Roy Averill-Murray
@rav-murray.bsky.social
I am a herpetologist/wildlife biologist who worked primarily on desert tortoises for 32 years, the last 18 as Desert Tortoise Recovery Coordinator for the US Fish and Wildlife Service. I retired early and moved to Ecuador.
Andean Bear from Maquipucuna Reaerve. 🇪🇨
November 19, 2025 at 2:51 AM
Andean Bear from Maquipucuna Reaerve. 🇪🇨
Espadarana prosoblepon from Mindo, 🇪🇨.
July 21, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Espadarana prosoblepon from Mindo, 🇪🇨.
Neva is very vocal when someone rings the bell and while she waits to see who's coming to visit her.
June 16, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Neva is very vocal when someone rings the bell and while she waits to see who's coming to visit her.
Feliz Día de las Madres para todas las mamás de hijos de cuatro patas.
May 11, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Feliz Día de las Madres para todas las mamás de hijos de cuatro patas.
19) Be a patriot
Set a good example of what America means for the generations to come. They will need it. (In contrast, “A nationalist encourages us to be our worst, and then tells us that we are the best.”)
20) Be as courageous as you can
Set a good example of what America means for the generations to come. They will need it. (In contrast, “A nationalist encourages us to be our worst, and then tells us that we are the best.”)
20) Be as courageous as you can
April 2, 2025 at 3:24 AM
19) Be a patriot
Set a good example of what America means for the generations to come. They will need it. (In contrast, “A nationalist encourages us to be our worst, and then tells us that we are the best.”)
20) Be as courageous as you can
Set a good example of what America means for the generations to come. They will need it. (In contrast, “A nationalist encourages us to be our worst, and then tells us that we are the best.”)
20) Be as courageous as you can
18) Be calm when the unthinkable arrives
Modern tyranny is terror management. When the terrorist attack comes, remember that authoritarians exploit such events in order to consolidate power. The sudden disaster that requires the end of checks and balances, the dissolution of opposition parties, …
Modern tyranny is terror management. When the terrorist attack comes, remember that authoritarians exploit such events in order to consolidate power. The sudden disaster that requires the end of checks and balances, the dissolution of opposition parties, …
April 1, 2025 at 1:00 AM
18) Be calm when the unthinkable arrives
Modern tyranny is terror management. When the terrorist attack comes, remember that authoritarians exploit such events in order to consolidate power. The sudden disaster that requires the end of checks and balances, the dissolution of opposition parties, …
Modern tyranny is terror management. When the terrorist attack comes, remember that authoritarians exploit such events in order to consolidate power. The sudden disaster that requires the end of checks and balances, the dissolution of opposition parties, …
#17 Listen for dangerous words
Be alert to the use of the words extremism and terrorism. Be alive to the fatal notions of emergency and exception. Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.
Be alert to the use of the words extremism and terrorism. Be alive to the fatal notions of emergency and exception. Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.
March 18, 2025 at 9:29 PM
#17 Listen for dangerous words
Be alert to the use of the words extremism and terrorism. Be alive to the fatal notions of emergency and exception. Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.
Be alert to the use of the words extremism and terrorism. Be alive to the fatal notions of emergency and exception. Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.
#16 Learn from peers in other countries
Keep up your friendships abroad, or make new friends in other countries. The present difficulties in the United States are an element of a larger trend. And no country is going to find a solution by itself. Make sure you and your family have passports.
Keep up your friendships abroad, or make new friends in other countries. The present difficulties in the United States are an element of a larger trend. And no country is going to find a solution by itself. Make sure you and your family have passports.
March 17, 2025 at 3:49 AM
#16 Learn from peers in other countries
Keep up your friendships abroad, or make new friends in other countries. The present difficulties in the United States are an element of a larger trend. And no country is going to find a solution by itself. Make sure you and your family have passports.
Keep up your friendships abroad, or make new friends in other countries. The present difficulties in the United States are an element of a larger trend. And no country is going to find a solution by itself. Make sure you and your family have passports.
#15 Contribute to good causes
Be active in organizations, political or not, that express your own view of life. Pick a charity or two and set up autopay. Then you will have made a free choice that supports civil society and helps others to do good.
Be active in organizations, political or not, that express your own view of life. Pick a charity or two and set up autopay. Then you will have made a free choice that supports civil society and helps others to do good.
March 16, 2025 at 3:48 AM
#15 Contribute to good causes
Be active in organizations, political or not, that express your own view of life. Pick a charity or two and set up autopay. Then you will have made a free choice that supports civil society and helps others to do good.
Be active in organizations, political or not, that express your own view of life. Pick a charity or two and set up autopay. Then you will have made a free choice that supports civil society and helps others to do good.
