Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
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amjukar.bsky.social
Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
@amjukar.bsky.social
870 followers 570 following 85 posts
Curator of Vert. Paleo @floridamuseum.bsky.social | Curatorial Affiliate, Yale Peabody Museum | Research Associate, Smithsonian’s NMNH | former @uarizona.bsky.social | @georgemasonu.bsky.social & @Reed.edu alumnus. Big fan of nature past and present
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Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
natecoevo.nature.com
Obituary:

Robert Ricklefs (1943–2026) www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Polymath ecologist whose research and textbooks integrating ecology and evolution have inspired generations of students.

Free to read: rdcu.be/D33fLgYcv4Ba
Robert Ricklefs (1943–2026) - Nature Ecology & Evolution
Polymath ecologist whose research and textbooks integrating ecology and evolution have inspired generations of students.
www.nature.com
September 14, 2026 at 8:49 AM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
pnas.org
Cut marks on reptile bones suggest hunter-gatherers on Mount Carmel regularly butchered and ate lizards 15,000 years ago—a practice that persisted for millennia.

In Archaeology Magazine: https://ow.ly/AWTK50ZHlL9

In PNAS: https://ow.ly/kejQ50ZHlAL
Microscopic image showing cut marks on a bone from a large whip snake (Dolichophis jugularis) Image credit: Maayan Lev
August 31, 2026 at 9:00 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
drcraigmc.bsky.social
New in PNAS today: we projected how climate change will reshape the body size of marine life across the entire ocean. 23,329 mollusc species, every ocean basin. The headline everyone expects is "life shrinks." The real answer is far stranger. 🧪 #marinelife www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Nonuniform resizing of marine life under climate change | PNAS
Global warming is often predicted to drive universal declines in animal body size, but empirical evidence remains equivocal. This is particularly t...
www.pnas.org
August 31, 2026 at 8:47 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
carbon8.bsky.social
Grateful to see that Anubhav's research (Kaur, @amjukar.bsky.social et al.) featured @nature.com #India News—v nice article by Sahana Ghosh:

"Inside an extinct hyena’s prehistoric pantry" #Pleistocene #paleoclimate #paleoecology 🔨

www.nature.com/articles/d44...
August 12, 2026 at 5:46 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
widga.bsky.social
Really excited about this paper. Bison are a model species for connecting fossils to modern conservation questions and millennial-scale ecosystem changes relevant to modern systems. Jonas (and all the authors) did a fantastic job bringing this out to the big picture!

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Paleogenomic insight into the collapse, recovery, and management of American bison
American bison (Bison bison) were nearly hunted to extinction by the 20th century. This rapid decline and the fragmented nature of remnant populations pose challenges to their recovery and resilience,...
www.science.org
August 6, 2026 at 11:57 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
prosanta.bsky.social
From collections to conservation: the indispensable role of natural history museums

The IUCN Species Survival Commission has published a Position Statement on the vital role of biological collections in biodiversity conservation

iucn.org/news/202607/...
From collections to conservation: the indispensable role of natural history museums
The IUCN Species Survival Commission has published a Position Statement on the vital role of biological collections in biodiversity conservation: a formal acknowledgement that natural history museums,...
iucn.org
July 29, 2026 at 6:40 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
friedmanlab.bsky.social
New paper from @jakeberv.bsky.social harnesses a massive skeletal measurement dataset for passerines to show nested bursts in phenotypic evolution, many of which appear coincident with intervals of climate instability. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Radial phylogenetic tree of passerine birds, with branches colored according to evolutionary rate. Color drawings of select species decorate the tips. A set of bivariate plots are shown as four panels below.
July 20, 2026 at 12:46 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
societyofvertpaleo.bsky.social
The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology mourns the passing of artist, activist, and entrepreneur Sir Sam Neill. Generations of SVP members found inspiration to become paleontologists through his portrayal of Dr. Alan Grant in the Jurassic Park films. Sam’s portrayal of Dr. Grant brought an incredible humanity, awe, candor, and determination to the scientist-hero in one of the most popular pieces of media ever produced. In the decades since the release of Jurassic Park, Sam’s portrayal created a cultural touchstone for our field the likes of which we may never find again. Whether he knew at the time or not, he became a great friend of the profession of vertebrate paleontology. Our condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues. He will be deeply missed.
July 13, 2026 at 8:58 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
bug-gwen.bsky.social
It's always nice to have biological collections acknowledged as "irreplaceable evidence bases" and essential records of life on Earth. 🧪🪲 iucn.org/news/202607/...
From collections to conservation: the indispensable role of natural history museums
The IUCN Species Survival Commission has published a Position Statement on the vital role of biological collections in biodiversity conservation: a formal acknowledgement that natural history museums,...
iucn.org
July 13, 2026 at 12:43 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
arctomet.bsky.social
Leonardo Souza Lobo, Javier N. Gelfo and Sergio A. K. de Azevedo (2026)

