Richard Carter, FCD
@friendsofdarwin.bsky.social
Writer • #HebdenBridge offcumden • #CharlesDarwin fanboy • European
Interested in where #science, #histsci and #nature intersect. Writing book about looking at the world through #Darwin ’s eyes.
https://richardcarter.com
https://friendsofdarwin.com
Interested in where #science, #histsci and #nature intersect. Writing book about looking at the world through #Darwin ’s eyes.
https://richardcarter.com
https://friendsofdarwin.com
The latest edition of my free Friends of Charles Darwin newsletter went out earlier today to mark the 217th anniversary of Darwin’s birth. You can read it here… #HistSci
It’s not all cheetahs versus gazelles
Darwin the botanist • UNESCO recognition • Darwin’s address book • Charles Lyell • Leonard Jenyns • punctuated equilibria • what the heck are chins for? • and lots more…
substack.com
February 12, 2026 at 4:56 PM
The latest edition of my free Friends of Charles Darwin newsletter went out earlier today to mark the 217th anniversary of Darwin’s birth. You can read it here… #HistSci
Happy 17th planting day to the Darwin Bicentennial Oak, planted in our garden on this day in 2009 to mark Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday. (Follow the link to see a series of photos taken of this one-day mighty tree as it grew from a tiny sapling.)
friendsofdarwin.com/darwin-bicen...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/darwin-bicen...
#HistSci
February 12, 2026 at 12:38 PM
Happy 17th planting day to the Darwin Bicentennial Oak, planted in our garden on this day in 2009 to mark Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday. (Follow the link to see a series of photos taken of this one-day mighty tree as it grew from a tiny sapling.)
friendsofdarwin.com/darwin-bicen...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/darwin-bicen...
#HistSci
12-Feb: How Darwin spent his 25th birthday in Patagonia, on this day in 1834…
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/dar...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/dar...
#HistSci
12-Feb-1834: Darwin’s 25th birthday, Patagonia
How Charles Darwin spent his 25th birthday.
friendsofdarwin.com
February 12, 2026 at 11:16 AM
12-Feb: How Darwin spent his 25th birthday in Patagonia, on this day in 1834…
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/dar...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/dar...
#HistSci
Tomorrow (12 Feb) is the biggest day in the Darwin Calendar, so of course I’ll be sending out the latest FREE Friends of Charles Darwin Newsletter. If you haven’t subscribed yet, now would seem the perfect opportunity… SEIZE IT!
richardcarter.substack.com/welcome/ #HistSci
richardcarter.substack.com/welcome/ #HistSci
February 11, 2026 at 6:52 PM
Tomorrow (12 Feb) is the biggest day in the Darwin Calendar, so of course I’ll be sending out the latest FREE Friends of Charles Darwin Newsletter. If you haven’t subscribed yet, now would seem the perfect opportunity… SEIZE IT!
richardcarter.substack.com/welcome/ #HistSci
richardcarter.substack.com/welcome/ #HistSci
Reposted by Richard Carter, FCD
Help us map science history for #InternationalDayofWomenandGirlsinScience. We've launched a new interactive map of landmarks across the UK connected to women from science history, and we want your suggestions.
Explore the map and submit your landmark now: royalsociety.org/news-resourc...
Explore the map and submit your landmark now: royalsociety.org/news-resourc...
February 11, 2026 at 10:13 AM
Help us map science history for #InternationalDayofWomenandGirlsinScience. We've launched a new interactive map of landmarks across the UK connected to women from science history, and we want your suggestions.
Explore the map and submit your landmark now: royalsociety.org/news-resourc...
Explore the map and submit your landmark now: royalsociety.org/news-resourc...
06-Feb: On this day in 1796, Charles Darwin’s friend and tutor John Stevens Henslow was born in Rochester, Kent.
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/hen...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/hen...
#HistSci
John Stevens Henslow
Botanist, clergyman, and Charles Darwin’s great friend and tutor.
friendsofdarwin.com
February 6, 2026 at 7:51 PM
06-Feb: On this day in 1796, Charles Darwin’s friend and tutor John Stevens Henslow was born in Rochester, Kent.
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/hen...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/hen...
#HistSci
04-Feb: On this day in 1868, Charles Darwin began work on his book ‘The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex’. Here’s my review…
Book review: ‘The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex’ by Charles Darwin
Darwin finally sets out to enlighten us on our origins.
friendsofdarwin.com
February 4, 2026 at 1:23 PM
04-Feb: On this day in 1868, Charles Darwin began work on his book ‘The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex’. Here’s my review…
Sod it! I’ll pay!
> BBC: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
> Campaigners say Huddersfield Bus Station is in "desperate need of refurbishment", but a £27 scheme to improve the site is still awaiting final approval from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA).
