Austin Hess
@austinhnaturalist.bsky.social
31 year naturalist
Colorado born & raised, now living in the Ozarks
Polynesian ❤️
Progressive as hell
Nature
Wildlife
Travel
Animals
Photography
Archaeology
Paleontology
Paleoanthropology
Indigenous Culture & Rights
LGBTQ+ ally
Colorado born & raised, now living in the Ozarks
Polynesian ❤️
Progressive as hell
Nature
Wildlife
Travel
Animals
Photography
Archaeology
Paleontology
Paleoanthropology
Indigenous Culture & Rights
LGBTQ+ ally
Pinned
Here are my interests/hobbies, always looking to connect with similar peeps! 😊
🐺 #Wildlife
⛰️ #Nature
🦉 #Birding
🐍 #Herping
🐛 #Bugs
🌍 #Travel
🤠 #Archaeology
🧕 #Anthropology
🦖 #Paleontology
🌌 #Astronomy
🏰 #History
🦍 #HumanOrigins
📷 #WildlifePhotography
💚 #Conservation
✊ #IndigenousRights
#PromoSky
🐺 #Wildlife
⛰️ #Nature
🦉 #Birding
🐍 #Herping
🐛 #Bugs
🌍 #Travel
🤠 #Archaeology
🧕 #Anthropology
🦖 #Paleontology
🌌 #Astronomy
🏰 #History
🦍 #HumanOrigins
📷 #WildlifePhotography
💚 #Conservation
✊ #IndigenousRights
#PromoSky
Couple of reedited shots from my trip to Panama almost a year ago now.
Geoffrey's Tamarin, a super neat range-restricted monkey, in the Darién
Spectacled Caiman during a night cruise at Gamboa Rainforest Resort
#Neotropics #Naturalist #WildlifePhotography
Geoffrey's Tamarin, a super neat range-restricted monkey, in the Darién
Spectacled Caiman during a night cruise at Gamboa Rainforest Resort
#Neotropics #Naturalist #WildlifePhotography
January 22, 2026 at 2:31 AM
Couple of reedited shots from my trip to Panama almost a year ago now.
Geoffrey's Tamarin, a super neat range-restricted monkey, in the Darién
Spectacled Caiman during a night cruise at Gamboa Rainforest Resort
#Neotropics #Naturalist #WildlifePhotography
Geoffrey's Tamarin, a super neat range-restricted monkey, in the Darién
Spectacled Caiman during a night cruise at Gamboa Rainforest Resort
#Neotropics #Naturalist #WildlifePhotography
This is an extremely neat solution to hiding the putrid orange diarrhea face of this nation's dictator on the National Park Pass! You can upload your own photo! I'd choose one of mine of the cliff dwellings from Mesa Verde! 50% of the sale goes towards the NPS
www.parkpouches.com?fbclid=IwdGR...
www.parkpouches.com?fbclid=IwdGR...
Park Pouches | National Park Pass Sleeves
Create your own custom sleeve for the 2026 National Park pass!
www.parkpouches.com
January 19, 2026 at 8:44 PM
This is an extremely neat solution to hiding the putrid orange diarrhea face of this nation's dictator on the National Park Pass! You can upload your own photo! I'd choose one of mine of the cliff dwellings from Mesa Verde! 50% of the sale goes towards the NPS
www.parkpouches.com?fbclid=IwdGR...
www.parkpouches.com?fbclid=IwdGR...
AHHHHH I'M SO EXCITED!!!!! As an avid birder and huge paleodweeb, I've waited years for a book like this, and it couldn't be coming from a better author! I ADORE both The Rise And Fall Of The Dinosaurs and The Rise And Reign Of The Mammals, so I absolutely cannot wait for The Story Of Birds! 😍😍😍
🚨🦜🐧Cover reveal! Thrilled to show off the cover of my upcoming book: The Story of Birds!
