William B. Ludt, PhD
@planet-of-fishes.bsky.social
Curator of 🐡🐠🐟🦈 @nhm.org
Exploring the diversity of fishes by fishing, diving, and searching through museum collections.
www.wbludt.com
Exploring the diversity of fishes by fishing, diving, and searching through museum collections.
www.wbludt.com
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
The Fudge Lab at Chapman University is recruiting a postdoc for an NSF-funded project on the biophysics of hagfish defensive slime deployment. Please repost!
Apply here: tinyurl.com/4p937dn5
Apply here: tinyurl.com/4p937dn5
November 10, 2025 at 6:29 PM
The Fudge Lab at Chapman University is recruiting a postdoc for an NSF-funded project on the biophysics of hagfish defensive slime deployment. Please repost!
Apply here: tinyurl.com/4p937dn5
Apply here: tinyurl.com/4p937dn5
If you're interested in grad school, this is a great opportunity!
🚨 Recruiting 12 PhD students for a new NSF-funded program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences! This program is for U.S. students who received an Honorable Mention on the NSF GRFP within the last 3 years. @uafairbanks.bsky.social
www.uaf.edu/cfos/academi...
www.uaf.edu/cfos/academi...
EMERGE Alaska | College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences
www.uaf.edu
October 27, 2025 at 4:09 PM
If you're interested in grad school, this is a great opportunity!
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
New phylogeny and family-level classification of Stomiiformes (viperfishes, hatchetfishes, bristlemouths)
bmcecolevol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....
bmcecolevol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....
Genome-wide phylogeny reshapes our understanding of the evolution of deep-sea dragonfishes, bristlemouths, viperfishes, and allies (Stomiiformes) - BMC Ecology and Evolution
Background The evolutionary relationships within Stomiiformes, a diverse order of deep-sea fishes dominating the mesopelagic and bathypelagic zones, remain contentious due to conflicting morphological...
bmcecolevol.biomedcentral.com
October 21, 2025 at 3:56 PM
New phylogeny and family-level classification of Stomiiformes (viperfishes, hatchetfishes, bristlemouths)
bmcecolevol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....
bmcecolevol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
🦂 Scorpions? Not quite.
Take a closer look into #NHMLA's Entomology collection and learn more about false scorpions with resident Assistant Curator of Entomology, Rodrigo Ruedas!
Take a closer look into #NHMLA's Entomology collection and learn more about false scorpions with resident Assistant Curator of Entomology, Rodrigo Ruedas!
October 21, 2025 at 9:57 PM
🦂 Scorpions? Not quite.
Take a closer look into #NHMLA's Entomology collection and learn more about false scorpions with resident Assistant Curator of Entomology, Rodrigo Ruedas!
Take a closer look into #NHMLA's Entomology collection and learn more about false scorpions with resident Assistant Curator of Entomology, Rodrigo Ruedas!
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
Hot off the press is the final chapter of my dissertation now published in @pnas.org Here, I explore the genetic drivers of extreme body size reduction using goby fishes as a model. I'll write up a short summary thread later tonight...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
October 22, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Hot off the press is the final chapter of my dissertation now published in @pnas.org Here, I explore the genetic drivers of extreme body size reduction using goby fishes as a model. I'll write up a short summary thread later tonight...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
🚨We're hiring! The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History is seeking a tenure-track split position as Assistant Curator of Ichthyology and Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences. Please retweet & share with colleagues! 🐟🐠🧪
Apply here: apply.interfolio.com/174674
Apply here: apply.interfolio.com/174674
October 2, 2025 at 3:16 PM
🚨We're hiring! The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History is seeking a tenure-track split position as Assistant Curator of Ichthyology and Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences. Please retweet & share with colleagues! 🐟🐠🧪
Apply here: apply.interfolio.com/174674
Apply here: apply.interfolio.com/174674
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
New paper alert!!!🚨 in our new study we find that Antarctic icefishes added a new module in their skulls during their adaptive radiation special shout out to @mayaranevesbio.bsky.social who led this project!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
www.pnas.org
September 29, 2025 at 8:05 PM
New paper alert!!!🚨 in our new study we find that Antarctic icefishes added a new module in their skulls during their adaptive radiation special shout out to @mayaranevesbio.bsky.social who led this project!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Attention students: the deadline for our fall collections study award coming up soon! Use the funds to come out and use our LACM specimens for your research.
