UAntwerp Funmorph

Functional Morphology Lab Group of Department of Biology, University of Antwerp @UAntwerpen. Tweets in English or Dutch.

[Simon Baeckens @simonbaeckens]

Three field seasons

219 lizards 🦎

>1,000 hours of behavioral video scoring

Proud of Ioanna Gavriilidi for getting this major chapter of her PhD on insularity and lizard behavior published.

Serious dedication!

https://t.co/LbsZzJJlbB

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

This is vital information moving forward in research on the #biomechanical trade-offs within avian feeding and vocalisation, but also has broad applications for many muscle-driven lever systems. Read more here: 🔗https://t.co/AwDanXq9jK

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

Paper alert from @UAFunMorph ! 💥PhD researcher Cas Jorissen just published a chapter of his #PhD in @J_Exp_Biol on torque–frequency trade-offs in muscle-driven lever systems.

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

Using a model of a Java finch mandible 🐦, the study shows muscle fibre type is key: overdeveloped muscles recruit slow-twitch fibres, boosting torque but reducing frequency (Henneman’s principle).

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

By integrating evidence from #mammals, #fish, #amphibians, #reptiles, and #birds, this paper highlights broader evolutionary patterns and provides a clearer comparative framework that facilitates interpretation of future results. Read more here: https://t.co/wUnRiyE2tD

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

From mammalian #mastication to specialized #jaw movements in fishes or #tongue driven processing in amphibians, vertebrates have evolved a remarkable diversity of ways to process food!

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

In a new review paper in Biological Reviews, co-authored by @UAFunMorph PhD student
Maja Mielke, Daniel Schwarz et al. synthesize this diversity across vertebrates and propose a unified terminology and conceptual framework for oropharyngeal food processing.

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

Read the article published in the Journal of Thermal Biology here: https://t.co/745WSX7M8v
We look forward to seeing many more collaborative studies of this integrative nature in the near future from our lab! #physiology #experimentalbiology #temperature #cognition #Podarcis

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

Behavioural #thermoregulation is vital for #reptiles and may involve cognitive processes! A new FunMorph study led by Ioanna Gavriilidi tested whether better spatial cognition is correlated with more efficient thermoregulatory behaviour, while accounting for personality🦎🔥

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

Using common wall lizards in a set-up mimicking the lizards’ natural, spatiotemporally heterogeneous thermal #environment, higher cognition scores were linked to exploitation of the thermal heterogeneity, but not more accurate thermoregulation.

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

In collaboration with cichlid fish experts from the Evolutionary Ecology Lab @SvardalGroup at #UAntwerpen
Read more here: https://t.co/LzsXfdrGOL

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

Fish suck... but species that feed on algae suck differently! 🐟 A new publication in Communications Biology by #UAFunMorph members Jana De Ridder, Peter Aerts, and Sam Van Wassenbergh, demonstrates how head motion patterns for generating suction are finetuned to species' diets

[Simon Baeckens @simonbaeckens]

Extreme climate events can catalyze rapid evolutionary change! in our new @CurrentBiology publication, Colin and I argue it’s time to study their evolutionary consequences systematically — beyond opportunistic observations. https://t.co/q5TNC1vzhv

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

You can now also follow us on LinkedIn! 👏 Check out the FunMorph Lab LinkedIn page here: https://t.co/2nVTutDNb0

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

To help them with a smooth start, we organised an introduction session where they got the opportunity to present themselves and their project to the lab group and their fellow students. Keep an eye out for more updates from our lab, including the student projects!

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

Let’s kick off the new academic year! 🎉 FunMorph welcomes 12+ @UAntwerpen master’s students this year, studying everything from boxfish 🐡 & sharks 🦈 to cats 🐆, otters 🦦, lizards 🦎, ducks 🦆 & canaries 🐤 #masterinbiology

[dr. Jamie MacLaren @palaeotheoryum]

Today is the day!
#SEBExPalaeo will be live at #SEBCONFERENCE

9h30 in Nightingale 1&2
(follow signs for Bird Rooms)

Looking forward to seeing you for plenty of experimental #palaeontology #palaeobotany #3D #modelling and fun discussions!
@SEBiology

[UAntwerp Funmorph @UAFunMorph]

A lizard in sight whets the appetite? 🦎 Read how conspecifics influence island and mainland lizards’ foraging decisions in @UAFunMorph's new paper by Ioanna Gavriilidi! Link to the full article: https://t.co/upt09t4F0z

[Simon Baeckens @simonbaeckens]

PhD 🦎students at @UAFunMorph are on a roll!