Nature Now! Ghost Hunting
June 2, 2021
Blue Ghost Fireflies dance above the ground in a moist area near a stream in Pisgah National Forest in late May. Photo: Jordan Mitchell. By Jerry Reynolds, Head of Outreach Earlier this year Dr. Clyde Sorenson, a professor at North Carolina State University, contacted me to help recruit people for a ghost hunt. (Who you… Read More >
Ask a Naturalist: Eastern Fence Lizard
May 26, 2021
By Greg Skupien, Naturalist Center Curator With the return of warm weather, you’re more likely to find lizards and other reptiles basking in the sunlight. Recently, we received a photo from Durham of a common North Carolina native lizard. The Eastern Fence Lizard, Sceloporus undulatus, can be found in most of our state except the Outer Banks… Read More >
Bogan paper addresses the pros and cons of amateur malacologists
May 20, 2021
“Many amateurs in malacology are doing a good job and working with professionals in museums or universities,” says Art Bogan, the Museum’s Research Curator of Mollusks. “However, there is a problem in systematics with amateurs describing a large number of new species that are in fact not new.” In a paper published April 26, Bogan… Read More >
Happy Birthdays!
May 14, 2021
The Museum has hosted birthday parties for over 20 years, providing an opportunity for friends and family to gather and make memories celebrating a beloved child’s birthday while also learning about the natural world. When, due to the pandemic, the Museum had to close and prohibit all in-person programming, we had to cancel 30 birthday parties. We knew that all of these… Read More >
Nature Now! The Dandelion
May 12, 2021
By Jerry Reynolds, Head of Outreach and Dandelion Seed Dispersal Talking politics in a mixed crowd can stir up some strong opinions and make for lively discussions. Bringing up the dandelion in a mixed crowd can stir up similarly strong opinions and perennial arguments. What’s so divisive about such an innocent-looking plant that has people… Read More >