Kristy Ferraro
kristymferraro.bsky.social
Kristy Ferraro
@kristymferraro.bsky.social
Presidential Postdoc at the University of Michigan , PhD at Yale | ecosystem ecology | conservation ethics | #caribou, #moose, & other #mammal zoogeochemistry | she/her | #dyslexic misspelled posts mine own

www.kristymferraro.com
Pinned
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 👇
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.
Opinion | The Reality of Living With Wolves, Bears and Mountain Lions
www.nytimes.com
October 30, 2025 at 1:46 PM
New Hampshire magic
October 20, 2025 at 3:03 AM
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.
October 10, 2025 at 11:46 AM
Wonderful visit with Joseph Bump in Newfoundland at @memorialu.bsky.social last week!! Any guesses what Joseph, @gadammeyer.bsky.social, and I talked about??🌲🦌🌲
October 3, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
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 🧵:
‘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…
www.sciencedirect.com
September 24, 2025 at 8:55 AM
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
September 18, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
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...
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 ...
www.nature.com
September 12, 2025 at 8:55 AM
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.
September 7, 2025 at 9:37 PM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
🎙️ Just published a new episode of BioScience Talks: Science Storytelling, with Kristy Ferraro and Adam Meyer. Have a listen:
Science Storytelling, with Kristy Ferraro and Adam Meyer
For this episode of BioScience Talks, we were joined by Dr. Kristy...
share.transistor.fm
July 16, 2025 at 4:20 PM
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 👇
August 21, 2025 at 5:40 PM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
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.
This week on the pod 🔊

🦆 Researchers develop a new glue and test it on a rubber duck
🦠 The diversity of microbes within living trees

go.nature.com/41tMU3B
Underwater glue shows its sticking power in rubber duck test
Hear the biggest stories from the world of science | 06 August 2025
go.nature.com
August 6, 2025 at 9:50 PM
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!
July 16, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
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.
July 16, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
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!
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
doi.org
July 15, 2025 at 1:18 PM
New Scottish field site loading…
July 11, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Newfoundland in summer is magic.
July 6, 2025 at 10:18 AM
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...
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
doi.org
June 30, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
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.
June 30, 2025 at 1:00 PM
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.
June 25, 2025 at 11:51 AM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
Emerging priorities in terrestrial herbivory research in the Arctic

🔗 buff.ly/CwYM6CV
Barrio et al.
Herbivores are an integral part of Arctic terrestrial ecosystems, driving ecosystem functioning and sustaining local livelihoods.
buff.ly
June 19, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Reposted by Kristy Ferraro
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/...
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
www.pnas.org
June 13, 2025 at 7:57 PM
When your PhD besties make it to your field site 🥰🥰🥰

@memorialu.bsky.social @yaleforestry.bsky.social
June 11, 2025 at 1:49 AM
Science white boarding while with the team in the field 🥰
June 6, 2025 at 1:53 AM
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.
June 4, 2025 at 1:08 AM
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...
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...
nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
May 28, 2025 at 11:26 AM