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Each year, World Wetlands Day is celebrated on February 2nd. Wetlands come in many forms and go by many names – estuaries, bogs, mangrove swamps, vernal pools, marshes, riparian wetlands, cypress swamps, playa lakes and more! Wetland areas improve water quality, provide flood protection and support tons of fish, wildlife and plants. If you’ve been [...]

Bald eagles are found throughout North America, and the Northern Mississippi Valley is a great winter viewing spot. Up to 5,000 bald eagles winter on the Mississippi River between Cairo, IL and St. Paul, MN.  Bald eagles prefer habitats near open water where there is an abundance of fish, as well as old-growth forest and [...]

Native trees beautify landscapes while providing shelter for birds and other wildlife. They also provide shade that lowers home heating costs, as well as fruits, nuts and berries. Whether you want to replace a favorite oak in the near future or learn to care for trees you have, you can learn more about trees that [...]

Estuaries may seem permanent and unchanging, but they are not. Weather patterns and seasonal cycles shape and affect estuaries. Winter storms and winds lash the coasts, raising waves that stir up and mix nutrients, silt and decaying organic matter in estuaries. Large storm waves carry a lot of energy that is released when the waves [...]

December 14 marks the beginning of Audubon’s annual Christmas Bird Count. The Count runs through January 5, 2011.  The first Christmas Bird Count (CBC) took place on December 25, 1900 when 27 participants counted and identified about 18,500 birds, mostly in the northeastern U.S. Today, volunteers brave snow and chilly temperatures to identify and count [...]

Winter flounder are unique among fishes of the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions. Unlike most coastal marine fishes including salmon, shad and herring, winter flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus) enter estuaries in the late fall and early winter to spawn. These right-eye flat fishes like it cold thanks to an “anti-freeze” protein in their blood that protects [...]

Fall fishing and ice fishing are popular past times for many in the Great Lakes Region.  As you rig your line in hopes of landing that big catch, think twice about what weights your lure.  Lead has been used for weighting fishing tackle for centuries, but this heavy metal poses a hazard to human and [...]

The five Great Lakes—Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario—have often been described as “inland seas” and “freshwater oceans.” Besides terminology, they have something else in common with oceans: estuaries. While estuaries are traditionally defined as places where rivers (freshwater) meet the sea (salt water), scientists increasingly recognize that estuary-like conditions prevail along parts of the [...]

New England and other northerly points are renowned for the beauty of their fall leaves. Red, orange and gold foliage draws visitors from all over the country for peak viewing times. Salt marshes in temperate zones all over the United States go through much the same transformation during autumn. Dominant Spartina marsh grasses turn from [...]

Fall is a great time to explore the upper tidal portions of the Chesapeake’s rivers.  Scientists classify these waters as tidal fresh, which sounds like an oxymoron but isn’t. In these areas, downstream flow of fresh water is still strong enough to push back the salt water coming in from the Chesapeake, but the river [...]

Despite being one of the most biologically productive areas on Earth—an acre of estuarine salt marsh is many times more fertile than an acre of the best farmland—living in an estuary isn’t easy. Plants and animals that live in an estuary have to adapt to huge swings in salinity, for instance. Organisms that tolerate and [...]

Fall in the Mississippi River valley presents a beautiful sight of changing colors, produced by a diversity of trees such as maple, ash, oak, hickory, dogwood and sumac, to name a few.  The Upper Mississippi River Valley adds its own uniqueness to the scenery by providing a backdrop of steep bluffs and cliffs flanking the [...]

As leaves begin to change color this fall, scientists are studying how trees and forests are affected by weather and climate conditions. Weather and climate conditions impact when leaves emerge, how much foliage grows, and when leaves begin to fall. The timing of these events as they relate to climate is called “phenology.” For example, [...]

As you get outdoors this fall, know how to protect yourself if you are allergic to urushiol oil of plants, such as poison ivy and poison oak.  Poison ivy’s appearance can vary greatly between plants and in different locations. It always has three leaflets per stem, but some leaves can be broad and big like [...]

One commonly asked question is why oysters are traditionally eaten only during months with an “r” in them. There are two answers. One, earlier times lacked refrigeration and oysters spoil quickly in warm weather (months without an “r”: May, June, July and August) unless they are chilled. And two, oysters just don’t taste as good [...]

Not all estuaries are created equal. Or at least there are different types of estuaries. Most scientists classify estuaries geomorphologically—that is, how were they formed and what is the end result of those geological processes. Most American estuaries are one of four types: A coastal plain estuary, formed when the sea level rises into an [...]

National Public Lands Day (NPLD) will be held on Saturday, September 24, 2011 in more than 2,000 communities around the U.S.  For nearly 20 years, NPLD has been supporting national, state and local public lands by bringing volunteers together to give back and spruce up the lands that belong to all Americans. Volunteers have fun, [...]

Can a fish really fly? Actually, ”flying fish” use unique body adaptations to help them fly or glide out of the water. They use their efficient torpedo-shaped body and tail fin to help them gain speed at an angle towards the water surface. As they break the surface, their wing-like fins help them glide once in the [...]

Snowy tree crickets, found through the United States, are around from July to October and are called “snowy” because of thier pale color. These crickets have a chirp that is easy to count and related to temperature.  Viewer Tip: Head outside after dark to listen for crickets. Count the number of chirps you hear in 13 seconds and [...]

Ocean and lake beaches around the country get closed every year due to poor water quality from pathogens – disease-causing bacteria and viruses. One way that pathogens get into the water is from pet and wild animal waste being washed down storm drains when it rains. In most communities, storm drains discharge storm water directly [...]