Dr Steve Portugal, The University of Oxford

We’re very grateful to SEB, COB and ASAB for making it possible for PhD students Robin, Hana and Jamie to attend various conferences and lab visits over the last six months! It’s made the world of difference! Congratulations Jamie and Robin for your recent prize success at the Postgraduate Symposium.

We have a PhD studentship available, all about eggshells. Closing date June 19th. Full details can be found in the official advert, link below!

https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/evolution-of-eggshell-surface-structure-and-physiology/?p158854

Our new paper is out today, “Eggshell composition and surface properties of avian brood-parasitic species compared with non-parasitic species”. Published in Royal Society Open Science, you can read it here!

This week we spent some time at Birdworld for MSc student Ellie Lucas’s project. We’re measuring the visual fields of various tropical seabird species to determine if there is a visual basis undermining why some species are prone to flying into man-made objects and others are not. We’re very grateful to Birdworld for allowing us access to their wonderful Inca Terns. The data were fascinating. More to follow!

My new Quick Quide is out today in Current Biology, all about Siamese Fighting Fish. You can read it here!

Congratulations to Jack (Thirkell) who passed his PhD viva yesterday!

Very happy our paper has been accepted in Royal Society Open Science. This paper looks at the structural properties of eggshell surfaces between brood-parasites and hosts. Congratulations to first author Steph McClelland, and thank you to the many co-authors and collaborators.

I recently spent some time at The Hawk Conservancy, chatting to Tom Morath about Secretary Birds and Vultures. You can listen to the Podcasts via the link below:

PODCAST

I am on sabbatical, and visiting Australia. While here I am focusing on writing grants and working through papers, but in my spare time have been out and about meeting the local wildlife. Been thrilling to see wild emus, wombats, koalas and echidnas, to name a few. I am currently based in Melbourne visiting Prof. Craig White at Monash University, before heading to Adelaide next week to visit Dr Phill Cassey.