Amiyaal Ilany
@amiyaal.bsky.social
Associate Professor at School of Zoology & the Natural History Museum, Tel Aviv University. Animal sociality, hyraxes
https://thehyrax.wixsite.com/ilanylab
https://thehyrax.wixsite.com/ilanylab
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
New paper!
We propose a framework to empirically study animal social relationships by modelling social network (SN) data as time-series—that is, without the need to aggregate them over time.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
We propose a framework to empirically study animal social relationships by modelling social network (SN) data as time-series—that is, without the need to aggregate them over time.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
November 12, 2025 at 11:56 AM
New paper!
We propose a framework to empirically study animal social relationships by modelling social network (SN) data as time-series—that is, without the need to aggregate them over time.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
We propose a framework to empirically study animal social relationships by modelling social network (SN) data as time-series—that is, without the need to aggregate them over time.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
🚨STOP SCROLLING, IT’S AN EMERGENCY BROADCAST📣 This message will self-destruct in 10…9…8…7…⏰ …now that I have your attention:
🧪Our new paper on Alerting Components in animal vocalization is out in AnimBehav🎉
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#AnimalBehaviour #Bioacoustics #Communication
🧪Our new paper on Alerting Components in animal vocalization is out in AnimBehav🎉
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#AnimalBehaviour #Bioacoustics #Communication
November 3, 2025 at 10:59 AM
🚨STOP SCROLLING, IT’S AN EMERGENCY BROADCAST📣 This message will self-destruct in 10…9…8…7…⏰ …now that I have your attention:
🧪Our new paper on Alerting Components in animal vocalization is out in AnimBehav🎉
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#AnimalBehaviour #Bioacoustics #Communication
🧪Our new paper on Alerting Components in animal vocalization is out in AnimBehav🎉
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#AnimalBehaviour #Bioacoustics #Communication
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
‼️ Thrilled to share my first article on the Kalahari meerkats ‼️, in @animalecology.bsky.social! Group membership strongly influences gut microbiomes & especially the co-occurrence of beneficial bacteria, beyond animals' age or sex, disease status, or environmental exposure
doi.org/10.1111/1365...
doi.org/10.1111/1365...
Impact of animal socioecology on gut microbial communities: Insights from wild meerkats in the Kalahari
Our study addresses critical gaps at the nexus of animal and microbial ecologies, adding much-needed empirical support to recent theoretical frameworks that have conceptualised gut microbiomes as bei...
doi.org
October 31, 2025 at 10:39 AM
‼️ Thrilled to share my first article on the Kalahari meerkats ‼️, in @animalecology.bsky.social! Group membership strongly influences gut microbiomes & especially the co-occurrence of beneficial bacteria, beyond animals' age or sex, disease status, or environmental exposure
doi.org/10.1111/1365...
doi.org/10.1111/1365...
New paper, led by Vlad Demartsev:
Alerting components in animal vocalization
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Alerting components in animal vocalization
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Alerting components in animal vocalization
Effective communication relies on signals that are detectable and informative, yet the structural acoustic properties supporting these qualities are n…
www.sciencedirect.com
October 31, 2025 at 3:35 PM
New paper, led by Vlad Demartsev:
Alerting components in animal vocalization
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Alerting components in animal vocalization
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
I am looking for a postdoc to work in our long-term system of food-caching mountain chickadees in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The expected start is April 2026. Please see details here: chickadeecognition.com/positions
If interested and qualified, please contact me directly (email on the website).
If interested and qualified, please contact me directly (email on the website).
POSITIONS
default description
chickadeecognition.com
October 28, 2025 at 5:49 PM
I am looking for a postdoc to work in our long-term system of food-caching mountain chickadees in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The expected start is April 2026. Please see details here: chickadeecognition.com/positions
If interested and qualified, please contact me directly (email on the website).
If interested and qualified, please contact me directly (email on the website).
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
Exciting new work from former team members Eric Romero, Cwyn Solvi, Fei Peng and colleagues makes the cover of Science: affective contagion in bumblebees! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
October 24, 2025 at 6:13 AM
Exciting new work from former team members Eric Romero, Cwyn Solvi, Fei Peng and colleagues makes the cover of Science: affective contagion in bumblebees! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
Excited to share our new paper on the #social #structure of Rwenzori #colobus multi-male, multi-female core units! We found 3 different patterns but close #male #relationships in all that were long lasting! Paper is behind a paywall but contact us if you want a pdf. link.springer.com/article/10.1...
October 21, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Excited to share our new paper on the #social #structure of Rwenzori #colobus multi-male, multi-female core units! We found 3 different patterns but close #male #relationships in all that were long lasting! Paper is behind a paywall but contact us if you want a pdf. link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
Social relationships are powerful predictors of fitness across social animals. But *why*?
In our new @cp-trendsecolevo.bsky.social paper, we outline testable predictions for why relationship quality and quantity adaptively vary across socio-ecological contexts.
tinyurl.com/55dnkeh7
In our new @cp-trendsecolevo.bsky.social paper, we outline testable predictions for why relationship quality and quantity adaptively vary across socio-ecological contexts.
tinyurl.com/55dnkeh7
October 16, 2025 at 7:07 AM
Social relationships are powerful predictors of fitness across social animals. But *why*?
In our new @cp-trendsecolevo.bsky.social paper, we outline testable predictions for why relationship quality and quantity adaptively vary across socio-ecological contexts.
tinyurl.com/55dnkeh7
In our new @cp-trendsecolevo.bsky.social paper, we outline testable predictions for why relationship quality and quantity adaptively vary across socio-ecological contexts.
tinyurl.com/55dnkeh7
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
In 2018, Charles Murray challenged me to a bet: "We will understand IQ genetically—I think most of the picture will have been filled in by 2025—there will still be blanks—but we’ll know basically what’s going on." It's now 2025, and I claim a win. I write about it in The Atlantic.
Your Genes Are Simply Not Enough to Explain How Smart You Are
Seven years ago, I took a bet with Charles Murray about whether we’d basically understand the genetics of intelligence by now.
www.theatlantic.com
October 13, 2025 at 1:33 PM
In 2018, Charles Murray challenged me to a bet: "We will understand IQ genetically—I think most of the picture will have been filled in by 2025—there will still be blanks—but we’ll know basically what’s going on." It's now 2025, and I claim a win. I write about it in The Atlantic.
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
Trying to work from home with my kids around
October 14, 2025 at 5:05 PM
Trying to work from home with my kids around
New paper, led by Luciano Atzeni:
Using spatially explicit individual-based modelling to evaluate the ecological feasibility of big cat reintroduction: the example of the Arabian leopard
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Using spatially explicit individual-based modelling to evaluate the ecological feasibility of big cat reintroduction: the example of the Arabian leopard
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Using spatially explicit individual-based modelling to evaluate the ecological feasibility of big cat reintroduction: the example of the Arabian leopard
Large predators have steadily declined worldwide due to habitat fragmentation, human-wildlife conflict, prey depletion, and persecution. Conservation …
www.sciencedirect.com
October 9, 2025 at 7:41 AM
New paper, led by Luciano Atzeni:
Using spatially explicit individual-based modelling to evaluate the ecological feasibility of big cat reintroduction: the example of the Arabian leopard
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Using spatially explicit individual-based modelling to evaluate the ecological feasibility of big cat reintroduction: the example of the Arabian leopard
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
War is over, so here's a great fellowship to do a postdoc in Israel. Get in touch if interested:
azrielifoundation.org/azrieli-fell...
azrielifoundation.org/azrieli-fell...
Call for Applications for the Azrieli International Postdoctoral Fellowship-2026-27 - The Azrieli Foundation
azrielifoundation.org
October 9, 2025 at 7:14 AM
War is over, so here's a great fellowship to do a postdoc in Israel. Get in touch if interested:
azrielifoundation.org/azrieli-fell...
azrielifoundation.org/azrieli-fell...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
⭐PhD position available!⭐
Come join us @imprs-qbee.bsky.social to study communication and collective behavior in animal groups! We're looking for someone excited to use computational approaches to tackle biological questions, using our full-group tracking datasets
imprs-qbee.mpg.de/121465/analy...
Come join us @imprs-qbee.bsky.social to study communication and collective behavior in animal groups! We're looking for someone excited to use computational approaches to tackle biological questions, using our full-group tracking datasets
imprs-qbee.mpg.de/121465/analy...
Analysis of communication and collective behavior in animal groups
imprs-qbee.mpg.de
October 3, 2025 at 7:40 AM
⭐PhD position available!⭐
Come join us @imprs-qbee.bsky.social to study communication and collective behavior in animal groups! We're looking for someone excited to use computational approaches to tackle biological questions, using our full-group tracking datasets
imprs-qbee.mpg.de/121465/analy...
Come join us @imprs-qbee.bsky.social to study communication and collective behavior in animal groups! We're looking for someone excited to use computational approaches to tackle biological questions, using our full-group tracking datasets
imprs-qbee.mpg.de/121465/analy...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
I'm v excited to be recruiting a PhD student to work on badger behaviour and ecology! Starting date is March 2026; see the ad here, or message me for more details: www.gregalbery.me/s/March-2026...
October 3, 2025 at 2:05 PM
I'm v excited to be recruiting a PhD student to work on badger behaviour and ecology! Starting date is March 2026; see the ad here, or message me for more details: www.gregalbery.me/s/March-2026...
Amazing days at the Sinharaja rainforest, Sri Lanka, and saw a loris!
October 5, 2025 at 2:21 PM
Amazing days at the Sinharaja rainforest, Sri Lanka, and saw a loris!
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
This is an awe-inspiring and fascinating study that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. However, the overall framing in terms of "innate versus learned” is unnecessary. The innate versus acquired dichotomy is outdated and has been for a long time. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Learned use of an innate sound-meaning association in birds - Nature Ecology & Evolution
Over 20 species of geographically and phylogenetically diverse bird species produce convergent whining vocalizations towards their respective brood parasites. Model presentation and playback experiments across multiple continents suggest that these learned calls provoke an innate response even among allopatric species.
www.nature.com
October 3, 2025 at 7:29 PM
This is an awe-inspiring and fascinating study that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. However, the overall framing in terms of "innate versus learned” is unnecessary. The innate versus acquired dichotomy is outdated and has been for a long time. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
🌍🦋 Across 6 continents, 21 sites & 15,000 paper moths, we joined a worldwide experiment led by @wlallen.bsky.social & Iliana Medina, showing how ecological context shapes the evolution of animal colouration.
Proud to be part of this global team effort: doi.org/10.1126/scie...
Proud to be part of this global team effort: doi.org/10.1126/scie...
September 25, 2025 at 6:39 PM
🌍🦋 Across 6 continents, 21 sites & 15,000 paper moths, we joined a worldwide experiment led by @wlallen.bsky.social & Iliana Medina, showing how ecological context shapes the evolution of animal colouration.
Proud to be part of this global team effort: doi.org/10.1126/scie...
Proud to be part of this global team effort: doi.org/10.1126/scie...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
New preprint out from the lab, including @rroyaute.bsky.social:
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
In this we test what we refer to as the "standard model" of behavioral variation.
This was inspired by recent work identifying intra-genotypic variation as a major contributor to "individuality".
1/
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
In this we test what we refer to as the "standard model" of behavioral variation.
This was inspired by recent work identifying intra-genotypic variation as a major contributor to "individuality".
1/
Genetic and environmental sources of behavioral individuality: a test of the standard model
Behavioral variation is typically assumed to arise from the combination and interaction of genetic and environmental variation. However, recent work with genetically identical individuals has found th...
www.biorxiv.org
September 8, 2025 at 1:34 AM
New preprint out from the lab, including @rroyaute.bsky.social:
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
In this we test what we refer to as the "standard model" of behavioral variation.
This was inspired by recent work identifying intra-genotypic variation as a major contributor to "individuality".
1/
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
In this we test what we refer to as the "standard model" of behavioral variation.
This was inspired by recent work identifying intra-genotypic variation as a major contributor to "individuality".
1/
New paper, led by Camille Bordes:
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
This study combines replicated experimental manipulation, social network analysis, network permutations and meta-analysis to disentangle active from spatially-induced changes in animal network struct...
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 5, 2025 at 7:20 AM
New paper, led by Camille Bordes:
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
New paper, led by Camille Bordes:
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
September 5, 2025 at 6:43 AM
New paper, led by Camille Bordes:
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
Social network dynamics under experimental manipulations of predation risk and food abundance in wild rock hyraxes
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
Crazy discovery in ants 🤯🐜
One mother for two species via obligate cross-species cloning in ants | Nature
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
"Males from the same mother exhibit distinct genomes and morphologies, as they belong to species that diverged over 5 million years ago."
One mother for two species via obligate cross-species cloning in ants | Nature
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
"Males from the same mother exhibit distinct genomes and morphologies, as they belong to species that diverged over 5 million years ago."
One mother for two species via obligate cross-species cloning in ants - Nature
In a case of obligate cross-species cloning, female ants of Messor ibericus need to clone males of Messor structor to obtain sperm for producing the worker caste, resulting in males from the same moth...
www.nature.com
September 4, 2025 at 6:50 AM
Crazy discovery in ants 🤯🐜
One mother for two species via obligate cross-species cloning in ants | Nature
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
"Males from the same mother exhibit distinct genomes and morphologies, as they belong to species that diverged over 5 million years ago."
One mother for two species via obligate cross-species cloning in ants | Nature
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
"Males from the same mother exhibit distinct genomes and morphologies, as they belong to species that diverged over 5 million years ago."
A 40C degrees day is perfect for checking some trail cameras in the Judean Desert with @otter-guy.bsky.social
August 9, 2025 at 4:44 PM
A 40C degrees day is perfect for checking some trail cameras in the Judean Desert with @otter-guy.bsky.social
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
🐒🕸️ New preprint! Confused about how to model animal social networks?
ASNA can be confusing—but also full of opportunity. We break down 5 common misunderstandings in animal social network analysis and share solutions from behavioural ecology, anthro, stats, & network science. Hope it helps!
A 🧵
ASNA can be confusing—but also full of opportunity. We break down 5 common misunderstandings in animal social network analysis and share solutions from behavioural ecology, anthro, stats, & network science. Hope it helps!
A 🧵
Five misunderstandings in animal social network analysis
ecoevorxiv.org
August 4, 2025 at 4:21 PM
🐒🕸️ New preprint! Confused about how to model animal social networks?
ASNA can be confusing—but also full of opportunity. We break down 5 common misunderstandings in animal social network analysis and share solutions from behavioural ecology, anthro, stats, & network science. Hope it helps!
A 🧵
ASNA can be confusing—but also full of opportunity. We break down 5 common misunderstandings in animal social network analysis and share solutions from behavioural ecology, anthro, stats, & network science. Hope it helps!
A 🧵
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
We have a new paper out in @cp-iscience.bsky.social reporting that more socially integrated female chimpanzees have lower offspring mortality 🧪 #evosky #primates #primatology #anthropology www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Socially integrated female chimpanzees have lower offspring mortality
In humans and other social mammals, more socially connected females often have higher fitness. Yet evidence linking female sociality to offspring surv…
www.sciencedirect.com
July 1, 2025 at 11:35 PM
We have a new paper out in @cp-iscience.bsky.social reporting that more socially integrated female chimpanzees have lower offspring mortality 🧪 #evosky #primates #primatology #anthropology www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Amiyaal Ilany
New in #ProcB - Early-life paternal relationships predict adult female survival in wild baboons - find out more about the study from the authors #Behaviour @archielab.bsky.social royalsociety.org/blog/2025/06...
June 20, 2025 at 1:50 PM
New in #ProcB - Early-life paternal relationships predict adult female survival in wild baboons - find out more about the study from the authors #Behaviour @archielab.bsky.social royalsociety.org/blog/2025/06...