Aaron O'Dea
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odealab.bsky.social
Aaron O'Dea
@odealab.bsky.social
800 followers 370 following 710 posts
Tropical pale(o)biologist and reef historical ecologist in Panama. Eejit by birth. Father of two treasures. Author of "A History of Life in 100 Fossils" and "Martina and the Bridge of Time". www.odealab.com
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
peterroopnarine.bsky.social
I have a Perspective piece in Science, "The scales of strain on sharks" www.science.org/doi/full/10....
commenting on a really wonderful article by Erin Dillon et al., "Fossil denticles reveal how ocean productivity shapes shark baselines and recovery potential" www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
August 13, 2026 at 6:23 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
erinmdillon.bsky.social
How many #sharks should there be on a coral #reef? Our new publication in Science tackles this question using thousands of fossil shark dermal denticles—tiny, tooth-like scales that are shed and preserve in sediments—from Panama's two oceans.

Check it out here: doi.org/10.1126/scie...
August 13, 2026 at 9:08 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
tsengzj.bsky.social
Exhilarated to share a 2nd @science.org cover article this month from our lab @ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social! A collaboration with US & Mexico colleagues on the role of a Mexican biogeographic holding pen in shaping the Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI)(1/11)

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Cover of Science magazine for July 30, 2026. Caption from Science reads: A three-dimensional rendering shows the land bridge connection between North and South America. Research on the fossil record of mammals in Mexico suggests that the geographic region acted as a biodiversity “holding pen” for 10 million years, buffering the pace of both northward and southward movements of mammal species leading up to the Great American Biotic Interchange.
July 30, 2026 at 6:09 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
dialektical.bsky.social
Excited to share a preprint of my 3rd dissertation chapter! We evaluated how a potential genomic measure of sexual selection strength, the ratio of genetic diversity on the Z chromosome vs the autosomes, varies across selective and biogeographic contexts in #manakins. Check it out!

bit.ly/4fY43de
Can the Z:A ratio serve as a genomic index of sexual selection? An assessment across space and time in a genus of lekking birds
Understanding the role of sexual selection in shaping evolutionary trajectories is a key goal of biology, and thus developing a genomic measure of sexual selection strength is desirable. In systems wi...
www.biorxiv.org
July 27, 2026 at 2:32 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
suzetteflantua.bsky.social
Apply!! 3 open postdocs in biome biogeography and macroecology in @nezimmermann.bsky.social's amazing ERC project on global biome mapping and evolution:
1) apply.refline.ch/273855/1856/...
2) apply.refline.ch/273855/1857/...
3) apply.refline.ch/273855/1858/...
PostDoc in Biome Analysis and Functional Characterization 70-100% (f/m/d)
The Research Group Dynamic Macroecology led by Dr. Niklaus E. Zimmermann studies questions related to spatial ecology, macroecology and -evolution and global biome dynamics. For this group, we are loo...
apply.refline.ch
April 21, 2026 at 4:21 AM
odealab.bsky.social
This is the local coatí. The kids named him Baron Von Bullfroggen
March 28, 2026 at 10:12 PM
odealab.bsky.social
Our latest piece, just out
natureportfolio.nature.com Nature Portfolio @natureportfolio.nature.com · Feb 11
The food chains on modern Caribbean coral reefs may have shortened by up to 70% compared with those on their prehistoric counterparts, according to research in Nature. The findings suggest that modern reefs could be increasingly vulnerable to external stressors and ecosystem collapse. 🌍 🧪
Fossil isotope evidence for trophic simplification on modern Caribbean reefs - Nature
Using nitrogen isotopes from ancient and modern fish otoliths and corals, the study shows Caribbean reef food webs are now 60–70% shorter and functionally less diverse, indicating human-driven trophic simplification and increased risk of collapse.
go.nature.com
February 12, 2026 at 3:32 AM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
pimientogroup.bsky.social
Our new paper is online! We found that 1) today's shark & ray diversity was already reached ~100Ma; 2) that the K/Pg extinction was not catastrophic; 3) that the max diversity was reached ~50Ma; and 4) that today's diversity is depleted compared to the past.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Revealing the hidden patterns of shark and ray diversity over the past 145 million years
Gardiner et al. reconstruct the diversity of sharks and rays across the past 145 million years using deep learning and an extensive dataset. Their results unveil previously hidden patterns, including ...
www.cell.com
January 22, 2026 at 4:41 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
erinmdillon.bsky.social
New paper out today! "Fossil otolith assemblages reveal millennial-scale changes in reef fish biomass and trophic structure across the Isthmus of Panama"

