
This! And it's so frustrating to me because students are saying 'I use AI because it's better than I am.' Better at what? Certainly not anything we're meaning to assess.
Chatbots — LLMs — do not know facts and are not designed to be able to accurately answer factual questions. They are designed to find and mimic patterns of words, probabilistically. When they’re “right” it’s because correct things are often written down, so those patterns are frequent. That’s all.
June 19, 2025 at 3:16 PM
This! And it's so frustrating to me because students are saying 'I use AI because it's better than I am.' Better at what? Certainly not anything we're meaning to assess.
Any advice for convincing a conservation authority (they make development decisions), to let me sample butterflies (IUCN: LC)? Their stance is that my sampling plan doesn't conserve butterflies. We're trying to understand how urbanization affects hybridization. We need high power to do this well.
June 16, 2025 at 1:55 PM
Any advice for convincing a conservation authority (they make development decisions), to let me sample butterflies (IUCN: LC)? Their stance is that my sampling plan doesn't conserve butterflies. We're trying to understand how urbanization affects hybridization. We need high power to do this well.
Every PI who wants to have grad students in the lab in Canada should have to read this.
🚨 New Paper 🚨
Coauthors and I just published our work in PLOS One on Canadian graduate funding. We found that Canadian graduate funding falls _well_ below cost of living.
On average, $10kCAD below cost of living.
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
Coauthors and I just published our work in PLOS One on Canadian graduate funding. We found that Canadian graduate funding falls _well_ below cost of living.
On average, $10kCAD below cost of living.
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
May 23, 2025 at 6:32 PM
Every PI who wants to have grad students in the lab in Canada should have to read this.
I know that there is a shortage of reviewers.
And lots of people say they're going to review, and I guess never do?
But please, don't have more than enough reviewers for a paper and then contact the slow ones after 17 days to tell them they needn't finish because enough people have #crankyReviewer5
And lots of people say they're going to review, and I guess never do?
But please, don't have more than enough reviewers for a paper and then contact the slow ones after 17 days to tell them they needn't finish because enough people have #crankyReviewer5
May 15, 2025 at 6:50 PM
I know that there is a shortage of reviewers.
And lots of people say they're going to review, and I guess never do?
But please, don't have more than enough reviewers for a paper and then contact the slow ones after 17 days to tell them they needn't finish because enough people have #crankyReviewer5
And lots of people say they're going to review, and I guess never do?
But please, don't have more than enough reviewers for a paper and then contact the slow ones after 17 days to tell them they needn't finish because enough people have #crankyReviewer5
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
📢New article:
COVID-19 proved that Universities could make Post-Secondary Education more Accessible; They are just choosing not to
#HigherEd 🧪🍁
COVID-19 proved that Universities could make Post-Secondary Education more Accessible; They are just choosing not to
#HigherEd 🧪🍁
May 7, 2025 at 2:10 PM
📢New article:
COVID-19 proved that Universities could make Post-Secondary Education more Accessible; They are just choosing not to
#HigherEd 🧪🍁
COVID-19 proved that Universities could make Post-Secondary Education more Accessible; They are just choosing not to
#HigherEd 🧪🍁
I'm part of on campus interviews for a position at our department starting tomorrow. I can't believe how stressed *I* am. I have no idea how I kept my cool when I was interviewing. Is this just a memory response to having gone through it?
May 4, 2025 at 7:00 PM
I'm part of on campus interviews for a position at our department starting tomorrow. I can't believe how stressed *I* am. I have no idea how I kept my cool when I was interviewing. Is this just a memory response to having gone through it?
Reposted by Eryn McFarlane
🎉 The overall winner of this year’s #DanceYourPhD contest is Sulo Roukka, who meshed lab experiments with dance moves under flashing lights as sequined lab mates analyzed hot chilies and mint with fancy footwork.
Watch the winning work and learn more about the category winners: scim.ag/4lSpjCl
Watch the winning work and learn more about the category winners: scim.ag/4lSpjCl
May 1, 2025 at 12:05 PM
🎉 The overall winner of this year’s #DanceYourPhD contest is Sulo Roukka, who meshed lab experiments with dance moves under flashing lights as sequined lab mates analyzed hot chilies and mint with fancy footwork.
Watch the winning work and learn more about the category winners: scim.ag/4lSpjCl
Watch the winning work and learn more about the category winners: scim.ag/4lSpjCl
I finally read @s-m-aguillon.bsky.social 's NEE paper on allllll the reproductive barriers in swordtails, and loved it. We bumped our lab meeting discussing it to next week because we all want to take more time on it. Definitely a paper to teach speciation from.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Pervasive gene flow despite strong and varied reproductive barriers in swordtails - Nature Ecology & Evolution
Reproductive barriers can evolve despite gene flow. A combination of genomics and behavioural assays shows two mitonuclear incompatibilities originated via ancient hybridization that underlie hybrid i...
www.nature.com
April 14, 2025 at 5:33 PM
I finally read @s-m-aguillon.bsky.social 's NEE paper on allllll the reproductive barriers in swordtails, and loved it. We bumped our lab meeting discussing it to next week because we all want to take more time on it. Definitely a paper to teach speciation from.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...