Few habitats seem as sterile as a sandy New Jersey beach.
Waves of salt water constantly wash the shoreline. The only obvious indicators of life are pieces of broken shells washed ashore by the last high tide.
But appearances can deceive.
Plenty
The biota on a sandy beach can’t compare to a tropical rain forest, but to a […]

A coal-fired power plant seems an unlikely location for a wildlife refuge, but that’s exactly what I found on the second Sunday in July. Monty Mason, a friend and a heavy equipment operator at the AEP Kammer-Mitchell Plant south of Moundsville, W.Va., invited me to join him for a few hours in a blind near […]

As summer temperatures rise, spring-fed streams are great places to stay cool. With just a face mask, a snorkel and an old pair of sneakers, you can observe aquatic life on its own terms — under water. Snorkeling opens a whole new world to the curious naturalist.

Snorkeling is usually associated with tropical locations. While […]

A cruise of the Galapagos Islands takes on a life of its own. Each day is a series of highlights that satisfy even the most expectant traveler.

Many visitors, including me, arrive with a mental list of species they hope to see. On this trip, I checked off every species on my list.
Awesome […]

Here’s a question for the anglers in the family: Have you ever hooked a long, slimy, four-legged creature while fishing on a clear, cool, cobble-bottomed stream or river?
It was an eastern hellbender, the largest salamander in North America.
Hellbenders spend most of their daylight hours under large flat rocks on rocky stream bottoms. At night they […]