Coming April 28. The whole history of birds, from their dinosaur origins to colossal extinct penguins & terror birds, to the 10,000+ species today. From @marinerbooks.bsky.social
Preorder 👇
Coming April 28. The whole history of birds, from their dinosaur origins to colossal extinct penguins & terror birds, to the 10,000+ species today. From @marinerbooks.bsky.social
Preorder 👇
January 12, 2026 at 8:51 PM
AHHHHH I'M SO EXCITED!!!!! As an avid birder and huge paleodweeb, I've waited years for a book like this, and it couldn't be coming from a better author! I ADORE both The Rise And Fall Of The Dinosaurs and The Rise And Reign Of The Mammals, so I absolutely cannot wait for The Story Of Birds! 😍😍😍
Kicked off 2026 strong with a Big Day around SW MO! The most species I've ever began the New Year with here!
#Birding
ebird.org/tripreport/4...
#Birding
ebird.org/tripreport/4...
Big Day - Jan 1, 2026 - eBird Trip Report
01 Jan, 2026. Created by Kelly Ormesher
ebird.org
January 6, 2026 at 4:06 PM
Kicked off 2026 strong with a Big Day around SW MO! The most species I've ever began the New Year with here!
#Birding
ebird.org/tripreport/4...
#Birding
ebird.org/tripreport/4...
There's a Piping Guan in SE Brazil, but it says they're easiest to see in September-October, and I'm not sure it'd be on the itinerary anyway. I'll probably have to wait until I get to Trinidad & Tobago one day to see this dope as hell genus.
#WorldBirding #Neotropics #Brazil2026
#WorldBirding #Neotropics #Brazil2026
January 6, 2026 at 4:04 PM
There's a Piping Guan in SE Brazil, but it says they're easiest to see in September-October, and I'm not sure it'd be on the itinerary anyway. I'll probably have to wait until I get to Trinidad & Tobago one day to see this dope as hell genus.
#WorldBirding #Neotropics #Brazil2026
#WorldBirding #Neotropics #Brazil2026
INCREDIBLE
A diver saw something incredibly special at the ocean's surface: this juvenile King-of-the-salmon (Trachipterus altivelis), a kind of ribbonfish that spends the majority of its time in the deep.
📷 tedjudah on iNaturalist
📍 United States
🔗: www.inaturalist.org/observations...
#ObservationOfTheDay
📷 tedjudah on iNaturalist
📍 United States
🔗: www.inaturalist.org/observations...
#ObservationOfTheDay
January 6, 2026 at 4:02 PM
INCREDIBLE
I love this super insightful, fascinating, and well-written article on Cassowaries. Although they are certainly capable of killing humans, I've noted that their behavior is generally not aggressive.
Would loooove to see one in the wild!
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Would loooove to see one in the wild!
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Is the cassowary really the world’s most dangerous bird?
Rare attacks helped brand the cassowary as deadly, but habitat loss and human activity now pose a far greater threat to the bird’s survival.
www.yahoo.com
January 6, 2026 at 4:02 PM
I love this super insightful, fascinating, and well-written article on Cassowaries. Although they are certainly capable of killing humans, I've noted that their behavior is generally not aggressive.
Would loooove to see one in the wild!
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Would loooove to see one in the wild!
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Going somewhere special next November.... 😳
#Brazil2026 #WorldBirding #Naturalist #InternationalTravelFTW #AtlanticForest #BirdingTour #Neotropics #RiodeJaneiro #Birding #Birder #SEBrazil #NaturalHistory #Wildlife #Tropical #EndangeredEcosytem #Ecotourism #Hype
#Brazil2026 #WorldBirding #Naturalist #InternationalTravelFTW #AtlanticForest #BirdingTour #Neotropics #RiodeJaneiro #Birding #Birder #SEBrazil #NaturalHistory #Wildlife #Tropical #EndangeredEcosytem #Ecotourism #Hype
December 30, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Going somewhere special next November.... 😳
#Brazil2026 #WorldBirding #Naturalist #InternationalTravelFTW #AtlanticForest #BirdingTour #Neotropics #RiodeJaneiro #Birding #Birder #SEBrazil #NaturalHistory #Wildlife #Tropical #EndangeredEcosytem #Ecotourism #Hype
#Brazil2026 #WorldBirding #Naturalist #InternationalTravelFTW #AtlanticForest #BirdingTour #Neotropics #RiodeJaneiro #Birding #Birder #SEBrazil #NaturalHistory #Wildlife #Tropical #EndangeredEcosytem #Ecotourism #Hype
It hit an absurd 83°F on Saturday while doing a Christmas Bird Count, which meant December butterflies. Unbelievable...