🔓https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2024.0419

We used fossil fish otoliths to reconstruct community structure and energetics over millennia.
January 22, 2026 at 9:16 PM
odealab.bsky.social
In 2025 the normally predictable upwelling in the Gulf of Panama failed to appear - the first time since our records began 40 years ago (www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2512056122I).
We are studying the gulf carefully to see what will happen in 2026. Will it also fail or was 2025 a one-off?
January 15, 2026 at 3:14 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
cfrederica.bsky.social
So excited to see this out! Metabarcoding shows fishes shift diets on degraded reefs; growth rates similar, condition diverged → species-specific coping strategies buff.ly/kGkEDpw @mattleray.bsky.social @nancyknowlton.bsky.social @odealab.bsky.social @sbac-manmetuni.bsky.social @stri_panama +others
December 19, 2025 at 2:22 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
lewisajones.bsky.social
Interested in Historical Ecology and Conservation Palaeobiology? 🪸🦀

Steve Pates and I are offering a PhD project on Unlocking Palaeo-Historical Biodiversity Data to Inform Ecological Baselines @es-ucl.bsky.social
@uclcber.bsky.social

🗓️ Apply by 19th January 2026

www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
Unlocking Palaeo-Historical Biodiversity Data to Inform Ecological Baselines through AI at University of Reading on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - Unlocking Palaeo-Historical Biodiversity Data to Inform Ecological Baselines through AI at University of Reading, listed on FindAPhD.com
www.findaphd.com
December 4, 2025 at 10:40 AM
odealab.bsky.social
With otolith master Chien-Hsiang Lin, we studied the remarkable fish fauna of the late Miocene Chagres formation in Caribbean Panama peerj.com/articles/201...
November 16, 2025 at 9:01 PM
odealab.bsky.social
#ICRS is the premier conference for all things coral reef, and a great place to foster thinking and collaboration between ecologists, historical ecologists, and palaeontologists. Consider submitting your abstract to "Reefs through Time", hosted by some top-notch researchers #Coral #Paleobiology
erinmdillon.bsky.social Erin Dillon @erinmdillon.bsky.social · Sep 24
Work on reef paleoecology? Join our session "Reefs through time: leveraging today's interdisciplinary tools to better understand the past of reef organisms and ecosystems" at the 2026 International Coral Reef Symposium

📆Abstract deadline: Dec 1, 2025
🔗https://www.icrs2026.nz/call-for-abstracts
September 27, 2025 at 12:28 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
fossilsndcoffee.bsky.social
In time for #FossilFriday, a new paper by Jansen Smith and many paleontologists (including me) on what questions the field may focus on in the coming decade

Identifying the Big Questions in paleontology: a community-driven project | Paleobiology | Cambridge Core - www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Identifying the Big Questions in paleontology: a community-driven project | Paleobiology | Cambridge Core
Identifying the Big Questions in paleontology: a community-driven project
www.cambridge.org
September 26, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
pnas.org
One of the most-viewed PNAS articles in the last week is “Unprecedented suppression of Panama’s Pacific upwelling in 2025.” Explore the article here: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

