The Naturalist’s Blog

Week of December 15, 2024 – December 21, 2024 by Kaylen Iorio, Environmental Educator As an Environmental Educator, questions hurtle towards you from every direction. Whether that be during a school field trip at Baltimore Woods, in a classroom during Nature in the City, or even over the Nature Center’s phone, people are very curious and always looking for answers. That said, environmental education is not about shouting out answers left and [...]

Week of December 8, 2024 – December 14, 2024 by Catherine McLaughlin, Environmental Educator Snow is falling, friends and family are asking what holiday plans are, and I have no clue what is happening. Sounds like it’s December to me. This season has seemed to run full force into my life this year with no warning. I just can’t keep up with everything happening around me from parades, to tree lighting, [...]

Week of December 1, 2024 – December 7, 2024 by Anna Stunkel, Environmental Educator When you drive through the Montezuma Wildlife Drive, partway down there is a massive dead tree snag where birds often perch. Almost every time that I pass it I see at least one bird sitting there– an Osprey eating a fish, a Bald Eagle taking a rest, a Red-tailed Hawk waiting for prey to scurry by, or [...]

Week of November 24, 2024 – November 30, 2024 by Kaylen Iorio, Environmental Educator This time of year I admire the groups of birds gathering together to embark on their journey of migration. I like to think that on this journey, these birds traveling together become lifelong companions. Chatting as they fly to their location to spend the winter, stopping along the way for snacks and beverages; just like a road [...]

Week of November 17, 2024 – November 23, 2024 by Elizabeth Suzedell, Environmental Educator “What’s a fancy word for rain and snow?” This is a question I’ve been asking a lot recently to the Syracuse 3rd graders during their first Nature in the City lesson of the year. The answer is “precipitation.” In this lesson, they learn a lot about water- where it comes from, local watersheds, and the water cycle. There’s never [...]

Week of November 10, 2024 – November 16, 2024 by Catherine McLaughlin, Environmental Educator Do you have a calendar? Not the calendar we typically use with days of the week and holidays to keep track of the time passing, but one in tune with nature’s cycles? I do. One of those natural moments that I appreciate that doesn’t come with a date is when the crows congregate in fall. I start [...]

Week of November 3, 2024 – November 9, 2024 by Anna Stunkel, Environmental Educator For many thousands of years, we humans have used art as a powerful way to connect with the natural world. As the seasons change, so do the colors that we see around us. Fall brings a chill to the air, and crunchy leaves settle over the soft soil and grass. Many painters have been inspired by how [...]

Week of October 27, 2024 – November 2, 2024 by Kaylen Iorio, Environmental Educator In honor of Halloween just a few days away, I thought we would take some time to talk about the misrepresentation of some of our animal friends in association with Halloween. Halloween has become the one of the largest holidays celebrated in America celebrated with trick or treating, carving pumpkins, and visiting haunted houses. Have you noticed [...]

Week of October 20, 2024 – October 26, 2024 by Elizabeth Suzedell, Environmental Educator Did you see the northern lights last week? Until this year, I always thought I’d have to go to Alaska to see them. We’ve had several solar storms over the past few months that were strong enough to produce auroras at our latitude and even well to our south. The pesky clouds keep preventing a lot of [...]