Checkered White (Pontia protodice) - Taney County, Southwestern Missouri 12/27/25
#Lepidoptera #Butterfly #Insect #Naturalist #ChristmasBirdCount #OzarkNature
Checkered White (Pontia protodice) - Taney County, Southwestern Missouri 12/27/25
#Lepidoptera #Butterfly #Insect #Naturalist #ChristmasBirdCount #OzarkNature
December 30, 2025 at 7:40 PM
It hit an absurd 83°F on Saturday while doing a Christmas Bird Count, which meant December butterflies. Unbelievable...
Checkered White (Pontia protodice) - Taney County, Southwestern Missouri 12/27/25
#Lepidoptera #Butterfly #Insect #Naturalist #ChristmasBirdCount #OzarkNature
Checkered White (Pontia protodice) - Taney County, Southwestern Missouri 12/27/25
#Lepidoptera #Butterfly #Insect #Naturalist #ChristmasBirdCount #OzarkNature
Two exciting books I got!
Nick Komar was my birding mentor for years when I lived in Colorado and he did an American Big Year in 2023 that redefined borders!
Last Chance To See follows adventurers looking for critically endangered species all over the world.
#Naturalist #Birder #BookSky
Nick Komar was my birding mentor for years when I lived in Colorado and he did an American Big Year in 2023 that redefined borders!
Last Chance To See follows adventurers looking for critically endangered species all over the world.
#Naturalist #Birder #BookSky
December 30, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Two exciting books I got!
Nick Komar was my birding mentor for years when I lived in Colorado and he did an American Big Year in 2023 that redefined borders!
Last Chance To See follows adventurers looking for critically endangered species all over the world.
#Naturalist #Birder #BookSky
Nick Komar was my birding mentor for years when I lived in Colorado and he did an American Big Year in 2023 that redefined borders!
Last Chance To See follows adventurers looking for critically endangered species all over the world.
#Naturalist #Birder #BookSky
My new Vortex spotting scope and a view of Bull Shoals Lake in Taney County, Southwestern Missouri while doing a Christmas Bird Count!
#Birding
#Birding
December 30, 2025 at 7:31 PM
My new Vortex spotting scope and a view of Bull Shoals Lake in Taney County, Southwestern Missouri while doing a Christmas Bird Count!
#Birding
#Birding
December 30, 2025 at 7:29 PM
December 14, 2025 at 4:08 PM
December 10, 2025 at 12:29 AM
#PrehistoricPlanetIceAge episode 1 thoughts... 👏
December 7, 2025 at 3:09 AM
#PrehistoricPlanetIceAge episode 1 thoughts... 👏
I was both utterly fascinated and pretty damn terrified by this colossal species when I first saw it chasing an Australopithecus in a Walking With Beasts scene as a little boy.
Definitely one of my favorite Cenozoic mammals.
#Paleontology #FossilFriday #Deinotherium
Definitely one of my favorite Cenozoic mammals.
#Paleontology #FossilFriday #Deinotherium
happy #fossilfriday! bonus: this is deinotherium, a proboscidean that lived in africa and eurasia from the middle miocene to early pleistocene. it is best known for the downward-pointing tusks on its lower jaw, the function of which are unclear
(art by @mariolanzas.bsky.social)
(art by @mariolanzas.bsky.social)
November 28, 2025 at 11:52 PM
I was both utterly fascinated and pretty damn terrified by this colossal species when I first saw it chasing an Australopithecus in a Walking With Beasts scene as a little boy.
Definitely one of my favorite Cenozoic mammals.
#Paleontology #FossilFriday #Deinotherium
Definitely one of my favorite Cenozoic mammals.
