Fact or Scat
Week of May 31, 2026 – June 6, 2026
by Katie McLaughlin, Environmental Educator
Whenever I go outside, I find my own knowledge being tested. Do I know what this plant is? Or that animal calling in the distance? Sometimes I know straight away, other times I need to look it up or ask someone else. We all have our strengths in knowledge, but I am always looking to grow my own as well.
Baltimore Woods staff and volunteers are asked all kinds of questions from when visitors walk into the interpretive center and show us a picture of a bird on their phone wondering what it is, or out on the trail wondering about a pile of rocks they walked past on the trail. I admit, I don’t know everything about nature or even our preserve. But one of the benefits of having so many awesome people at Baltimore Woods is someone probably knows more about a certain subject.
Over the past few months I spun being asked the questions… to asking them myself by hosting Nature Trivia Night here at Baltimore Woods. I have absolutely loved how this program has grown, and I am looking forward to continuing it.
We start off the night by forming our teams. Often these teams will welcome newcomers to their ranks while they are learning the ropes of trivia and forming relationships with the other players. They will get their snacks while everyone trickles into the program room before we start.
The game is simple, 5 rounds with 5 questions each in various categories. Do you know your frog or bird calls? Can you solve the mystery category and how the answers all connect? How much do you really know about what we do at Baltimore Woods and our history? Each round, the question point value increases, so it’s anyone’s game until the very end.
Our volunteer art coordinator, Karen Jean Smith, has been coming to trivia monthly and was sharing with some new comers to trivia about some of the things she has learned and become aware of during trivia. In this case, it was some of the different types of snow! She learned about Sastrugi (sharp ridges in snow formed by erosion) and saw the word the next week while reading the news.
Would you be willing to test your knowledge? Or perhaps learning something new with a guide might be your style. Either way, Baltimore Woods is one of the best to explore and grow your knowledge of the natural world – and we all hope you will join us to learn more!
We invite our members to enjoy a weekly blog written by our naturalists. Every blog will be uniquely different but always inspired by nature. We may share a memory from a recent hike at The Woods or teach you about an animal or plant that lives on the preserve. No matter the topic, we will be sharing with you our passion for nature and celebrating the connections we all have to the natural world. Each blog will be connected to a weekly set of activities and ideas to help you put nature in your hands, even if you’re at home!