Phocid Friday? Have a seal!
🦑🌿🐡🦊
🦑🌿🐡🦊
February 24, 2024 at 2:49 AM
Phocid Friday? Have a seal!
🦑🌿🐡🦊
🦑🌿🐡🦊
#FossilFriday
Holotype of the phocid pinniped Pliophoca etrusca, exhibited at the Natural History Museum (University of Pisa).
It comes from the Pliocene of Tuscany, and was likely related to Mediterranean monk seals. It was described by Tavani (1941) and reevaluated by Berta et al. (2015).
Holotype of the phocid pinniped Pliophoca etrusca, exhibited at the Natural History Museum (University of Pisa).
It comes from the Pliocene of Tuscany, and was likely related to Mediterranean monk seals. It was described by Tavani (1941) and reevaluated by Berta et al. (2015).
January 9, 2026 at 1:33 PM
#FossilFriday
Holotype of the phocid pinniped Pliophoca etrusca, exhibited at the Natural History Museum (University of Pisa).
It comes from the Pliocene of Tuscany, and was likely related to Mediterranean monk seals. It was described by Tavani (1941) and reevaluated by Berta et al. (2015).
Holotype of the phocid pinniped Pliophoca etrusca, exhibited at the Natural History Museum (University of Pisa).
It comes from the Pliocene of Tuscany, and was likely related to Mediterranean monk seals. It was described by Tavani (1941) and reevaluated by Berta et al. (2015).
2/ Dewaele et al. - another morphometric analysis of phocid seal humeri and femora, and again, they seem not to be terribly diagnostic - despite most of phocid fossil taxonomy being based on postcrania. Doesn't look good. anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
March 21, 2026 at 3:19 PM
2/ Dewaele et al. - another morphometric analysis of phocid seal humeri and femora, and again, they seem not to be terribly diagnostic - despite most of phocid fossil taxonomy being based on postcrania. Doesn't look good. anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
New lab paper, this time on phocid limb morphometrics! Lead by former EDDyLab postdoc Dr. Leonard Dewaele, with @narimanechatar.bsky.social, Prof. Mark Uhen, master student Jacques Klassen, and yours truly
anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Long bone variability in true seals (Mammalia, Phocidae), with implications for understanding their fossil record
Historically, humeri and femora have been treated as diagnostic elements for fossil phocid (Carnivora, Pinnipedia, Phocidae) identification. This resulted in the naming of a plethora of extinct phoci...
anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
March 24, 2026 at 7:16 AM
New lab paper, this time on phocid limb morphometrics! Lead by former EDDyLab postdoc Dr. Leonard Dewaele, with @narimanechatar.bsky.social, Prof. Mark Uhen, master student Jacques Klassen, and yours truly
anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Phocidae
Otariidae
Odobenidae
Otariidae
Odobenidae
November 28, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Phocidae
Otariidae
Odobenidae
Otariidae
Odobenidae
🧪Bonus skeet: through my time in the field of phocid bioacoustics I discovered my dog Zoe loves listening to seal recordings 😂
July 4, 2023 at 10:30 AM
🧪Bonus skeet: through my time in the field of phocid bioacoustics I discovered my dog Zoe loves listening to seal recordings 😂
Kubuntu installieren, abcde um die CD zu rippen, local send um auf Handy zu übertragen, phocid als music Player.
Habe heute den Tag damit verbracht zu essen und eine kyle minogue auf dem 2009er Laptop mit DVD Laufwerk zu rippen und auf das Handy zu bekommen. (Alles free and open source)
June 24, 2025 at 8:58 PM
Kubuntu installieren, abcde um die CD zu rippen, local send um auf Handy zu übertragen, phocid als music Player.
Vocal production learning is a key ability enabling spoken language, but is not itself unique to humans, having been documented in (e.g.) some bird, bat, & seal species. A new study of pinnipeds in @science.org 👇 finds they have neural adaptations supporting voluntary control of vocalizations.
🦭💬🧪
🦭💬🧪
Seal and sea lion brains have evolved to support volitional control of vocal behavior and learning
Seals and sea lions have highly developed volitional breathing control, to which the phocid seals add vocal production learning, including mimicry. In this work, using histology and ex vivo diffusion ...
www.science.org
March 12, 2026 at 6:34 PM
Vocal production learning is a key ability enabling spoken language, but is not itself unique to humans, having been documented in (e.g.) some bird, bat, & seal species. A new study of pinnipeds in @science.org 👇 finds they have neural adaptations supporting voluntary control of vocalizations.
🦭💬🧪
🦭💬🧪
🧪🦑🦊 Bonus skeet: through my time in the field of phocid bioacoustics I discovered my dog Zoe loves listening to seal recordings.
