How do a lifetime of “firsts” and a fearless curiosity reshape everything we know about the world’s top predators?
In this episode, we sit down with Maurice Hornocker—TWS member, Aldo Leopold Memorial Award winner, and a widely considered godfather of carnivore research—to uncover the work that helped write the playbook for studying large predators.
Hornocker helped pioneer the practice of marking individual animals, and transformed wildlife research in the process. Along the way, he built something just as critical: the credibility and community trust needed to turn data into policy that lasts.
From grizzlies and cougars to bobcats and river otters, Hornocker has seen it all. His stories reveal not only how we learned to study carnivores, but how we learned to understand them.
Share this episode with a fellow wildlife enthusiast, subscribe to the show, and leave a quick review to help more listeners discover Our Wild Lives!
Learn more:
About Maurice Hornocker - https://wildlife.org/maurice-hornocker-wins-aldo-leopold-memorial-award/
Maurice's memoir, "Cougars on the Cliff" - https://www.cougarsonthecliff.com/
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/scientific-contributions/Maurice-G-Hornocker-31501351
Aldo Leopold Memorial Award Speech - https://youtu.be/vjtevQzncWg?si=oCM0lYKBDzyTqBjH
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