Sebastian R.vH
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sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Sebastian R.vH
@sebastianrvh.bsky.social
4.3K followers 1K following 450 posts
PhD Researcher using eDNA for wildlife conservation & forensics 🧬 🐾

University of Aberdeen 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 | QUADRAT DTP
MSc² | he/him 🏳️‍🌈 | Views my own

Getting back into photography after a 10 year hiatus | 📷 FujiFilm X-Pro1

https://linktr.ee/sebastianrvh
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sebastianrvh.bsky.social
It's called the Strait of Corryvreckan, between the islands of Jura and Scarba. George Orwell lived on Jura for three years until he got tuberculosis and had to leave, but you can still stay in the house he rented! Also, look at that whirlpool!!
A picture of a large white spiralling whirlpool in the sea. The spiral shape is very distinct. In the background are hills that meet the sea.
July 3, 2025 at 10:00 AM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
I’ve reached the point in my PhD where I need to redo my experiments because the initial analysis was wrong

which I found out by reanalysing said results a SECOND time with a different (better) program

so I can generate results and analyse those for a THIRD time.

ah joy

#PhDSky #AcademicSky
A nonsensical picture of a non-descript person with smooth mannikin-esk head, wearing a white labcoat and pink gloves holding a flask with pink liquid. They are standing in front of a pink/purple background with scribbles of chemical reagents. In big back letters in the left hand corner of the picture it reads “SCOIENS”
June 25, 2025 at 6:42 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Well that was a colossal waste of time
A congratulation screen with confetti saying you caught all discoverable Pokemon with Pickachu and Eevee in the background
June 23, 2025 at 6:44 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
At #5 it gives you a Masterball. I’m committed now
A screenshot of the Pokemon Articuno being caught in a Masterball with the Google Search screen in the background
June 23, 2025 at 6:18 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
uhm since when can you catch pokemon in google!?

There’s a progress bar and animation and everything!!?

#Pokemon #Google #PokemonGo
A screenshot of googling the Pokemon Medicham, which shows pictures of the Pokemon and a small Pokeball in the righthand corner A screenshow showing the option to “Carch a Pokemon”. There is a button to “Search to Catch” and a progress bar of 0/151 Pokemon caught. The Pokemon’s silhouette is Graveler, with the hint being “Evolves into Golem” A screenshot of the Pokemon Haunter being caught with a Pokeball, infront of the google search screen
June 23, 2025 at 6:12 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
hi. can we PLEASE stop with AI being pushed down our throats?

#PhDsky #AcademicSky
A picture of a compterscreen open on Windows Word with a blank white document. Above the blank page it is giving writing prompts for AI, reading left to right as “Write an interview guide for a software engineer intern position at Microsoft”, “Write a funny poem to was Happy Birthday to my five-year-old sister”, and “Create an outline for a resume with headings”
June 19, 2025 at 9:10 AM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
A Tale of Two Birds

𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢 𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢 (L) & 𝘈𝘭𝘤𝘢 𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘢 (R)

The puffin got spooked by the razorbill who also wanted some of the limelight, looked at me, & said "hi :))"

I love their little personalities

🪶 #puffin #razorbill #birds #wildlife #photography #coast #cliffs #Scotland #fujifilm
A picture of a puffin sitting on a rock, facing with its colourful beak to the left. The rock is covered in white birdpoop. In the foreground are blurry pink flowers. The background is a blurry blue sea. A picture of a razorbill sitting on a rock, facing to the left. It has it's head upwards and it's beak a little bit open, almost as if it is smiling and saying hi. The rock is covered in white birdpoop. In the foreground are blurry pink flowers. The background is a blurry blue sea
May 25, 2025 at 6:09 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Puffin(s), 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢 𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢

📷 Fujifilm X-Pro1 XF 70-300mm
🎞️ 1/1000 • f/5.6 • 300mm • 1600 ISO

🪶 #puffin #birds #wildlife #photography #symmetry #coast #cliffs #Scotland #fujifilm
A picture of three puffins on the cliffside. The two puffins in the middle are looking left and right, where the puffin lower down the cliff has its face turned into its feathers, possibly cleaning itself. The cliff cuts the picture diagonally, making it look like a triangle. The cliff is covered in dark green grasses and mosses, with rocks inbetween. The entire picture has a white border
May 24, 2025 at 2:48 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
When all is said and done, it’s pretty cool having your poster up next to an elephant skeleton 🧪

