Most of us who have played in shallow water or let our children play in Maryland streams and ponds vividly recall an encounter with a crayfish. It’s usually hiding under a rock, hurriedly scampering along a sandy stream bottom, shooting quickly backwards away from disturbance, or angrily shaking small claws at us as we pluck Read the Rest…
By Katy Gorsuch If you’re anything like me, you spent much more time as a kid carefully constructing homes for rolly pollies (aka isopods) than you did playing sports. And there’s no reason that should stop! Below are a selection of houses you can build for our wildlife neighbors, each with a difficulty rating based Read the Rest…
The tagline of the 1990s television show Captain Planet told kids weekly, “the power is yours!” Just like the adventures those cartoon characters faced every week, Maryland’s State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP) is a real-life Planeteer challenge: How should we as Maryland citizens work collaboratively to protect rare species and keep abundant wildlife from becoming Read the Rest…
By Katy Gorsuch Continuing our exploration of the diverse and wonderful ecology of Maryland, we turn to the warm summer full moons and all they represent! As with winter and spring moons, summer full moons have folk names often in alignment with animals responding to the changing seasons, or locally important events. Recorded in English Read the Rest…
Allegany County residents and travelers should not be alarmed by smoke The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will conduct a controlled burn on Dan’s Mountain Wildlife Management Area in Allegany County in mid-November as weather and other conditions allow. The fire will create smoke. It will be a low, controlled flame targeting underbrush and Read the Rest…
The softball-sized, onomatopoeically-named bobwhite quail needs four things in its habitat: a place to nest and raise its young, a place to hide from predators, a place with food, and a place for the winter. A century ago it was easy to find all four. By a decade ago, it was almost impossible. The groundbird’s Read the Rest…
Projects create habitat and public access at Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center Located in Grasonville near Kent Island, the Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center — known as CBEC – has been the site of living shoreline and marsh enhancement projects for more than 23 years. From work that turned concrete rubble from Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium into oyster Read the Rest…
Gift to Support Wildlife Education and Upland Habitat Projects The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Wildlife and Heritage Service recently received a $1.7 million gift from the estate of longtime employee Marilyn Mause specifically for wildlife education and upland habitat projects. Mause, who worked 34 years for the department’s wildlife unit primarily within the Read the Rest…
Initiative Funded to Promote Wildlife and Fire Protection, Wood Markets The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service has awarded funding of $280,852 to the Maryland Forest Service to work with the University of Maryland Extension and many public and private partners across the Delmarva Peninsula to establish a new training and outreach program, the Delmarva Read the Rest…
Otter Creek Preserve Protected Forever The Maryland Environmental Trust partnered with the Harford Land Trust to permanently protect a 104-acre woodland tract in Edgewood. The land trust gifted the conservation easement to ensure the area’s rich ecological resources and scenic land along Willoughby Beach Road were safeguarded for the benefit of future generations.
Pollinator-Friendly Species Highlighted This Year The John S. Ayton State Forest Tree Nursery, managed by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, is currently accepting shrub and tree seedling orders. The nursery offers more than 50 species of trees and shrubs to meet a wide variety of landscaping preferences and conservation needs. Popular this year are the many trees Read the Rest…
