By Ben Lemmond - Of all the wilts, blasts, declines, spots, blights (early and late), smuts, fires, and other types of plant maladies that I’ve gotten to tour this semester as a TA for Plant Pathology, it's the rusts - as boring and creaky as they sound - that have captured my heart. They’re everything… Continue reading Blast it all
Author: fnepalumni
Monarchs Head South Toward an Uncertain Future
By Anya Tyson - If I went outside right now, hopped in the car, and started driving, it would take me 45 hours to reach the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Michoacán, Mexico, some 2,823 miles away. Though I badly want to see the groves of sacred firs (Abies religiosa) quivering and dripping with orange… Continue reading Monarchs Head South Toward an Uncertain Future
Hardy Kiwi: Delicious, Decorative, Destructive
By Jessie Griffen While living and working at a yoga retreat center in western Massachusetts for the summer, I learned to meditate during exercise. In early August, with the end of the field season in sight and too much left to do, I jogged trails that I still needed to map. As I ran, my… Continue reading Hardy Kiwi: Delicious, Decorative, Destructive
Field Notes 2015: Human Nature and The End of Nature
Nature is in peril. Biodiversity is plummeting. Species are going extinct 100 to 1000 times faster than normal. How many times have you read an introduction beginning that way? It’s depressing because it’s true. The ensuing article or book usually offers plenty of advice on what actions we must take to stem the tide of… Continue reading Field Notes 2015: Human Nature and The End of Nature
The Musicality of Birdsong
By Joanne Garton Formal study of birdsong has long been fascinated with the who, how, and why of some of our most ubiquitous outdoor sounds. Many guides encourage new birders to learn their species by ear, listening for bird presence rather than relying on sight alone. Researchers have examined everything from a songbird’s syrinx (the… Continue reading The Musicality of Birdsong