Increasing until extinction: understanding Macraucheniidae body-mass evolutionary history

Paleobiology (advance online publication)

DOI: doi.org/10.1017/pab....

www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Increasing until extinction: understanding Macraucheniidae body-mass evolutionary history | Paleobiology | Cambridge Core
Increasing until extinction: understanding Macraucheniidae body-mass evolutionary history
doi.org
July 12, 2026 at 11:42 AM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
arctomet.bsky.social
Koungoulos, L.G., Kerr, I.A.R. & O’Connor, S. Middle Holocene survival of marsupial megafauna on the north coast of New Guinea. npj biodivers (2026). doi.org/10.1038/s441...
Middle Holocene survival of marsupial megafauna on the north coast of New Guinea - npj Biodiversity
npj Biodiversity - Middle Holocene survival of marsupial megafauna on the north coast of New Guinea
doi.org
July 5, 2026 at 12:00 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
extinctmonsters.bsky.social
Wait everyone shut up for a second: the discovery of the Brachiosaurus holotype is at the exact midpoint between the founding of the United States and today (July 4, 1901)
Bearded guy in a hat lies next to recently uncovered sauropod humerus that is longer than him
July 4, 2026 at 2:37 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
egveatch.bsky.social
🐘 check out our newest paper from Liang Bua!

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Did H. floresiensis hunt Stegodon? 🔪 Did they also had control use of fire? 🔥 We tested these early claims of complex behavior using taphonomy, experimental archaeology, and zooarchaeology of the Stegodon assemblage.
doi.org
July 3, 2026 at 6:04 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
nhm.org
🐋 Among the 35 million real objects and artifacts in our collections, these are larger than life.

Join Dr. Jorge Velez-Juarbe (Curator, Marine Mammals) behind the scenes at NHM’s Mammalogy Collection Center for a special look at gargantuan whale bones! 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhZl...
Inside the Secret Warehouse of Giant Whale Bones
YouTube video by Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (NHM)
www.youtube.com
July 2, 2026 at 8:33 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
deepfrieddna.bsky.social
phys.org/news/2026-06...
Himalayan pangolin emerges as distinct species, confirmed with DNA from 19th-century specimen
The pangolin is a midsize mammal found only in Africa and Asia. The pangolins' scales make them unique, but these scales have become their undoing. Pangolins are poached for their scales, making them ...
phys.org
July 1, 2026 at 5:20 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
fossilhistory.bsky.social
#OnThisDay in 1858, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace's theory of evolution through natural selection was read aloud at a meeting of the Linnean Society. It was the first time the idea was ever presented to an audience.
Black-and-white photograph of an elderly Charles Darwin in profile, bald with a long white beard, wearing a dark coat Black-and-white photographic portrait of an elderly Alfred Russel Wallace, seated, with a long white beard and round wire-frame glasses, wearing a dark velvet jacket and waistcoat Scan of a 19th-century printed page headed 'On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties,' the joint 1858 paper by Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace read to the Linnean Society, with introductory text signed by Charles Lyell and J.D. Hooker
July 1, 2026 at 4:49 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
pnas.org
There are dozens of species of similar-looking woodland salamanders in Appalachia. A study of 33 species shows that they nevertheless vary in physiological traits, such as skin resistance to water loss, metabolic rate, and cold tolerance. In PNAS: https://ow.ly/qhJW50ZhXem
A three-panel figure. A illustrates salamander physiology, phylogeny and habitat. B and C are scatter plots showing positive temperature trends.
June 29, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
palaeoburke.bsky.social
World, here is your Crocodile Brain Encyclopedia.

Our new paper, which details the internal cranial anatomy of over 43 crocodylian species is finally out!

Read here: doi.org/10.1111/joa....

