Video

Playful Manatee Family and Baby Manatee Adventure : 4K Drone Footage : Wakulla Springs, FL

Here is some video of a sunset close up encounter I had with two wonderful Roseate Spoonbills at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge.

Roseate Spoonbill : Pink & Bill Evolution + Tactile Feeding + Courtship Rituals 4K: St. Marks NWR

All footage by Madden Science.

This Madden Science field documentary was filmed at the Amazon Conservatory for Tropical Studies (ACTS), part of Explorama Lodges, in Loreto, Peru, as part of the Morpho Institute’s ARIE program. The video features interviews with biologists conducting active research across multiple levels of Amazonian biodiversity.

Dr. Rob Naczi, from The New York Botanical Garden, describes his long-term monitoring of orchid bees, comparing canopy and forest-floor species diversity to understand how community structure reflects environmental change. All specimens are deposited in the San Marcos Natural History Museum in Lima, building a permanent baseline for future ecological research.

Dr. Marie Trone, from Valencia College, shares her work on fish biodiversity, including overnight trapping, natural-history documentation, and acoustic recording of fish vocalizations for future hydrophone-based species detection. She also discusses her ongoing project monitoring pink Amazon river dolphins, now aided by drone footage to measure individuals surfacing in the Amazon River.

Dr. Jeannine Richards, from Florida Gulf Coast University, explains the ecological dynamics of treefall gaps, including canopy light shifts, seedling competition, growth trajectories, and the stress experienced by epiphytes, like orchids and bromeliads, suddenly exposed to intense sunlight.
And Dr. Carissa Ganong, from Missouri Western, and her team demonstrate a canopy vs. understory insect diversity survey using fermented-fruit bait traps that allow for capture and photos along with the release of captured butterflies and moths.

Together, these projects illustrate how tropical ecosystems function and how long-term monitoring helps scientists track ecological change in the world’s most diverse rainforest.

More info about The Morpho Institute: https://morphoinstitute.org/
And the ARIE (Amazon Research Initiative for Educators) program: https://morphoinstitute.org/arie/

Exploring Amazon Biodiversity in Peru: Insights From Leading Field Biologists: Pink River Dolphins +

Iquitos, Peru is one of the most unique cities on Earth - an urban center of more than 500,000 people surrounded entirely by the Amazon Rainforest. It's the largest and most remote city in the world! To reach here, you must travel by river or fly in above the jungle canopy. This 4K drone film explores Iquitos from above, revealing how the city's interactions with the rivers, forests, and ecosystems define it.

From this aerial perspective, the geography of Iquitos becomes clear: the Nanay and Itaya rivers converge with the Amazon immediately outside the city, forming a dynamic floodplain system that rises and falls nearly 30 feet between dry and wet seasons. These seasonal pulses drive nutrient cycling, shape aquatic food webs, and influence everything from fish migrations to the distribution of flood-tolerant trees.

Iquitos has long served as a scientific gateway to the Amazon. Just outside the city lies the Amazon Conservatory for Tropical Studies (ACTS); home to one of the world’s longest canopy walkways and a critical site for rainforest research. During this visit, I was working with the Morpho Institute as part of the ARIE Program (Amazon Research Initiative for Educators). Our work focused on understanding rainforest biodiversity, documenting species interactions, and examining how ecological patterns change from the forest floor to the canopy. The ACTS canopy walkway provides rare access to the upper layers of the rainforest, where much of the Amazon’s insect, plant, and bird diversity is concentrated.

Iquitos itself reflects this biological richness. Markets overflow with Amazonian fish species, along with tropical fruits and medicinal plants that have long been central to Indigenous knowledge. The city also sits near key habitat for orchid bees, leafcutter ants, and an astonishing variety of amphibians, each contributing to ongoing research on pollination, chemical ecology, and climate-related changes in species distributions.

From above, the contrast is striking: a bustling, colorful city bordered by one of the most species-rich ecosystems on the planet. Iquitos is both a cultural center and a scientific frontier, where the rhythms of human life and the rainforest are tightly intertwined.