#Paleontology #FossilFriday #Deinotherium
CANNOT wait to read this. Day 1 purchase no doubt.
www.torreyhouse.org/american-arc...
www.torreyhouse.org/american-arc...
Torrey House Press | AMERICAN ARCHAEOLOGY by R.E. Burrillo
A gripping, often irreverent exploration of the past, present, and future of archaeology in America. With rollicking storytelling and an insider’s expertise, Burillo challenges us to celebrate curiosi...
www.torreyhouse.org
November 28, 2025 at 6:46 PM
CANNOT wait to read this. Day 1 purchase no doubt.
www.torreyhouse.org/american-arc...
www.torreyhouse.org/american-arc...
Mimbres ceramic from a visit to the Arizona State Museum in Tucson awhile back
The Mimbres culture was known for its dazzling pottery associated with burials in modern day SW New Mexico. Without question, the most stunning pieces of ceramic art from the ancient American Southwest
#Archaeology
The Mimbres culture was known for its dazzling pottery associated with burials in modern day SW New Mexico. Without question, the most stunning pieces of ceramic art from the ancient American Southwest
#Archaeology
November 28, 2025 at 6:35 PM
Mimbres ceramic from a visit to the Arizona State Museum in Tucson awhile back
The Mimbres culture was known for its dazzling pottery associated with burials in modern day SW New Mexico. Without question, the most stunning pieces of ceramic art from the ancient American Southwest
#Archaeology
The Mimbres culture was known for its dazzling pottery associated with burials in modern day SW New Mexico. Without question, the most stunning pieces of ceramic art from the ancient American Southwest
#Archaeology
I had a dream I found a Galapagos Penguin and a couple of Northern Pacific Right Whales from a tall building along the coast in San Diego, California and honestly felt like God 🤣
November 28, 2025 at 6:30 PM
I had a dream I found a Galapagos Penguin and a couple of Northern Pacific Right Whales from a tall building along the coast in San Diego, California and honestly felt like God 🤣
Yet another wonderful short documentary from Cornell Lab of Ornithology 💚
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiqb...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiqb...
Islands of the Hornbills
YouTube video by Cornell Lab of Ornithology
www.youtube.com
November 28, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Yet another wonderful short documentary from Cornell Lab of Ornithology 💚
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiqb...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiqb...
Incredible first Canadian record of EURASIAN BULLFINCH out of the Yukon. That's the only Province in Canada that I have eBird lists from. But we don't talk about the reasons I was up there... 🫠
macaulaylibrary.org/asset/645472...
macaulaylibrary.org/asset/645472...
ML645472405 - Eurasian Bullfinch - Macaulay Library
Macaulay Library ML645472405; Eurasian Bullfinch; Pyrrhula pyrrhula; © Cameron Eckert; Yukon, Yukon Territory, Canada; 18 Nov 2025
macaulaylibrary.org
November 28, 2025 at 6:28 PM
Incredible first Canadian record of EURASIAN BULLFINCH out of the Yukon. That's the only Province in Canada that I have eBird lists from. But we don't talk about the reasons I was up there... 🫠
macaulaylibrary.org/asset/645472...
macaulaylibrary.org/asset/645472...
A mega rare and world lifer King Eider at a lake in Eastern Kansas 11/23/25
These sea ducks are usually found in the Arctic, and have occurred inland only a small handful of times.
Although not as sensational as the males, this female was oh so lovely to admire
#Birding #Twitcher #KingEider
These sea ducks are usually found in the Arctic, and have occurred inland only a small handful of times.
Although not as sensational as the males, this female was oh so lovely to admire
#Birding #Twitcher #KingEider
November 28, 2025 at 6:26 PM
A mega rare and world lifer King Eider at a lake in Eastern Kansas 11/23/25
These sea ducks are usually found in the Arctic, and have occurred inland only a small handful of times.
Although not as sensational as the males, this female was oh so lovely to admire
#Birding #Twitcher #KingEider
These sea ducks are usually found in the Arctic, and have occurred inland only a small handful of times.
Although not as sensational as the males, this female was oh so lovely to admire
#Birding #Twitcher #KingEider