(mine is the blue one, covered in mussels)

#PhDSky #AcademicSky #eDNA #CRISPR #mussels #UoA #SBSResearchDay
An overview picture of a large hall. In the middle are poster boards with posters detailing different PhD projects. In the foreground is the head and legs of an elephant skeleton, with large tusks
May 23, 2025 at 3:13 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Common chaffinch, Fringilla coelebs

📷 Fujifilm X-Pro1 XF 70-300mm
🎞️ 1/500 • f/8 • 300mm • 1600 ISO

The greens, the light, and the unexpected bokeh!
Scratches my brain just right

🪶 #birds #wildlife #photography #green #forest #bokeh #fujifilm
A picture of the underside of a common chaffinch, sitting on a branch surrounded by leaves. The chaffinch and the branch it is sitting on is in focus, but the surrounding areas are out of focus, creating a softer image with the light shining through the leaves.
May 12, 2025 at 3:03 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
ₕₑₗₗₒ
A green-veined white butterfly sitting on a purple flower. The flower is a little bit blurry but the butterfly is peaking behind it with it’s eyes and antennae. The picture has been zoomed in, and a small text above its eyes says “hello”
May 10, 2025 at 7:49 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Green-veined white, Pieris napi

📷 Fujifilm X-Pro1 XF 70-300mm
🎞️ 1/1000 • f/5.6 • 300mm • 200 ISO

I absolute adore this picture
Its little face, peaking out behind the flower

There's a proper closeup in the skeet below 👇

🦋 #butterfly #bugs #insects #flower #photography #fujifilm
A green-veined white butterfly sitting on a purple flower. The flower is a little bit blurry but the butterfly is peaking behind it with it’s eyes and antennae
May 10, 2025 at 7:49 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
This week I participated at #Greyhope Bay Cafe's "Greyhope Morning" in #Aberdeen, where I talked about how #eDNA can be used to find and monitor species, & how my #PhD research is trying to make this more accessible to the general public

🧪🧬🐬🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

I had an amazing time & thank you for having me!
Me standing in the back, explaining what can be seen on the monitor next to me. In front of me is a crowd of people seated, and behind me shows the Aberdeen harbour A chalk board with the text "GreyHope Bay Cafe Closed Today. Talk in progress. Greyhope Morning: Environmental DNA & Citizen Science with Sebastian van Hellemondt. Cafe opening hours Weds-Mon 10:00 - 16:00" A picture of the view of Greyhope Bay Cafe. In the foreground are large, yellow flowered gorse bushes, in the background is the sea with a small lighthouse, with a large, blue sky
May 8, 2025 at 4:05 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Razorbill, Alca torda,
Fowlsheugh, Scotland

📷 Fujifilm X-Pro1 XF 70-300mm
🎞️ 1/2000 • f/5.6 • 300mm • 800 ISO

🪶 #birds #seabirds #wildlife #photography #razorbill #scotland #RSPB #fujifilm
A closeup picture of a razorbill on a stone (cliffside). The background is a blurry sea, in dark blue, and the razorbill sits in the centre in the sun. The razorbill has a white chest and underbelly, a sharp beak and a white line across its face from its eye to its beak. There is a blurry foreground just under the feet, giving the picture depth.
May 3, 2025 at 5:02 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Tulipa 🌷

// Fujifilm X-Pro1 XF 70-300mm
// 1/500 • f/5.6 • 256mm • 1600 ISO

#flowers #tulip #spring #photography #closeup #fujifilm #xpro1
A tulip against a dark background. The tulip has soft colours or pinks, oranges and yellows, with the darker stamen in the middle of the open petals. The flower is attached to a green stem and leaves, blurred in the background
April 5, 2025 at 4:13 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
White-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), westcoast of Scotland

Incredible luck after heavy rain.

