Roads End Naturalist

Exploring the natural world as we wander at the end of the road

Category: Natural History

  • Feeling Alive

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    Go where you feel most alive. ~Author unknown I have been missing my usual winter routine of several trips down east. Schedules have been busy, and this thing called work has a way of occupying a lot of your time! So, last week we decided to make a day-trip to my favorite spots in North… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Heron Dreams

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    Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined. ~Henry David Thoreau We all have dreams, some bigger than others. I dream of experiences, being in wild places, and seeing the spectacles that nature has to offer. I have often wondered if other species dream. Having had dogs much of… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • It’s Nasty Out There

    The simplicity of winter has a deep moral. The return of nature, after such a career of splendor and prodigality, to habits so simple and austere, is not lost either upon the head or the heart. It is the philosopher coming back from the banquet and the wine to a cup of water and a… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Cold Snap

    Winter’s barren landscapes chide us to give our attention to the splendor of things nearby.  When the air is thick and the sky overcast, we need not travel so far to have high expectations, for in her nakedness she teaches us to be less distracted but instead to be more connected, more aware. ~Henry David… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Puffed Up

    Nature now, like an athlete, begins to strip herself in earnest for her contest with her great antagonist Winter. In the bare trees and twigs what a display of muscle. ~Henry David Thoreau, 1858 It is not so much muscle I saw the other day on a walk in the Garden, but rather puffiness. I… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • The Bats of Bracken

    …one of the most spectacular wildlife events that you can see anywhere…It’s the largest congregation of bats in the world, and they come out of this cave by the millions. ~Mylea Bayless, a senior director at Bat Conservation International Here is another long overdue post from a wonderful trip to Austin, Texas, a few months… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Long Distance Traveler

    I liked the name, snow goose, and I liked the sight of them. ~Mary Burns, In The Private Eye: Observing Snow Geese Here is a brief update on my post about this year’s Christmas Bird Count on the Pungo Unit of Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge…as I mentioned yesterday, we spent some time observing a… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Cold-hardy Blooms

    It is an extremely interesting plant – October and November’s child – and yet reminds me of the earliest spring. Its blossoms smell like spring – and by their color and as well as fragrance they belong to the saffron dawn of the year. ~Henry David Thoreau, 1851 I’ll be catching up with some past… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Good Mamas

    Motherhood: All love begins and ends there. ~Robert Browning It has been a good few months for new mothers at work with several new babies among the staff. So, it seems only appropriate that I share a couple of extraordinary mothers from the Garden’s animal kingdom as well. First, an update on the amazing green… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Big Cat in the Garden

    Venom spitting spiders hatching out all over Alabama make great mothers. ~Ben Raines, title of article in Real Time News from AL.com You may remember this photo from about a month ago in another post. It is a female green lynx spider perched near her recently hatched egg case, with many spiderlings visible in the… Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn