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Samantha L. Rutledge

@slrutledge

PhD Candidate LSU Museum of Natural Science, Mason Lab/ NSF GRFP /birder, cyclist, runner/ evolution, biogeography, iridescence, biomimicry, ornithology

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Latest posts by Samantha L. Rutledge @slrutledge

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Rapid and repeated evolution of pigmentation patterns in reef fishes - BMC Biology Background Pigmentation patterns are central to animal biology—shaping camouflage, signaling, and mate selection—and uncovering the mechanisms driving their diversification is key to understanding the...

Rapid and repeated evolution of pigmentation patterns in reef fishes

#ichthyology

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

23.02.2026 11:13 👍 47 🔁 22 💬 0 📌 1
A collection of six ominous bird valentines set against a background of pink hearts. In the first one, a Canada Goose looks angry and hisses and the text says "Baby, I'll make you fall head over heels if you approach within 10m of my nest." In the second, an American white pelican opens its mouth to eat the reader and the text says "There are plenty of fish in the sea, but I want this one." In the third valentine, a Black Vulture looks suspiciously at the reader and the text says "I will love you until you die. And after that, I'll love you even more." A Southern Cassowary stands proudly against the heart-covered background. The text says "My wattles are red. My head is blue. My deadly reputation has been somewhat overblown, but I'd kill for you." In the fifth valentine, a Northern Giant-Petrel stands open-billed next to a large brown furry object, and the text says "Let's seal the deal by sharing a 3000 kg elephant seal carcass." In panel 6, a happy-looking Bearded Vulture holds a bone in its beak, and the text says "I love every part of you, especially your bones."

A collection of six ominous bird valentines set against a background of pink hearts. In the first one, a Canada Goose looks angry and hisses and the text says "Baby, I'll make you fall head over heels if you approach within 10m of my nest." In the second, an American white pelican opens its mouth to eat the reader and the text says "There are plenty of fish in the sea, but I want this one." In the third valentine, a Black Vulture looks suspiciously at the reader and the text says "I will love you until you die. And after that, I'll love you even more." A Southern Cassowary stands proudly against the heart-covered background. The text says "My wattles are red. My head is blue. My deadly reputation has been somewhat overblown, but I'd kill for you." In the fifth valentine, a Northern Giant-Petrel stands open-billed next to a large brown furry object, and the text says "Let's seal the deal by sharing a 3000 kg elephant seal carcass." In panel 6, a happy-looking Bearded Vulture holds a bone in its beak, and the text says "I love every part of you, especially your bones."

Ominous bird valentines.

12.02.2026 14:18 👍 3618 🔁 1598 💬 23 📌 31
Recruitment

Job Posting: San Diego Natural History Museum Curator of Ornithology workforcenow.adp.com/mascsr/defau...

29.01.2026 20:36 👍 1 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
IMAGE SHOWS GRAPHIC OF CORNELL LAB OF ORNITHOLOGY PHYLOGENY EXPLORER TOOL.

IMAGE SHOWS GRAPHIC OF CORNELL LAB OF ORNITHOLOGY PHYLOGENY EXPLORER TOOL.

MAJOR NEWS! We just launched an awesome new tool! The illustrated Birds of the World Phylogeny Explorer lets users trace any bird’s lineage, compare species relationships, and explore major evolutionary milestones with a click of a button. SHARE and EXPLORE! birdsoftheworld.org/bow/news/phy...

27.01.2026 01:26 👍 410 🔁 168 💬 8 📌 31
A u shaped structure made out of sticks called a bower, built under a small tree. In front of the bower is a pile of grey, white and green objects that make up the display court. The whole scene is in dappled sunlight and shade created by the tree above.

A u shaped structure made out of sticks called a bower, built under a small tree. In front of the bower is a pile of grey, white and green objects that make up the display court. The whole scene is in dappled sunlight and shade created by the tree above.

New bowerbird paper out, we asked whether male great bowerbirds care about the light environment around the bower where they display to females. Short answer: not really. What they do care about is having a display arena with strong visual contrast on the ground. 🐦 tinyurl.com/2v7rycdz

15.01.2026 15:13 👍 48 🔁 19 💬 0 📌 0

Tea. Definitely tea.

12.01.2026 22:57 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

What a diva 🤩

18.11.2025 17:47 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Post image Post image Post image Post image

Cassie Stoddard'a talk was really insightful and colorful:
"sure, we're living exciting times to study the genome, but also to study the phenome, the birds' phenotypes using collections"

#BOUasm25 #ornithology #evolution @bou.org.uk

18.11.2025 12:15 👍 17 🔁 5 💬 0 📌 0

Honestly? Needed this today 😅

17.11.2025 21:30 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
Impact: The End of the Age of Dinosaurs, a special exhibition opening November 17 at the American Museum of Natural History, explores the major asteroid impact 66 million years ago that reshaped life on Earth. Featuring life-size models, fossils and fossil casts, dramatic dioramas, an immersive panoramic video experience that visualizes the moment the asteroid struck, and engaging interactives, Impact reveals the latest scientific understanding of this transformative event.

