Archives for Oct,2017

The Succession Rhapsody: from sand to Amazon rainforest

I step off a boat and set foot onto a beach, my feet sinking slightly into the soft, fine sand. I pause for a second and contemplate the smooth, featureless terrain in front of me…and then I look further beyond and notice the almost solid...

miniOct 24 aerobotany, Amazon, amazon wired, botany, Conservation, ecology, guest post, Peru No Comments

Strange Continent, New Forest, Unknown Animals. Some More Please!

Gideon ErkenswickOct 22No Comments

Strange Continent, New Forest, Unknown Animals. Some More Please!

My name is Ximena Neri and I am an environmental scientist from Mexico, currently doing research on how humans interact with wildlife, and what we can do to help conserve biodiversity. The area where I focus is highly competitive, so I am always looking...

Strangler figs: Silent assassins, diversity engines, rainforest timekeepers

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Strangler figs: Silent assassins, diversity engines, rainforest timekeepers

(Borrowing from a J&B whisky commercial from the 1990s…) Tradition says: “A tree must begin its life from the forest floor”. Tradition says: “A tree shall form a relatively cylindrical trunk”. Tradition...

miniOct 20 aerobotany, AMA, Amazon, amazon wired, botany, Conservation, ecology, Peru No Comments

Ghosts of Megafauna Past

Gideon ErkenswickOct 13 Disease Ecology, Peruvian, Research Assistant No Comments

Ghosts of Megafauna Past

I distinctly remember the first time I accidentally stabbed my hand on the spine of an Astrocaryum palm, and thinking to myself, “Why on Earth does this plant possess such horrendously vicious spines?!” Surely...

miniOct 16 Amazon, botany, Conservation, ecology, fossils, giant sloth, megaflora, Peru, seeds No Comments

Field Notes

Mi Experiencia Como Asistente de Investigación

Como muchos peruanos, estoy maravillado con nuestra amazonia. Por la riqueza que presentamos siempre quise experimentar y estudiar su biodiversidad, especialmente a los primates. Tenía aún 18 años cuando encontré la página de Field Projects...

Charismatic Megaflora of the Amazon Rainforest

Charismatic Megaflora of the Amazon Rainforest

Mention the words “Amazon rainforest” to the layperson, and it is likely that the first creatures that spring to their minds are jaguars, caimans, giant river otters, spider monkeys or scarlet macaws….large, colorful, striking animals,...

miniOct 12 aerobotany, Amazon, amazon wired, amazoncam, botany, ceiba, Conservation, ecology, guest post, megaflora, Peru, Seed Dispersal No Comments

If I Could Win One, So Could You

Gideon ErkenswickOct 12 field course, ornithology No Comments

If I Could Win One, So Could You

When I decided to give the scholarship a try I honestly wasn’t sure I was going to obtain it. I took my time to write the essay calmly, understanding very well the question and doing a thorough research to be able to answer it. A few weeks later I was...

Under (poo) Pressure

Field Notes

Field Notes

Under (poo) Pressure

It was getting close to the end of the field season. We were tired, craving junk food, covered in ticks and… critically, short of monkey poops. Stefano and I were now the sole members of the 2017 Primate Poop Patrol, and it was our responsibility...

miniOct 10No Comments

The Boom and Bust Rainforest