Ecologist - Writer - Photographer

Magazine Articles+

Popular science/science communication articles written by me and published in BBC Wildlife Magazine, BBC Knowledge Magazine, Africa Geographic, Outdoor Photography, and Biosphere Magazine, and online with EarthArchives and The Conversation.

The BBC Wildlife and BBC Knowledge Magazine articles are on the Grey Mouse Lemur, Microcebus murinus in Madagascar.

The Africa Geographic Magazine article is on camera trapping in South Africa.

There follows an excerpt (the Food and Feeding section) from the Family Herpestidae (Mongooses) of the Handbook of the Mammals of the World, and a proof copy of the Banded Mongoose Mungos mungo species account from the Mammals of Africa. The IUCN Red List Species Account for the Banded Mongoose (Mungos mungo) is also linked.

Other articles include my take on the future of the Scottish landscape for ReWildScotland, and opinion pieces for The Conversation on primates and Trump, mongooses, the Loch Ness Monster, dinosaur eggs, the much-maligned grey squirrel, and what pandas mean for ecosystem conservation.

This section also includes letters published with images in Outdoor Photography Magazine.

I succumb to my fascination with fossils and dinosaur footprints for EarthArchives, Fossils and Evolution, and again The Conversation.

Rhino conservation, rhino horn and wildlife crime are the focus of multiple articles for The Conversation, Biosphere Magazine, and The Times, with rhino resurrection/de-extinction and most recently the demise of the Sumatran rhino featuring for The Conversation.

Articles are presented in chronological order - scroll down to bottom of page to view the most recent articles.


BBC Wildlife Magazine
Jason Gilchrist - BBC Wildlife Magazine - 2008 - Grey Mouse Lemur - Microcebus murinus - Small is Beautiful
The BBC Wildlife Magazine article, Small is Beautiful. Images from other photographers, including my grey mouse lemur colleague and brilliant wildlife photographer Manfred Eberle. One of my images was published as a teaser in the previous month's magazine.




Africa Geographic Magazine
Jason Gilchrist - Africa Geographic Magazine - 2008 - camera trap - When the Sun Goes Down
The Africa Geographic Magazine article, When the Sun Goes Down, features photos and insights into the art and science of camera trapping (remote trapping) in South Africa.



Handbook of Mammals of the World
Excerpt from Gilchrist et al 2009. Family Herpestidae (Mongooses). Handbook of Mammals of the World. Volume 1. Lynx Edicions.
Excerpt from Family Herpestidae (Mongooses) Chapter, Handbook of Mammals of the World. Volume 1. Authors: Jason S. Gilchrist, Andrew P. Jennings, Geraldine Veron, & Paolo Cavallini (Coordinator). Lynx Edicions, 2009








BBC Knowledge Magazine
Jason Gilchrist - BBC Knowledge Magazine - 2010 - Grey Mouse Lemur - Microcebus murinus - A Family Affair
BBC Knowledge Magazine article, a shortened version of Small is Beautiful (above).





Mammals of Africa
Cant & Gilchrist 2013 - Mammals of Africa - Mungos mungo - Banded Mongoose
Short version of the Banded Mongoose species account from the Mammals of Africa. Co-authored with Mike Cant of the University of Exeter. Bloomsbury 2013





The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: Chopping Off the Rhino's Horn and the War on Wildlife Crime.


The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: Spy-cam Rhinos to take on Poachers with Devices Hidden in their Horns.



Outdoor Photography Magazine September 2015
The Trouble with Trees - Letter published in Outdoor Photography Magazine September 2015 - solving the photographic challenge of woodland photography.










The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: Only a Jurassic Park-style intervention can now save the northern white rhino.


Biosphere Magazine
To Trade or Not to Trade Rhino Horn. Article published in Biosphere Magazine. To Trade or Not to Trade? That is the question posed regarding rhino and the rhino horn trade, also featuring some of my photographs.






The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: Civil war among the mongooses...and why it’s all about sexual success.


Outdoor Photography Magazine July 2016
Collecting Memories - Letter published in Outdoor Photography Magazine July 2016 - what happens when a Canon gets into a fight with a Land Rover....










IUCN Red List
IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) Species Account for Banded Mongoose (Mungos mungo). Co-contributor: Emmanuel Do Linh San.









The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: ‘Medical tourism’ to South Africa will only drive rhino further to extinction.


The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: Dawn of ‘Trumpocene’ era spells disaster for world’s primates.


The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: In defence of the grey squirrel, Britain’s most unpopular invader.


IUCN Red List
A conservation assessment of Mungos mungo from The Red List of Mammals of South Africa, Swaziland and Lesotho published online by South African National Biodiversity Institute and Endangered Wildlife Trust, South Africa. Co-contributors: Chris Stuart, Mathilde Stuart, Emmanuel Do Linh San.







The Times









Article published in The Times for World Rhino Day 2017: Global Greed is Driving the Rhino to Extinction.



Hills of Sunart
ReWildScotland features my latest Blog as the Guest Blog: The Future of Scotland's Landscape: Geology and Biodiversity.







Earth Archives
Article published online by Earth Archives, Fossils and Evolution: The Skye dinosaur footprint vandal: Lessons for assault on U.S. national monuments. Republished as Guest Blog by Palaeocast.





The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: The northern white rhino should not be brought back to life.





The Conversation




Online article published for The Conversation: Hybrid embryos raise hope of resurrecting northern white rhino – but what’s the point?.





Earth Archives
Article published online by Earth Archives: Walking in the footsteps of dinosaurs.







The Conversation




Online article for The Conversation: Rhino horn must become a socially unacceptable product in Asia.







The Conversation




Online rhino article for The Conversation: Scientists race to save the Sumatran rhino as last male in Malaysia dies.







The Conversation




Translation of the above article for The Conversation Indonesia: Para ilmuwan berlomba selamatkan badak Sumatra sejak kematian pejantan terakhir di Malaysia.







The Conversation




Online rhino article for The Conversation: Have scientists finally killed off the Loch Ness Monster?







The Conversation




Online article for The Conversation: Rescued grey squirrels to be killed under new law – but Britain’s ‘invasive’ problem runs much deeper.







The Conversation




Online article for The Conversation: Giant panda conservation is failing to revive the wider ecosystem.







The Conversation




Something a wee bit different for The Conversation, in the Arts and Culture theme: Monsters, movies, and biomechanics: Celebrating Ray Harryhausen.









The Conversation




My third article on management of grey squirrels for The Conversation: Grey squirrels: is birth control the solution to Britain’s invasive species problem?.








The Conversation




Online article for The Conversation: Rhinos: scientists are hanging them upside-down from helicopters – here’s why.







The Conversation




Elephant ivory: DNA analysis offers clearest insight yet into illegal trafficking networks published in The Conversation.








The Conversation




Primates colonised the Arctic during a period of ancient global warming – their fate offers a lesson as climate change speeds up published in The Conversation.









The Conversation




Why we think that some extinct giant flying reptiles cared for their young published in The Conversation.










The Conversation




Farmed rhinos will soon ‘rewild’ the African savanna published in The Conversation.










I also have numerous scientific papers published. If you are interested in my research and publications, please visit my Research Pages. My publications list can be viewed here.