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at the University of Toronto Scarborough

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Welch lab research featured by the New York Times!

 

 

 

 

Join the Welch Lab!

Dr. Sandoval-Herrera wins Best Paper Prize!

Ken Welch

@kcwelch.bsky.social

641 Followers 411 Following 201 Posts

Professor-Zoologist at U Toronto Scarborough. Interested in things with high-sugar diets like hummingbirds, bats, bees, and my two daughters. Ecophysiology, ecotoxicology, science communication.

Last updated 10 minutes ago

  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 week

    First day of lecturing in well over a year. My lecturing muscles are stiff and sore!
    ❤️ 3
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 2 weeks

    Don't worry. Lightning strikes one of the robots and it becomes sentient and peaceful. Then it and Steve Guttenberg have a buddy comedy adventure. No migrants harmed.

    Status Coup News

    ICE is planning to spend millions on this new robotic dog in an attempt to capture immigrants. The goal is to create a safer environment for ICE. Status Coup's Phillip Hawkins breaks down the story.
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 2 weeks

    This was a really great 'peer review' process. The students at The Hospital School at Great Ormond Street and UCLH asked some really insightful questions and had great feedback. I'm excited for my daughters to read it!
    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 2 weeks

    I'm proud to present our newest publication: "Vampire bats 🦇: Sucking the most out of blood", led by Aryan Ghader from and including !

    #SciComm #bats

    kids.frontiersin.org/articles/10....
    Vampire Bats: Sucking the Most Out of Blood

    Vampire Bats: Sucking the Most Out of Blood

    Vampire bats are the only mammals that live on nothing but blood. Blood is almost entirely made of water and protein and contains very little sugar or fat, which most animals rely upon for energy. So ...

    kids.frontiersin.org
    ❤️ 9 🔄 1 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 3 weeks

    Those are some furry sharks!
    ❤️ 3
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 4 weeks

    Submission to Frontiers For Young Minds accepted on Monday. Submission to accepted this morning! More coming soon!

    I'll take it!
    ❤️ 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 month

    Congratulations to , , and 's newest PhD🧪, Dr. Jerrica Jamison!

    She did a fantastic job during her defense! Stay tuned for publications of her work to understand the evolution of sugar metabolism in 🦇!
    Supervisor, Dr. Ken Welch and newly-minted PhD, Dr. Jerrica Jamison pose for a photo in front of her presentation's title slide, reading "The Evolution of Sugar Metabolism in Bats."
    ❤️ 8 🔄 1 💬 1 💭 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 month

    😐

    Sholto David

    A tool used to rephrase plagiarised text changed "final solution" to "mass killing of an ethnic group" in a chemistry paper. Now retracted thanks to a PubPeer user who spotted this. pubpeer.com/publications...
    ❤️ 1 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 2 months

    Guy is a straight up Bond villain.
    💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 2 months

    An unwitting endorsement, it seems.
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 2 months

    Maybe that's a photo of the first author?
    💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 2 months

    Are there not times when this might describe both?
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 3 months

    Welp, I'm officially promoted to (full) professor as of today! I am deeply grateful to my mentors, my colleagues, and my trainees. I am here because of them.
    ❤️ 3 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 3 months

    Thank you for your work.
    ❤️ 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 4 months

    Is he about to punch you in the groin?!

    I mean, he is Sir Paul McCartney, so you let him do it, right?
    ❤️ 1 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 4 months

    Giving you the stinkeye!
    💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 4 months

    🧪
    A stunning photo and a new record of vertebrate predation in Waterhouse's leaf-nosed 🦇! Fantastic work by all involved! What a great natural history note!

    * Also, should be considered for wildlife photo of year competitions!

    doi.org/10.18475/cjo...

    doi.org
    ❤️ 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    RIP Professor Jodie Holt, academic supervisor to many, including my wife . I am very glad I got to know her a little and can consider her a friend.

    cnas.ucr.edu/news/2026/05...

