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Going up thousands of feet or meters in elevation, it's easy to notice temperatures getting cooler, and air getting "thinner". You may also notice the air getting less humid, or the dirt beneath your feet changing. The soil itself may...
In this Wildlife Spotlight post, I’d like to put in a good word for an animal that people see all the time but tend to misjudge: the Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana). These cat-sized, fuzzy, long-whiskered beasts tend to have a po...
As you may have read in my post on describing outdoor places, biomes are the largest category for classifying the natural environment. From scorching deserts and frozen tundra to the endless blue of the marine pelagic zone, biomes highli...
How can I make my garden more environmentally friendly?
May 6, 2022Birds, Bugs, Gardening for Wildlife, Naturalist Answers, Outdoor Tips
No matter where you live, it's possible to find an array of wildlife right around your home. Your yard or garden can attract a wealth of fascinating critters for you and your family to enjoy....
The insect world is filled with weird and impressive animals with under-appreciated abilities. Since they’re so small and short-lived, we often fail to notice their miraculous feats and fascinating lifestyles. This means that we end up m...
Does birdsong actually make people more relaxed? Is this ancestral association the reason that people find birdsong relaxing? Do birds really stop singing when there are predators around?...
One of the most delightful parts of nature adventures is getting to share them with others. The huge variety of outdoor places is part of what makes the outdoor lifestyle so exciting and rewarding. On the other hand, it can be hard to ex...
Being a beginner naturalist means learning the answers to lots of what, why, where, and how questions. What is a lichen? Why do bugs gather around streetlights? Where do you go if you want to spot a kingfisher? How do trees move their se...
The part of my conservation work that people are most interested in is bird banding. Folks see pictures of me holding gorgeous feathered animals and understandably have a lot of questions. How do you catch them? What are you trying to fi...
I recently had my first encounter with the animal celebrity of this week’s Wildlife Spotlight, the kinkajou (Potos flavus). During a visit to Costa Rica last month, some friends and I stayed up chatting long after sunset. We were savorin...
Why do species have scientific names?
March 31, 2022Beginner Naturalist Tips, Outdoor Tips, The Deep Stuff
If you’ve looked at any field guide or read a scientific paper in ecology or biology, you’ve probably run into scientific names. These are the fancy, often Harry-Potter-sounding words written in italics and describing a species. Often ti...
Trees, shrubs, and other plants make a lot of mess when they drop their leaves in the fall. All of the leaves, twigs, branches, and other plant matter can pile up quickly over the course of a year. Within a few weeks or months it can cov...
Observing nature is a fantastic way to track the seasons. After a long winter, most people are eager for signs of spring. We may find ourselves looking for the first robin in our back yard, or for trees to start leafing out. In today’s W...
5 Household bugs that you should know about
March 19, 2022Bugs, Common Household Bugs, Naturalist Answers
Despite our best efforts, invertebrate visitors are common in our homes. As explained in the first installment of this mini-series, household bugs can be charming, harmless, or potentially dangerous depending on the species. These posts ...
Why are there suddenly so many bugs in my house?
March 12, 2022Bugs, Fall / Autumn, Naturalist Answers
Even if you like spiders and insects, it can be unsettling when they show up at home. It is always worth knowing whether or not bugs in your house could potentially be harmful. However, most invertebrates in our homes are pretty harmless...
Let’s talk about field marks for birdwatchers. Here’s a hypothetical situation to start: You’re walking to your car after work, or starting a hike on a gorgeous Saturday morning. Or maybe you’re stopped at a traffic and looking out the w...
Whether or not you’re a birder, binoculars can really enhance time spent in nature. Animals are often wary of people, making it hard to see them up close. Binoculars can bring you up-close and personal with animals at medium distances, o...
Spring is a fleeting and fickle season. Warm weather often comes and goes a few times before it finally settles in for good. Flowers start to bloom on trees and out of the ground as it thaws. In many temperate areas and higher latitudes,...
Have you ever looked up at the sound of honking geese or crying gulls to see a big group of birds winging by overhead? Perhaps they’re so close you can hear the air rushing around their wings. The birds may fly in a ‘V’ or check-ma...
Summertime is always marked by an explosion of life. The air is filled with birdsong, flowers are blooming, and frogs sing from ponds and wetlands. Perhaps the busiest lives in summer, though, are invertebrates. These are small animals w...
Part 1 – Winter is dangerous! Do you ever wonder how plants and animals survive the winter? It can be a brutal time of year in seasonal climates. While we’re wrapping ourselves up in blankets or bickering over the thermostat, the world...
How do plants and animals survive the winter? (Part 2)
February 22, 2022Birds, Bugs, Naturalist Answers, Plants, Winter
Strategies and adaptations All wildlife at higher elevations or latitudes face the challenge of adapting to winter. In part 1 of this post, we explored the challenges that wildlife faces during winter. To recap quickly: Food can be scarc...
Rick and Morty is a hilarious sci-fi show on Adult Swim that is no stranger to scientific references. A recent episode brought up an unexpected natural history fact that left fans wondering. The climax of “Rick & Morty’s Thanksploitati...
The COVID-19 pandemic turned a lot of people’s lives upside down. Between losing their jobs, working from home, and needing to isolate indoors, many lost a sense of the routine. Whether they wanted to or not, people simplified their sche...
It’s a surprisingly common “nature fact” that I hear from people of all ages. A spindly spider-like invertebrate is trundling along a log and someone says, “Did you know that daddy long-legs have the deadliest venom in the world, but the...
Smartphone apps offer a variety of fantastic resources for getting more from your time outside. The right outdoor apps can bring huge amounts of information right to your fingertips. Some might help you plan a hike or stay oriented, whil...
Pictures of a “baby crow” have been all over Pinterest and Reddit for a couple of years now, winning hearts with their poofy goth aesthetic. Notably not a single nature account is involved in all the sharing, and a few have specifically ...
The American Robin is one of the most widespread and familiar American birds. Known for their energy, cheeriness, and musical voice, they’ve got more than a few theme songs. But that’s not their only claim to fame. The American Robin is ...
Fall Foliar Fruit Flagging: Are trees talking to us?
February 3, 2022Fall / Autumn, Plants, The Deep Stuff
The dramatic color changes of autumn leaves in some parts of the world are captivating, seemingly magical, and widely appreciated. Dazzling reds and oranges pop up every year while we’re planning our Halloween costumes or breaking out a ...
The bright greens of living plants are uplifting, relaxing, and one of the most natural things we can think of. Green is such an ever-present and widespread color in nature that it symbolizes the health and vitality of our natural world....
Why do trees lose their leaves in the fall? For people living in temperate or northern climates, the Autumnal transition into winter usually involves lots and lots of leaves. Leaves turning beautiful colors, leaves blowing in the wind, l...
The most iconic sign of autumn is the turning of the leaves. But why do the trees turn colors? If you’re lucky enough to live somewhere with dramatic “fall colors”, then you’ve experienced the incredible beauty of landscapes pain...
Is this bug in my house dangerous?
January 27, 2022Bugs, Naturalist Answers, Bug in house, Cockroach, house, silverfish
No matter how much we love the indoors, some of us would prefer that it stays, well, outdoors. It’s disconcerting when wildlife starts to cross boundaries and show up in our human spaces. Also, since they aren’t familiar with household...