Impact: The End of the Age of Dinosaurs, a special exhibition opening November 17 at the American Museum of Natural History, explores the major asteroid impact 66 million years ago that reshaped life on Earth. Featuring life-size models, fossils and fossil casts, dramatic dioramas, an immersive panoramic video experience that visualizes the moment the asteroid struck, and engaging interactives, Impact reveals the latest scientific understanding of this transformative event.

Exhibition visitors will encounter life-size models of a 27-foot-long mosasaur—among the most fearsome and widespread marine reptiles of the time—attacking a long-necked plesiosaur measuring 30 feet.

Exhibition visitors will encounter life-size models of a 27-foot-long mosasaur—among the most fearsome and widespread marine reptiles of the time—attacking a long-necked plesiosaur measuring 30 feet.

Impact features a stunning diorama that depicts a scene based on fossils from the Hell Creek Formation, an ancient rock layer that dates to the end of the Age of Dinosaurs. The scene includes intricate life-size models of a Triceratops and a recently discovered hook-handed dinosaur called Trierarchuncus prairiensis, as well as other members of their ecosystem including turtles, birds, frogs, and even a predatory mammal— Didelphodon—that might have eaten small dinosaurs and other animals.

Impact features a stunning diorama that depicts a scene based on fossils from the Hell Creek Formation, an ancient rock layer that dates to the end of the Age of Dinosaurs. The scene includes intricate life-size models of a Triceratops and a recently discovered hook-handed dinosaur called Trierarchuncus prairiensis, as well as other members of their ecosystem including turtles, birds, frogs, and even a predatory mammal— Didelphodon—that might have eaten small dinosaurs and other animals.

☄️The Museum’s newest exhibition Impact: The End of the Age of Dinosaurs opens on Monday, November 17! Explore the before-and-after story of the asteroid impact that led to the extinction of non-bird dinosaurs and the majority of animal and plant species 66 mil years ago.

📸: A.Keding & D. Kim/© AMNH

14.11.2025 14:38 👍 26 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 1
a group of people in matching t-shirts are standing at a table while a man holds up one of several trays of shallow boxes with different types of shells sorted neatly into them

a group of people in matching t-shirts are standing at a table while a man holds up one of several trays of shallow boxes with different types of shells sorted neatly into them

close up of a museum display of many large fossil shells mounted carefully on a black background with small info labels

close up of a museum display of many large fossil shells mounted carefully on a black background with small info labels

there is a person in outdoors clothing kneeling at the top of a long sandy slope covered in many small dark shells with a cloudy sky overhead

there is a person in outdoors clothing kneeling at the top of a long sandy slope covered in many small dark shells with a cloudy sky overhead

Work with us! 👉 Invertebrate Paleontology Collection Manager
Position will manage the extensive collections, conduct fieldwork, participate in public outreach, & pursue external funding.

🔸 Full info: www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/nhdept/inver...

🔸 Apply @ufl.edu: explore.jobs.ufl.edu/en-us/job/53...

14.11.2025 14:54 👍 5 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0

Fascinating ABA podcast this week, reviewing the life of Roxie Laybourne, an amazing female scientist who “may be the most influential ornithologist you've never heard of”.
#Ornithology

13.11.2025 21:40 👍 15 🔁 9 💬 0 📌 0

NSF is open again!

A few comments:

*Please be patient.
During a shutdown NSF employees cannot open computers or respond to emails.

*Merit review will continue. However panels won’t resume until after Dec 8th.

*POs remain excited and committed to advancing science and the scientific workforce.

13.11.2025 17:58 👍 330 🔁 120 💬 7 📌 5
The vivid colours of the gemstone ammolite (Placenticeras meeki), perfectly preserved in its original form. Credit: Hiroaki Imai.

The vivid colours of the gemstone ammolite (Placenticeras meeki), perfectly preserved in its original form. Credit: Hiroaki Imai.

A paper in Scientific Reports presents the origins of vivid colours within the gemstone ammolite — a rare type of brightly coloured fossilised ammonite shell. go.nature.com/48OT5DX #Paleosky ⚒️ 🧪

05.11.2025 02:09 👍 106 🔁 31 💬 3 📌 6
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New York Botanical Garden is looking for Assistant Curator, Mycology or Cryptogamic Botany. New York Botanical Garden is looking for Assistant Curator, Mycology or Cryptogamic Botany. Learn more or Jobvite a friend.

