Deepak Veerappan🐢🦎🐍🐸🔬🧬🌳⛰️ 🐕🏃‍♂️✌️

We described a new species of grasslizard from #Assam, #India.
🦎
NE India is the westernmost distributional limit of this genus, which extends all the way to Japan!

Three frogs to be reintroduced to West Acre 'pingos' The money will be spent on breeding thousands of frogs and managing their release in 2026.

At the moment it is unlikely to get a license from Nature England due to numerous risks that could jeopardise other extant native species.

BBC News - Three frogs to be reintroduced to West Acre 'pingos' - BBC News
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

2025 has been a good year for the taxonomic work I have been involved with
13 new 🐸
4 new 🦎
1 new 🐍

Some of the species are covered in this article by @joshlukedavis.com

Rising Temperatures Could Trigger a Reptile Sexpocalypse — Scientific American The sex of many turtles, crocodilians, and other reptiles is determined by the temperature at which their eggs incubate. Global warming could doom them The tuatara, a reptile found only on small islan...

Riding temperatures could trigger a reptile sexpocalypse - Scientific American

apple.news/APL3qNst5RxG...

More than half of researchers now use AI for peer review — often against guidance A survey of 1,600 academics found that more than 50% have used artificial-intelligence tools while peer reviewing manuscripts.

Just decline the peer review invitation.

What are you people even doing?

‘Magical’ galaxy frogs disappear after reports of photographers destroying their habitats Researcher in Kerala rainforest sounds alarm after being told frogs had died after being handled by humans

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Book cover for Reproducible Code guide. The cover has a red background with a large yellow-bodied black-headed stag beetle.

Excited to launch the new improved Reproducible Code guide from @britishecologicalsociety.org @methodsinecoevol.bsky.social FREE online here! www.britishecologicalsociety.org//wp-content/... Amazing work by some very talented ECRs. We hope it’s useful!

🚨PhD position available!🚨🧪
I am seeking a talented PhD student to join my ERC StG project GEMINI, to explore the exciting world of vertebrate genomics and comparative genomics, seeking to understand the genomics of miniaturisation! 🦇🦎🦜🐸🐟🦈 🤏🧬
Deadline: 4 Jan 2026!
employment.ku.dk/phd?show=153...

🎉It's here!🎉

This year's annual roundup of new species described by @nhm-london.bsky.social's curators, researchers and scientific associates!

We've got butterflies! We've got wasps! We've even got the odd dinosaur as I know people like those. Check it out! 🐝🧪🦕

Glittering butterflies: Natural History Museum describes 262 new species in 2025 | Natural History Museum Over the last 12 months our scientists have been busy cataloguing the extraordinary diversity of life on Earth.

Our scientists have been busy this year!

From dinosaurs to diatoms, they have helped to describe an amazing 262 new species from all around the world! 🪸🐠🦎🦋🪱

Read more about this year’s new species list 👇🏻
www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/new...

🧪🐠 I am hiring a postdoc! Work will be on patterns of biodiversity across phylogenetic scales using teleost fishes as a model. Apply by end of Jan 2026 for full consideration apply.interfolio.com/179070 I encourage folks to reach out with any questions. Please Share!

A grey toad clinging to a broad leaf that is being pulled down by a person's hand! The toad is dry and warty and has loose-looking skin! They are very plump with skinny legs!

Our friend Simpson’s Plump Toad is a very elusive toad who lives in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador! They are similar to many other toads in genus Osornophryne but have longer fourth and fifth toes and a stubbier nose! (photo by Zane Libke)

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSJXsuIDMPu/?igsh=MTJjY2J3ZTdoandiYw==

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/national-geographic-society_natgeoexplorers-activity-7404984609353932800-C7Xs

I am absolutely delighted to see the post by National Geographic Society covering our recent publication on new bush #frogs 🐸 🐸 from northeast #India just in time for #frogfriday 😃

New species 🚨, not one, not two, 13 new bush frogs from Northeast India!!!
One of the exciting revisions I've been involved in for a few years now is out today. It is led by @bitupan-herp.bsky.social, a PhD. student who will soon be a doctor.

Thank you! We wrote this grant the natgeo during Covid lockdown. Grateful to have received it during difficult times.

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.

📣 Ecologists and evolutionary biologists! Have you ever wanted to be a journal editor? BES journals are having an open call for editors. Details: www.britishecologicalsociety.org/content/appl... Happy to answer any Qs! Open to all nationalities. Applications from postdocs welcome :)

Photo: Rajeev NV

It's #frogfriday 🐸 here is the recently described Pointy-nosed bush frog (Raorchestes nasuta) from #arunachalpradesh #India

Our latest One 😍
From My PhD research 🐸

Revision of bush frogs, Raorchestes and Philautus (Amphibia: Anura: Rhacophoridae) from the northeast Indian biodiversity hotspot with description of thirteen new species Abstract Bush frogs currently in the genera Raorchestes and Philautus are poorly documented from northeast India when compared to the Western Ghats of southwestern India. They are morphologic...

Here is the link to the full text article
vertebrate-zoology.arphahub.com/article/1481...
10 points for those who spot the spelling error in the poster 😅

My favorite 😍 among all the 13 new species is the Pointy-nosed bush frog (Raorchestes nasuta).

Another fascinating group of organisms that shows greater diversity south of the #Brahmaputra river and lower diversity towards the colder #Himalayan mountains.

We are grateful to the reviewers and the editor for a thorough review of this manuscript 🙏. This project was funded by #Meghalaya Biodiversity Board and National Geographic society. #natgeo

We named most of the species after the places where they are found. We believe that such names have conservation implications because they connect better with the local communities

New species 🚨, not one, not two, 13 new bush frogs from Northeast India!!!
One of the exciting revisions I've been involved in for a few years now is out today. It is led by @bitupan-herp.bsky.social, a PhD. student who will soon be a doctor.

In case you are interested in #skyislands, #frogs, #lizards, #snakes, #evolution, #mountains, and #westernghats, the talk I gave at explore2025 event organised by @rgsibg.bsky.social is available to watch.

Thanks @rgsibg.bsky.social for the opportunity.

www.rgs.org/events/talks...

😅

It's snow time! ❄️ 🦮

A bit of rain and a big Fire salamander (Salamandra s. bernardezi) on the uni stairs is a good way to start the week.

Large-eyed animals like owls 🦉 have a trade-off between large eyes & short optic nerves, which lowers eye mobility (to compensate they evolved swivelly necks)

But chameleons 🦎 have long, coiled optic nerves with extra slack for eye mobility, allowing them to use their famous large swivelly eyes 👀🧪🌏

Super-proud of former MPhil student Emily Hillan for publishing her dissertation on the evolution of rib skeleton regionalisation in the evolution of snake-like body forms in squamates!

royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10....