Many of the photos on this site, especially the spectacular images of African species, were taken by my father-in-law, Geo Jooste. Geo puts an incredible amount of time and effort into his photography and he has graciously given me permission to use his photos on this site for educational and illustrative purposes. Please respect that these photos are not to be used for any other personal or commercial purposes.
Dr. Justin Boyles
Hunting with my buddy Klaas in the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge in the Sandhills of Nebraska.
I’m a PhD-level ecologist and conservation biologist. My research covers a wide range of topics from conservation physiology to ecosystem services of natural systems. Importantly, I strictly avoid researching species I hunt, so I've never worked directly on game species. That means I have staked no scientific positions on most of the topics you'll read about on this site and have the scientific freedom to evaluate the papers and ideas free of biases that come with years of research on a topic. That said, most of my research is highly relevant to the topics I'll discuss, so I know both the management literature and the wider ecological literature very well. In addition to my research, I teach upper-level university classes on ecology, mammals, wildlife management, and how science works and when it doesn't.
I’ve worked collaboratively with state and federal management agencies for over 20 years and have worked as an environmental consultant to verify that industry is following relevant environmental laws. I lived and conducted biological research in South Africa for two and a half years, and taught courses on African mammals at a major university while there. I even married a very talented and beautiful South African biologist whose expertise lies in carnivores and ecotoxicology. I’ve collaborated on conservation projects with non-governmental organizations both large and small. In many ways, I'm an insider in the conversation community. If you're curious about my scientific chops, you can find my publications on my Google Scholar page.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly to some of you, I'm also an avid hunter. I grew up in the rural Midwest and was hunting and fishing before I was five years old. Now, I spend months each year in the pursuit of pheasants, grouse, deer, and turkeys. Most notably, I love traveling the United States with my Dad to hunt birds over my German shorthaired pointer, Klaas.
The goal of this site is to provide a unique, science-forward look at the intersection of science and hunting. I'll cover some of the traditional management literature directly related to game species, but I won't lean too heavily into that body of literature because, frankly, much of it represents really bad science. You won't find any hunting tips on this site either. There are plenty of sites doing that. Instead, you'll find my professional impressions of both the positive and negative impacts of hunting on natural ecosystems. I'll approach these topics as an ecologist who hunts, not a hunter who happens to be a biologist. This will lead to a distinct perspective from the one you find among most wildlife biologists who work directly on game species. While that might be the voice you are most accustomed to hearing from the scientific community, only a tiny proportion of all biologists work on game species. I'll come at this topic from a more generalist scientific worldview than you might find elsewhere. I'll present the material much like I would for upper-level students in my classes. Don't expect watered down, online-news-type articles about these complex topics. I'm always open to suggestions. If there is a scientific topic related to hunting you would like me to address, please contact me with the form below.
I’ve worked collaboratively with state and federal management agencies for over 20 years and have worked as an environmental consultant to verify that industry is following relevant environmental laws. I lived and conducted biological research in South Africa for two and a half years, and taught courses on African mammals at a major university while there. I even married a very talented and beautiful South African biologist whose expertise lies in carnivores and ecotoxicology. I’ve collaborated on conservation projects with non-governmental organizations both large and small. In many ways, I'm an insider in the conversation community. If you're curious about my scientific chops, you can find my publications on my Google Scholar page.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly to some of you, I'm also an avid hunter. I grew up in the rural Midwest and was hunting and fishing before I was five years old. Now, I spend months each year in the pursuit of pheasants, grouse, deer, and turkeys. Most notably, I love traveling the United States with my Dad to hunt birds over my German shorthaired pointer, Klaas.
The goal of this site is to provide a unique, science-forward look at the intersection of science and hunting. I'll cover some of the traditional management literature directly related to game species, but I won't lean too heavily into that body of literature because, frankly, much of it represents really bad science. You won't find any hunting tips on this site either. There are plenty of sites doing that. Instead, you'll find my professional impressions of both the positive and negative impacts of hunting on natural ecosystems. I'll approach these topics as an ecologist who hunts, not a hunter who happens to be a biologist. This will lead to a distinct perspective from the one you find among most wildlife biologists who work directly on game species. While that might be the voice you are most accustomed to hearing from the scientific community, only a tiny proportion of all biologists work on game species. I'll come at this topic from a more generalist scientific worldview than you might find elsewhere. I'll present the material much like I would for upper-level students in my classes. Don't expect watered down, online-news-type articles about these complex topics. I'm always open to suggestions. If there is a scientific topic related to hunting you would like me to address, please contact me with the form below.
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Have a question or topic you would like to see addressed on the site? Contact me using this form. |