Brandon Klug writes, “I got this tattoo in January 2009 during the first year of my MSc research and it encompasses a lot of my scientific interests. My background is in zoology and I have a fascination with anatomy, specifically anything to do with the musculoskeletal system. When I got the tattoo, I was studying adaptations of reproductive and newborn tree-bats in Canada and very quickly became hooked on these amazing animals. One of the biggest puzzles in bat evolution was the question of whether they echolocated or flew first, and this fossil (Onychonycteris finneyi), the oldest bat fossil (52 million years old) yet discovered, led to the conclusion that bats evolved the ability to fly before they developed echolocation. In general, this tattoo represents my love for anatomy, evolution, and bats in general.”
By pure coincidence, I wrote about Onychonycteris finneyi when it was first unveiled in 2008. Here’s my Loom post.
You can see the rest of the Science Tattoo Emporium here and in Science Ink: Tattoos of the Science Obsessed.
Originally published February 10, 2013. Copyright 2013 Carl Zimmer.