Joel Slade
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evoecojoel.bsky.social
Joel Slade
@evoecojoel.bsky.social
Assistant Professor. Fascinated by the avian immune system, particularly the evolution of their immune genes and pathogen-mediated selection in urban 🏙️ birds. 💜 Cardueline finches and ground sparrows. 🏳️‍🌈🐻 sladelab.com
Reposted by Joel Slade
Hey everybody! @drjuliawester.bsky.social and I have a new paper!

We surveyed over 800 scientists, science communicators, and science educators who use social media.

Conclusion: Scientists no longer find Twitter useful or pleasant, and many have switched to Bluesky! 🧪🌎🦑

doi.org/10.1093/icb/...
Scientists no Longer Find Twitter Professionally Useful, and have Switched to Bluesky
Synopsis. Social media has become widely used by the scientific community for a variety of professional uses, including networking and public outreach. For
doi.org
August 19, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Reintroduction time! I’m Joel - a professor, researcher, and bird enthusiast 🐦 🦚🦉. I study ecoimmunology in birds, and I teach ecology, evolution, and immunology. I was here before but drifted away for a bit. Happy to be back and excited to connect again!
#Science #AcademicLife #Birds
August 20, 2025 at 4:31 PM
I will be applying for sabbatical the same time as tenure this year. It can only be a semester-long tenure. My ultimate goal is to be a master bander, or at least get permission to mistnet. I saw @instbirdpop.bsky.social offers courses, which is a possibility. Does anyone have ideas?
June 15, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
On Friday, my son stayed home from school because he had a sore throat and wasn’t feeling well. He went with my husband to his office for the morning while I handled our daughter. When he came back at lunch, he was not interested in eating, saying his throat hurt too much. 1/n
May 5, 2025 at 1:11 PM
I am looking for a MS student to take on a project. We have samples already collected, and there is opportunity for more field work. California resident is preferred (fees for non-resident and international students are too high IMO). Repost please.

#ecology #physiology #ornithology #grad
May 5, 2025 at 4:58 AM
Two articles just published this week very closely resembling the paper my grad student is ready to submit 🙃

It’s scoopin’ season! 🥲
April 2, 2025 at 12:47 AM
Reposted by Joel Slade
From NSF’s website: ‘Our investments account for about 25% of federal support to America's colleges and universities for basic research: research driven by curiosity and discovery.’

More than 95% of NSF’s budget goes back out the door to fund science. Cutting staff won’t save much tax payer money.
February 18, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
After playing a fictional member of the Resistance a long time ago, I never could have imagined it ever happening in real life, but here we are.
Mark Hamill posting rebellious content in a battle against a dictator and his robotic sidekick is the most Star Wars shit ever.
February 24, 2025 at 9:04 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
I am taking up to 2 applicants for the masters program in biology at MTSU this coming fall. Projects working on cichlid ecomorphology, cichlid fossils and missing data. Experience with fish, geomorph or R a plus. Funding for stipend and travel support.
January 15, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
❌ BREAKING NEWS ❌
1/4 of freshwater animals are at risk of #extinction‼️
The largest global assessment of freshwater animals on the IUCN Red List to date has revealed that 24% are at high risk of extinction, according to analysis published in Nature today.
👇
shoalconservation.org/global-fresh...
One quarter of freshwater animals at risk of extinction - IUCN Red List - Shoal
One quarter of freshwater animals at risk of extinction – IUCN Red List The largest global assessment of freshwater animals on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ to date has revealed that 24% of...
shoalconservation.org
January 8, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
New paper out in @rsocpublishing.bsky.social! Research from our group shows that males of the polygynous ruff visit many potential breeding sites within a breeding season, travelling up to 9000 km and visiting up to 23 different sites! royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/... 1/7
January 8, 2025 at 7:07 AM
Sucks. Didn’t Louisiana recently pass a bill that doctors and other health care professionals cannot promote vaccinations? I feel bad for the family and I hope this is a one-off.

This has me thinking it’s time to swab some birds.
January 6, 2025 at 10:08 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
The first person to have a severe case of H5N1 bird flu in the US has died, Louisiana's health department said: www.cnn.com/2025/01/06/h...
America’s first bird flu death reported in Louisiana | CNN
The first person to have a severe case of H5N1 bird flu in the United States has died, according to the Louisiana Department of Health.
www.cnn.com
January 6, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
Are you familiar with the growing body of research on how climate change is reshaping birds' bodies? Here's a great overview of how this trend is playing out in Australia. #ornithology
Shrinking wings, bigger beaks: birds are reshaping themselves in a warming world
Beak sizes increase, and body sizes decrease - but why? How we are slowly unravelling the mystery behind changing body shapes in Australian birds.
theconversation.com
December 26, 2024 at 4:00 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
Hey All, plz repost, and share with grads, post-docs and disease folks! We are hiring a post-doc to work on mechanisms of immune responses of frog hosts to Bd infections. Deadline is February 1, 2025. Details for the position can be found at the link below. 🐸🐸🐸

zamudiolab.org/2024/12/17/p...
Post-Doc position in the KZLab! Immune responses to pathogen infections in frogs
We are looking for an NSF-funded post-doc in our lab in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Texas at Austin. The work will examine immune mechanisms that potentially underlie…
zamudiolab.org
December 18, 2024 at 2:07 AM
“Can you bump my C to an A?”
December 20, 2024 at 8:01 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
Another thing I made this year: Real and implied birds.
December 20, 2024 at 6:52 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
The Chimney Swift Restoration Fund (the Chimney Swift Fund) helps maintain nesting and roosting sites for the Chimney Swift by providing financial support for the restoration of anthropogenic structures (i.e., chimneys, barns, etc.) known to be important for the species in Canada. #birds
From #BirdsCanada: We’re excited to announce that the Chimney Swift Fund is once again accepting applications! This important initiative supports the restoration of nesting & roosting sites for this Species at Risk. Apply now! https://buff.ly/4fGjqUQ #birds #conservation #stewardship #urbanbirds
December 20, 2024 at 12:54 AM
Well, shit…
It was a matter of time, but one case isn’t a cause for panic yet.

www.usatoday.com/videos/news/...
First severe case of bird flu reported
Just days after the CDC reassured people that the risk of contracting bird flu remains low among humans, the agency reported the first case of severe illness caused by an infection in the United State...
www.usatoday.com
December 20, 2024 at 1:41 AM
Reposted by Joel Slade
Page charges? Gone!
Publication date = date published online!

THANK YOU @wilsonornithsoc.bsky.social for breaking down barriers to publishing in the #WilsonJournalOfOrnithology.

Today's announcement is the realization of a long-term plan I've been advocating for years!
December 13, 2024 at 9:38 PM
Reposted by Joel Slade
You know why you should never ask a goose for directions?

They always anserinae honk 🪿
December 14, 2024 at 12:42 AM
Reposted by Joel Slade
We know that immune genes often show stronger signatures of selection than the genomic average. But what about immune cell types?
In a new preprint
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
we merge single-cell RNAseq (defining stickleback cell types) and population genomic measures of selection...
December 10, 2024 at 1:20 PM
Wonder how long it will last this year?
🚨 Forget Whamageddon, forget Elf on the Shelf, this is your one week warning for … The Gävle Goat!!
November 25, 2024 at 12:08 AM