Also actually still can’t tell if this successfully posted as a thread. Will I ever learn to post a proper thread? Stay tuned to find out! 😂 7/7
Also actually still can’t tell if this successfully posted as a thread. Will I ever learn to post a proper thread? Stay tuned to find out! 😂 7/7
December 2, 2023 at 4:49 AM
🧪🦑🦊 Bonus skeet: through my time in the field of phocid bioacoustics I discovered my dog Zoe loves listening to seal recordings.
Also actually still can’t tell if this successfully posted as a thread. Will I ever learn to post a proper thread? Stay tuned to find out! 😂 7/7
Also actually still can’t tell if this successfully posted as a thread. Will I ever learn to post a proper thread? Stay tuned to find out! 😂 7/7
Is this about Phocid?
Yes, but mainly it's about byobu, kotoba, imiwa, kakugo-
Yes, but mainly it's about byobu, kotoba, imiwa, kakugo-
October 10, 2025 at 11:33 AM
Is this about Phocid?
Yes, but mainly it's about byobu, kotoba, imiwa, kakugo-
Yes, but mainly it's about byobu, kotoba, imiwa, kakugo-
Reposting this ~6 mo. later now that threads here are much more functional!
🧪🦑🦊 Throwback to science from my past with a quick 🧵 on a cool field... phocid bioacoustics aka the science of seal sounds! 🦭🔊 What are some of the questions researchers are asking about seal vocal communication? ⤵️ 1/7
🧪🦑🦊 Throwback to science from my past with a quick 🧵 on a cool field... phocid bioacoustics aka the science of seal sounds! 🦭🔊 What are some of the questions researchers are asking about seal vocal communication? ⤵️ 1/7
December 2, 2023 at 4:39 AM
Reposting this ~6 mo. later now that threads here are much more functional!
🧪🦑🦊 Throwback to science from my past with a quick 🧵 on a cool field... phocid bioacoustics aka the science of seal sounds! 🦭🔊 What are some of the questions researchers are asking about seal vocal communication? ⤵️ 1/7
🧪🦑🦊 Throwback to science from my past with a quick 🧵 on a cool field... phocid bioacoustics aka the science of seal sounds! 🦭🔊 What are some of the questions researchers are asking about seal vocal communication? ⤵️ 1/7
Interested in the shape variation of phocid long bones? Check out our new study led by Leonard Dewaele in @anatrecord.bsky.social 🦴Using 3DGM, we show that long bones capture variation between subfamilies but fail at species level, calling for caution in fossil taxonomy doi.org/10.1002/ar.7...
March 20, 2026 at 5:41 PM
Interested in the shape variation of phocid long bones? Check out our new study led by Leonard Dewaele in @anatrecord.bsky.social 🦴Using 3DGM, we show that long bones capture variation between subfamilies but fail at species level, calling for caution in fossil taxonomy doi.org/10.1002/ar.7...
If Lyra understood the concept of music I’m sure she would enjoy Chappell Roan #harpseal #marinemammal #ocean #pinniped #marinemammalrehab #seadoggo #lyratheharpseal #phocid
February 28, 2025 at 3:33 AM
If Lyra understood the concept of music I’m sure she would enjoy Chappell Roan #harpseal #marinemammal #ocean #pinniped #marinemammalrehab #seadoggo #lyratheharpseal #phocid
Brain circuitry is key to the comparatively rare ability to imitate sounds beyond an innate repertoire. Beautiful work led by @pfcook.bsky.social, this week in @science.org,
shows this for pinnipeds, complementing decades-long work on avian vocal production learners 🧪🦭🧠
shows this for pinnipeds, complementing decades-long work on avian vocal production learners 🧪🦭🧠
March 13, 2026 at 6:43 AM
Brain circuitry is key to the comparatively rare ability to imitate sounds beyond an innate repertoire. Beautiful work led by @pfcook.bsky.social, this week in @science.org,
shows this for pinnipeds, complementing decades-long work on avian vocal production learners 🧪🦭🧠
shows this for pinnipeds, complementing decades-long work on avian vocal production learners 🧪🦭🧠
That’s a phocid up pun.
December 4, 2025 at 8:55 PM
That’s a phocid up pun.