> BBC: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
> Campaigners say Huddersfield Bus Station is in "desperate need of refurbishment", but a £27 scheme to improve the site is still awaiting final approval from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA).
February 4, 2026 at 9:52 AM
Sod it! I’ll pay!
> BBC: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
> Campaigners say Huddersfield Bus Station is in "desperate need of refurbishment", but a £27 scheme to improve the site is still awaiting final approval from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA).
> BBC: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
> Campaigners say Huddersfield Bus Station is in "desperate need of refurbishment", but a £27 scheme to improve the site is still awaiting final approval from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA).
Killer idea for a TV reality show in which the CEOs of various food-, drug- and electrical-product companies are stranded on an island and can only escape by overcoming the anti-tamper and child-protection measures ‘protecting’ the users of their products.
February 4, 2026 at 9:41 AM
Killer idea for a TV reality show in which the CEOs of various food-, drug- and electrical-product companies are stranded on an island and can only escape by overcoming the anti-tamper and child-protection measures ‘protecting’ the users of their products.
@acollierastro.bsky.social’s videos are always entertaining. Her latest is no exception—and one of my favourites.
youtu.be/7pqF90rstZQ
youtu.be/7pqF90rstZQ
this is what 2 years of chatgpt does to your brain
YouTube video by Angela Collier
youtu.be
January 25, 2026 at 6:45 PM
@acollierastro.bsky.social’s videos are always entertaining. Her latest is no exception—and one of my favourites.
youtu.be/7pqF90rstZQ
youtu.be/7pqF90rstZQ
TFW you read through your ‘Notes for future drafts’ of the chapter you’re currently revising and realise:
1. Yes, this stuff really does need to be included in the book, and
2. AAAAGGGHHHHHHHH!! It deserves at least a chapter in its own right.
#AmWriting
1. Yes, this stuff really does need to be included in the book, and
2. AAAAGGGHHHHHHHH!! It deserves at least a chapter in its own right.
#AmWriting
January 23, 2026 at 8:36 AM
TFW you read through your ‘Notes for future drafts’ of the chapter you’re currently revising and realise:
1. Yes, this stuff really does need to be included in the book, and
2. AAAAGGGHHHHHHHH!! It deserves at least a chapter in its own right.
#AmWriting
1. Yes, this stuff really does need to be included in the book, and
2. AAAAGGGHHHHHHHH!! It deserves at least a chapter in its own right.
#AmWriting
Ladies, gentlemen and other Earth-beings, I HAVE COMPLETED THE SECOND DRAFT OF ANOTHER CHAPTER!! This one was about the weeds in my rockery—which contains more weeds than rocks. #ThroughDarwinsEyes #AmWriting
January 16, 2026 at 1:58 PM
Ladies, gentlemen and other Earth-beings, I HAVE COMPLETED THE SECOND DRAFT OF ANOTHER CHAPTER!! This one was about the weeds in my rockery—which contains more weeds than rocks. #ThroughDarwinsEyes #AmWriting
15-Jan: On this day in 1892, a mysterious hand wrote a morbid inscription in a copy of a book I now own. Thanks to the ghost of the book’s author, physicist & friend of Darwin John Tyndall, I eventually established the mysterious penman’s likely identity.
#HistSci
#HistSci
The ghost of John Tyndall solves a mystery (probably)
How a Twitter conversation with the ghost of John Tyndall (friend of Charles Darwin), helped identify the likely source of a morbid inscription in one of his books dated 15-Jan-1892.
friendsofdarwin.com
January 15, 2026 at 7:27 PM
15-Jan: On this day in 1892, a mysterious hand wrote a morbid inscription in a copy of a book I now own. Thanks to the ghost of the book’s author, physicist & friend of Darwin John Tyndall, I eventually established the mysterious penman’s likely identity.
#HistSci
#HistSci
13-Jan: On this day in 1833, HMS Beagle (with a young Charles Darwin on board), very nearly sank off Cape Horn. Here’s the story…
#HistSci
#HistSci
13-Jan-1833: The day HMS Beagle nearly sank
Charles Darwin’s closest brush with death during the Beagle voyage came on Sunday 13th January 1833, near that most infamous of nautical perils, Cape Horn.
friendsofdarwin.com
January 13, 2026 at 8:36 PM
13-Jan: On this day in 1833, HMS Beagle (with a young Charles Darwin on board), very nearly sank off Cape Horn. Here’s the story…
#HistSci
#HistSci
Ladies, gentlemen, boys, girls, or whatever label rocks your boat… I HAVE FINISHED A CHAPTER!! Duelling pheasants were involved.