    #FuckCancer
    In Memoriam: Remembering Jodie Holt, Scholar, Educator, and Campus Leader

    In Memoriam: Remembering Jodie Holt, Scholar, Educator, and Campus Leader

    cnas.ucr.edu
    ❤️ 3
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    Just heard abou this on : www.notaweddingcrasher.com

    What the actual f*ck?!
    Not a Wedding Crasher | Attend Real Weddings

    Not a Wedding Crasher | Attend Real Weddings

    Discover weddings with open seats and attend as an approved guest. Not a Wedding Crasher connects couples and guests for unique celebrations.

    www.notaweddingcrasher.com
    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    "talkative"?! Whatever they are saying would obviously be written in ALL CAPS!!!! 😜
    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    If Thanos had said, "I'm going to snap my fingers and the universe will be rid of all tech bros (only)," I would have said, "Avengers, hold on...let's hear him out!"
    ❤️ 3
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    Hello old friend!
    Bring on the #bats
    Jaguar temple at Lamanai Archaeological Reserve.
    ❤️ 4
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    There is definitely a 3rd person when we do it to take notes, etc. Why your admin isn't doing this is strange!
    ❤️ 1 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    Happy #BatAppreciationDay!
    ❤️ 3
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    Also, make sure to check out the Early Career Researcher Spotlight featuring recent PDF in the lab, ! Keep an eye on this up and coming leader in our field!
    doi.org/10.1242/jeb....
    ECR Spotlight – Giulia Rossi

    ECR Spotlight – Giulia Rossi

    ECR Spotlight is a series of interviews with early-career authors from a selection of papers published in Journal of Experimental Biology and aims to promote not only the diversity of early-career res...

    doi.org
    ❤️ 8 🔄 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 5 months

    New review article from the lab! In addition to discussing relatively easily studied hovering animals (hummingbirds, nectar bats), we call for further work studying energetics/fuel use in other nectar and fruit-feeders! With 🦇🧪

    Journal of Experimental Biology

    Hummingbirds and nectar bats sustain hovering flight using sugar as a fuel source. In their SI Review, Welch & Rossi discuss the convergent and divergent mechanisms that these animals use to fuel this energetically costly mode of flight

    doi.org/10.1242/jeb....
    ❤️ 8 🔄 5 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 6 months

    As spring slowly arrives, you've undoubtedly walked through slushy, flooded portions of your yard or the local park. Queen bees are burried down in the leaf litter, or just underground, under your soaking feet.

    How do they make it through that? Now we know some of their secrets!
    🔄 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 6 months

    What I love about this work, by friend Charles Darveau at U Ottawa and team, is that it came about because of an accident. Condensation caused flooding in a few tubes holding diapaused queens. Researchers feared they were dead....but then they "woke up"!
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 6 months

    Overwintering bumble🐝 queens can survive submersion for days and can even breath (a little) under water.

    www.nytimes.com/2026/03/10/s...
    Bumblebee Queens Can Breathe Underwater

    Bumblebee Queens Can Breathe Underwater

    www.nytimes.com
    ❤️ 1 🔄 1 💬 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 6 months

    Great work by Alejo Rico-Guevara and team! Though, even the slender-tongued, specialized nectar 🦇s take insects regularly as part of their diet. Gotta get that protein somehow!

    Journal of Experimental Biology

    Read the full research at

    journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
    ❤️ 3
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 6 months

    Opening remarks of the annual meeting of the #ontariobatnetwork from Toronto Zoo CEO Dolf DeJong.
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 6 months

    Is "What the f**k" a statement or a question?
    ❤️ 1 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 7 months

    I gotta.
    A running vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) runs on a specially-sized treadmill. (C) Price Sewell
    ❤️ 2 🔄 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 7 months

    Damn straight they did.

    Mike the Mad Biologist and Trump's Dumpster Beef Inspector

    Proud of these women.
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 7 months

    The Toronto Zoo is hiring a seasonal research assistant in their Nutrition Science group. Experience with wild animal feeding/handling is preferred! DM me for more details or questions.
    workforcenow.adp.com/mascsr/defau...

    Recruitment

    workforcenow.adp.com
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 8 months

    I'll try the "punk IPA!"
    ❤️ 2 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 8 months

    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 8 months

    🤣🤣🤣 Not related to the current news, thankfully!

