Dr Steven Allain
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stevoallain.bsky.social
Dr Steven Allain
@stevoallain.bsky.social
The Pop Punk Herpetologist 🤘 | Anglia Ruskin, Imperial College London, and University of Kent alumnus | Lover of all #amphibians and #reptiles | #FirstGeninSTEM | #Herpetologist | #Neurodivergent
If you're in Edinburgh this year, make sure you give the Surgeons' Hall Museums a visit!
We're open!

You can visit us from 10am--5pm, 7 days a week.

museum.rcsed.ac.uk
January 5, 2026 at 10:24 AM
Before Christmas I visited the Guildhall Museum in Rochester, and found out more about the history of this interesting town (while taking a break from the Christmas market). There was less natural history than expected. #MuseumMonday #Museums #Rochester #Medway stevenallain.co.uk/Blog/museumm...
#MuseumMonday: My visit to the Guildhall Museum
Set amid the historic heart of Rochester’s High Street, in Kent, England you can find the Guildhall Museum. is much more than a repository of old objects; it is a living tapestry of Medway’s long a…
stevenallain.co.uk
January 5, 2026 at 10:23 AM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
At the moment it is unlikely to get a license from Nature England due to numerous risks that could jeopardise other extant native species.

BBC News - Three frogs to be reintroduced to West Acre 'pingos' - BBC News
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Three frogs to be reintroduced to West Acre 'pingos'
The money will be spent on breeding thousands of frogs and managing their release in 2026.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 4, 2026 at 9:07 PM
The Duffer Brothers missed a trick with Stranger Things Season 5, plenty of wall-related music from Pink Floyd just sitting there, waiting to be used!
January 4, 2026 at 3:04 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
In todays episode of “let’s release my favourite species into the wild”, we get news of plans to release Tree Frogs, Agile Frogs and Moor Frogs to West Acre www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... The article does not say if the project is licenced yet, although the headline suggests that it is happening.
Three frogs to be reintroduced to West Acre 'pingos'
The money will be spent on breeding thousands of frogs and managing their release in 2026.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 2, 2026 at 8:53 AM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
The yearly round-up of #temnospondyl research from the past year for the first #FossilFriday post of the year: once again, a lot of stuff on European taxa but also a great mix of researchers involved in all sorts of interesting work!

🧵👇 (1/25ish?)

#temnospondyls #fossils #histology #anatomy
January 2, 2026 at 6:46 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
#frogfriday Enjoy an Andinobates altobueyensis from Tacaruna, Colombia.🐸
January 2, 2026 at 9:07 PM
Was I the only one on New Years Eve waiting for the Pink Floyd to start playing after the London Eye emulated the round screen seen in many of their tours, including lasers?
January 2, 2026 at 8:42 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
🚨We have a SUPER exciting announcement!🚨

Our next Summer Meeting will be at @zslofficial.bsky.social on the theme of The Zoological Society of London at 200: Science, Society, and the Natural World 🥳

📅1-3 July 2026
🗺️Zoological Society of London

Find out how to submit 👇🏻
shnh.org.uk/all-events/c...
December 5, 2025 at 8:44 PM
Hoppy Newt Year everyone!
December 31, 2025 at 11:16 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
🌍✨ Genome sequencing the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew — a Darwin Tree of Life effort, one plant or fungus at a time.
When Kew’s botanical and mycological expertise meets the Tree of Life Programme’s sequencing power, we unlock the evolutionary stories within these collections.
@kewgardens.bsky.social
December 11, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
This is huge news in science 🧪 and in the food world! The 25 year old junk study on which the "safety" of glyphosate (RoundUp) has been based in US and Canada was finally retracted by the journal.

