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Kristy Ferraro

@kristymferraro.bsky.social
159 followers 167 following 66 posts

PPFP at UMich, Banting at Memorial, PhD at Yale | ecosystem ecology | conservation ethics | #caribou, #moose, & other #mammal zoogeochemistry | she/her | #dyslexic misspelled posts mine own www.kristymferraro.com

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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
New paper alert! Using GPS collar data and agent based modeling we explore the functional role of migration in elemental distribution, and what happens when animal movement is lost
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
I’m thrilled to share that I have accepted a position as an Assistant Professor at the @umich.edu's School for Environment and Sustainability!
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Check out our new front matter in PNAS where we discuss the importance of ethics education in environmental science and ways universities can incorporate ethics training in thoughtful and meaningful ways!
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Matt Kerr @mattkerr.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Herbivory is a fundamental ecological process; treating it as harm (like recent work has suggested) misinforms conservation decisions about introduced herbivores. conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Reevaluating introduced herbivores in conservation
Click on the article title to read more.
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Jonas Trepel @jonastrepel.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Check out our new letter in Conservation Biology where we argue that (re-)introduced large herbivores are often wrongly framed as harmful because herbivory is automatically equated with ecological damage - overlooking their potential to restore biodiversity and ecosystem functioning.
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Elizabeth Forbes PhD @elizabethforbes.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
@kristymferraro.bsky.social led me, Julia Monk, & @andrewabraham.bsky.social in this *epic* new publication about how large mammals move nutrients around, creating hot spots (and hot moments) of fertility. Give it a read! This one was so fun. 🦌🦬🐘🦙 nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Hot spots or hot moments? Contextualizing the spatio‐temporal scale of research on animal inputs
Mammals play important roles in redistributing elements across ecosystems, concentrating biogeochemical inputs across both space and time. However, research on zoogeochemical inputs is often constrai...
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Individual-based Ecology @ibe.pensoft.net · 20/02/2026
Why do individual differences matter for species survival? 🧬 This is what our latest topical collection - "Individual-based #conservation" is trying to explore 💎 Diamond #OA (No fees for authors or readers) 📅 Deadline: 15 March 2026 Submit your abstract today ⤵️ ibe.pensoft.net/news/1106
ibe.pensoft.net
New topical collection 'Individual-Based Conservation' calls for abstracts
While conservation science often focus on the 'big picture' of populations and ecosystems, the unique traits of the individual are frequently overlooked. To address this, the diamond open-acce...
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
New article @theconversation.com on our paper on storytelling! As scientists, we are storytellers. The way we frame problems—and who is cast as hero or villain—shapes how our work is understood. Being intentional about narratives matters. @gadammeyer.bsky.social tinyurl.com/mnapa25v
theconversation.com
The cost of casting animals as heroes and villains in conservation science
New research shows how these storytelling choices can distort science – and how to move beyond them.
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 04/01/2026
The @britishecologicalsociety.org annual meeting was extra special this year! Thanks again, @aer-ese-bes.bsky.social for the honor.
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Benjamin Larue, Ph.D. @benjaminlarue.bsky.social · 21/12/2025
Nice, accessible overview from WWF on caribou and reindeer and why they matter in a rapidly changing Arctic. It's been great to collaborate with Jan Adamczewski and WWF on caribou research across northern Canada. wwf.ca/stories/fact... #Caribou #Arctic #Conservation
wwf.ca
Same species, different stories: The facts about caribou and reindeer - WWF.CA
Are reindeer and caribou really that different? And what challenges are these deer-like animals facing across the Arctic?
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Cell Press @cellpress.bsky.social · 17/12/2025
Zoogeochemical niche construction: how animal-mediated biogeochemistry affects evolution dlvr.it/TPswWZ @kristymferraro.bsky.social & colleagues @cp-trendsecolevo.bsky.social #AGU25
Criteria for zoogeochemical niche construction.
