Writing Portfolio

Conservation Science and Nature Writing–

Tears for Crocodilia: Evolution, Ecology and the Disappearance of one of the World’s Most Ancient Animals. This is my full length narrative non-fiction book published by Westholme Publishing. The work combines firsthand narrative elements with interviews and research analysis. The focus is on the natural history of crocodilians from ancient fossil forms to living animals. I also discuss deeply the relationship of humans with crocodilians from mythology to research and conservation. The book is intended as not only a window into the world of crocodilians but as a commentary on human-wildlife relations. Published 5/2022

Earth.com  I’m a regular contributor to earth.com where I write about nature, science, the outdoors and environmentalism. Topics range from those I’ve pitched myself on conflicts over Bear’s Ears National Monument, outdoor sports and dogs to those assigned to me on health, technology, climate change and more. Published 2017-2022

Nepal’s Gharials Deserve Attention and Protection (Commentary) This is a commentary based on my experiences with gharials in Nepal as well as analysis of scientific research written for Mongabay.com. Published 2/16/2022

Vazaha is Malagasy for ‘Gringo’ An article about my time in Madagascar and issues with conservation and neocolonialism, written for Mongabay.com. Published 5/14/2014

Drill Baby Drill An article about my time in Equatorial Guinea, Drill Monkeys and their conservation written for Mongabay.com. Published 5/2/2013

The Hawaiian Silversword An article I wrote on assignment as an intern at Mongabay.com about an endangered Hawaiian plant. Published 5/6/2013

Crazy Cat Numbers An article I wrote on Jaguar conservation as an intern at Mongabay.com. Published 5/15/2013

Parrots of the Caribbean An article about my time working with Cuban Amazons in the Bahamas for Mongabay.com. Published 10/8/2012

Caves: Breeding Grounds for the Strangest Creatures An article I wrote for Bug Club kids magazine, springing from my experience on a few cave biology expeditions in Arizona and Colorado. Published 2015

Lost Worlds Restored An article about fossil casting and museum exhibits in Tasmania I wrote for Tasmanian Geographic. Published 4/2/2015

The Birds of Middleton Island  This is a freelance piece I wrote about my experience as a field biology intern on Alaska’s remote Middleton Island, for Alaska Magazine. Unfortunately it’s unavailable to read online. Published 9/2015

Adventure and Travel Writing-

Adventure Pro Thru-hiking articles – I wrote a pair of articles for Colorado based Adventure Pro magazine about Erin’s thru-hike of the Arizona Trail and the experience of supporting her hike while living in a camper van. Published 9-10/2021

In Search of Gharials in Nepal– I wrote this piece for The Desert Leaf about my experience traveling to Nepal and observing gharials, which was also part of the work for researching my book, Tears for Crocodilia. Published 9/2021

The Business of Working with Fossils – This was the cover article for The Desert Leaf written about the fossil business and specifically working for a paleontology company selling at the Tucson fossil and gem show. This work was largely informed by my experience in the industry. Published 2/2020

Life in a Van – I wrote a piece, (illustrated largely by Erin’s photography) for The Desert Leaf, a local Tucson AZ magazine. The article is about traveling and living in a van as Erin and I did for about a year and a half.  Published 2/2019

Pet & Animal Writing-

Horsin’ Around: TRAK – This is an example of the writing I did when I was for a short period, a staff writing for the Tucson Dog, an animal publication based out of Tucson, Arizona. Unfortunately, moving out of state made it impossible to maintain this job. This piece was written on assignment about the Therapeutic Ranch for Animals and Kids (TRAK) in Tucson. Published 1/11/2018

In The Borderlands – This is an article I wrote for The Bark, a dog magazine. The piece is about respecting wildness in dogs and is also related to the experience Erin and I had with free roaming dogs while co-managing a nature reserve in Ecuador. Published 10/2017

Fiction-

The Poacher A short fiction story I wrote about violence, neocolonialism, wildlife and conservation in an un-named west African nation. The story is fiction but loosely based around actual events. Published 3/2015