Peter Dearden
Geneticist, evolutionary biologist, evolution and development. Working mainly on insects, but also big green budgies and snails. Co Director of Genomics Aotearoa, Deputy Director of Bioprotection Aotearoa. Snarked on Substack.
- The banshee of Christmas Village open.substack.com/pub/peterkde...
- I started a thing on Substack- here is my first post. I hope you like it. On teaching evolution open.substack.com/pub/peterkde...
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenNo contest. Just read the first two sentences of the abstract. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
- Reposted by Peter DeardenClosing out my year with a journal editor shocker 🧵 Checking new manuscripts today I reviewed a paper attributing 2 papers to me I did not write. A daft thing for an author to do of course. But intrigued I web searched up one of the titles and that's when it got real weird...
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Awesome weedy discussion with my phenomenal award winning hoamahi Margaret (with the fab Peter, Amanda and Nick) - our natives need more PR, and let's all be on the lookout for newbies!- This was a fun chat with the Bioprotection Aotearoa team about everything weeds! What's the issue & what can we do about it? So many weeds & so little money! @bioprotection.bsky.social 🌏🧪🌐🌿#invasive #weeds
- Reposted by Peter DeardenSoft launching our new podcast series - Under the Lens 🎙️ This is our pilot series… warming up the mics, dusting off the pipettes and pulling together the crew for something new. Its part science, part 80’s nostalgia and all about what keeps our ecosystems thriving.
- We made a podcast for @bioprotection.bsky.social Have a look if you are interested in all things that start with b, Nick singing 80's songs or, perhaps more importantly, why and how to save the planet. bioprotection.org.nz/under-the-le...
- hosted by @whenua.bsky.social , Nick Waipara and me!
- . @josephguhlin.bsky.social and I wrote a thing ( mainly him!) www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
- Looks like I’m not reviewing for Elsevier for a while. www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
- Hey anyone at #mpi or #biosecuritynz. We do wasp genomics. I reckon I could tell you in about 24 hours if these invasive yellow legged #hornets you have found in Auckland are sisters, or a larger invasion. For free. Hit me up now!
- Left wing at the back. Seems appropriate!
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenTake‑home on disease: it’s likely host genetics + virus + environment, not a single mutation “on/off” switch. That’s why species‑wide genomics + ARG‑aware GWAS are so powerful here.
- Reposted by Peter DeardenSelection scans also show the Southern subspecies have younger TMRCAs (signals of recent selection) in cilia‑related pathways; hair‑like structures lining airways that trap and clear pathogens. This could help explain why Southern chicks resist RDS.
- Reposted by Peter DeardenRe: RDS on the mainland. A GWAS within the Northern subspecies and all subspecies flags candidate genes tied to immunity and respiration.
- Reposted by Peter DeardenUsing ARGs, we can trace population divergence across the genome. This “excess coalescence” plot shows when genomes begin to diverge. The timing aligns with the BEAST-inferred divergence windows, but using separate methodology. (Not in the preprint, BTS!)
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenWhen did they split? Molecular dating points to ~5–16k years for the Northern vs Southern split and ~3–11k years between the two Southern groups, dating to before human arrival in Aotearoa NZ. (Fig. 3)
- Reposted by Peter DeardenWith Ngāi Tahu kaitiakitanga, three subspecies are proposed: • M. a. murihiku — mainland “Northern” hoiho • M. a. motu maha — Enderby (Auckland Is) • M. a. motu ihupuku — Campbell Is These lineages are evolutionarily independent.
- Reposted by Peter DeardenWe sequenced ~249 whole genomes 🧬 spanning the mainland and subantarctic Enderby & Campbell Islands. Result: three distinct genetic lineages, with negligible gene flow among them (See PCA/tree in Fig. 2, and migration rates in supplement)!
- Reposted by Peter DeardenOn the NZ mainland, there are <150 breeding pairs, and many chicks die from respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) caused by a 🦠gyrovirus (YPGV). Subantarctic hoiho carry the virus too, but don’t show disease. Why the difference? www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
- Reposted by Peter DeardenPopulation genomics reveal three divergent subspecies with urgent #conservation implications. #popgen
- Reposted by Peter Dearden🐧We researched one of the world’s rarest #penguins. The yellow‑eyed penguin (aka hoiho/takaraka) isn’t one homogeneous species after all! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... #hoiho #conservation #genomics #birds #nzwildlife #endangered #wildlife #nature
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View full threadReposted by Peter DeardenAmazing group of people to work with! @jemmageoghegan.bsky.social @peterkdearden.bsky.social @annasanture.bsky.social @cegrueber.bsky.social And everyone else not on bsky! Double thanks to Janelle for the amazing pictures!
