Robert MacArthur died at the age of 42, leaving a legacy of brilliant theory and cogent observation of nature. In his book on evolutionary ecology, Laurence Mueller credits MacArthur as being one of the founders of the field, an extraordinary achievement for such a short life. The book is part of a series on conceptual… (read more)
On December 20, 2022, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework was agreed to by 196 countries. The secretary-general of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, called it “a peace pact with nature”. As we have discussed elsewhere on this blog, biodiversity is the variety of life around us and an important key to our happiness. I would… (read more)
Spare a thought for the members of the IPBES – the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. We have talked about them before in this blog. While their more famous colleaues on the IPCC – the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – garner continuing headlines, the IPBES languish in obscurity despite the detailed… (read more)
Canadians are passionate about the maple leaf. This is curious since, as a plant species, the sugar maple is not representative of the country. In fact, maples, in their various forms, are common throughout the northern hemisphere. So, why Canada? Sugar maples are a common hardwood along the shores of the St. Lawrence River, where… (read more)
During the COVID-19 outbreak, I will be posting information and hosting discussions related to my work with the Parks Canada Agency. The lack of access to internal documents makes this interim measure necessary. The information shared here is not classified. The opinions expressed do not represent those of the Government of Canada. Well-considered thresholds in… (read more)
During the COVID-19 outbreak, I will be posting information and hosting discussions related to my work with the Parks Canada Agency. The lack of access to internal documents makes this interim measure necessary. The information shared here is not classified. The opinions expressed do not represent those of the Government of Canada. One of the… (read more)
My wife and I wrap cheese when we put it into our lunchbags. I use plastic and she uses waxpaper. As the waxpaper is at least twice as thick as the low density polyethylene in my lunch bag, I initially create a smaller waste burden in our local landfill. Of course, over time, the waxpaper… (read more)
Mosses stay close to the ground. Their humble habit belies their importance to evolution and ecology. For one thing, they have been on the banner of this blog right from the beginning. I think I instictively chose mosses as the essential combination of biology and physical geography that underpins all the topics dealt with in these… (read more)
Saving a planet is a complex business. World government is already a tricky concept but when you layer that over with the inability of ecosystems to speak for themselves and the concentration of biodiversity near the equator -far from centres of economic and political power- you get a process that has many actors and little… (read more)
E.O. Wilson, a Harvard ecologist, has never shied from controversy. His latest bold statement is found in the title of his most recent book, “Half Earth“, an argument for conserving a substantial portion of the landscape for natural systems to function properly. Previously, we have discussed the early estimates of the percentage of land required for… (read more)
