Jeff Riffell
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riffelllab.bsky.social
Jeff Riffell
@riffelllab.bsky.social
Sensory Neuroecology Lab. Mosquitoes, moths, and chemicals. Professor at the University of Washington, Department of Biology riffelllab.org
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

We had a lot of fun working on this project (led by Itzel Ishida, not on bluesky). Some interesting highlights from the paper -
Neuronal calcium spikes enable vector inversion in the Drosophila brain
In the fly central complex, PFNa neurons switch from firing classical sodium spikes when depolarized to firing non-canonical T-type calcium spikes when hyperpolarized. This bidirectional spiking allow...
www.cell.com
January 6, 2026 at 4:35 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Impeachment.

Now.

@jayapal.house.gov
January 3, 2026 at 7:07 AM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
2025 RECAP: From installing an anti-vax conspiracy theorist as our nation's top health care official to taking an axe to lifesaving biomedical research, the Trump administration has systematically put politics over science.
December 27, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Very proud of this new paper from the lab! Work by the magnificent Andrea Adden and many brilliant collaborators illuminate how moth and butterfly brains have evolved in light of different ecologies. Freely available here: rdcu.be/eVR3B; @lundvision.bsky.social @biologylu.bsky.social
December 22, 2025 at 4:24 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
I've never lived so close to a What Are We Even Doing Here real estate listing, and I am here, gifting you this experience, make sure to open the pictures

www.redfin.com/MI/Ann-Arbor...
414 S Main St #10, Ann Arbor, MI 48104 - 3 beds/3.5 baths
(SW Michigan MLS) For Sale: 3 beds, 3.5 baths ∙ 5000 sq. ft. ∙ 414 S Main St #10, Ann Arbor, MI 48104 ∙ $7,000,000 ∙ MLS# 25062388 ∙ This Downtown Ann Arbor penthouse stands among the finest residence...
www.redfin.com
December 20, 2025 at 12:43 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Ever wanted to know how the visual system of a long distance migratory moth looks like? Then you'll find your answers in our new paper. Finally out, after about a decade of collecting data by a group af amazing co-authors. Find it here, open access: link.springer.com/article/10.1...
December 18, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
As a both a PI that received a Diversity Supplement to support a student on my R01, and a PO that reviewed them, they were never about "handing out money at the end of the year based on race" and always about the training potential and commitment.
December 12, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Have you ever wondered what you would find if you could keep your eyes on a bee for more than a few meters? Us, too!

preprint (with videos!) + thread 🧵

Precise, individualized foraging flights in honey #bees 🐝 revealed by multicopter drone-based tracking

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

1/9
December 6, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
New #PhD ad alert!
Interested in wild #bee #cognition and #brains in different #bumblebees? Want to live in #Newcastle and the beautiful north-east of England?

Check out this project with me, @lenariab.bsky.social and Sarah Scott. Contact me for further information.

iapetus.ac.uk/studentships...
The cognitive ecology of wild bumblebees
iapetus.ac.uk
October 28, 2025 at 11:22 AM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Let's compare our world models. I find that different people seem to have rather distinct internal world models. E.g. I personally have neither visual imagination nor an inner voice, found it weird others do. Here is a quick google forms to check idea:
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
World-models in your head
Talking with a lot of people, they have rather shocking different kinds of world-models. I believe that people have somewhat specialized simulators. Let me list some and then give you the chance to ad...
docs.google.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:31 AM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
🚨RA/PhD position available in evolutionary neurobiology 🚨

Working on a deep dive into circuit changes during mushroom body expansion in Heliconius butterflies @camzoology.bsky.social

- employment benefits
- 4 years funding
- 1000% fun

Deadline: 14/1/2026

Details:
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...
November 21, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
The fuck? Hard to even know where to start with all the things wrong here. (Also hope Glenn Northcutt doesn't see it -- he'll have a stroke.) Just appalling. not #neuroethology
November 20, 2025 at 1:04 AM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Under two weeks before my #play hits the stage @taratheatre.com ! Can't wait!
Come see it if you're in London- it'll be great to have tons of people there.

Book here: taratheatre.com/whats-on/i-d...

A video of me wittering on about the play in the post below ⬇️

#theatre #newWriting #immigration
I Dream of Theresa May – Tara Theatre
taratheatre.com
November 5, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
For those of you at the SfN conference...
Stop by the Neuroethology Social & Networking event on Sunday, 7-9 at the Grand Ballroom 1/2, Marriot Marquis!
November 12, 2025 at 1:10 AM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
This year is the first year I am not giving a talk at #entsoc2025. But I have 1 postdoc and 4 PhD students giving talks, and 3 undergrads giving posters. Please check out what we’ve been doing!! 🥳🐝
November 7, 2025 at 11:34 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Combining genomic and neuroanatomical data shows that #Heliconiini olfactory systems vary in their #olfactory receptor diversity and investment in individual brain structures, but are developmentally plastic in responsive to environmental conditions:

doi.org/10.1093/jeb/...

Yi Peng et al. 2025
Evolution of the olfactory system during the radiation of Heliconiini butterflies
Abstract. Sensory system evolution plays a crucial role in shaping species’ interactions with their environment, yet the extent to which olfactory system d
doi.org
October 24, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
1/ Hello Drosophila-philists and braino-maniacs! 👋🪰🧠🧪

The Caron lab has a new preprint, and it is about 🥁🥁🥁 democracy!

Neuro-democracy, to be precise. So: drop EVERYTHING and listen up — a 🧶!

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
October 30, 2025 at 5:47 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
Excited to announce the final version of the Mosquito Cell Atlas is out now in @cellpress.bsky.social!! 🦟🩸

There is SO much left to find & investigate in this dataset (& the rich biology of the Aedes aegypti mosquito)! We hope this helps scientists in many fields!
www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...
A single-nucleus transcriptomic atlas of the adult Aedes aegypti mosquito
A comprehensive single-nucleus RNA-seq atlas of >367,000 nuclei from male and female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes reveals sexual dimorphism in sensory systems and brain cell types and widespread co-expres...
www.cell.com
October 30, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
I’ll be co-chairing a session on Neural Circuits and Behavior at #Dros26! 🪰

Fly neuro friends, please submit abstracts! Our session will be 🔥

Deadline Nov 13
Abstract submission for #Dros26 is now open! 🪰

Browse abstract submission topics online and start preparing your abstract today.

Learn more: buff.ly/N0ajcpu
October 26, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
By comparing differently tuned glomeruli, this work shows that the brain uses different circuit layouts for specialised vs general smells, offering new insight into how odour meaning is encoded.
buff.ly/XDmo4Ue
October 25, 2025 at 10:44 PM
Reposted by Jeff Riffell
How does life evolve to adapt to modern cities?

Out now in Science, my PhD work with @lindymcbr.bsky.social uncovers the ancient origin of the “London Underground mosquito” – one of the most iconic examples of urban adaptation.

🧵(1/n)
@science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ady4515
Ancient origin of an urban underground mosquito
Understanding how life is adapting to urban environments represents an important challenge in evolutionary biology. In this work, we investigate a widely cited example of urban adaptation, Culex pipie...
www.science.org
October 25, 2025 at 4:46 AM