If you enjoy science-driven nature films, feel free to explore the Madden Science channel for more videos on biodiversity, ecology, and field research in remote environments.

Iquitos from Above: Exploring Life and City at the Edge of the Amazon | 4K Drone Film : Peru

BOBCAT! [Lynx rufus]This was the first time I've seen a wild wildcat! What a blessing! I was hiking trails in St. Marks, capturing some sunset footage of a bald eagle in its nest, when I got an interesting feeling. Not eerie or hair-stand-up, but something more wholesome and attuned. I looked behind me, and there she was! As soon as I saw her, she was gone, disappearing into the saw palmettos and underbrush. I then left my gear and tripod and walked around to see if she went down another trail. After searching for a few minutes, I returned back to the original trail, only to find her waiting patiently up ahead. This encounter lasted 15-20 minutes - totally peaceful and full of wonder. I took plenty of pictures and video (coming soon), but I also had time to just watch and observe. She seemed completely at ease with my presence - and very curious about my tripod.

Bobcats are endlessly fascinating. They’re adaptable and built for stealth. They have a distinct body look and position, the result of longer back legs than front, giving them explosive pouncing power up to 10 feet, and max sprint speed over 30 mph. Bobcats also have great night vision, upwards of 7x that of humans. And how about their super cool white ear spots, called OCELLI?! (picture 3) They serve as visual signals between mothers and kittens in dense environments, acting like a follow me’ marker. Classically, and with other cats (tigers, leopards, lynx) the eye spots offer deception in the form of false eyes to intimidate predators and rivals. Lastly, how about that poop? (I must have a knack for animal poop photos - see fox from a few months ago) Their scat is used by biologists to help track and study bobcats. It contains remains of digested prey, along with bobcat DNA, and can potentially reveal the presence of disease. I looked it up, and apparently it’s uncommon for a bobcat to poop while someone else is around. While sorta cool, this is potentially bad news if the bobcat is that comfortable with humans. (Or maybe I’m just like Dar from The Beastmaster?)

Wild BOBCAT Encounter : St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, FL + Pooping Bobcat!

What other Extended Phenotype Phenomena would you add to the video? Please add your thoughts via the comments.

Phenomena can serve as an interesting and creative entry point into the study of a certain topic. These phenomena impact behavior, perception, and physiological responses. Phenomena can be both fascinating and complex, illustrating the intricate ways in which the brain operates and interacts with the environment.

“The extended phenotype is the idea that the phenotype should not be confined to the biological processes inside the skin of an individual, but should include all effects that a gene has on its environment, inside or outside the body of the organism.”
— Richard Dawkins, The Extended Phenotype (1982)

Begin by having students watch the following phenomena video showing clips. It is one minute long, you can even keep it on repeat, much like an extended version of a GIF. Each individual clip is numbered. After watching the first time, have students construct a SEE / THINK / WONDER table in their notes. Continue the video on repeat while the students add to their table.

*How do these clips connect to your experience of biology? What organisms are represented? What are you curious about?

Have students relate the phenomena to the NGSS Cross Cutting Concepts. How are these 7 concepts represented in these phenomena?

NGSS Crosscutting Concepts:
Patterns
Cause - Mechanism - Effect
Scale, proportion, and quantity
Systems and system models
Energy and matter
Structure and function
Stability and change

Extended Phenotype Phenomena in order:
1. Beaver dams
2. Wasp nests
3. Termite mounds
4. Leaf Cutter Ant Colonies
5. Caddisfly larvae
6. Spider Webs
7. Decorator Crabs
8. Weaver Bird Nests
9. Woodpecker Nests
10. Eagle Nest
11. Oysters / Hermit Crabs / Octopus + Shells, Coral Reefs
12. Ophiocordyceps Fungi

PHENOMENA : The Extended Phenotype

Meet Charlie the Capybara [Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris]. What a friendly fellow. In addition to being mostly wild, but also super friendly, he's part of the largest rodent species in the world. Made famous as occasional jaguar snacks, these wonderful little guys are crazy cute, and also have crazy course hair - much like a brillo pad.

