by Wally Smith
Those three words are on my mind as I slosh around in a wetland behind the lodge at Virginia's Breaks Interstate Park. The pool isn't much, taking up no more than thirty square feet and its water only…
Read moreby Erika Zambello
Established in 1999, the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (GB NERR) now stretches across 18,000 acres. In addition to the estuary’s salt marshes, the reserve also covers rare pine savannas,…
Read moreby Wally Smith
It's a cold November morning as I drive from my home in rural Wise County, Virginia, to the town of Tazewell, some 80 miles away. My journey takes me across the edge of the Virginia coalfields and through…
Read moreby Erika Zambello
As part of an ongoing project, Erika Zambello is visiting all National Estuarine Research Reserves in the continental United States. Established by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),…
Read moreby Erika Zambello
Made up of over 6,000 acres along the coast of Alabama, the Weeks Bay National Estuarine Research is one of 28 sites around the country that are “protected for long-term research, water-quality monitoring,…
Read moreby Erika Zambello, Wally Smith
“Elk are not the first animals that come to mind when thinking of native Appalachian wildlife, but the species was a common sight in these hills prior to European settlement,” writes Dr. Walter Smith in…
Read moreby Wally Smith
This is the case with the green salamander, one of the most unique amphibians in the salamander-rich Appalachian Mountains. The only truly green-colored salamander in eastern North America, the green salamander…
Read moreby BinBin Li
I visited Dry Tortugas National Park in 2013 and 2015 as part of a field class taught by Dr. Stuart Pimm at Duke University. Located 68 miles west of Key West, this 100 square mile national park is mostly…
Read moreby Susan Ramsey
"I'm not a horse whisperer. I am a student of the horse. Our body language becomes the curious discourse of give and take, of pressure and release, direct and indirect -- a dance if you will," explained.…
Read moreby Amy Carfagno
Scuba diver Brian Kramer photographed some of the vast marine life in the 7,107 islands of the Philippines. The islands of the Philippines lie within the coral triangle, an area that encompasses more than…
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