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The nights of the South are often hot, humid and still. Winds typically die down at night and allow for the nocturnal flights of an amazing variety of insect life. Moths are some of our most fascinating nocturnal creatures. They range in size, coloration and behavior. Like butterflies, moths go through stages – from egg [...]

Did you know that something as simple as a large rock, rotting log, yard junk or a sheet of plywood in your yard can host a huge network of interacting wildlife? Summers in the Southern U.S. can bake the ground to a crisp. Beneath a rock or log, however, temperatures remain cool and the soil [...]

Because they are cold blooded and rely on warmth to become mobile, insects thrive in the long days and soaring temperatures of  summer. Summer is the best time to observe insect life in your garden or lawn. Some gardeners think of all insects as pests, but many insects are helpful and eat the insects that [...]

Mosquitoes have always been a nuisance in the hot and rainy South, and some mosquitoes carry diseases such as malaria and West Nile Virus. On windy days, mosquitoes—which can fly at only a sluggish 1.5 miles per hour—are rarely seen. When winds die down at dawn and dusk, however, mosquitoes take flight to feed. The [...]

The warmth of spring and summer allows insect pollinators and native plants to thrive in our gardens. Flowering plants have evolved unique symbiotic relationships with insects during the planet’s history. Some of the first flowering plants used beetles. Because beetles tend to be large, clumsy and strong, plants like Tulip Poplar, Sweetshrub, Flowering Dogwood and [...]

The mild seasons of the year—spring and autumn—have perfect climates for the growth and reproduction of fungi. Warm temperatures combined with lots of rain and humidity help fungi grow. There are many different kinds of fungi in the world but the best known is the mushroom. Mushrooms are the fruiting body of a fungus and [...]

Spring is a hazardous season for frogs, toads, newts, snakes and turtles because they leave the warm shelter of burrows, dens or other underground homes and travel back to their breeding and hunting sites. Most of the time, these sites are wetlands, swamps, ponds or other areas with slow-moving water. Often, this journey involves crossing some of [...]

Our forests are finely attuned to seasonal changes in weather. Cold damage, like fire damage, is a natural disturbance that strongly affects ecosystems. Ice storms may break the branches of trees or cause them to fall completely. Winter rains soften the ground so that tree roots loosen their grip, ice weighs heavily upon their upper [...]

Plants have evolved very unique and diverse ways of surviving cold weather. Most flowering plants in North America’s temperate climate lose their leaves or die back to the ground and live off of stored food. Water plants are a slightly different story. On the surface of the water, there is no protection from freezing temperatures. [...]

There are several easy ways to ensure that your landscape can support native bird populations in winter. One thing that birds look for in winter is a large supply of high-energy foods. These are easily provided by plants that produce edible berries, nuts and seeds. Some great native berry-producers are Viburnums, Sumacs, Dogwoods, Waxmyrtle, and [...]

Many people believe that late fall and winter are times of scarcity for wildlife, which may prompt them to leave feed out for deer. The reality is that local wildlife is well-adapted to our climate and capable of surviving without our help. In fact, feeding deer can be harmful to them by enticing them to [...]

When water freezes, it expands. This simple concept makes it difficult for plant life in winter because plant cells contain large quantities of water. During freezes, this water can expand, break billions of plant cell walls in tiny explosions and cause the plant to die. Deciduous plants respond by losing their soft leaf tissues for [...]

Insects are cold-blooded. Without the ability to generate heat like mammals do, they must rely on other ways to keep from freezing to death. When days shorten and temperatures drop, insects begin preparing to survive the cold. They fatten up, stop moving, slow their metabolisms and live on stored energy until spring. Ants and termites [...]

Late summer to mid-fall is the best time to observe the wonderfully miniature Ruby-throated Hummingbird.  To reach their wintering grounds, these remarkable birds make a 500-mile migration to Mexico by crossing the Gulf of Mexico without stopping. Saving energy for this trek is no easy task! In fall, the climate cools, plants fall out of bloom and [...]

Fall is a season of mixed messages. On one hand, many plants lose their foliage and revert to a dormant state. On the other hand, fall is nature’s greatest opportunity to introduce new life into our landscapes. Seeds from all kinds of plants are spread over a wide area through the help of natural forces [...]

Georgia has one of the most unique and challenging habitats for plant life on Earth. Places like Stone Mountain, Panola Mountain and Arabia Mountain are all major examples of granite outcrop habitats. Georgian granite outcrops formed from extreme heat and pressure caused when Africa collided with North America many millions of years ago. Over time, [...]

In fall, many plants delight us with the wonderful colors of their leaves. Plant leaves can turn yellow, orange, red, brown, pink, purple and even white! Sure, it provides a magnificent display of beauty. However, these many color changes can also be signals to wildlife.  Some plants’ leaves change colors to attract wildlife: red leaves [...]

Did you know that we live in a part of the country that has one of the best displays of fall colors?  Tourists from all over the world flock to the eastern United States and Canada to view, photograph and enjoy nature’s artistic side. Because of our mild climate and high annual rainfall, all forests [...]

Did you know that the number of automobile-wildlife collisions substantially increases in fall?  Fewer daylight hours results in poor driving conditions during morning and evening commutes. Wildlife is more active in the evening and early morning and especially active in the fall.  Animals that hibernate, like bears or raccoons, travel widely between patches of nut-producing [...]

Fall is a time when the sounds of nature steadily decline. Most people notice the lack of bird songs, but do not notice that frogs, toads and other amphibians also stop their loud, unusual calling at night. Like many other animals, frogs and toads slow down as the weather gets colder. For winter protection, amphibians [...]