Many are familiar with the worldwide effort to stop the illegal hunting of endangered wildlife. Some nations have created wildlife refuges where hunting is limited, while other nations, such as Costa Rica, have banned hunting altogether. Creating a refuge is challenging enough, but enforcing hunting limitations is far more difficult. Even in the well protected reserves […]
Ecologist, educator, explorer, and storyteller.
For more than three decades, I've studied the hidden processes that shape ecosystems—from army ants moving through Amazonian forests to newly discovered wasp species nesting beneath abandoned aircraft, from Arctic food webs beneath the ice to the countless interactions that occur beyond our notice every day.
This site is dedicated to the Ecology of the Unseen: the species, behaviors, and ecological processes that most people never encounter, but that quietly shape the natural world around us.
Explore the stories, discoveries, and field observations that reveal nature's hidden side.
Protecting Elephants
In October of 2016, in what was considered a surprising move, the United States, the European Union and several African nations voted against an all-out ban of the elephant ivory trade. It was a surprising move in that there was strong support in favor of a ban from the countries hosting the two largest elephant […]
Haleakala Flightless Moth
Photo by Forest & Kim Starr
The Still Mysterious Case of Missing Bees
We are just four months shy of the 10-year anniversary when David Hackenberg reported losing two-thirds of his bee hives to a phenomenon now known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). It was in October of 2006 that Mr Hackenberg, a Pennsylvania bee keeper, noticed that 2000 bee colonies he had transferred to Florida to pollinate crops […]
Monk Parakeet Populations Growing
In 1939, nearly 77 years ago, the Carolina Parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis) was declared extinct. At the time, it was United States’ only known native parrot. The cause for its extinction is not certain, but is frequently reported to be the result of deforestation. Some experts, however, believe deforestation and hunting may have reduced the populations […]
Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas)
Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) AKA: Pacific green turtle, black (sea) turtle Green Sea Turtle (click on this link to watch) While diving off the coast of Hawaii, I encountered multiple green sea turtles in the shallow areas around the shore. Adult green sea turtles are primarily vegetarians and feed on sea grass and algae. […]