#14 Establish a private life
Nastier rulers will use what they know about you to push you around. Scrub your computer of malware on a regular basis. Remember that email is skywriting. Consider using alternative forms of the internet, or simply using it less. Have personal exchanges in person.
Nastier rulers will use what they know about you to push you around. Scrub your computer of malware on a regular basis. Remember that email is skywriting. Consider using alternative forms of the internet, or simply using it less. Have personal exchanges in person.
March 11, 2025 at 2:49 AM
#14 Establish a private life
Nastier rulers will use what they know about you to push you around. Scrub your computer of malware on a regular basis. Remember that email is skywriting. Consider using alternative forms of the internet, or simply using it less. Have personal exchanges in person.
Nastier rulers will use what they know about you to push you around. Scrub your computer of malware on a regular basis. Remember that email is skywriting. Consider using alternative forms of the internet, or simply using it less. Have personal exchanges in person.
#13 Practice corporeal politics
Power wants your body softening in your chair and your emotions dissipating on the screen. Get outside. Put your body in unfamiliar places with unfamiliar people. Make new friends and march with them.
Power wants your body softening in your chair and your emotions dissipating on the screen. Get outside. Put your body in unfamiliar places with unfamiliar people. Make new friends and march with them.
March 9, 2025 at 3:01 AM
#13 Practice corporeal politics
Power wants your body softening in your chair and your emotions dissipating on the screen. Get outside. Put your body in unfamiliar places with unfamiliar people. Make new friends and march with them.
Power wants your body softening in your chair and your emotions dissipating on the screen. Get outside. Put your body in unfamiliar places with unfamiliar people. Make new friends and march with them.
#12 Make eye contact and small talk
This is not just polite. It is part of being a citizen and a responsible member of society. It is also a way to stay in touch with your surroundings, break down social barriers, and understand whom you should and should not trust.
This is not just polite. It is part of being a citizen and a responsible member of society. It is also a way to stay in touch with your surroundings, break down social barriers, and understand whom you should and should not trust.
March 8, 2025 at 3:15 AM
#12 Make eye contact and small talk
This is not just polite. It is part of being a citizen and a responsible member of society. It is also a way to stay in touch with your surroundings, break down social barriers, and understand whom you should and should not trust.
This is not just polite. It is part of being a citizen and a responsible member of society. It is also a way to stay in touch with your surroundings, break down social barriers, and understand whom you should and should not trust.
#11 Investigate
Figure things out for yourself. Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media. Realize that some of what is on the internet is there to harm you. Learn about sites that investigate propaganda campaigns. Take responsibility for what you communicate with others.
Figure things out for yourself. Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media. Realize that some of what is on the internet is there to harm you. Learn about sites that investigate propaganda campaigns. Take responsibility for what you communicate with others.
March 7, 2025 at 3:59 AM
#11 Investigate
Figure things out for yourself. Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media. Realize that some of what is on the internet is there to harm you. Learn about sites that investigate propaganda campaigns. Take responsibility for what you communicate with others.
Figure things out for yourself. Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media. Realize that some of what is on the internet is there to harm you. Learn about sites that investigate propaganda campaigns. Take responsibility for what you communicate with others.
#10 Believe in truth
You submit to tyranny when you renounce the difference between what you want to hear and what is actually the case.
You submit to tyranny when you renounce the difference between what you want to hear and what is actually the case.
March 4, 2025 at 8:34 PM
#10 Believe in truth
You submit to tyranny when you renounce the difference between what you want to hear and what is actually the case.
You submit to tyranny when you renounce the difference between what you want to hear and what is actually the case.
#9 Be kind to our language
Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying.
When we repeat the same words and phrases that appear in the daily media, we accept the absence of a larger framework.
Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying.
When we repeat the same words and phrases that appear in the daily media, we accept the absence of a larger framework.
March 4, 2025 at 8:33 PM
#9 Be kind to our language
Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying.
When we repeat the same words and phrases that appear in the daily media, we accept the absence of a larger framework.
Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying.
When we repeat the same words and phrases that appear in the daily media, we accept the absence of a larger framework.
The first volume of The Encyclopedia of the Amphibians of Ecuador is now available. It was cool attending the launch party at Wikiri Sapoparque.
#ecology 🌎 🇪🇨
#ecology 🌎 🇪🇨
March 2, 2025 at 7:13 PM
The first volume of The Encyclopedia of the Amphibians of Ecuador is now available. It was cool attending the launch party at Wikiri Sapoparque.
#ecology 🌎 🇪🇨
#ecology 🌎 🇪🇨
#7 Be reflective if you must be armed
#8 Stand out
Influential Americans such as Charles Lindbergh opposed war with the Nazis under the slogan “America First.”
#8 Stand out
Influential Americans such as Charles Lindbergh opposed war with the Nazis under the slogan “America First.”
