Great to hear "A life without worms" broadcast last week on BBC Radio4 with Alan Davies and Sandra Salazar D’eca from go-grow.org.uk/our-story/
What would happen if #earthworms disappeared? You can find out here www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
Good to chat #earthworms and #flooding with Michael Berenbrink, Kristian Daly, Megan Klaar, Qiuyu Zhu and Ben Pile today as part of our #Leverhulme Trust funded project - Sink or Swim
Tonight's "Worm moon" - so called as it's the first moon of Spring and is supposed to mark the time when earthworms become active again after the colder winter months. The earthworms that we've been sampling obviously haven't read the script!
A final #NERC #funded #PhD project to advertise - this one asks the question: How will #earthworms survive as #droughts become increasingly common with a changing climate. Please DM me if interested and circulate to possible candidates. More info. www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
And another #NERC funded #PhD that I'm involved with - this one led out of @UK_CEH and Sam Harrison that involves comparing #regenerative agriculture and #conventional #farming. Details are here:
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
Another #PhD project, this one led by Ellie Harrison at Sheffield Uni focussing on #legumes, #rhizobia, horizontal gene transfer and, of course, #earthworms
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
Does converting #biosolids to #biochar maintain their benefits as a #soil amendment whilst minimising any residual risk due to #contaminants? We are recruiting to a #NERC Ecosolutions #PhD. Please share and DM me for more information if interested. shorturl.at/ldwVW
Great to see Xiao Xiao at University of York for graduation for her PhD yesterday. You can find her thesis papers on #earthworms #microplastics and #cadmium at
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
and
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Kids are growing up with climate change, but aren't learning about it in school! 🤯 Let's demand climate education for every UK child. Sign the petition: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/te...
Congrats to Zheng Fang on his latest PhD paper. This one shows that #microplastics can reduce the toxicity of salinity to #earthworms and that salinity is a more significant environmental challenge to earthworms than microplastics.
authors.elsevier.com/c/1lEy415DSl...
#postdoc #job opportunity for a #hydrological #modeller working with Dr Megan Klaar, River Basin Processes and Management research group at University of Leeds as part of our #earthworms and #flooding @leverhulme.ac.uk funded project.
Job details are at:
jobs.leeds.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx...
Celebratory post-viva beers celebrating with James MacDonald of Queen Mary together with internal Andrew Leitch and supervisors @anneropiquet.bsky.social and Huw Jones. James' biogeochemical adventure continues next month when he starts at Bristol working with Penny Johnes
#job for a Technician in the Biology dept at the University of York and working with myself at @uoyenvironment.bsky.social on projects to improve nutrient retention, water retention, and carbon sequestration in soils: gathering and analysing data. Apply by 30/3/2025.
jobs.york.ac.uk/vacancy/tech...
Latest NERC rejection in. Any thoughts on who might fund research into mechanisms by which #earthworms boost #plant growth as a follow up to this study www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... and as a means to identify methods to try and reduce fertiliser inputs welcome!
A good days sampling on the River Swale floodplain with #EcoWild PGR Mahmuda Islam
Cool PhD project combatting soil erosion in Ethiopia with indigenous agricultural plants. Funded by @ukri.org QUARTILES DLA and complementary to a couple new projects with Ethiopian scientists funded by REDAA and GCBC so you will be surrounded by a team.
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
I do think the answer is to reject papers from people who don't / won't review. But then you'd have to guard against token reviews that aren't useful but are done to meet quotas. That being said some of the reviews I've received of late....
So just turn down their papers?
First paper of the year out today - 2nd paper from Xiao Xiao's PhD. We show that natural weathering of #microplastics increases potential sorption of Cd to them, that #biofilm development is important in this and that PLA (a biodegradable plastic) is more sorptive than PE.
Job Alert - a 1 year PDRA position as part of our LeverhulmeTrust funded #earthworm project "Sink or Swim" is available working with Dr Michael Berenbrink, University of Liverpool investigating haemoglobin levels in earthworms. Closing date-31st Jan 2025
my.corehr.com/pls/ulivrecr...
Still not quite ready for the holidays to end!
Congrats to Sammani Ramanayaka of Lancaster Environment Centre for successfully defending her thesis on impacts of #microplastics and plasticisers on soil microbia with myself and @john-quinton.bsky.social examining. In all the excitement I forgot to take a photo so here's a party popper instead!
Hi Kathy, not much written up yet as the trial is ongoing. You can read more generally about the work that AHDB is doing at the farm here.
ahdb.org.uk/on-farm-tria...
Couldn't make it to #BES2024 but we had a busy day using all eight hours of daylight (and a final sample supplemented by torch light) sampling with Ben at Church Farm
AHDB / ADAS legume and compost trials to try and boost #earthworm populations. Here's Ben with an earthworm for scale.
Off sampling tomorrow for #earthworms in water logged soils as part of our @LeverhulmeTrust funded earthworms and #flooding project. Mustard tin for scale?
too wet at the moment to go and survey again but I'd assume that would be the case as well.
Lake Tadcaster now back - will be interesting to re-survey the #earthworms once the #flooding recedes as part of our @LeverhulmeTrust project on #earthworms, #flooding and #climate change.
Please share with potentially interested students-I am advertising a #PhD studying #earthworms and #drought. Full advert here: www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
There is a webinar at 1400 UK time on Tues 3rd Dec. for interested applicants. Register via this form
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Congrats to Jianting Feng from @LeedsUniCivil for a good defence on his thesis on metal speciation in sewage sludge on Wednesday. Really enjoyable viva with Jianting and Miller Camargo-Valero. Thesis papers already available link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Always happy to collaborate on that sort of thing - easier on the back, harder on the pocket!