- Reposted by Peter DeardenA landmark Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka-led study has found the endangered hoiho 🐧 is made up of 3 subspecies, a finding that may help protect the species against fatal disease. “This is a turning point for hoiho conservation," says senior author Professor Jemma Geoghegan. Read more here ⬇️
- This is very cool. Global Change Biology | Environmental Change Journal | Wiley Online Library onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
- Reposted by Peter DeardenWe did a penguin GWAS! Turns out that yellow-eyed penguins (or hoiho) are actually three very divergent groups, which we are calling subspecies www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... @josephguhlin.bsky.social @peterkdearden.bsky.social @annasanture.bsky.social @cegrueber.bsky.social
- We wrote a thing about Penguins! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenAre you looking for a lectureship in biochemistry, molecular genetics, or bioinformatics? Come and enjoy the greatest place for kayak fishing and a fun research+teaching career. *there are other fun things to do here too.
- My Department has a permanent, full-time, resarch and teaching job for someone awesome. details here.... otago.taleo.net/careersectio...
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- Hi folks. @whenua.bsky.social and I wrote a thing about my favourite snails. bioprotection.org.nz/fridge-to-fr...
- Reposted by Peter DeardenPulled lifeless from a commercial fishing net off the Otago coast, the adult female yellow-eyed penguin had drowned in a silent, unseen death. She was the last known breeding-age female Hoiho from the Sandfly Bay colony. #NZOverFishing
- @dshb-antibodies.bsky.social Hi folks- I can't get to your website to order more of your delicious antibodies- what's up?
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- Evening all
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenJust three more sleeps until #GSA2025 kicks off in Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland! Bring your love of science, your curiosity, and maybe a rain jacket - just in case 🌧️🧬 We can't wait to see you there!
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- Yes. Money is being spent on snails. These are unique, remarkable and of huge scientific importance. If we hadn’t destroyed their environment we wouldn’t have to spend the money. And yes Genomics Aotearoa is doing genetic analyses to support effective management. www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
- I wrote a thing. Polyphenisms: a developmental perspective url:https://journals.biologists.com/dev/article-abstract/152/12/dev204693/368280/Polyphenisms-a-developmental-perspective
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- Wrote a thing with friends!https://bioprotection.org.nz/de-extinction-is-a-fairytale-not-a-substitute-for-conservation/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR66hpW9DpE6e8iEjvLE6vkXQClpHDp7FznD8R4kBG0-n6a2US1ACFVITRSTBQ_aem_S7G9CYIDp7H1VBL7YFZnXQ
- Reposted by Peter DeardenI've written a Substack about the #ColossalBioSci #DeExtinction #DisInformation campaign; it's focused on polluting the information landscape, rather than the underlying science (except for species concepts, I talk about them) open.substack.com/pub/devoevom...
- Reposted by Peter DeardenThe state of NZ science and research. Grossly underfunded. Watchdog warns of ‘grave danger’ if science reform botched newsroom.co.nz/2025/05/09/e...
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenIt's publication day of my first book: The Tree of Life. The tree of life is a time machine that can take us back 4 billion years to meet our most distant ancestor. It is the magic that lets us tell the origin stories, beginning with this ancient relative, of everything from mushrooms to man.
- Reposted by Peter DeardenHULK ADAM SMASHES DIRE WOLVES. Man alive this vexes me, and I am a bit sweary and irritable in this. Enjoy. arutherford.substack.com/p/dire-wolve...
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenGODDAMIT. IT’S NOT A RESURRECTED DIRE WOLF. 20 edits in 19,000 genes. IT’S NOT GOING TO AID CONSERVATION. EVERY WRITE UP THAT SWALLOWS AND REGURGITATES THIS GUFFERY WOLFSHIT IS DOING PR FOR A FUNDING ROUND.
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenIt's not a dire wolf. It's a gray wolf clone with 20 dire-wolf gene edits, and with some dire wolf traits. And here's my story! Gift link: www.nytimes.com/2025/04/07/s...
- Reposted by Peter DeardenDire wolves were not close relatives of gray wolves. They last shared a common ancestor more than 5 million years ago. What Colossal has done is make something new and slapped a dire wolf sticker on it, as if an organism equals a hypothetical genome.
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- Reposted by Peter DeardenIn which a do not lament the decline of 23andMe. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
