When I revisited ocelot conservation in Texas recently, five years after my initial article, my first reaction was “has it come to this?” I didn’t just mean for ocelots. I meant for wildlife conservation in general. That’s because back in the day, when I started my career, biodiversity protection focused on creating protected areas and saving habitat. Habitat loss had supplanted indiscriminate killing as the … Continue reading How far we’ve come. Sadly.
(A version of this story first appeared in Santa Fean magazine in the summer of 2021. Since then, New Mexico has experienced the largest wildfire in the state’s history, at one point approaching the small town of El Rito where the Raptor Center is located. Director Lori Paras told me she had to evacuate all the birds from the center while the fire raged. While … Continue reading High Hopes at the Santa Fe Raptor Center
(A version of this article first appeared in Santa Fean magazine in December 2020. Although it focuses on where to view bighorn sheep in Northern New Mexico, it includes some fascinating facts about Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep that should interest any wildlife lover. It’s part of my SouthWest Wild series.) And you thought you had it hard this winter. Quarantine is no picnic, but it … Continue reading Big horns, big viewing
(Tarantulas live throughout the Southwest. But where do they go during our cold high altitude winters? I wrote this piece for Santa Fean magazine, where it first appeared in October 2020. It’s part of my SouthWest Wild series) New Mexicans are used to seeing tarantulas on roadways and trails in the early fall, when males leave the safety of their burrows on a grueling march … Continue reading What happens to tarantulas in winter?
I moved to New Mexico for my health. Well, that was the proximate reason. No, I don’t have tuberculosis (like so many in the 19th century who moved to the American Southwest did). Instead, several years ago I developed a severe mold sensitivity and an autoimmune condition. The combination was debilitating at times, and my doctors warned me that my conditions made me more susceptible … Continue reading An open invitation to America’s open spaces: An interview with journalist Hal Herring for the American Conservation Film Festival