Are you an undergraduate or graduate student whose research would benefit from visiting a collection at the @nhm.org? Apply now for our Collections Study Award! Deadline is Oct. 1; learn more at nhm.org/student-coll...
September 15, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Attention students: the deadline for our fall collections study award coming up soon! Use the funds to come out and use our LACM specimens for your research.
What a cool study on early jawed bony fishes. Way to go @fishfetisher.bsky.social and colleagues!
Excited to announce that the 1st paper from my postdoc is now out in @currentbiology.bsky.social ! Using a large dataset of 3D preserved fossils, we explore the diversification of jaws in early bony fishes. 1/15
www.cell.com/current-biol...
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Macroevolutionary role reversals in the earliest radiation of bony fishes
Troyer et al. examine lower jaw evolution in Silurian-Devonian bony fishes and find
substantial differences in patterns of morphological disparity, rates of shape evolution,
and functional diversity b...
www.cell.com
September 1, 2025 at 3:08 PM
What a cool study on early jawed bony fishes. Way to go @fishfetisher.bsky.social and colleagues!
Over the past 5 years some rare Pacific Footballfish have washed ashore in California. How rare? 41 individuals ever recorded, rare. So @realfishdoc.bsky.social, @frable.bsky.social, Michelle Horeczko, and I wrote a short note summarizing this species. Check it out here: doi.org/10.51492/cfw... 🐟🦑
August 30, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Over the past 5 years some rare Pacific Footballfish have washed ashore in California. How rare? 41 individuals ever recorded, rare. So @realfishdoc.bsky.social, @frable.bsky.social, Michelle Horeczko, and I wrote a short note summarizing this species. Check it out here: doi.org/10.51492/cfw... 🐟🦑
A great opportunity if you’re interested in fish macroevolution!
I am recruiting graduate students to begin August 2026. Apply by Nov 15th!
August 21, 2025 at 9:00 PM
A great opportunity if you’re interested in fish macroevolution!
Every year this is a phenomenal resource for postdocs or others on the EcoEvo job market. Keep an eye on it for great job postings!
August 19, 2025 at 4:51 PM
Every year this is a phenomenal resource for postdocs or others on the EcoEvo job market. Keep an eye on it for great job postings!
Great opportunity to work with a fantastic community of museum evolutionary biologists at the LSUMNS!
Fun news: I'm hiring a postdoc in ichthyology!
Please spread the word #TeamFish, and message me if you have questions.
(Job requisition id is R00107333 if LSU link below takes you elsewhere.)
lsu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/LSU/de...
Please spread the word #TeamFish, and message me if you have questions.
(Job requisition id is R00107333 if LSU link below takes you elsewhere.)
lsu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/LSU/de...
Postdoctoral Researcher
All Job Postings will close at 12:01a.m. CST (1:01a.m. EST) on the specified Closing Date (if designated). If you close the browser or exit your application prior to submitting, the application progre...
lsu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com
August 9, 2025 at 3:30 AM
Great opportunity to work with a fantastic community of museum evolutionary biologists at the LSUMNS!
While scanning some fishes yesterday I came across this Bonytail Chub collected near Blythe, CA in 1933. You can't find this species in Blythe anymore, nor in the rest of California as it is critically endangered. Museum collections like @nhm.org showcasing yet again our changing planet 🐟🐠
July 22, 2025 at 5:07 PM
While scanning some fishes yesterday I came across this Bonytail Chub collected near Blythe, CA in 1933. You can't find this species in Blythe anymore, nor in the rest of California as it is critically endangered. Museum collections like @nhm.org showcasing yet again our changing planet 🐟🐠
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
"Save The NSF" - a little blogpost I wrote to amplify the #SaveTheNSF mission.
