Do you
what it was like to climb a tree or catch fireflies as a kid? Born in the small mountain town of Salida, Colorado and raised in the midwest, I caught my first snake when I was six, cloned paramecia at 14, published science papers while an undergrad...
...and just
Storyteller
First and foremost I am a storyteller... the fact is, I believe life is about telling stories. Some of my stories concern my own research. Others are the discoveries of other scientists. My favorite stories come from remote parts of the earth and often have not been told before...
These require I use my wits to survive... eating scorpions, rats, spiders, and beetle grubs with the native peoples of five continents... ascending trees to escape elephants...
... discovering an Aztec burial chamber populated with blind cave tarantulas... tracking down a frog so lethal, its touch can kill... using blowguns to defend against drug lords...
... accidentally sitting on the deadliest snake of the Americas, a fer-de-lance.
The cartoon of this event, below, was published in the National Geographic...
I grew up to be an ecologist with a passion for science, exploration, writing, and photography ...one of a lucky few to receive a doctorate under the poet of conservation Edward O. Wilson, who was kind to speak about me on CSPAN.
In 2009 was able to return the favor by presenting Ed with a sculpture based on one of my photographs as a special award from the Explorers Club (at left). Read my tribute to Ed here.