Royal Holloway Biology

Surrey dog walkers urged to help protects bird nests in heathland Dog walkers in Horsell Common and Thames Basin Heaths are warned about the impact on breeding birds.

Great to see @beckythomas.bsky.social research on disturbance caused by dogs walked off-lead on heathland birds covered by BBC www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Our next departmental seminar is by Prof Zoe Davies from @dice-kent.bsky.social who will talk about her research on the role biodiversity plays in boosting wellbeing. Zoe is @rhulbiology.bsky.social alumna, so we are delighted to have her back for a visit!

The Royal Society of Biology (@rsb.org.uk) invites applications from researchers wishing to host an undergraduate studentship in plant health over the summer of 2026. Deadline - March 10th www.rsb.org.uk/plant-health...

We made it through winter and spring is upon us! 🌸 Thank you to the researchers from our international, interdisciplinary community at @rhulbiology.bsky.social! Watch @devotolab.bsky.social , linkedin.com/in/alessandra-devoto-790481310 for new post openings! Contact Alessandra.Devoto@rhul.ac.uk

Many thanks to @amywalsh.bsky.social for running a session on pollen identification for my Biomes and Ecosystems @rhulbiology.bsky.social module yesterday. Loved Mickey Mouse silhouette of pine pollen!

Oil Things Bright and Beautiful? How Hydrocarbon Pollution Impacts Guppy Ornamentation Spatial variation in crude oil pollution in Trinidad leads to differing levels of pollutant exposure in connected guppy populations. Male guppy ornamentation is an important sexually selected trait a...

I am excited to share that @hannahmcgx.bsky.social's first PhD chapter (with @amydeacon.bsky.social and Francesco Santi) on how oil pollution influences male guppy ornamentation just got published in @ecol-evol.bsky.social
@rhulbiology.bsky.social
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

I am delighted that our Forum paper on using long-term tree diversity experiments to explore the mechanisms of temporal shifts in forest ecosystem functioning made it to the virtual issue of the Editor's Choices of 2025 @oikosjournal.bsky.social!
nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

SHIFT+SPACE | Inexhaustible by Sofia Castello y Tickell - 20/02/2026 19:30:00 A solo show about saving the ocean (and oneself).

If you are in London next weekend, check out a free preview of a one-woman show "Inexhaustible" by our very own @sofiaatsea.bsky.social about navigating marine conservation and early career academia in the midst of a biodiversity crisis www.theatredeli.co.uk/Event/enddat...

Our next week's departmental seminar will be by Dr Queelim Ch’ng from @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social who will illustrate how gene regulation can produce sophisticated computations in the nervous system using studies on a multi-neuron C. elegans gene network as an example

Very nice commentary by @robinheinennl.bsky.social on our recent meta-analysis in @newphyt.bsky.social on plant responses to sequential herbivory. Thank you, Robin!

Women in Science: Taking Steps To Close the Gender Gap In honor of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, this listicle amplifies the voices of eight women in STEMM who share personal stories, insights, and advice.

www.technologynetworks.com/tn/lists/wom...

If you know of any underwater #marine #artistic or religious #sculptures (or have a friend who might)… please fill out and/or share this survey!

tinyurl.com/marine-sculptures

I’m supervising this student research project by Louise Biles at @rhulbiology.bsky.social and we would LOVE your input 🙏

On #InternationalDayOfWomenAndGirlsInScience we are proud to share the story of Emma Keough, @rhulbiology.bsky.social alumna who is now undertaking astronaut training
www.royalholloway.ac.uk/about-us/our...

Next week our seminar speaker will be @rhulbiology.bsky.social alumna Maira Khan, a final year DPhil candidate @oxpop.bsky.social. She will tell about her research on sex differences in cancer incidence using data from the UK Biobank. We are looking forward to welcoming Maira back to RHUL!

A person in full PPE pouring water from a test tube into a beaker in front of a lake

We recently launched our 'Biologist of Tomorrow' project to help address current and emerging skills challenges affecting the wider bioscience community.

To support the project, the RSB is looking to commission a research consultancy to submit proposals to deliver a public online resource. (1/2)

Apply to be a BES Associate Editor - British Ecological Society Help advance outstanding ecological research by joining our Editorial Boards! Applications are now open across all seven BES journals.

Apply to be an associate editor for one of @britishecologicalsociety.org journals
www.britishecologicalsociety.org/content/appl...

Round 1 of our training and travel grant is open!

Grants up to £500 are available to support the training and development of PhD students and postgraduate research assistants.

Send us your application by 25 January ⏰

Nominations are open for Royal Society medals and awards, celebrating excellence in the biological, physical and applied sciences. Nominations close on 20 February 2026: royalsociety.org/medals-and-p...

Prof Julia Koricheva (@juliakoricheva.bsky.social) leads research in Finland’s long‑term forest diversity experiments within new @trees4adapt.bsky.social EU project aiming to develop tree‑based solutions to reduce risks from climate change & biodiversity loss www.royalholloway.ac.uk/about-us/new...

Our first departmental seminar of 2026 will be by Dr Claire Narraway (@clairenarraway.bsky.social) from @earthwatcheurope.bsky.social. She will talk about using #citizenscience in urban ecological research with Tiny Forest programme as a case study. Everyone is welcome!

Hidden cameras reveal what hedgehogs really get up to after dark Hedgehogs are surprisingly common in UK gardens, with food a powerful attraction, say scientists.

"Gardens are increasingly becoming important habitats for hedgehogs". Dr Becky Thomas (@beckythomas.bsky.social) commented on a new study which used wildlife cameras to spy on hedgehogs in more than 400 gardens in Chester. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Share your research - Submit your abstract by 30 January Forest Invertebrates Special Interest Group

The #ForestInvertebrates SIG brings together research on trees, invertebrates & urban ecosystems.

📅 5 March 2026
📍 Hyde Park Learning Centre
🌱 Optional field visit on 4 March

Submit your research abstracts & join the conversation 🔽

Amazing days attending #TIBS2026 in Aarhus ❄️

The conference covered a wide range of topics showing how complex and fascinating life on Earth is. A key learning was how important it is to step outside my research environment and being exposed to new ideas and intersectional perspectives.

New #OA output from @uktreescapes.bsky.social #TreE_PlaNat project: a LiDAR-based comparison of structural complexity of woodlands established through planting, natural colonisation and hybrid approach, led by Sam Hughes and @thisanna.bsky.social www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Now officially out in the first JAE issue of 2026, read and share if you haven't already! 🧪

I can't help but give a sneak peak of some of the animals that they created in the process. As a reward for their hard work we'll be turning their drawings and stories into a book, and every child who took part will receive a copy to take home.

Yesterday was simultaneously inspiring and challenging as @sofiaatsea.bsky.social and I hosted nearly 200 school pupils at our @royalholloway.bsky.social campus to take part our @britishecologicalsociety.org funded project. We were testing different methods of teaching about conservation...

Looking through microscope at full petri dish

Feeding the world through farming innovation 🌱

Researchers in @rhulbiology.bsky.social are helping to develop better ways of treating seeds to boost crop resilience, underpinning a Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Eden Research.

Read more: ow.ly/5Grq50XRQRQ

The last chapter from PhD thesis by Juri Felix (co-supervised with @philstevenson.bsky.social) is now out in @oikosjournal.bsky.social! The study explores the effects of tree species identity and spatial scale on tree diversity effects #TreeDivNet nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

New #OA paper by Prof James McEvoy is out in the Journal of Biological Inorganic Chemistry: Making connections: teaching and learning bioelectrochemistry link.springer.com/article/10.1...