    The Onion

    Steph Curry Finally Finishes Eating Mouthguard

    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 9 months

    Yes, clearly multiple someones were not paying attention. Just galling since I spend so much effort on my own manuscripts, on reviews, and on my editorial activities.

    I'm not the most productive researcher out there by a long shot. But, that time and effort is worth not publishing slop.
    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 9 months

    Cripes?! How did this get through the review process in the first place?

    Reese Richardson

    The Scientifc Reports autism cycle article has been retracted: doi.org/10.1038/s415...
    ❤️ 2 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 10 months

    announces funding for 100 new PDFs across the university. get 3/year. CAD$80K/year + CAD$10K/year in research funds. Read more here: www.utsc.utoronto.ca/grad-edu/res...

    Research Excellence Postdoctoral Fellows Program | Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies

    The Research Excellence Postdoctoral Fellows Program is a centrally supported program to fund 100 new two-year postdoctoral appointments over two cohorts. Cost-shared with divisions, the initiative ai...

    www.utsc.utoronto.ca
    ❤️ 9 🔄 4
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 10 months

    Didn't get to see the broadcast premier of "Empire of Bats'?! Well, you're in luck! See it here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhWK...

    www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhWK... www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhWK...
    You’ve never seen bats like this

    You’ve never seen bats like this

    YouTube video by The Nature of Things

    www.youtube.com
    ❤️ 3 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    Very proud of the work done by former PhD student Natalia Sandoval-Herrera!

    SICB journals

    ICB #BatWeek finishes up with
    #Systemic Effects of Pesticides on #Insectivorous #Bats: A #Proteomics Approach

    Sandoval-Herrera, Welch, et al

    doi.org/10.1093/icb/...

    see more on Sandoval-Herrera , Welch jr

    www.slu.se/profilsidor/...

    youtu.be/Mt6uLNkxnus?...

    www.welchbiology.com
    ❤️ 3 🔄 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    Happy Halloween! My treat is a conditionally accepted manuscript! Can't wait to share more!

    Fingers crossed for zero tricks.
    ❤️ 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    It's true. 🦇 are sweet.

    www.cbc.ca/documentarie...
    Vampire bats are ‘little ninjas’ who are actually quite sweet | CBC The Nature of Things

    Vampire bats are ‘little ninjas’ who are actually quite sweet | CBC The Nature of Things

    Documentary Empire of Bats nails the coffin shut on vampire bat myths

    www.cbc.ca
    ❤️ 7 🔄 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    "Sing up" is always free! So is "sign up".
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    Excited to see the new CBC Nature of Things episode, "Empire of Bats" is now streaming on CBC Gem (singup is free): gem.cbc.ca/the-nature-o...

    Episode features Jerrica Jamison flying 🦇 as well as running vampire bats, of course!

    gem.cbc.ca/the-nature-o... gem.cbc.ca/the-nature-o...
    Empire of Bats | The Nature of Things | CBC Gem

    Empire of Bats | The Nature of Things | CBC Gem

    New hosts Sarika Cullis-Suzuki and Anthony Morgan take on The Nature of Things, the world's longest-running science documentary series.

    gem.cbc.ca
    ❤️ 5 🔄 1 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    I mean...first out Sept. 3rd...but this skeet just makes it feel more real.
    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    It's officially out (in print, if you're feeling nostalgic)! Congrats to Dr. Oelbaum and the whole team!

    Canadian Journal of Zoology

    Now published:

    Dietary protein and reproductive condition influence wound healing in the Jamaican fruit bat, Artibeus jamaicensis 🦇

    ✒️ Oelbaum et al.
    🔗 doi.org/10.1139/cjz-...
    ❤️ 1 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    I love that in both English and Ojibwe, the word for chickadee is very onomatopoeic.

    The Institute for Bird Populations

    🪶 In the Ojibwe language, the word for chickadee is gijigijigaaneshiinh. To hear it pronounced (it sounds really cool) visit ojibwe.lib.umn.edu/m...