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
The Reality of Living With Wolves, Bears and Mountain Lions www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/o... Great piece on the challenges of living alongside predators in the US by Kaggie Orrick and team. We gotta support the humans and animals in this fragmented world.
nytimes.com
Opinion | The Reality of Living With Wolves, Bears and Mountain Lions
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
New Hampshire magic
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Excited to announce we're moving to Ann Arbor as I start a Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship at the School for Environment and Sustainability at @umich.edu! What a year it's been in Newfoundland, filled with beautiful wildlife, inspiring shorelines, good science, and great people.
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 03/10/2025
Wonderful visit with Joseph Bump in Newfoundland at @memorialu.bsky.social last week!! Any guesses what Joseph, @gadammeyer.bsky.social, and I talked about??🌲🦌🌲
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Dr Alison Cribb @alisoncribb.bsky.social · 24/09/2025
New in Trends in Ecology & Evolution: 'Earth system engineers' and the cumulative impact of organisms in deep time 🔓 #ecoevo #openaccess www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... A thread 🧵:
sciencedirect.com
‘Earth system engineers’ and the cumulative impact of organisms in deep time
Understanding the role of humans as ‘ecosystem engineers’ requires a deep-time perspective rooted in evolutionary history and the fossil record. Howev…
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
Spent the morning tromping around looking for, and learning about, moose from my favorite moose experts @gadammeyer.bsky.social and Shawn Leroux @memorialu.bsky.social
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Nature Ecology & Evolution @natecoevo.nature.com · 12/09/2025
Direct human actions such as hunting and bird deterrence at aquaculture sites kill up to 10% of the populations of some shorebird species migrating along China’s coast each year, suggesting that this direct mortality is an overlooked threat to migratory populations 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Direct mortality due to humans threatens migratory shorebirds - Nature Ecology & Evolution
Direct human actions such as hunting and bird deterrence at aquaculture sites kill up to 10% of the populations of some shorebird species migrating along China’s coast each year, suggesting that this ...
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 07/09/2025
Rewilding isn't just about restoring ecosystems—it's about building relationships. In our new paper, we highlight how considering the individual and collective relationships among animals and humans in (re)introduction efforts can lead to better rewilding of socio-ecological landscapes.
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American Institute of Biological Sciences @aibsbiology.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
🎙️ Just published a new episode of BioScience Talks: Science Storytelling, with Kristy Ferraro and Adam Meyer. Have a listen:
share.transistor.fm
Science Storytelling, with Kristy Ferraro and Adam Meyer
For this episode of BioScience Talks, we were joined by Dr. Kristy...
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 21/08/2025
Animals don’t just live in their environments—they transform them. And in doing so, they may also shape their own evolutionary trajectories. Our new paper in Trends in Ecology & Evolution introduces a framework for zoogeochemical niche construction. A thread 👇
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Jon Gewirtzman @jgewirtzman.bsky.social · 06/08/2025
So fun to be featured on this week’s @naturepodcast.bsky.social talking about the tree microbiome and could not be more thrilled to be following a story on rubber ducks.
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
Stories and science, oh my! Thanks @aibsbiology.bsky.social for hosting @gadammeyer.bsky.social and I to chat about our new paper in BioScience! We talk about narratives in science and provide tools for creative storytelling in ecology and conservation. Have a listen!
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Adam Meyer @gadammeyer.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
And it's out! I had an absolute blast chatting about the power of narrative in science reporting with @kristymferraro.bsky.social and James Verdier. We unpack the hero-villain trope in ecology and conservation and explore better narratives that build and resolve tension without creating a villain.
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Janey Lienau @janey-lienau.bsky.social · 15/07/2025
Excited to share our workshop paper on tools for monitoring belowground restoration! doi.org/10.1093/bios.... Amazing job Laura Toro and Leland Werden leading the group!
doi.org
Integrating belowground recovery into tropical forest restoration design and monitoring
Abstract. There is growing recognition that tropical forest restoration is key for sequestering carbon and enhancing ecosystem resilience. Soils, roots, an
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 11/07/2025
New Scottish field site loading…
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 06/07/2025
Newfoundland in summer is magic.
