The Future of Wildlife Management?

I recently attended the Western Black Bear Workshop and like many of these meetings the theme was on how to reduce human-bear conflict.  The workshop is mostly a forum for managers from different states and provinces to gather and exchange ideas on management problems and solutions, population trends, and hunting regulations.  I tried to capture…

Top 10 Reasons Science is Patriotic

Patriotism is defined as “having or showing great love and support for your country.” This Fourth of July, American bloggers Stephanie Schuttler and Emily Puckett show how supporting science reflects great love and support for the United States of America and is a democratic process in and of itself. Science inspires. Scientific and technological innovations made…

A Year of Science Selfies – Stephanie

When hearing about the #365scienceselfies challenge, I was immediately on board. I love selfies and was very willing to use this excuse to take more. I loved the idea – showing other people what scientists do on a daily basis and “humanizing” us (scientists – they’re just like us!). I was also up for the challenge of coming…

A Year of Science Selfies- Anna

At this time last year I was quite uncomfortable about the idea of participating in #365scienceselfies, but still, I agreed to give it a go. I thought it was worth exploring as a different kind of science communication, to show what scientists look like and what we do. I never once thought I’d actually reach the nominal…

A Year of Science Selfies- Emily

When the WildlifeSNPits team first started discussing whether to participate in the #365scienceselfies challenge, I really didn’t want to do it.  I was uncomfortable that my face would be all over the Internet (more than it already is).  But it also sounded like an opportunity to learn something new about myself, so I agreed to the…

There’s no such thing as “boring” data in citizen science

As a child I was hooked on wildlife documentaries (I still am…) and from these I gleaned that the career highlight of any self-respecting botanist or zoologist was to discover a new species. For a while that was my goal too, but then I became sidetracked by questions about genetics and evolution and conservation. Fast…

Tips for a Nature-Themed Halloween Costume

Happy Halloween! The past two years I’ve embraced my profession and have decided to go with some nature-inspired Halloween costumes. Here are my tips for a successful costume: Always make your own costume. I do not sew. Using glue, tape, and garments from your daily wardrobe creatively can make can result in a pretty effective and…

This is What a Scientist Looks Like

Three years ago I began working with teachers in an intensive externship. Over three-week periods, they would train alongside me every day, developing lesson plans for classrooms based on my research. One of my teachers, not expecting me to look the way I did, called me fancy. The name stuck as I am now @FancyScientist…

Dear Town & Country: Endangered Species Fashion is More than a Travel Burden

When reading fashion magazines (a guilty pleasure of mine), I do so knowingly I will experience a baseline level of offense. Fur and snakeskin as acceptable garments, feelings of poverty when I’m told $500 for a dress is a steal, and the omnipresent advice to lose weight are givens. But this past week, something really…

Earth Week 2016: Creating Conservation Advocates

We’re celebrating Earth Week 2016 with suggestions for how to apply the phrase “Earth Day Every Day” to conserving biodiversity. There are a number of great suggestions for things you can do every day to conserve energy and water; but we asked ourselves, what actions can we take to conserve biodiversity? This week we’ll explore:…

When Science meets Parliament

Last week I had the privilege of spending two days at the 16th “Science meets Parliament”. It was an eye opening experience and I’ve learnt a lot… but let me explain… Science meets Parliament is an annual event run by Science and Technology Australia (STA), the peak body representing Australian science and technology. It includes…

Too Much Gloom in Scicomm? Or… Let’s Celebrate Conservation Successes!

A couple of weeks ago, Stephanie asked if there is too much I in scicomm? This week, I’m asking whether there is too much doom and gloom in scicomm – or at least in scicomm related to wildlife conservation? Two things have led me to this post. In December, Emily asked me for my thoughts on new…