No Kings - Gainesville, Fla.

We will be writing more of these. If you’re a scientist and your science has been disrupted, we want to hear from you: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/c...

My friend, a Texas alum, flew into Gainesville to go to the game and preach at church tomorrow, and I am glad he knows the mercy of the Lord because he will not get any from the rest of us. #GoGators 🐊

LAST CALL for pledges to the Reef Keepers crowdfunding campaign! These funds support our next shoots as we capture Florida's coral story. Two Frost Science Museum tix and other donor perks are still up for grabs! Heartfelt thanks to all our contributors. 🙏 seedandspark.com/fund/reef-ke...

Gainesville friends! Stop by Cypress & Grove tonight from 5-7 p.m. for a Reef Keepers pop-up event. Trailer showing at 5:30. Fab raffle prizes from Life Unplastic, The Lynx, Opus coffee at 6:00. Hang out w/ film producer Alyson Larson & me to talk all things coral! www.instagram.com/p/DPL8z-sje1...

Our trailer is out! "Reef Keepers" is about the fight to keep Florida's Coral Reef alive against the odds. Filmmaker Alyson Larson and I are capturing the personal stories behind one of the nation's greatest environmental crises in a tale of hope and Florida defiance. www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCb5...

A short story called "Diamonds in the Rough," courtesy of San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park. See it? 🐍

One stout rainstorm, and you can shoot the rapids in the middle of Gainesville.

"Nature is metal," says my little sister Kara Van Hoose in this article for the NYT on weird hornlike growths on Colorado bunnies. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/13/s...

Say hello to Florida's newest established species, Typhlonectes natans - the Rio Cauca Caecilian! You can read about their relative abundance, distribution, & natural history, in our brand new paper: journals.ku.edu/reptilesanda... Here is one individual I CT scanned that had 7 babies inside!

🐙🌿 Here is your Friday Flattie. (Yes, that's its real name.) Flatties are in the family Selenopidae. This one (Selenops sp.) was in Arizona on a cliff face; I framed the photo to fully flaunt the flattie's flattitude. Selenopidae is named for Selene, Greek goddess of the moon, for the way these--

Journalist Noah Bookstein captured Reef Keepers' mission to create a distinctive film that benefits Florida's Coral Reef. The grit and never-give-up attitude of people on the frontlines of coral restoration gives this Floridian hope for our future. www.studentnewswatch.org/post/working...

Some of the Indian River Lagoon's smallest animals - snails, worms, crustaceans - serve as sentinels of ecological change. They got their time to shine in a bioblitz that's helping make the IRL a global model in the use of eDNA for conservation. www.theinvadingsea.com/2025/06/27/i...

"Have you seen any snakes?" the passersby asked. And they say small talk is dead.

I'm looking for a physician in Florida with experience treating vibriosis and/or a Floridian who has experienced a Vibrio infection (aka flesh-eating bacteria) who would be willing to share their story. If this is you, please reach out!

What a whopper! On a recent shoot for the Reef Keepers film in the Keys, the nice people at Robbie's let me feed the tarpon that hang around their dock. This one got close enough to graze my fingernail -- an absolutely resplendent fish.

A nurse shark takes a leisurely stroll through Coral City against a backdrop of thriving staghorn, elkhorn, brain, finger, and star corals #nurseshark #sharksofcoralcity #shark #leisurelystroll #elkhorn #staghorn #braincoral #coral #coralcitycamera #miami #portmiami #biscaynebay #coralcity

It’s official: We’re making a coral documentary. 🎥 "Reef Keepers" tells the story of the people restoring the Florida Coral Reef. Filmmaker Alyson Larson and I started by trailing a truck with 1,000 elkhorn corals from The Florida Aquarium in Apollo Beach to the Keys Marine Lab.

#FishADay Neoclinus blanchardi, Sarcastic Fringehead. Coastal eastern Pacfic from California to Mexico. Territorial displays include a spectacular gape display and mouth wrestling. They are such a delight.

Indian River Lagoon folks: Scientists are looking for four dolphins entangled in fishing line in the Indian and Banana Rivers. If you spot one, please call the FWC hotline at 1-888-404-3922, take a photo (include dorsal fin if you can) and wait with the animal until help arrives.

Seagrass is returning to the Indian River Lagoon after a decade of punishing algal blooms dropped acreage to record lows. "I wanted to cry," said scientist Lori Morris on seeing lush meadows in Mosquito Lagoon. Catch my story in the May edition of Florida Sportsman mag.

Golden hour at La Chua.

Fish, microplastics, student researchers, museum collections: Researchers studied fish guts from now and decades past to see whether microplastics increased over time. It's a prime example of how natural history collections can help us answer pressing questions. youtu.be/I9A1vJceyEw?...

Florida hurricane evacuees now include corals. Scientists packed up corals in Gulf Coast facilities and sent them to safer havens ahead of major storms, as climate change continues to challenge Florida coral conservation. Still, no one is giving up. My story: www.sierraclub.org/sierra/clima...

GO GATORS

Sunrise on the Suwannee. Where's Winslow Homer when you need him?

This isn't what happened, as @rollingstone.com reports: www.rollingstone.com/music/music-... But relatedly, it should be a magnificent four years for punk. Anti-authoritarian, inclusive, freewheeling -- punk's got it covered.

If you, like me, crave bogs, swamps & islands surrounded by azure waters, feast your eyes on Geena Hill's photos in The Marjorie. Geena took her lens into Florida's wilds to capture its rarest butterflies. Plus: sugar-sweating caterpillars & the ants who love them. themarjorie.org/2024/12/12/f...

Non-nature-y friend: I just saw my first cicada killer and almost had a heart attack. Me: How did you know it was a cicada killer? Friend: I googled big ass wasp

I spent my early twenties in Prague where everyone I knew had grown up under Soviet oppression, and some had watched Russian tanks roll into Wenceslas Square. Now American foreign policy is so aligned with Russian aggression that even the Kremlin approves. Reprehensible.

If you love Florida's wild spaces, but feel dread at how fast they're changing, you're not alone. In Ash Stokes's film "Good Natured," you'll meet Floridians who feel the same and are working for our future. 🌴Tune in to WEDU PBS at 9 p.m. or watch here: www.wedu.org/shows/good-n...

FINALLY saw my bucket list (and very first) Wild American Crocodile!!! Amazing visit to Everglades National Park🐊

Scrub jays are such show-offs! Caught this raucous flock of Florida icons calling and clicking in Brevard County.

I have joined the elite club of iguana-eaters, and the rumors of true: It's delicious. Lean and flavorful, with a delicate chewiness. I paired this South Florida invasive reptile with classic Cuban sides and a spritz of lime. 🦎

Hey! I'm a fourth-generation Floridian writing unexpected conservation stories from my home state, with side quests into archaeology and infectious disease. Thanks for following along, and welcome to the jungle. 🌴