Baby humpback jumping out of the water.
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
We often lean on heroes and villains to make sense of the world—but nature rarely fits that mold. Our paper in @aibsbiology.bsky.social looks at the hero-villain trope in ecology & conservation, and offers ways to tell richer, more honest stories. @gadammeyer.bsky.social doi.org/10.1093/bios...
doi.org
Beyond hero and villain narratives in ecology and conservation science
Abstract. Storytelling is an essential part of science writing. To craft compelling stories, scientists are taught to think of their variables as character
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Journal of Animal Ecology @animalecology.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
The Journal of Animal Ecology's 5th Sidnie Manton award is now open to proposals!🚨 Read more about the award here: buff.ly/BV6OT1P ...and submit your proposal here: buff.ly/YsnYe29 The deadline for proposals will be 1 September 2025.
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
I'm delighted to join the team of scientists seeking to provide a venue for agent-based modeling in ecology and conservation. Send us your models! We can't wait to read all about 'em.
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Arctic Science Journal @arcticsciencej.bsky.social · 19/06/2025
Emerging priorities in terrestrial herbivory research in the Arctic 🔗 buff.ly/CwYM6CV Barrio et al.
buff.ly
Herbivores are an integral part of Arctic terrestrial ecosystems, driving ecosystem functioning and sustaining local livelihoods.
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Elizabeth Forbes PhD @elizabethforbes.bsky.social · 13/06/2025
Worked with Dr. @kristymferraro.bsky.social, Tony Ferraro, and Dr. Julia Monk on animal welfare in zoos! Big takeaway for me in the process: interrogate whether we're talking individual care, or population care -- a critical difference when it comes to decision making. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
pnas.org
Outdated reproductive norms, the naturalistic fallacy, and misunderstandings of welfare in recent call for zoo breed-and-feed programs | PNAS
Outdated reproductive norms, the naturalistic fallacy, and misunderstandings of welfare in recent call for zoo breed-and-feed programs
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 11/06/2025
When your PhD besties make it to your field site 🥰🥰🥰 @memorialu.bsky.social @yaleforestry.bsky.social
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 06/06/2025
Science white boarding while with the team in the field 🥰
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 04/06/2025
Trade offs in conservation are hard - but maybe ethics committees could help! Check out this paper I got to work on with a super interdisciplinary group.
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 28/05/2025
We often ask how does a species affect an ecosystem. But what about all of them—together? Our new framework predicts how animals of all shapes and sizes act within their communities to influence elemental distribution on landscapes. w/ Janey Lienau @ecography.bsky.social doi.org/10.1002/ecog...
nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Of all shapes and sizes: a theoretical framework for animal‐mediated terrestrial heterogeneity across scales
Animals redistribute elements throughout their lives by depositing wastes and carcasses. Growing evidence shows that these zoogeochemical processes enhance landscape diversity and heterogeneity world...
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 22/05/2025
Check out the research priorities for our most northern herbivores! 🦌 Such a cool experience to get to contribute to this effort! Thanks @icbarrio.bsky.social for fearlessly leading.
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 13/05/2025
New paper out! We examine the use, and frequent misuse, of the term 'ecosystem services' in ecology and conservation, especially when describing the roles of animals and ecological processes in ecosystem function.
 With @anthonyferraro.bsky.social, Erick Lundgren, & Nathalie Sommer. 🧵
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
I’m absolutely honored to win a prize named after such a bold advocate for wildlife. Thank you @aer-ese-bes.bsky.social, @britishecologicalsociety.org, and my fantastic collaborator on this work Chris Hirst! 🦌
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 20/03/2025
I’m delighted to be shortlisted for a prize that honors such an impactful ecologist! This was a super fun paper I did with another ECR, Chris Hirst, and we loved getting to show the power of using open-source, government-sponsored data from @naturescot.bsky.social. Thx @jappliedecology.bsky.social!
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Kristy Ferraro @kristymferraro.bsky.social · 16/03/2025
Winter field work in Newfoundland 💙🤍🦌
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