As many of you know, Hideaway Woods, our newest exhibit and playscape, opens very soon. You’ll be able to climb up and into treehouses, explore a Sweetgum Thicket, wade through a woodland stream, stimulate your senses along a piedmont woodland nature trail, and share many other adventures with family and friends. But, you know what else is in Hideaway Woods? Hammocks! Seven of them! Along the Nature Trail! I tested them out a few days ago. Ahhhhh!Read more
Posts filed in: People
Behind the Scenes
I take many photos here at the Museum. Some you see here on Nature Watch, some you don’t. Most of the photos I take are of plants or animals, but if I happen to have a camera in hand as one of the Museum staff passes, or is working nearby, they may become the subject of one of my photos. The following is a sample of some of the Museum staff that I’ve crossed paths with over the years while IRead more
Look Up!
I’ve often suggested that readers of this blog look up, you never know what’s going to fly by. Last week an Apache helicopter passed over our airspace. It wasn’t the first time I’d seen a military helo pass over us. It wasn’t even the first time I’d seen an Apache. It was, though, the first time I was able to get a photo or two. Apaches were designed in 1972 and went into service in the mid 80s asRead more
A Field Guide to Whatever it is You’re Looking at
There seems to be a guide to just about anything and everything. Whatever it is you happen to be looking at someone has put together a guide to help you figure out what it is, and often, how it relates to the world. There are field guides to birds, mammals, insects, reptiles and amphibians, plants and trees. Bird guides are further broken down into eastern birds, western birds, and even groups of birds: sparrows, shorebirds, raptors, warblers, owls. There areRead more
Wetlands are Wonderful!
A few weeks ago I received an email from Ashley Johnson telling me that she had placed in the top ten out of a field of 825 entrants in the Friends of Wake County Soil and Water Conservation District’s poster contest, “Wetlands are Wonderful.” Here’s Ashley accepting her Top Ten Award at the Friends of the District Banquet held earlier this month. Ashley is a 5th grader at Alston Ridge Elementary School in Cary. I remember meeting her in Explore the Wild a whileRead more
Behind the Scenes at the Butterfly House
If you’ve ever been to the Butterfly House (BFH) you’ve probably seen the many butterflies, other insects, and scorpions and spiders on display. What you probably haven’t seen is the mural in the above photograph. That’s because the mural is on a wall in a back hallway of the BFH which is not open to the public. Likewise, if you’ve been to the BFH, you’ve probably met Rachael Knight (Entomology Specialist). Rachael is the artist behind the mural. She workedRead more
If you haven’t heard yet…
Ranger Sara is leaving us for new adventures in the Land of Enchantment, the home of the Roadrunner, the headwaters of the Pecos River, Tony Hillerman country, and she’ll be right down the road from the first discovery of the Clovis Point*. I’m bummed, but I’m also happy, and a little bit jealous. I’m bummed because Sara, besides being a good Ranger, is a good person, and I’m going to miss her. If you’ve worked or even talked with Sara youRead more