The National Science Foundation is one of the world’s premier funders of basic science research; proposed federal cuts would derail how we do science in the U.S.
aguidetoacademia.blogspot.com/2025/07/save...
The National Science Foundation is one of the world’s premier funders of basic science research; proposed federal cuts would derail how we do science in the U.S.
aguidetoacademia.blogspot.com/2025/07/save...
Save the NSF
The National Science Foundation is one of the world’s premier funders of basic science research (i.e. the fundamental di...
aguidetoacademia.blogspot.com
July 20, 2025 at 10:24 PM
"Save The NSF" - a little blogpost I wrote to amplify the #SaveTheNSF mission.
The National Science Foundation is one of the world’s premier funders of basic science research; proposed federal cuts would derail how we do science in the U.S.
aguidetoacademia.blogspot.com/2025/07/save...
The National Science Foundation is one of the world’s premier funders of basic science research; proposed federal cuts would derail how we do science in the U.S.
aguidetoacademia.blogspot.com/2025/07/save...
A nice writeup by @caseagrant.bsky.social on the historical microplastic work we're doing @nhm.org along with @nhmlagems.bsky.social, @jessdflores.bsky.social and @jazminenoamie.bsky.social. Take a look if you're interested in what we've found so far! 🐟🧪
caseagrant.ucsd.edu/news/fish-ti...
caseagrant.ucsd.edu/news/fish-ti...
Fish time capsules prove plastic’s long reign
Tucked away from the exhibit halls of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles (NHMLA), where visitors crowd around T. rex skeletons and a 10.8 pound gold nugget found in the Mojave desert, lies an u...
caseagrant.ucsd.edu
July 17, 2025 at 5:32 PM
A nice writeup by @caseagrant.bsky.social on the historical microplastic work we're doing @nhm.org along with @nhmlagems.bsky.social, @jessdflores.bsky.social and @jazminenoamie.bsky.social. Take a look if you're interested in what we've found so far! 🐟🧪
caseagrant.ucsd.edu/news/fish-ti...
caseagrant.ucsd.edu/news/fish-ti...
Being part of @prosanta.bsky.social's lab was a large, and formative, part of my academic upbringing. Glad I got see so many past and present lab members at this year's #JMIH25 meeting
Folks from my lab past and present at #JMIH25
Very proud of these folks
@sheifishy.bsky.social @danielgeldof.bsky.social @thegarfather.bsky.social @ichthyangela.bsky.social
Very proud of these folks
@sheifishy.bsky.social @danielgeldof.bsky.social @thegarfather.bsky.social @ichthyangela.bsky.social
July 15, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Being part of @prosanta.bsky.social's lab was a large, and formative, part of my academic upbringing. Glad I got see so many past and present lab members at this year's #JMIH25 meeting
And that’s a wrap on #jmih25! Great posters were presented by @realfishdoc.bsky.social, @jessdflores.bsky.social, @romanferraro.bsky.social and others from the @nhm.org Dept of Ichthyology. Overall a good time in St. Paul, MN!
July 13, 2025 at 11:00 PM
And that’s a wrap on #jmih25! Great posters were presented by @realfishdoc.bsky.social, @jessdflores.bsky.social, @romanferraro.bsky.social and others from the @nhm.org Dept of Ichthyology. Overall a good time in St. Paul, MN!
This will be a great resource for future studies on neotropical fishes! 🐠🐟
New paper alert: 42 ecological traits for all 6,000+ valid species of #Neotropical_freshwater_fishes, the most diverse continental vertebrate fauna on Earth. A foundation for future studies on the ecology and conservation of tropical aquatic biodiversity.
nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com/articles/s41...
July 2, 2025 at 3:35 PM
This will be a great resource for future studies on neotropical fishes! 🐠🐟
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
We're hiring! 🎉
The KU Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum is seeking applications for a full-time Museum Education Coordinator. Application reviews begin Monday, June 9, 2025.
