Fall seems to be a sad time of year. We lose things – warmth, leaves and favorite song birds. However, bird migration is an astounding phenomenon. That these small, seemingly delicate creatures can travel such distances …
This Pulitzer Prize winning novel is the perfect winter read for anyone who cares about the preservation of public lands, and especially trees. But … it takes reading stamina. Beginning with a series of short …
Many times, people wonder what type of swan they are seeing at Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. Up until several years ago, there was really only one possible North American swan as an answer to these …
This is a beautiful time of year here. A walk through the Iroquois Refuge or a drive into the countryside in any direction provides enough beauty to lift one’s soul. So much in fact, that …
One early morning at the end of July I decided to explore the handicap trail leading from the Refuge Headquarters. I wanted to see what a young person or someone at wheelchair or stroller height …
Unihemispherical sleep is an amazing adaptation that has been well studied in several animals, particularly birds. Researchers have used electroencephalograms (EEG) to understand the ability of birds to sleep with only one hemisphere of their …
When I was young, my grandmother would buy flowers, plant them in clay pots, and place them on the graves of loved ones at our church cemetery. When the flowers were planted and watered, she …
It’s a wonder that one of the world’s most spectacular and strongest flying insects begins life as a dingy, sinister-looking aquatic larva. Dragonflies undergo incomplete metamorphosis; there is no pupal stage, during development from egg to …
I’ve always loved trees. I treasure my walks on the wooded trails at INWR…the Kanyoo, the Swallow Hollow and the Onondaga. Now, since reading The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben, I see the …
If you thought Monarch Butterflies were tough, then check out our local Swallowtail Butterflies. The caterpillar in the photo might overwinter as pupa in a chrysalis near the host plant. Instead of flying thousands of …
