John S. Mead

🤣🤣

While pretty common in samples from puddles & birdbaths, I never tire of the antics of Ostracods - the hyperactive #crustaceans who also bear the nickname "Seed Shrimp" - they have a fossil history going back over 570 million years! They are a great marker in relative dating in #paleontology!

Microverse Minute
I collected samples from a local fountain several days after a good rain, and the sediment was loaded with these micro crustaceans called Ostracods!! They date back in the fossil record over 400 million years!
#microscopy #naturephotography📷 #science #biology

Always love getting to see a microscopic population explosion in my samples!
Here's a Paramecium undergoing binary fission to create two clones!

Motic Ba310e / Lbacam Ultra/iPhone 15/ 10X objective
#nature #microscope #biology #iteachbiology #edusky #science #naturephotography

It's fun to let students in their free time create "Mix slides" from different pond samples & then see what appears.... this "mix" has at least 4 species. Aeolosoma, Paramecium, Rotifers, and Stentor
Can you spot any species I missed?

#microscope #naturephotography #biology #iteachbiology #edusky

Just saw this recently deceased copepod with a hefty load of peritrich epibionts (I think Vorticella). Excited to see the egg sac with eggs that already have eyes developing. It's my first time observing this!
#microscope #edusky #nature #biology #iteachbiology #science

It's always nice when you see a nauplius that isn't hell-bent on zooming everywhere. LOL

*For my non-bio friends, a nauplius is a larval form of a crustacean. I suspect this one belongs to the genus Cyclops - a copepod.

#microscopy #nature #biology #edusky #iteachbiology #science

While pretty common in samples from puddles & birdbaths, I never tire of the antics of Ostracods - the hyperactive #crustaceans who also bear the nickname "Seed Shrimp" - they have a fossil history going back over 570 million years! They are a great marker in relative dating in #paleontology!

I encountered this Bursaria truncatella after it "inhaled" a Paramecium. I was hoping to see the Paramecium get sealed into a vacuole, but instead it finally managed to escape! My students have nicknamed Bursaria "Micro Roomba." LOL

#microscope #science #microscopy #iteachbiology

Live your life such that Bruce Springsteen does not write a protest song about how terrible you are

Bruce Springsteen - Streets Of Minneapolis (Official Audio) YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen

I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis. It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.

Stay free

Following in the footsteps of Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, and many others -- @brucespringsteen.net today added his voice with the release of "Streets of Minneapolis" ..... youtu.be/wWKSoxG1K7w?...

I just enjoyed seeing this Sun Animalcule (aka Heliozoan) in a sample, took a photo of it, and digitally painted it. A neat interaction between #Art and #Science!

#microscope #microscopy #pondscum #biology #sciart #nature

Never seen the death of a ciliate like this-- usually it's too much pressure from the coverslip or too much osmotic pressure. But this gradual posterior-to-anterior "unzipping" effect amazed me !

Motic BA310e - 40x Objective - sped up 2X
#microscopy #Paramecium #Iteachbiology #edusky

Never seen the death of a ciliate like this-- usually it's too much pressure from the coverslip or too much osmotic pressure. But this gradual posterior-to-anterior "unzipping" effect amazed me !

Motic BA310e - 40x Objective - sped up 2X
#microscopy #Paramecium #Iteachbiology #edusky

How Did Hands Evolve? The Answer Is Behind You.

Carl Zimmer: How Did Hands Evolve? The Answer Is Behind You. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/17/s...

Scientists are using corals from other countries to save Florida's dying reefs The past three summers have been the worst on record for Florida's coral reefs. To try to restore them, scientists are breeding corals that can handle heat better, using coral from other countries.

How corals from Honduras could help save Florida’s reefs

www.npr.org/2025/10/01/n...

Fossils of Some of the Last Dinosaurs in North America Have a Story to Tell

Fossils of Some of the Last Dinosaurs in North America Have a Story to Tell www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/s...

Congrats!

In 1979, a Mining Test Ravaged the Pacific Seafloor— 44 Years Later, New Evidence Reveals It’s Likely Forever A 1979 deep-sea mining test left marks on the Pacific seafloor that remain nearly untouched over four decades later. New research uncovers what really happened in the ocean depths—and why it matters m...

In 1979, a Mining Test Ravaged the Pacific Seafloor— 44 Years Later, New Evidence Reveals It’s Likely Forever

dailygalaxy.com/2025/11/in-1...

Had a blast last week at the @nabtbio.bsky.social national conference & got to present to several dozen Bio teachers about the #Microsafaris you have seen here over time. Even did a live demo & captured this elegant Stentor showing off for those awesome teachers! #iteachbiology #microscopy #Edusky

Safeguarding Sound Science | National Center for Science Education Safeguarding Sound Science, Evolution EditionThe second season of Safeguarding Sound Science examines the everyday impacts of evolution, the grand theory that informs our understanding of all life on ...

Ep. 6 of Safeguarding Sound Science is out! This week, Mat Kaplan sits down with Todd Disotell (@todddisotell.bsky.social) for an enlightening, and sometimes sobering discussion about how we may fare in the event of another pandemic. #podsky #sciencesky #virus #evobio

Thanks so much my friend! The feeling is mutual!!!

@evoexplorer.bsky.social absolutely crushing his presentation on microsafari. @nabtbio.bsky.social A privilege to call this talented man my friend.

Excited to head to St. Louis & the @nabtbio.bsky.social Conference tomorrow & get to see many old friends and make new ones! Also excited to present (for the first time!) my MICROSAFARI project on Saturday at 9:00. I hope to see some of you there! #NABT #NABT2025 #NABTStLouis #iteachbiology #edsky

Reading the Bones by Marc Aronson | Book Moon Books High-stakes adventure meets cutting-edge anthropology in this true account of the groundbreaking discovery of Homo naledi, which shocked the world of evolutionary science and redefined what it means t...

yall my dad wrote this!! a middle grade book about human evolution ⚡️⚡️⚡️ pre-order a copy for your kiddos!

@evoexplorer.bsky.social

Acetaminophen Use During Pregnancy and Children’s Risk of Autism, ADHD, and Intellectual Disability This nationwide cohort study with sibling control analysis examines the association of acetaminophen use during pregnancy with children’s risk of autism, ADHD, and intellectual disability.

AUTISM and TYLENOL

A study of 2.5 million children showed a small association between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and autism—but this finding DISAPPEARED when full siblings were compared.

“Acetaminophen use during pregnancy was not associated with children’s risk of autism…”

Full article:

From a desktop "mini pond" I maintain just for kicks --- Love the internal detail of the Aeolosoma as it wanders around. Also notice some blue microplastic and a stentor.
Motic BA310e 10X objective via LabCam Ultra & iPhone 15
#microscope #microscopy #nature #biology #edusky #Iteachbiology

From a desktop "mini pond" I maintain just for kicks --- Love the internal detail of the Aeolosoma as it wanders around. Also notice some blue microplastic and a stentor.
Motic BA310e 10X objective via LabCam Ultra & iPhone 15
#microscope #microscopy #nature #biology #edusky #Iteachbiology