@pdmannion.bsky.social
Computed tomography reveals the endocranial anatomy of Crocodylia: Implications for phylogenetic relationships and ecomorphological convergence across Crocodylomorpha
The evaluation of the endocranial anatomy of 43 crocodylian species reveals several differences, including variation in the curvature of the encephalic endocast, the size of the endosseous labyrinth ...
doi.org
June 29, 2026 at 8:18 AM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
arctomet.bsky.social
The Lonely Race to Save Ukraine’s Past - bioGraphic www.biographic.com/the-lonely-r...
The Lonely Race to Save Ukraine’s Past - bioGraphic
In a country ravaged by war, Ukraine’s conservators are torn between protecting the country’s past and fighting for its future.
www.biographic.com
June 26, 2026 at 7:25 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
paleowen.bsky.social
#FossilFriday it’s been a great week visiting the Texas vertebrate paleontology collection and the Texas Science museum to study proboscideans! From left to right below: the holotype of Gnathabelodon (Blancotherium) buckneri, a Torynobelodon mandible, and a Cuvieronius skull.
Holotype partial cranium of Gnathabelodon (Blancotherium) buckneri. A white skull on a green-gray plaster slab with long upward curving tusks and a long tuskless mandible. Top front view of the jaw of a shovel-tusked elephant relative. The mandible is beige with huge procumbent lower incisors set in a massive flaring symphysis. Partially reconstructed skull of the short-jawed gomphothere Cuvieronius. The skull is beige with flaring upper tusk alveoli and a wide narial opening
June 26, 2026 at 1:51 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
arctomet.bsky.social
Diversification of angiosperm reproductive strategies predated the end-Cretaceous extinction | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Diversification of angiosperm reproductive strategies predated the end-Cretaceous extinction
Angiosperm reproductive evolution is traditionally linked to the end-Cretaceous biotic crisis and subsequent ecological restructuring. Here, we report diverse and unexpectedly large diaspores (dispers...
www.science.org
June 25, 2026 at 8:08 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
stephanspiekman.bsky.social
This review was inspired by my recently started Turtle Origins Research Group @smnstuttgart.bsky.social and @unihohenheim.bsky.social funded by a @dfg.de Emmy Noether Grant, which will deal more with this subject. So much more to come!

For now, please enjoy: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Getting to the root of it: perspectives on the phylogenetic origins of modern reptiles
Reptiles are currently represented by turtles, archosaurs (crocodylians and birds), and lepidosaurs (lizards, snakes and the tuatara). However, these groups represent only a fraction of the known d...
www.tandfonline.com
June 25, 2026 at 3:08 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
johnrhutchinson.bsky.social
Review of CH Waddington's influence on developmental biology and evo-devo:
journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
includes supp info with his 50th birthday songs!
C.H. Waddington's lasting achievements in development and evolution
ABSTRACT. C.H. Waddington (1905-1975) was a British biologist and perhaps the major figure in developmental biology between the 1940s and 1960s. He is one of the few pre-molecular-age developmental bi...
journals.biologists.com
June 23, 2026 at 6:20 AM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
joeybernhardt.bsky.social
🚨New paper alert🚨🔥 I’m thrilled to share new work from our lab in Ecology Letters: we tackle the challenge of making general predictions for competition in a warming world 🌡️🔥🌏

Led by the brilliant postdoc @kaleighedavis.bsky.social with @tessgrainger.bsky.social and others

tinyurl.com/44hr6bzf
When Warming Levels the Playing Field: Rethinking Competition in a Changing Climate — Centre for Ecosystem Management
New research led by one of our postdoctoral fellows, Dr. Kaleigh Davis, takes a step toward a more predictive understanding of network interactions in the face of climate warming by combining Modern C...
www.ecosystemscience.ca
June 22, 2026 at 5:53 PM
Reposted by Dr. Advait M Jukar, FLS
jdpardo.bsky.social
New in @science.org ...since our first discoveries of early tetrapods, they have been thought of as "amphibians" characterized by aquatic larvae. But is this true? For the first time, we report exceptional fossils of stem tetrapod babies that upend this paradigm. 1/n

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Direct development of stem tetrapods across the fin-to-limb transition
Modern amphibians are characterized by an aquatic larval stage that ends abruptly with a period of widespread tissue remodeling (metamorphosis) upon transition to terrestrial adulthood. A transient la...
www.science.org
June 18, 2026 at 6:43 PM