For more trending articles, visit ow.ly/Me2U50SkLRZ.
Wind-jet upwelling in the GOP. (A) Typical wind vectors and SST through the topographic low in the Isthmus of Panama showing reduced sea surface temperatures in the Gulf (Feb 4, 2019). (B) Daily satellite-derived SST 1985–2025. Dashed line shows the lowest 2025 SST (27.5 °C); gray arrow indicates anomalous 2025.
September 24, 2025 at 6:58 PM
odealab.bsky.social
New paper! led by Chris Perry: Most W. Atlantic reefs in current state can't keep up with sealevel rise at 2°C+. If reefs could accrete at Holocene rates (like these in Enriquillo basin) they'd manage fine. Restoration pockets offer some local hope, but overall sobering news doi.org/10.1038/s415...
September 17, 2025 at 8:41 PM
odealab.bsky.social
📊 new paper! The natural phenomenon of upwelling, which normally occurs every year in the Gulf of Panama, failed for the first time on record in 2025...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
[most co-authors not on bluesky except @javsdiaz.bsky.social @jonscibulski.bsky.social]...
September 2, 2025 at 7:22 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
paleoadiel.bsky.social
Just one more week (till 5 Sept) to apply for the postdoc position with me at UA Museums' Department of Museum Research and Collections. NSF-project together with Jill Leonard-Pingel, @odealab.bsky.social, and @sethf.bsky.social focused on marine ecosystems in Panama.