February 25, 2025 at 6:36 PM
#7 Be reflective if you must be armed
#8 Stand out
Influential Americans such as Charles Lindbergh opposed war with the Nazis under the slogan “America First.”
#8 Stand out
Influential Americans such as Charles Lindbergh opposed war with the Nazis under the slogan “America First.”
#6 Be wary of paramilitaries
“For violence to transform not just the atmosphere but also the system, the emotions of rallies and insurrections and the ideology of exclusion have to be incorporated into the training of armed guards.”
“For violence to transform not just the atmosphere but also the system, the emotions of rallies and insurrections and the ideology of exclusion have to be incorporated into the training of armed guards.”
February 25, 2025 at 2:50 AM
#6 Be wary of paramilitaries
“For violence to transform not just the atmosphere but also the system, the emotions of rallies and insurrections and the ideology of exclusion have to be incorporated into the training of armed guards.”
“For violence to transform not just the atmosphere but also the system, the emotions of rallies and insurrections and the ideology of exclusion have to be incorporated into the training of armed guards.”
#5 Remember professional ethics
“If members of professions think of themselves as groups with… norms & rules that oblige them at all times, then they can gain confidence & indeed a certain kind of power. Professional ethics must guide us precisely when we are told that the situation is exceptional.”
“If members of professions think of themselves as groups with… norms & rules that oblige them at all times, then they can gain confidence & indeed a certain kind of power. Professional ethics must guide us precisely when we are told that the situation is exceptional.”
February 23, 2025 at 5:38 PM
#5 Remember professional ethics
“If members of professions think of themselves as groups with… norms & rules that oblige them at all times, then they can gain confidence & indeed a certain kind of power. Professional ethics must guide us precisely when we are told that the situation is exceptional.”
“If members of professions think of themselves as groups with… norms & rules that oblige them at all times, then they can gain confidence & indeed a certain kind of power. Professional ethics must guide us precisely when we are told that the situation is exceptional.”
#4 Take responsibility for the face of the world
“You might one day be offered the opportunity to display symbols of loyalty. Make sure that such symbols include your fellow citizens rather than exclude them.”
“You might one day be offered the opportunity to display symbols of loyalty. Make sure that such symbols include your fellow citizens rather than exclude them.”
February 22, 2025 at 11:54 PM
#4 Take responsibility for the face of the world
“You might one day be offered the opportunity to display symbols of loyalty. Make sure that such symbols include your fellow citizens rather than exclude them.”
“You might one day be offered the opportunity to display symbols of loyalty. Make sure that such symbols include your fellow citizens rather than exclude them.”
#3 Beware the one-party state
“We believe that we have checks and balances, but have rarely faced a situation like the present: when the less popular of the two parties suppresses voting, claims fraud when it loses elections, and controls the majority of statehouses.”
“We believe that we have checks and balances, but have rarely faced a situation like the present: when the less popular of the two parties suppresses voting, claims fraud when it loses elections, and controls the majority of statehouses.”
February 22, 2025 at 10:40 AM
#3 Beware the one-party state
“We believe that we have checks and balances, but have rarely faced a situation like the present: when the less popular of the two parties suppresses voting, claims fraud when it loses elections, and controls the majority of statehouses.”
“We believe that we have checks and balances, but have rarely faced a situation like the present: when the less popular of the two parties suppresses voting, claims fraud when it loses elections, and controls the majority of statehouses.”
2) Defend institutions
“The mistake is to assume that rulers who came to power through institutions cannot change or destroy those very institutions—even when that is exactly what they have announced that they will do.”
“The mistake is to assume that rulers who came to power through institutions cannot change or destroy those very institutions—even when that is exactly what they have announced that they will do.”
February 21, 2025 at 5:48 PM
2) Defend institutions
“The mistake is to assume that rulers who came to power through institutions cannot change or destroy those very institutions—even when that is exactly what they have announced that they will do.”
“The mistake is to assume that rulers who came to power through institutions cannot change or destroy those very institutions—even when that is exactly what they have announced that they will do.”
#1 Do not obey in advance.
February 21, 2025 at 3:48 AM
#1 Do not obey in advance.
This is only Laurie's second drawing (in progress), but I think she's doing really well. Her first one is hanging in our living room.
February 18, 2025 at 3:47 PM
This is only Laurie's second drawing (in progress), but I think she's doing really well. Her first one is hanging in our living room.
It's difficult to enjoy the evening while at the same time hearing from friends and former colleagues how much wanton destruction and pain trump is causing that will be felt by the entire country for years to come, but we did have an amazing dinner at CATS in Cumbayá.
February 15, 2025 at 10:33 AM
It's difficult to enjoy the evening while at the same time hearing from friends and former colleagues how much wanton destruction and pain trump is causing that will be felt by the entire country for years to come, but we did have an amazing dinner at CATS in Cumbayá.