Tomos Potter
@tomospotter.bsky.social
Evolutionary ecologist in the Kokko lab, JGU Mainz. Recovering guppy-botherer, interested in eco-evolutionary processes that generate and maintain diversity. Models, stats, long-term studies.
🏴 in 🇩🇪
Also likes: food, landscapes, guitars
🏴 in 🇩🇪
Also likes: food, landscapes, guitars
Once again, I am raising my petition to replace R's unreasonably scary "Session Aborted" message with grumpy pingu. #RStats
January 31, 2026 at 8:55 AM
Y Tylwyth Teg! 🏴🧚
January 30, 2026 at 5:47 PM
Y Tylwyth Teg! 🏴🧚
In 2010, my mum came up with an idea to re-establish the ancient 140-mile North Wales Pilgrim’s Way. Now National Geographic lists it as one of the world’s “best wellness destinations” for 2026! Mum died last year, I miss her loads. It’s so lovely to see her idea continue to grow. Very proud.
Best of the World 2026: Best wellness destinations
Seaweed bathing in Ireland, a trek through Africa’s first designated wilderness quiet park—we asked National Geographic staff and contributors for their favorite places to escape the stress and noise ...
www.nationalgeographic.com
January 30, 2026 at 3:51 PM
In 2010, my mum came up with an idea to re-establish the ancient 140-mile North Wales Pilgrim’s Way. Now National Geographic lists it as one of the world’s “best wellness destinations” for 2026! Mum died last year, I miss her loads. It’s so lovely to see her idea continue to grow. Very proud.
Cool! I will check this out
January 29, 2026 at 8:12 AM
Cool! I will check this out
Of course! It did take me a while to get my head around the interface in MCMCglmm - I can see that figuring out a way that fits with lme4 syntax must be tricky. Thanks for the replies!
January 29, 2026 at 8:11 AM
Of course! It did take me a while to get my head around the interface in MCMCglmm - I can see that figuring out a way that fits with lme4 syntax must be tricky. Thanks for the replies!
Fantastic picture! What a wonderful place.
January 28, 2026 at 10:10 PM
Fantastic picture! What a wonderful place.
Random effects structured by (inverse) relatedness matrix is great, but ideally would want capability to model multiple response variables i.e. trait and fitness (which I *think* goes further than recent developments?). @bbolker.bsky.social, any plans to extend glmmTMB into the realm of Quant Gen?
Have any #QuantGen folk tried fitting an animal model with the new covariance structure in glmmTMB? Intrigued at the prospect of fitting big models in seconds/minutes rather than days/weeks...
Fast phylogenetic generalised linear mixed-effects modelling using the glmmTMB R package https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.20.695312v1
January 28, 2026 at 10:06 PM
Random effects structured by (inverse) relatedness matrix is great, but ideally would want capability to model multiple response variables i.e. trait and fitness (which I *think* goes further than recent developments?). @bbolker.bsky.social, any plans to extend glmmTMB into the realm of Quant Gen?
Reposted by Tomos Potter
Hello! Does anyone know of any 'seed' type grants/awards within Australia (or potentially abroad if they fund research internationally) that contribute toward research only costs (not salary)??
January 27, 2026 at 11:58 PM
Hello! Does anyone know of any 'seed' type grants/awards within Australia (or potentially abroad if they fund research internationally) that contribute toward research only costs (not salary)??
(absolute shitpost reply, sorry)
January 23, 2026 at 8:12 PM
(absolute shitpost reply, sorry)
Because, very generally, we tend to put things on top of tables rather than underneath them? And “legends” underneath? Figures.
January 23, 2026 at 8:11 PM
Because, very generally, we tend to put things on top of tables rather than underneath them? And “legends” underneath? Figures.
Reposted by Tomos Potter
The greatest addition to my CV so far: I am now officially part of The Luxuriant Flowing Hair Club for Scientists
improbable.com/2026/01/14/s...
improbable.com/2026/01/14/s...