bsky.app/profile/pale...
paleoadiel.bsky.social Adiel Klompmaker @paleoadiel.bsky.social · Aug 8
Job Alert‼️ Postdoctoral Fellow opportunity in paleontology/biology at the University of Alabama Museums:
careers.ua.edu/jobs/688232b... Aim: assess biotic interactions using mollusks from both sides of the Isthmus of Panama. Please share widely! @paleosoc.bsky.social @almnh.bsky.social
Postdoctoral Fellow opportunity. The NSF-funded project “Energetic Controls on Marine Benthic Community Structure in Space and Time” aims to (1) evaluate how productivity affects the energetic and trophic structure of marine benthic communities on either side of the modern Isthmus of Panama, where there is now a strong contrast between the high productivity, upwelling-dominated regime of the eastern Pacific and the low-productivity, low-seasonality regime of the Caribbean (2) use this knowledge to evaluate the fossil record of Caribbean benthic ecosystems before, during, and after the uplift of the isthmus during which planktonic productivity decreased in the Caribbean and (3) relate ecosystem changes driven by productivity shifts to the well documented Caribbean extinction event ~2 Ma. This is a project in collaboration with Ohio State U, UC Berkeley, and STRI. One key component of this project is to assess biotic interactions such as predation and possibly parasitism using fossil and modern molluscan assemblages from both sides of the Isthmus of Panama. I am recruiting a Postdoctoral Fellow with a background in paleontology and/or biology/ecology with strong quantitative skills, attention to detail and organization, and someone who can effectively supervise students. Conference support is provided. The postdoc will work with Dr. Adiel Klompmaker (aaklompmaker@ua.edu) within the University of Alabama Museums’ Department of Museum Research and Collections (https://collections.museums.ua.edu/). Initial appointment will be for 1 year, with renewal contingent upon funding. The deadline to apply is 5 September 2025 at 22:55 US Central Day Time. The salary will be $56,000 per year. Please upload a cover letter expressing your interest and qualifications, a CV, and contact details of at least two references. To apply and for more information see: https://careers.ua.edu/jobs/688232bd-b82e-49d3-90ea-06601c242dab
August 29, 2025 at 12:50 PM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
whosyourmammal.bsky.social
Calling all Palaeontology PhD candidates and post-docs everywhere! No matter what your particular field of research or country of institution, please follow forms.gle/cLLkEjdLjPrT... and fill in my ANONYMOUS RESEARCH SURVEY – #Yourpalaeolife : investigating fieldwork by early career palaeontologists
#Yourpalaeolife: the experience of early career palaeontologists and fieldwork
Hello everybody! Welcome to my anonymous survey about fieldwork in palaeontology. I want to know about your experiences: what is the place of fieldwork in our research lives, how to we view it, and h...
forms.gle
August 16, 2025 at 11:14 AM
Reposted by Aaron O'Dea
paleoadiel.bsky.social
Job Alert‼️ Postdoctoral Fellow opportunity in paleontology/biology at the University of Alabama Museums:
careers.ua.edu/jobs/688232b... Aim: assess biotic interactions using mollusks from both sides of the Isthmus of Panama. Please share widely! @paleosoc.bsky.social @almnh.bsky.social
Postdoctoral Fellow opportunity. The NSF-funded project “Energetic Controls on Marine Benthic Community Structure in Space and Time” aims to (1) evaluate how productivity affects the energetic and trophic structure of marine benthic communities on either side of the modern Isthmus of Panama, where there is now a strong contrast between the high productivity, upwelling-dominated regime of the eastern Pacific and the low-productivity, low-seasonality regime of the Caribbean (2) use this knowledge to evaluate the fossil record of Caribbean benthic ecosystems before, during, and after the uplift of the isthmus during which planktonic productivity decreased in the Caribbean and (3) relate ecosystem changes driven by productivity shifts to the well documented Caribbean extinction event ~2 Ma. This is a project in collaboration with Ohio State U, UC Berkeley, and STRI. One key component of this project is to assess biotic interactions such as predation and possibly parasitism using fossil and modern molluscan assemblages from both sides of the Isthmus of Panama. I am recruiting a Postdoctoral Fellow with a background in paleontology and/or biology/ecology with strong quantitative skills, attention to detail and organization, and someone who can effectively supervise students. Conference support is provided. The postdoc will work with Dr. Adiel Klompmaker (aaklompmaker@ua.edu) within the University of Alabama Museums’ Department of Museum Research and Collections (https://collections.museums.ua.edu/). Initial appointment will be for 1 year, with renewal contingent upon funding. The deadline to apply is 5 September 2025 at 22:55 US Central Day Time. The salary will be $56,000 per year. Please upload a cover letter expressing your interest and qualifications, a CV, and contact details of at least two references. To apply and for more information see: https://careers.ua.edu/jobs/688232bd-b82e-49d3-90ea-06601c242dab
August 8, 2025 at 4:21 PM
odealab.bsky.social
I do like a good past analogue for future change. V cool study by Pallacks et al shows how twilight zone lanternfishes—vital prey & carbon cyclers and earth's largest biomass—vanished from the E. Mediterranean when oxygen dropped, but rebounded fast when it returned. www.nature.com/articles/s43...
Ocean deoxygenation linked to ancient mesopelagic fish decline - Communications Earth & Environment
Historical phases of ocean oxygen minimum are associated with near extinctions of mesopelagic fish, suggesting risks of future deoxygenation to marine fisheries due to warming, according to an analysi...
www.nature.com
August 4, 2025 at 12:12 PM
odealab.bsky.social
We are hiring a lab manager for our lab family at Naos Island in Panama. More information and position description here: odealab.com/opportunities/.

Deadline is today, but if you need more time please just let me know
August 4, 2025 at 7:50 AM
odealab.bsky.social
Nice video report from Shuchita Jha at @inold.news on our Caribbean reef trophodynamics paper (www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...). How can some reef fishes be bigger today than they were 7,000 years ago? youtu.be/buGORJ3F1iM
Caribbean Coral Reefs Meet Archaeology
YouTube video by Neighbird
youtu.be
July 24, 2025 at 3:19 PM
odealab.bsky.social
Thrilled to share our new paper, led by @jonscibulski.bsky.social, on the rich 16kyr-long history of human-ocean interactions along the Pacific coast of Panama and Costa Rica. Inspired by the late Richard Cooke MBE and beautifully illustrated by his son, @cookedillustrations.com #PaleoSky
July 10, 2025 at 4:50 PM