While we were technically camping last weekend in southern Pennsylvania, we treated our little travel trailer as a home base for day tripping in and around the Hershey, PA area. One of our stops was Hershey Gardens, perched up on a hilltop across the main road from Hersheypark, where we could see (and hear the…Read more Butterflies!
Conservation
Spider Season
Spiders are out building webs and getting in hikers' faces pretty much all summer. But this time of year, moving from late summer into early autumn, it seems the big spiders are all building (typically) beautiful webs and making the most of the insect buffet. I saw this pair of Yellow Garden Spiders (aka Writing…Read more Spider Season
Small Wild Spaces: Greenwell State Park, MD
I've been limited in my ability to do "big" trips lately (probably since backpacking in the Smokies), but have been doing a lot of exploration that's fairly local. Greenwell is an interesting little State Park in Southern Maryland, an old farm that has been (largely) allowed to return to a natural state, but also serves…Read more Small Wild Spaces: Greenwell State Park, MD
Eastern Box Turtles and the Wildlife Trade You Never Knew Existed
I was listening to a Smithsonian podcast this week (shout out to Side Door, great program!), and the episode started with the host joining a pair of wildlife ecologists in an "undisclosed location" in Virginia, looking for what I thought was the most common of common backyard critters, the eastern box turtle. My first reaction…Read more Eastern Box Turtles and the Wildlife Trade You Never Knew Existed
Black Bears Are Back: Southern Maryland Sightings Signal Expanding Territory
When Leon Smith stepped outside his St. Mary's County home in mid-July and found his bird feeder knocked over, he probably wasn't expecting to come face-to-face with a black bear. The rural Maryland county along the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay is not an established part of the black bear's range, and the animals…Read more Black Bears Are Back: Southern Maryland Sightings Signal Expanding Territory
Noctilucent Clouds – Ethereal Indicators of a Changing Atmosphere
If you're in high latitudes, step outside on a clear summer night around twilight and look up. If you're lucky – and increasingly, you might be – you'll witness one of nature's most ethereal displays: noctilucent clouds. These delicate, ghostly streaks of silver and blue seem to shimmer against the darkening sky, appearing almost otherworldly…Read more Noctilucent Clouds – Ethereal Indicators of a Changing Atmosphere
Chattanooga, TN: A New National Park City
On April 3, 2025, Chattanooga, Tennessee was recognized by the National Park City Foundation as the first National Park City in the United States. But if you're like me, you probably didn't hear about this, and probably don't know what it means - so let's dive in. What is a National Park City? The National…Read more Chattanooga, TN: A New National Park City
Public Lands Are A Public Good
Mountains aren't less steep if you have a higher income. Rain doesn't preferentially fall on those with certain ethnic backgrounds. A higher level of education does not correlate to ability to hike more miles in a day. Time spent in the outdoors is time spent exploring the core of what it means to be a…Read more Public Lands Are A Public Good
Armadillos: Ancient, Strangely Cute, and Coming To A State Near You!
Armadillos are... unique. The ones that live in the United States, the nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) are smallish mammals, around 30 inches long (about the size of a raccoon, groundhog, or skunk) but they are covered with leathery armored overlapping plates that wrap from left to right across their bodies. From underneath this "shell" emerge…Read more Armadillos: Ancient, Strangely Cute, and Coming To A State Near You!
A Tale Of Two Hunters
Reflecting on hunting as a wildlife management tool - Two different experiences with hunting white-tailed deer.
Are Genetically Modified Wolves a License to Let Species Die?
Recent claims of dire wolf de-extinction are being used as an excuse to reduce protections on endangered species. Can we let animals go extinct, based on the expectation we can just bring them back when we want?
Invasive Feral Hogs in the Smoky Mountains
A lot of my blog-posting derives from encountering something interesting that prompts me to go down a road of research and discovery. This is one of those posts. Last week, my son and I spent three days and two nights backpacking in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (more on that soon, including video), and we…Read more Invasive Feral Hogs in the Smoky Mountains
Carnivorous Caterpillars, Living Lightning Rods, and Bluebirds
Some recent natural science stories that I find interesting: Caterpillars Scientists in Hawaii have discovered a very unique caterpillar with a very dangerous lifestyle. First of all, it's carnivorous - a trait that only 0.13% of all known butterfly/moth species share. Second, it gets its meals by living in spider webs, and scavenging the bits…Read more Carnivorous Caterpillars, Living Lightning Rods, and Bluebirds
Wildflowers In Not-So-Wild Places
It's late April, and that's a little too late for many wildflowers, and a little early for some others. Regardless, I took a little time today to wander and see what wildflowers I could find here in Maryland. Several of these are tiny, not-showy flowers, and unless you see them in a cluster they're not…Read more Wildflowers In Not-So-Wild Places
Way To Go, Maryland!
I missed posting on Earth Day - but in looking at that theme I did notice an article from the New York Times this week pointing out the recent conservation success of Maryland, my home state. The "Maryland The Beautiful" Act was one of several initiatives being pursued by nine states, with the objective of…Read more Way To Go, Maryland!
Flying Squirrel Outdoors 