#AmWriting #ThroughDarwinsEyes
#AmWriting #ThroughDarwinsEyes
January 13, 2026 at 10:20 AM
Ladies, gentlemen, boys, girls, or whatever label rocks your boat… I HAVE FINISHED A CHAPTER!! Duelling pheasants were involved.
#AmWriting #ThroughDarwinsEyes
#AmWriting #ThroughDarwinsEyes
11-Jan: On this day in 1844, Charles Darwin wrote to his new (and future best) friend, Joseph Dalton Hooker, explaining he was ‘almost convinced’ that species were not immutable, jokingly comparing this admission to ‘confessing a murder’…
#HistSci
#HistSci
11-Jan-1844: Darwin confesses murder!
Darwin comes clean about his heretical views to Joseph Dalton Hooker, humorously likening admitting believing in evolution to ‘confessing a murder’.
friendsofdarwin.com
January 11, 2026 at 3:04 PM
11-Jan: On this day in 1844, Charles Darwin wrote to his new (and future best) friend, Joseph Dalton Hooker, explaining he was ‘almost convinced’ that species were not immutable, jokingly comparing this admission to ‘confessing a murder’…
#HistSci
#HistSci
08-Jan: Born on this day in 1823, the man who independently of Darwin came up with the idea of natural selection, Alfred Russel Wallace. Here’s a post I wrote about Darwin’s and Wallace’s friendship…
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/dar...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/dar...
#HistSci
Modesty and candour: the Darwin-Wallace friendship
To mark the 200th anniversary of Wallace’s birth, an article exploring the friendship between Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace.
friendsofdarwin.com
January 8, 2026 at 6:34 PM
08-Jan: Born on this day in 1823, the man who independently of Darwin came up with the idea of natural selection, Alfred Russel Wallace. Here’s a post I wrote about Darwin’s and Wallace’s friendship…
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/dar...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/dar...
#HistSci
The books I read in 2025. (Follow the link and click a cover to read a short review.) richardcarter.com/books-2025/
Books read in 2025
Reviews of all the books I read in 2025.
richardcarter.com
December 31, 2025 at 9:46 AM
The books I read in 2025. (Follow the link and click a cover to read a short review.) richardcarter.com/books-2025/
27-Dec: On this day in 1831, HMS Beagle set sail on her second voyage with a young Charles Darwin on board…
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/bea...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/bea...
#HistSci
27-Dec-1831: HMS Beagle sets sail
On 27 December 1831, HMS Beagle set sail on her second voyage with a young Charles Darwin on board.
friendsofdarwin.com
December 27, 2025 at 12:47 PM
27-Dec: On this day in 1831, HMS Beagle set sail on her second voyage with a young Charles Darwin on board…
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/bea...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/bea...
#HistSci
Reposted by Richard Carter, FCD
A Boxing Day treat!
The Darwin Family Bible reproduced for the first time, including a transcription of Emma Darwin's notes on the children. Reproduced courtesy of English Heritage (Down House Collection).
darwin-online.org.uk/content/frameset?viewtype=side&itemID=EH88203302&pageseq=1
The Darwin Family Bible reproduced for the first time, including a transcription of Emma Darwin's notes on the children. Reproduced courtesy of English Heritage (Down House Collection).
darwin-online.org.uk/content/frameset?viewtype=side&itemID=EH88203302&pageseq=1
December 26, 2025 at 4:56 AM
A Boxing Day treat!
The Darwin Family Bible reproduced for the first time, including a transcription of Emma Darwin's notes on the children. Reproduced courtesy of English Heritage (Down House Collection).
darwin-online.org.uk/content/frameset?viewtype=side&itemID=EH88203302&pageseq=1
The Darwin Family Bible reproduced for the first time, including a transcription of Emma Darwin's notes on the children. Reproduced courtesy of English Heritage (Down House Collection).
darwin-online.org.uk/content/frameset?viewtype=side&itemID=EH88203302&pageseq=1
25-Dec: On this day in 1833, the crew of HMS Beagle held their own ‘Olympic Games’ at Port Desire in Patagonia. Here’s the story…
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/hms...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/hms...
#HistSci
25-Dec-1833: The HMS Beagle Olympics
On Christmas Day 1833, the crew of HMS Beagle held their own ’Olympic Games’ at Port Desire in Patagonia.
friendsofdarwin.com
December 25, 2025 at 5:03 PM
25-Dec: On this day in 1833, the crew of HMS Beagle held their own ‘Olympic Games’ at Port Desire in Patagonia. Here’s the story…
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/hms...
#HistSci
friendsofdarwin.com/articles/hms...
#HistSci
MERETRICIOUS! 🎄
December 25, 2025 at 9:21 AM
MERETRICIOUS! 🎄
It it my imagination or are nights getting shorter?
December 23, 2025 at 8:09 AM
It it my imagination or are nights getting shorter?