Selected posts reviewing ecology research.
- How do taxonomic preferences shape conservation and science? Research revealing the subjectivity of our conservation focuses.
- Island biogeography: Spider diversity in Macaronesia A review of Wilson and MacArthur's theory of island biogeography and how new research is shaping that theory in the 21st century.
- The history of the Joshua tree, threats new and old How the North American population of the Joshua tree has responded and will respond to climate change.
- A hobbit's contemporaries: Biogeography and insular evolution on Flores Homo floriensis and other examples of insular dwarfism/gigantism on the island of Flores.
- Cutting down trees to save the Earth Global warming, albedo and the boreal forests.
- Reconstructing Cambrian food webs A good example of of how paleoecology can inform natural history.
- Southeast Asia in the Pleistocene, from grassland to rain forest How biomes can shift over time.
- Decades later, how has the ecology of coastal Saudi Arabia recovered from the largest oil spill in history? In the wake of the BP spill, a look back at another disaster.
- Defining edge effects by resource and sensitivity What really happens on the edges of fragmented habitats?
- History of land use determines threat and rarity in mangrove tree species
- Forest fragmentation and the isolation of the giant panda What happens to isolated populations and why gene flow is important.
- Climate change, invasives and extinction in Thoreau's Woods Using Thoreau's own data to evaluate the effects of climate change in New England.
- Coastal dune ecology: Invasive grass driving native herb to extinction through direct and apparent competition New research and a review of apparent competition.
- Demonstrating synergy between functional groups: Burrowing mammals and megaherbivores How animals work together to control aspects of an ecosystem and examples of functional analogy.
- The importance of saving Yasunà National Park A review of the incredible biodiversity of Yasunà National Park.
- Irreplaceable natural services: A look at the plight of the Chihuahuan grasslands and the black-tailed prairie dog A good example of how the preserving the natural functions of an ecosystem can be an economic boon for farmers.
- Geophagy in Amazonian bats: Detox or nutrition? We all eat dirt in one way or another.
- Reassessing the extent of deforestation in Madagascar
Approachable 'basic concepts' of ecology and evolution.
- What Is Ecology?
- Know Your Biomes I
- Know Your Biomes II: Tropical Rain Forest
- Know Your Biomes III: Tropical Dry Forest
- Know Your Biomes IV: Tropical Savanna
- Know Your Biomes V: Deserts
- Know Your Biomes VI: Temperate Grassland
- Know Your Biomes VII: Temperate Forest
- Know Your Biomes VIII: Boreal Forest
- Why Spiders Aren't Insects I
- Why Spiders Aren't Insects II: A Primer on Cladistics
- Why Spiders Aren't Insects III: The Evolutionary Advantages of Mass Extinction
- Why Spiders Aren't Insects IV: Molecular Homology
- Why Spiders Aren't Insects V: Hox Genes and Binding Evolutionary Ties
On writing:
- Format, prescriptivism and Plato's chair The (un?)importance of standards in writing.
- True stories The extent of an author's indulgence in fantasy.
On conservation/environmentalism:
- Communicating environmental realities: framing and fiction A response to a series of articles in Ecology discussing the issues of framing/marketing environmentalism.
- A letter to my conservative friend Look again at what's being asked.
- Nature and the illusion of peace Turning to nature for peace that isn't there.
- Remediating Acid Mine Drainage: History and Techniques in Appalachia
- Refounding Appalachia: The scars of heritage and history A bit of history and a new paper that discusses a new foundation for our eastern mountains.
On culture:
- Obvious troll is obvious umad?
- Burning books, instinctual acrimony Is there any difference between the physical and mental immolation of ideas?
- Smithsonian backing censorship The Smithsonian, David Wojnarowicz and the Catholic League.
