About Me

Growing Up in the Woods

I grew up in northern Minnesota and did a lot of exploring. Many times I’d get turned around in the woods after chasing snowshoe hares, ruffed grouse, or deer, which led me away from my mother’s locating calls…big trouble. I enjoyed the escape and stillness of the big woods.

One of my most vivid memories as a kid was a large ephemeral pond in the woods behind my playhouse. I would lay on my stomach and stare into the pool of water, intently watching all of the aquatic creatures and their interactions. The smell of peat and the cool, dim air of the woods had such a calming effect.

During mid-summer the pond would shrink so I would try to save the home of my little friends. Several days a week I would fill ice cream buckets with water to extend the life of the pond and those swimming in it. Safegarding my aquatic pets went on for a few summers.

It wasn’t until middle school that I realized the horror of my actions. The watery friends, who numbered likely in the thousands, were the larvae of Mosquitoes!

Mosquitoes were an inspiration.

The awe of mosquitoe lavae and everything else I’d find in the woods, steered my career path to biology. I had fantastic teachers growing up, especially in the sciences. I am grateful to have opportunities to give back to the teaching community through my education work.

Outdoors with my family is life.

I am probably the worst person to go hiking with if your only goal is to get from point A to B on the trail map. Thankfully, I have a wife and kids that share my obsession with nature, taking our time off-trail to find the wild flowers, fungus, and critter in the woods or on the prairie.

Nature is amazing.

I never lost my sense of wonder for the natural world and love sharing my excitement to those around me. Finding the first reptile and amphibian in the spring is an exciting event for us. Also we travel to places at particular times of the year to see our favorite woodland or prairie flowers.

We have an ectothermic zoo.

The diversity of life has found its way into our home. We have many terrariums in our home containing fish, arachnids, frogs, salamanders, geckos, and multiple species of snakes. I currently breed one of the only two native boas in North America – Charina bottae, which have their own page. Our two cats keep watch over all the poikilotherms at night.

I live to learn.

A career in science allows me to be at the forefront of discovery, which is an amazing place. Sharing in this experience was a major motivation for this website. I have more to say so please go check out the rest of the site.

All the Best,

Zack