New paper: spectacular new fossils of the Miocene phocine seal Monachopsis from the 'extinct' Paratethys seaway of Ukraine. Dwarf (~1 meter long) relative of harbor seals w/ dense bones to counteract buoyancy in high salinity. Read it here: royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
March 24, 2025 at 4:59 PM
New paper: spectacular new fossils of the Miocene phocine seal Monachopsis from the 'extinct' Paratethys seaway of Ukraine. Dwarf (~1 meter long) relative of harbor seals w/ dense bones to counteract buoyancy in high salinity. Read it here: royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
New in Polar Biology: 2 rehabilitated hooded seals released in the German North Sea, tracked by satellite tag 🦭🌏🌐
One made a fast, successful return to Arctic waters. The other travelled to the UK, outside its natural Arctic habitat, was found in poor condition & now in permanent care #MarineEcology
One made a fast, successful return to Arctic waters. The other travelled to the UK, outside its natural Arctic habitat, was found in poor condition & now in permanent care #MarineEcology
Horizontal movements and diving behaviour of two vagrant hooded seal (Cystophora cristata) pups following rehabilitation in Germany - Polar Biology
The hooded seal (Cystophora cristata) is an Arctic phocid seal occasionally observed far outside its native range, including the European Atlantic shelf seas. This study presents the movements and diving behaviour of two female hooded seal pups after rehabilitation and release in the German North Sea. We tracked the animals using satellite telemetry to evaluate post-release survival and movement behaviour. Within one month, one seal travelled through the North Sea to the coast of United Kingdom, and then further northward to the Norwegian west coast, suggesting a successful return to Arctic waters. In contrast, the second seal remained in the North Sea and exhibited shallower and shorter dives over time, with extensive surface resting. She was ultimately found in poor condition in the United Kingdom and placed in permanent captivity. These cases highlight the species’ high dispersal capacity, yet also underline the challenges vagrant individuals face in suboptimal non-native habitats. The contrasting outcomes suggest that rehabilitation and release of such Arctic vagrants should be assessed case-by-case, considering the animal’s age, health, and timing of the release in relation to the expected prey availability. This study emphasizes the importance of satellite telemetry in evaluating post-release success and contributes to the broader discussion on the viability and ethics of rehabilitating extralimital marine mammals.
doi.org
July 16, 2026 at 3:41 PM
New in Polar Biology: 2 rehabilitated hooded seals released in the German North Sea, tracked by satellite tag 🦭🌏🌐
One made a fast, successful return to Arctic waters. The other travelled to the UK, outside its natural Arctic habitat, was found in poor condition & now in permanent care #MarineEcology
One made a fast, successful return to Arctic waters. The other travelled to the UK, outside its natural Arctic habitat, was found in poor condition & now in permanent care #MarineEcology
Some kind of play on words 🤔 like photo-cid (phocid is the “true seal” family) but much much better haha
September 26, 2023 at 10:55 PM
Some kind of play on words 🤔 like photo-cid (phocid is the “true seal” family) but much much better haha
#Seal and #sealion brains have evolved to support volitional control of vocal behavior and learning | Science share.google/FDMaPA7gLfzb...
Seal and sea lion brains have evolved to support volitional control of vocal behavior and learning
Seals and sea lions have highly developed volitional breathing control, to which the phocid seals add vocal production learning, including mimicry. In this work, using histology and ex vivo diffusion ...
share.google
March 15, 2026 at 10:01 PM
#Seal and #sealion brains have evolved to support volitional control of vocal behavior and learning | Science share.google/FDMaPA7gLfzb...
3rd new paper: first occurrence of a shark tooth embedded in a fossil pinniped bone - a phocid calcaneum from the Bone Valley Fm. of Florida (early Pliocene, ~4 Ma) with an embedded great white shark tooth - by Godfrey et al.: sciencepress.mnhn.fr/en/periodiqu...
February 15, 2024 at 2:00 PM
3rd new paper: first occurrence of a shark tooth embedded in a fossil pinniped bone - a phocid calcaneum from the Bone Valley Fm. of Florida (early Pliocene, ~4 Ma) with an embedded great white shark tooth - by Godfrey et al.: sciencepress.mnhn.fr/en/periodiqu...
For new followers who may be interested: This is my first preprint, on the weird setal morphology of 𝘌𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘴, an ectoparasite of phocid seals!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Unique cuticular morphology of a truly marine insect, Echinophthirius horridus von Olfers, 1816 (Phthiraptera: Echinophthiriidae)
Echinophthiriidae is a family of aquatic lice parasitizing aquatic carnivorans, each member distinguished by their uniquely modified, curved setae. Echinophthirius horridus is known to parasitize a wi...
www.biorxiv.org
November 17, 2024 at 1:15 AM
For new followers who may be interested: This is my first preprint, on the weird setal morphology of 𝘌𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘴, an ectoparasite of phocid seals!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Long thread on exciting work on how vocal learning (thought to be crucial also for human language) works in the brains of seals and sea lions. Massive effort to scan very many brains & species. In evolution, it may have started with volitional control over breathing!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
May 21, 2026 at 6:47 AM
Long thread on exciting work on how vocal learning (thought to be crucial also for human language) works in the brains of seals and sea lions. Massive effort to scan very many brains & species. In evolution, it may have started with volitional control over breathing!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...