Shikhara Bhat joins the The Luxuriant Flowing Hair Club for Scientists™ (LFHCfS)
Shikhara Bhat has joined the Luxuriant Flowing Hair Club for Scientists™ (LFHCfS). He says: I’m Shikhara Bhat, a theoretical evolutionary ecologist. I’m currently a PhD student at the Univer…
improbable.com
January 14, 2026 at 10:27 AM
The greatest addition to my CV so far: I am now officially part of The Luxuriant Flowing Hair Club for Scientists
improbable.com/2026/01/14/s...
improbable.com/2026/01/14/s...
As the youngest of my siblings, I’m glad I’m not a Hoopoe
Alright, you have my attention, AVIAN SIBLING CANNIBALISM.
“Finally, females allocated fewer resources to the smallest nestlings when they were going to starve, but not necessarily when they were going to be used as food for their siblings.” Soler et al. 2022.
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
“Finally, females allocated fewer resources to the smallest nestlings when they were going to starve, but not necessarily when they were going to be used as food for their siblings.” Soler et al. 2022.
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
January 16, 2026 at 6:51 PM
As the youngest of my siblings, I’m glad I’m not a Hoopoe
Reposted by Tomos Potter
We are hiring at the Wytham Woods for the upcoming field season. 4 roles available. Please share with anyone who might be interested. #UKbirds #birdringing
January 16, 2026 at 1:35 PM
We are hiring at the Wytham Woods for the upcoming field season. 4 roles available. Please share with anyone who might be interested. #UKbirds #birdringing
Reposted by Tomos Potter
Postdoc in statistical ecology & evolution! Develop models bridging evolutionary theory with empirical data on sex differences in immunity and life history. Apply now!
#postdoc #statistics #evolution #academicjobs #ecology jobs.helsinki.fi/job/Helsinki...
#postdoc #statistics #evolution #academicjobs #ecology jobs.helsinki.fi/job/Helsinki...
Postdoctoral Researcher in Statistical Ecology and Evolution
Postdoctoral Researcher in Statistical Ecology and Evolution
jobs.helsinki.fi
January 14, 2026 at 9:08 AM
Postdoc in statistical ecology & evolution! Develop models bridging evolutionary theory with empirical data on sex differences in immunity and life history. Apply now!
#postdoc #statistics #evolution #academicjobs #ecology jobs.helsinki.fi/job/Helsinki...
#postdoc #statistics #evolution #academicjobs #ecology jobs.helsinki.fi/job/Helsinki...
Top advice from Viz’s letter section, as ever.
January 14, 2026 at 10:29 PM
Top advice from Viz’s letter section, as ever.
Yes! And you get mini-biographies of other interesting and awful folk interspersed throughout. Excellent title.
January 3, 2026 at 9:36 PM
Yes! And you get mini-biographies of other interesting and awful folk interspersed throughout. Excellent title.
Actually this one is great
January 1, 2026 at 1:13 PM
Actually this one is great
My Grandmother Loved Horses And Was A Terrible Photographer
A short 🧵
A short 🧵
January 1, 2026 at 1:13 PM
My Grandmother Loved Horses And Was A Terrible Photographer
A short 🧵
A short 🧵
Reposted by Tomos Potter
📣Please share: We are looking for a field assistant to join our team in studying #ruffs on coastal meadows at Botnian Bay in Finland. The job will provide fantastic insights into lekking behaviour and provide essential skills in field ornithology. Details here www.bi.mpg.de/2790786/2512...
December 8, 2025 at 4:25 PM
📣Please share: We are looking for a field assistant to join our team in studying #ruffs on coastal meadows at Botnian Bay in Finland. The job will provide fantastic insights into lekking behaviour and provide essential skills in field ornithology. Details here www.bi.mpg.de/2790786/2512...
Have any #QuantGen folk tried fitting an animal model with the new covariance structure in glmmTMB? Intrigued at the prospect of fitting big models in seconds/minutes rather than days/weeks...
Fast phylogenetic generalised linear mixed-effects modelling using the glmmTMB R package https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.20.695312v1
December 29, 2025 at 9:45 AM
Have any #QuantGen folk tried fitting an animal model with the new covariance structure in glmmTMB? Intrigued at the prospect of fitting big models in seconds/minutes rather than days/weeks...