www.science.org/content/arti...
Journal retracts weed killer study backed by Monsanto, citing ‘serious ethical concerns’
Highly cited paper was used as evidence that the widely used herbicide Roundup is safe
www.science.org
December 9, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
We're now accepting volunteer applications for #DinoConUK 2026. If you're interested in helping us out and being part of the team, here's your chance :) www.dinocon.co.uk/volunteer
Volunteers — DinoCon
www.dinocon.co.uk
December 9, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Back in October I visited the National SEA LIFE Centre Birmingham, it was a mixed visit as there were some aspects where I feel SEA Life could be doing more. Read all about it on my blog:
stevenallain.co.uk/Blog/scifri-... #SciFri #SEALIFE #Conservation #Ecology #MarineBiology
#SciFri: My thoughts on the National SEA LIFE Centre Birmingham
While in Birmingham recently, I visited the National SEA LIFE Centre as a kind of follow-up to visiting the SEA LIFE London Aquarium in July. As you’ll see throughout this review, despite the…
stevenallain.co.uk
December 5, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
Alongside mooted restrictions on salary sacrifice - which universities make a lot of use of to pay for pensions - this is not shaping up to be a great budget for a sector already mired in cutbacks and redundancies.
i: Reeves to unveil £600m raid on foreign student
university fees #TomorrowsPapersToday
November 23, 2025 at 10:57 PM
It’s insane to think that this record has now turned 50, yet like most of Pink Floyd’s work the music is timeless and relevant to most people today. Shine on your crazy diamond! #PinkFloyd #WishYouWereHere
November 22, 2025 at 9:52 PM
Looking forward to joining #2025SVP later, would be great to say hi to as many of you as possible!
November 15, 2025 at 11:07 AM
Something special for #SciFri and #FossilFriday, a review of #GIANTS which was recently at the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. If you love extinct #megafauna, then make sure you try to visit this travelling exhibition! #Mammoth #Megalodon #Fossils #Extinction stevenallain.co.uk/Blog/scifri-...
#SciFri: GIANTS at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery
I was fortunate enough to be in Birmingham recently, and while I was there I visited the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. I will be covering the museum itself in a later blog post for #MuseumMond…
stevenallain.co.uk
November 14, 2025 at 12:16 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
Impossible to ignore what’s happening to #Arctic temperatures in the month of November...

Data from @copernicusecmwf.bsky.social ERA5 reanalysis.
November 11, 2025 at 12:10 AM
Something special for #MuseumMonday, a review of the Grande Galerie de l’Évolution in Paris! I loved walking around this museum in the summer, just wish I had more time to take everything in. You can find out more on my blog below. #Evolution #Ecology #Conservation
stevenallain.co.uk/Blog/museumm...
#MuseumMonday: Grande Galerie de l’Évolution, Paris
Tucked within the leafy grounds of the Jardin des Plantes in Paris, the Grande Galerie de l’Évolution is a monument of natural history, architecture and museography. It is operated by the Muséum na…
stevenallain.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 11:22 AM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
Join the ENDEMIC Network on 4 November for a webinar that focuses on how to make reasonable adjustments in the workplace and at university for neurodivergent ecologists at any career stage.

Register now 👉 https://f.mtr.cool/rkknflximp
November 3, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Ever wanted to see a T. rex or Triceratops up close in life-size? Now is your opportunity while also learning more about these amazing Mesozoic reptiles at Prehistoric Planet: #DiscoveringDinosaurs at #Lightroom. #SciFri #Dinosaurs #Fossils #TRex #FossilFriday

stevenallain.co.uk/Blog/scifri-...
#SciFri: Discovering Dinosaurs at Lightroom
At heart, I am just a big kid (if that wasn’t already obvious). One of my passions outside of herpetology that helps to satisfy my inner childhood curiosity, is palaeontology. I am lucky enou…
stevenallain.co.uk
October 24, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Reposted by Dr Steven Allain
You like small, obscure #frogs, don't you? What, If Anything, Is A Strabomantid?, an article from Jan 2024 tetzoo.com/blog/2024/1/... #amphibians
What, If Anything, Is A Strabomantid? — Tetrapod Zoology
Welcome to 2024! And we kick things off with frogs. What, I hear you ask, is a strabomantid?
tetzoo.com
October 22, 2025 at 12:23 PM
Do you love #turtles as much as I do? Then you'll enjoy my latest video reviewing the Toymany turtle playset. This 6-piece set is extremely impressive and I can't recommend it enough. Perhaps it will make the perfect gift for someone this Christmas? #Herpetology #Reptiles #Toys youtu.be/cwRgreqVPvY
Reviewing the Toymany 6-Piece Turtles Figurines Playset
YouTube video by Steven Allain
youtu.be
October 22, 2025 at 12:33 PM