Mark Shepherd Journal
Exploring the Hidden Ecology of Our World
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The Forest Predator You Rarely See: What the Tayra Reveals About Hidden Ecology
When most people imagine rainforest predators, they think of jaguars, harpy eagles, or anacondas. These are the animals that appear in documentaries and tourism brochures. Yet some of the most important members of tropical ecosystems pass through the forest almost unnoticed. One of them is the tayra. The tayra (Eira barbara) ranges across much of…
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The Hidden Ecosystem Inside an Army Ant Swarm
Most people see an army ant swarm as a moving mass of predators. Thousands of ants surge across the forest floor, overwhelming insects, spiders, and other small animals in their path. To most observers, the swarm appears chaotic and destructive. Yet hidden within the rushing columns is an entirely different world—one that exists because of…
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The Hidden Decline Beneath Our Feet
On a recent trip to research insect populations, I visited a small sliver of the Chihuahua desert that runs through the extreme southeast corner of Arizona. While hiking through the flat expanse, I encountered hundreds of eager hover flies. I say eager, because the flies followed and buzzed around me relentlessly. While I couldn’t identify…
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Biodiversity Increases While Species Losses Continue to Climb
Defining Biodiversity Species By some measures, worldwide biodiversity may be increasing. At the same time the rate of extinction, due mostly to habitat loss, remains high, especially in tropical areas where deforestation continues at a pace noticeable to even the most unconcerned bystander. You might wonder how these statements can both be true. Biodiversity, a…
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California Kelp Forests
Only a few years ago (2013 – 2015) most of the kelp forests of Northern California disappeared. Ninety percent of these northern majestic forests were decimated by the purple sea urchins leaving a barren underwater landscape. Many fish and invertebrates that depend upon kelp to provide a habitat to hide from predators, reproduce, and find…
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Coral Reef
Sometime between 500 and 600 million years ago, the very first coral species appeared on earth. Of course, no one really knows when they actually appeared or what they originally were. What color were they? Did they sting fish? We guess a lot about them from looking at fossil corals and observing the way coral…
