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The coo of a Mourning Dove outside your window. The fluted sound of a Wood Thrush accompanying you on a hike. Birds add richness to our lives if we are simply open to it – and they are just beautiful to look at!
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Happy Shark Week everyone! If you’re anything like me, you are glued to the Discovery Channel for exactly one week every summer to learn from the newest and most groundbreaking shark research happening around the world. With Shark Week coinciding with peak swimming and boating season, you may have found yourself wondering – Are there …
“Hey Rob, can you write an article for the newsletter? Maybe something that showcases the wildlife of the watershed. Something that makes people feel good, gives them warm and fuzzy feelings.” Hmm fuzzy… I know just the thing! Spiders! Everyone likes spiders! Now before you say “Nope” first of all, think of something original to …
When I started with the Alliance in October, I was busy learning about the organization and where I would fit in with my position. Admittedly, it was overwhelming initially, as I was also transitioning from a different sector (local government) and adjusting to working entirely remotely. However, my coworkers on the Agriculture Team were a …
My first interaction with a hellbender was profound. Imagine putting your head underwater in a cool mountain stream and inadvertently coming face-to-face with a gigantic, 15-inch aquatic salamander. We were snorkeling in a clear Pennsylvania mountain stream, looking at crayfish and taking photos of fish with our underwater camera. I peered under a rock to get a closer look at a colorful darter, and there it was: a snot otter, the alligator of the Alleghenies, a devil dog, a grampus. Known by many names, the eastern hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis) is a species of giant salamander endemic to eastern North America. It is a completely aquatic amphibian and can grow to be quite large — the record is almost 30 inches.
Weasels are some of the few mammals that turn white during the winter. These small, but highly-skilled predators can be found throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed and once had a significant role in the fur trade during European colonization of North America.
This list of 10 of my favorite Chesapeake Bay species aims to bring you a little closer to these magnificent critters with which we share the environment. All of the photos have been taken by me in the Chesapeake Bay watershed where I spend most of my time.
Forests for the Bats, a Halloween takeover of the Alliance’s Forests for the Bay newsletter, is all about celebrating our Chesapeake forests and the peak of autumn, which is largely our favorite time to be in the woods.
Catching a glimpse of an elk within the watershed is a memorable and uncommon experience due to elk’s limited range. Active management and research on elk populations allow hunters, tourists, and nature enthusiasts to hear the sound of a bull elk bugle today