The first time I’ve ever seen an eagle in the wild, too!

🪶 #birds #wildlife #photography #fujifilm #eagle #scotland #westcoast #fujifilm
A picture of a white-tailed eagle flying, with its wings fully spread out. You can see the white stripes on the tail feathers A picture of a white-tailed eagle flying, showing the sharpness of the beak and the individual feathers of the wings A less detailed photo of a white-tailed eagle flying, set against a cloudy/blue sky
March 28, 2025 at 2:00 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
*biohacker voice*
It’s CRISPRing time

#PhDSky #AcademicSky #CRISPR
Two tubes in a plastic bag, the tubes contain a CRISPR Cas protein.
March 26, 2025 at 9:41 AM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Happy #WorldSparrowDay!

My all-time favourite bird, showing that there is beauty in the, often regarded, mundane 🪶

#sparrow #birds #fujifilm
A close up photo of a sparrow in the sun, with brown colouration and puffed up belly feathers
March 20, 2025 at 2:17 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
She has, unfortunately
A screenshot of a tweet by JK Rowling replying to a different tweet. The original tweet is by Reduxx and reads “fitness influencer in London is braving a torrent of abuse from trans activists after revealing that her soon-to-open gym would be female-only.” JK has replied with “‘Let us in your gym or we’ll kill you’ say men who pose no risk to women whatsoever.”
March 12, 2025 at 10:40 AM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Pine Marten (Martes martes), Aberdeenshire

Sitting silently in the dark for two (2) hours to catch a glimpse of night-time wildlife has become my new favourite pasttime

Fujifilm X-Pro1 XF 70-300mm
1/15 • f/5.6 • 300mm • 1600 ISO

#pinemarten #night #wildlife #photography #fujifilm #scotland
A picture of a pine marten sitting in the middle of the frame surrounded by grasses and twigs
February 23, 2025 at 1:00 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Spring finally feels a step closer with snowdrops in full bloom in the UoA Cruickshank Botanic Garden 🌱

#photography #snowdrop #flowers #spring
A close up picture of two snowdrops, blooming with the white petals facing towards the ground. In the background are many more snowdrops, but slightly blurred. There is a sunglare on the bottom of the picture
February 13, 2025 at 3:09 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Queer Animals of the World! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

For LGBTQ+ History Month, our PhD Society, Zoo&Roots, wanted to highlight how nature is filled with queer animals.

For sources & reading material, go to linktr.ee/gayanimals

Remember, spread your wings and F • L • Y!

#gayanimals #lgbt #citypop
February 10, 2025 at 7:22 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
"Maritime sunburst lichen", Xanthoria parietina

Who needs a macro lens when you have a telephoto lens? Unexpected to get these results with my 70-300mm!

Fujifilm X-Pro1 XF 70-300mm
1/110 • f/5.6 • 300mm • 1600 ISO

#lichen #sunburst #fungus #algae #macro #photography #macrophotography #fujifilm
A tree branch covered in yellow/orange lichen. The lichen consists of multiple lobes which are flattened down against the branch.
February 9, 2025 at 6:59 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
Golden Hour, Golden Dunes

Forvie National Nature Reserve, Aberdeenshire

Fujifilm X-Pro1 XF 70-300mm lens
1/250 • f/4.0 • 70mm • 640ISO

#landscape #photography #landscapephotography #naturereserve #dunes #goldenhour #sea #seashore #fujifilm
A picture of a blue waterbody bordered by hills covered in golden coloured grass. The sun has hit golden hour, making the grass even more golden than normal. The picture has a white frame around it
February 3, 2025 at 9:35 PM
sebastianrvh.bsky.social
finch tongue 👅

🪶 #birds #chaffinch #photography #wildlife #fujifilm
A male chaffinch on a fence post eating seeds scattered around. The background is blurred, and the chaffinch has a seed in its mouth A digitally zoomed in picture of the same male chaffinch with a seed in its mouth. Its beak is slightly open, showing a little bit of its tongue. Due to the digital zoom, the picture is slightly grainy and blurry
February 2, 2025 at 10:19 PM