In Animal Ecology (1927), Charles Elton wrote that “while ecological work is fascinating to do, it is unbearably dull to read about.” It is reassuring that things were just as bad 86 years ago. Here, I want to think about why not all ecological work is unbearably dull to read about, and what this means for ecological methods. To my mind, the two things that … Continue reading Strangeness and simplicity in ecology