    ❤️ 4
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    Sorry I didn't have time to do that either!
    💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    Sorry there wasn't any time to swing south by your neck of the woods, !
    ❤️ 1 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 11 months

    Had a wonderful time at the North American Society for Bat Research meeting. So proud of the work done by my students Jerrica Jamison and Dr. Phil Oelbaum (now at York U). Here's a pic of Jerrica. Didn't get one of Phil at his talk because I was busy chairing session!
    Presenter Jerrica Jamisons stands in front of her title slide, reading, "Sugar Metabolism Convergence Across Independent Evolutions of High-Sugar Diets in Bats," at the 2025 North American Society for Bat Research meeting in Edmonton, AB, Canada.
    ❤️ 6 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 12 months

    A gift from my grad student! I will wear it proudly.
    A button with a slogan reading, ”MALE FEMINIST MOTHERF***ER."
    ❤️ 3
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Opinion piece by prof and PhD student Sisley Irwin!
    🧪🌎

    JPE - Journal of Pollination Ecology

    Extremely interesting opinion piece by MacIvor & Irwin on "Mail-order solitary bee cocoons as a gateway for biological invasion": doi.org/10.26786/192...
    ❤️ 4 🔄 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    A correction - science working the way it's supposed to

    https://www.welchbiology.com/2025/09/09/a-correction-science-working-the-way-its-supposed-to/
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Luna says, "good morning."
    ❤️ 6
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    My personality lights up the room! 😜
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    As if I needed another reason to worship the ground this man walks upon...

    The A.V. Club

    Yankovic was all set to donate memoribilia—including his Hawaiian shirt from UHF—for a planned exhibit, but, "I’m putting that on hold."
    www.avclub.com/weird-al-smi...
    ❤️ 3
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Robin explains how she engages students using mobile phones in an experiential learning context.
    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    and I are about to give back to back talks to University of Melbourne!
    ❤️ 5 💬 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Always a pleasure publishing with ! Society journals should always be considered when you're looking to publish!
    ❤️ 2 💬 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    101? Maybe without the person inside.
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Yes! Several recent invited reviewers did this. Hugely helpful!

    Danielle Levesque

    Seconded! And if you can't review please suggest alternates. Early career folks are always welcome and lots of journals make it easy to co-review with a trainee.

    If you're new and want reviewing opportunities make sure your Google Scholar, Scopus and ORCID etc are up to date so we can find you!
    ❤️ 2 🔄 1 💭 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Photo taken here?
    youtu.be/hRPfY4mE4ME?...
    Zoolander Clip - Derek Zoolander Center For Kids Who Can't Read Good

    Zoolander Clip - Derek Zoolander Center For Kids Who Can't Read Good

    YouTube video by Matt Strelecki

    youtu.be
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Totally stealing this!

    Upbeat Former Prof

    i once asked a mentor what skill she was proudest of. she replied, "assembling teams that outlive not only my time as their leader, but their time together as a team."
    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Many #ibrc225 participants including myself have signed the letter calling out Aussie gov. These kinds of racist policies are wrong and damaging.

    Eight bat researchers mostly from Asia and Africa refused entry into Australia to attend global scientific event www.theguardian.com/environment/...
    Eight bat researchers mostly from Asia and Africa refused entry into Australia to attend global scientific event

    Eight bat researchers mostly from Asia and Africa refused entry into Australia to attend global scientific event

    Organisers say move will damage nation’s scientific standing as government refuses to comment on why group of scientists were refused entry

    www.theguardian.com
    ❤️ 9 🔄 4
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    If we're going for the moon shot, how about a vaccine against stupid?

    Colin Carlson

    RFK has announced that he is developing a vaccine against all viruses. Yes, every single one. The whole, uh, "phylum"
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Congratulations! What a great feeling that first lab pub brings!
    ❤️ 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    It was a great time! Learned a ton!
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Ecotoxicology & Endocrinology starts soon! Come join me if you're attending The 20th International Bat Research Conference 2025. #ibrc2025 - via #Whova event app
    ❤️ 2
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    Kicking off #IBRC2025!
    ❤️ 1
  • View post by Ken Welch on Bluesky

    Ken Welch @kcwelch.bsky.social 1 year

    You lost me. I was not talking economics. This is much bigger than that. Good luck to you.
    ❤️ 1
Last updated 10 minutes ago