SOUND ON - in the video you can hear little Charlie chirping and chittering as if he was a birdie! Capybaras can make a a variety of distinct vocalizations, maybe upwards of eight, all for various reasons.

A cool biochemistry and nutritional fact: Capybaras are autocoprophagous - meaning that they re-ingest their poop! Kinda yucky to us, but advantageous to them. Why would they do this? Re-chewing help gain more nutrients from their food, and it helps with their gut microbiome - where their microbes can make the cellulose from the grasses in their diets more digestible.

@morphoinstitute @exploramaperu

#capybara #rodentsofunusualsize #amazonrainforest #maddenscience #perunature #peruamazon

Capybara Chirping and Purring in the Peruvian Amazon : Sound On!

Thank you Percy Reyna for being our most excellent guide!
Additional thanks to the Morpho Institute and Explorama Lodge.

Here are some links to scientific papers and general science article about Devil's Gardens.
https://web.stanford.edu/~dmgordon/previous/Frederickson_etal2005.pdf
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2124481/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devil%27s_garden

A Devil’s Garden, like this one in the Peruvian Amazon, is a striking ecological phenomenon where certain patches of forest appear like orchards with just one type of tree—usually Duroia hirsuta. These areas form because of a mutualistic relationship between the tree and tiny ants [Myrmelachista schumanni].

The ants defend their host trees by poisoning or killing nearby competing plants with formic acid, creating large clearings that can last for centuries. Some Devil’s Gardens have been measured at over 800 trees spanning the length of several football fields, and they may persist for more than 800 years.

This system is both symbiotic and mutualistic: the ants get hollow chambers in the tree’s stems to live in and sugary nectar to feed on, while the tree benefits from reduced competition for sunlight, nutrients, and space. It’s a powerful phenomena, showcasing how small organisms can engineer entire landscapes through symbiosis, shaping the rainforest’s biodiversity in subtle but dramatic ways.

This super cool and eerie phenomenon is tied into local mythology. For centuries, Indigenous peoples believed these cleared gardens / farms were planted by evil spirits or even the Devil himself, who used them as places of mischief or traps for wandering humans. In some traditions, they are linked to the Chullachaki, a shapeshifting forest spirit whose name means “uneven foot” (because one of his feet is said to be larger, deformed, or even backward). The Chullachaki is known as a guardian of the forest, punishing those who disrespect it. According to stories, he lures travelers into Devil’s Gardens by appearing in familiar forms—sometimes as a friend, relative, or animal—before leading them astray.

Additionally, anyone passing through must ask permission. Travelers stop and say things like: “Abuelo, grandfather, excuse me for resting on your log or for crossing your farm.” If they failed to greet or thank him, bad news would follow. A snakebite, a sudden accident, or getting lost in the forest were all seen as punishments for not showing respect. So always remember to greet Abuelo and show respect for the Devil's Garden.

The Devil's Garden : Peruvian Amazon : Chullachaki : Supay Chakra : Ant + Tree Symbiotic Mutualism

Red Fox! 🦊💩 [Vulpes vulpes]
Had fun spending time with one of the neighborhood foxes. She was in the back and front yard playing around (and pooping) for a good 15 minutes! Although magnificent - she does not look good. Super skinny and perhaps with sarcoptic mange?
Other than that possible condition, just check out her ears!! Amazing. They are like mini radar dishes and each are almost the size of her face. Just see if you can count the hairs in each ear. Foxes have exceptional hearing and use that sense when hunting. They can also detect the earth's magnetic field and use that when hunting.
Foxes are a vital species in our ecosystems and particularly suburban neighborhoods (in some places they are keystone species).

#redfox #tallahasseewildlife #floridawild #maddenscience #keystonespecies #naturephotography #floridanaturephotography #maddenscience #tallahasseenature
#foxpoop #UrbanWildlife #BackyardNature

Red Fox Pooping in My Yard 🦊💩