The deadline to apply to the Assistant Curator in Mycology or Cryptogamic Botany position we are advertising at NBYG is THIS Friday! Happy to chat about my experience at NYBG and the cool science going on here. Come be our colleague!! jobs.jobvite.com/nybg/job/o8I...

30.10.2025 15:55 👍 8 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0

Happy (early) Halloween 🎃

30.10.2025 14:24 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
An image of the cover page of Micrographia

An image of the cover page of Micrographia

I posed recently about my recent obsession with Hooke's Micrographia (1665) and the incredible feather drawings it has. I really wanted to see an original copy and luckily, Yale has two! So, earlier this week, I headed down to the Beinecke Library with @mylestogo.bsky.social to check it out

25.10.2025 18:30 👍 4 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 0
A fluorescent confocal microscopy image of a butterfly wing scale showing the surface and internal structures

A fluorescent confocal microscopy image of a butterfly wing scale showing the surface and internal structures

We are looking for a physics/maths graduate with an interest in biology, or a biology graduate with strong computational/mathematical skills/interests, to join us as a PhD student working on biomechanical modelling of butterfly wing scale structure formation www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

23.10.2025 16:33 👍 10 🔁 14 💬 0 📌 1
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⏰ DEADLINE APPROACHING ⏰

BOU Small Research Grants & Career Development Bursaries

Application deadline: 31 Oct 2025

Full details via links ⬇️

Grants: bou.org.uk/funding/s...

Bursaries: bou.org.uk/funding/c...

#ornithology 🪶

14.10.2025 11:00 👍 4 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0
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Distinctive casque morphologies among cassowary species - American Ornithological Society For more than 150 years, the conspicuous cranial casque has been acclaimed as the most iconic feature of cassowaries—perhaps, in addition to the lethal daggers adorning their inner toes.

The latest on Wing Beat | "Distinctive casque morphologies among cassowary species" by Todd L. Green
Blog post: americanornithology.org/distinctive-...
Related paper: doi.org/10.1093/orni...
#ornithology

14.10.2025 19:50 👍 6 🔁 5 💬 0 📌 0
Post image Post image

My lab is hiring a 2-yr hummingbird evolution and genomics postdoc and a 1-yr salaried research and lab tech. Both with full U. Wyoming benefits. Please spread the word! Info below. Best consideration date Nov 1, start dates early Spring 2026.

14.10.2025 20:08 👍 96 🔁 85 💬 0 📌 5
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Curator of Birds - Royal Ontario Museum - Career Page Apply to Curator of Birds at Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, ON, Canada.

museum job alert 🇨🇦
royalontariomuseum.applytojob.com/apply/XBR2Yc...

15.10.2025 10:09 👍 17 🔁 19 💬 0 📌 0
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Explore a bird database with 11,500 species Twenty-six years ago, a PhD student's unanswered question sparked a bird data revolution.

BIRDBASE, a new publicly available dataset, brings together "ecological and life history traits for 11,589 bird species across 254 families." #ornithology

09.10.2025 19:02 👍 101 🔁 37 💬 0 📌 4

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat

09.10.2025 20:38 👍 8 🔁 3 💬 1 📌 0
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BIRDBASE dataset tracks ecological traits for 11,589 species of birds Çağan Şekercioğlu was an ambitious, but perhaps naive graduate student when, 26 years ago, he embarked on a simple data-compilation project that would soon evolve into a massive career-defining achiev...

"Right now, if one of my students came to me and said, 'Hey, as part of my Ph.D. I want to enter the world's birds into a dataset,' I'm like, 'No, you're not doing that. You'll never finish your Ph.D.' "

Too true omg 😂

Anyway, this is a very exciting dataset!

phys.org/news/2025-09...

07.10.2025 12:53 👍 9 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0

Job alert #TeamFish. Curator of Fishes gig!

02.10.2025 16:47 👍 13 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0

“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”
― Jane Goodall (1934-2025)

01.10.2025 18:34 👍 48 🔁 18 💬 0 📌 0

RIP Dr. Goodall - thank you for being one of the driving inspirations that set me on my path to become a biologist

01.10.2025 21:02 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Assistant Curator, Vertebrate Zoology The Division of Vertebrate Zoology at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) seeks an Assistant Curator in either the Department of Ornithology, Ichthyology, or Mammalogy to start on or after J...

Join us! We are hiring a new #curator at the #AMNH in #Vertebrate #Zoology careers.amnh.org/postings/4600 #academicjobs #tenuretrack

26.09.2025 18:57 👍 32 🔁 44 💬 0 📌 0

Oooooo I am DEFINITELY giving this a try

15.09.2025 21:48 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0