Charting the Spread of Disease Ecology

I sat down with two prominent disease ecologists to discuss how the field has changed over the course of their careers.

Farewell to the Stats Corner

Image Credit: angela n., CC BY 2.0, Image Cropped The time has come for the Stats Corner to wrap up as Ecology for the Masses closes. I want to thank

Media Misconduct, Public Paranoia, and the Vanishing of the Adder

The adder is Britain’s only native venomous snake. As such it bears the brunt of serpentine scaremongering from media and the public alike.

But is the adder’s fearsome reputation fair? (Spoiler: No)

And should we be more worried about protecting the adder from us, and not the other way round? (More spoilers: Yes)

Spooky Scary Wildlife Diseases

Over the last few years, we’ve become intimately acquainted with the concept of diseases jumping from animals to humans. And while we’ve been more focussed on what those diseases mean to us, they’ve shaped the very evolution of the species they first originated in. Here are some examples of relationships between wildlife and their diseases that we’ve begun to play a role in. 

Giant Invertebrates: Scientists Deadliest Accidents or Competitive Superiority Through Evolution?

In the mid twentieth century, movies like ‘Tarantula’ and ‘Them!’ set the scene for what life would be like if giant bugs existed. Scenes filled with nightmares arisen from experiments gone wrong, children-stealing ants, great taglines like “Science’s Deadliest Accident”, and some unbelievably outdated special effects.

Luckily, giant bugs don’t exist… Anymore.

Can Newly Arrived Lizards Survive Housewarming Party In The Form Of A Massive Drought?

This week we look at islands that are a mere century old, created by the construction of the Panama Canal. Can a drought hitting an island can wipe out a newly introduced species? And will the presence of competitors make it even worse for the newcomers?

Getting to Know Your Long-Term Monitoring Data

Nature is complicated and the environment is vast. How can we possibly learn all there is to know about our surroundings? Aspects of our natural world like life population dynamics and life histories influence the very survival of species, but understanding these requires data from long time periods.

Putting a Price on Nature

How do we motivate people to protect ecosystems? At this stage in the climate crisis, many of us are very aware that ecosystem destruction and biodiversity loss are huge problems. However, there are also people who aren’t very aware of the scale of ecosystem destruction. Motivating these people to protect ecosystems – or at least stop destroying them – is a huge problem. A problem so big, some people have even tried to throw money at it.

To Stab, Or Not To Be Stabbed: The Sex Lives of Flatworms

Would you rather stab, or be on the receiving end of a stab? This may seem like a confronting question, but it’s the dilemma many flatworms face when a mating opportunity arises.