To apply or learn more about each job, click the link ➡️ rockcha.lk/xvx
The KU Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum is seeking applications for a full-time Museum Education Coordinator. Application reviews begin Monday, June 9, 2025.
To apply or learn more about each job, click the link ➡️ rockcha.lk/xvx
May 27, 2025 at 5:42 PM
We're hiring! 🎉
The KU Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum is seeking applications for a full-time Museum Education Coordinator. Application reviews begin Monday, June 9, 2025.
To apply or learn more about each job, click the link ➡️ rockcha.lk/xvx
The KU Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum is seeking applications for a full-time Museum Education Coordinator. Application reviews begin Monday, June 9, 2025.
To apply or learn more about each job, click the link ➡️ rockcha.lk/xvx
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
I'm thrilled to announce that the Entomology department at the NHMLAC is hiring a full-time collections manager! 🪰🐜🕸️🦋 I'm biased, but the museum is a great place to work, and our department is full of fun, thoughtful people. Job description and information for applying are here:
shorturl.at/iRqOB
shorturl.at/iRqOB
Recruitment
workforcenow.adp.com
May 16, 2025 at 7:04 PM
I'm thrilled to announce that the Entomology department at the NHMLAC is hiring a full-time collections manager! 🪰🐜🕸️🦋 I'm biased, but the museum is a great place to work, and our department is full of fun, thoughtful people. Job description and information for applying are here:
shorturl.at/iRqOB
shorturl.at/iRqOB
Reposted by William B. Ludt, PhD
There are hidden worlds all around us, too small to see with our own eyes. Ahead of this weekend’s annual #BugFair, explore those hidden worlds and the behind-the-scenes research made possible with this fantastic equipment in the Scanning Electron Microscope Lab! bit.ly/NHMSEM
May 14, 2025 at 11:08 PM
There are hidden worlds all around us, too small to see with our own eyes. Ahead of this weekend’s annual #BugFair, explore those hidden worlds and the behind-the-scenes research made possible with this fantastic equipment in the Scanning Electron Microscope Lab! bit.ly/NHMSEM
Think you know everything about fish feeding? Check this out! So cool to see this paper come out by @mikemihalitsis.bsky.social and colleagues
Super excited that our new paper is out today in
@pnas.org. Title: Lateral jaw motion in fish expands the functional repertoire of vertebrates and underpins the success of a dominant herbivore lineage.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
@pnas.org. Title: Lateral jaw motion in fish expands the functional repertoire of vertebrates and underpins the success of a dominant herbivore lineage.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
May 6, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Think you know everything about fish feeding? Check this out! So cool to see this paper come out by @mikemihalitsis.bsky.social and colleagues
Really cool paleo work by NHMLA's very own @jvelezjuarbe.bsky.social!
Our new paper, published today in @royalsociety.org Proceedings B, documents the presence of #sebecids in the #GreaterAntilles from the early #Oligocene through the early #Pliocene. Sebecids were apex-predator crocodylomorphs adapted to life on land.
#CaribbeanPaleobiology 1/11
#CaribbeanPaleobiology 1/11
May 3, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Really cool paleo work by NHMLA's very own @jvelezjuarbe.bsky.social!
Coelacanths having a great week! First a new live sighting of the Indonesian species, and now this fantastic work on their musculature by Aléssio Datovo and the late Dave Johnson
Coelacanths illuminate deep-time evolution of cranial musculature in jawed vertebrates.
By Aléssio Datovo & G. David Johnson Sci. Adv. 2025
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
By Aléssio Datovo & G. David Johnson Sci. Adv. 2025
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Coelacanths illuminate deep-time evolution of cranial musculature in jawed vertebrates
Revised coelacanth cranial muscle anatomy reveals previously unknown evolutionary innovations and redefines gnathostome muscle evolution.
www.science.org
May 3, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Coelacanths having a great week! First a new live sighting of the Indonesian species, and now this fantastic work on their musculature by Aléssio Datovo and the late Dave Johnson