158 Natural History Lessons for Making Field and Woodland Walks More Exciting, Part 1
Computers, Science, Tech | Registration opens 4/15/25 9:00 AM EDT
Collectively, your instructors have had the privilege of teaching biology for close to 100 years. Many of our most cherished memories come from the 10 summers spent traveling with students to unique ecosystems around the southeast and experiencing nature through our shared senses and reflections. In retirement we regularly reminisce about natural history insights and teaching strategies we learned from collaborative observations, descriptions, questions, and interpretations. Although we have no hard data to support this, it seems that serendipitous events occur more often when in the field with kids.
Observing the joy and appreciation of students learning the art of discovery; science had a lasting impact on our teaching philosophy. One major lesson that we needed to be was time spent “standing” between the learner and the subject! We wholeheartedly support the attitude that “organisms remain the core of biology, and that natural history offers an enlightened form of contentment.”
The goal of this course is to boost the enjoyment you experience on short walks, long hikes, or just moseying around in your yard by sharing some of our favorite natural history lessons. We will use common landscape elements such as goldenrod, milkweed, woodland light gaps, and communication strategies of animals (including frogs and birds), to better understand the evolutionary
forces operating on biological characters. Here are brief descriptions of lectures and field trips:
Activity: Tuesday, May 20 at 6:00 p.m.: Is Sex Worth It? All biological characters are subject to conflicting selection pressures, and this is uniquely true for sexual selection. In many instances, protection from predators and time spent finding food seem to take a back seat to reproductive drive. Calling frogs or singing birds are faced with constraints and selective forces, including attracting predators, energy tradeoffs, spacing, and call overlap. We will explore examples of tradeoffs and selection pressures associated with sexual strategies, including some unique adaptations used for reproductive success. We will introduce this session with a frog-calling activity designed to help participants think about the challenges and interactions taking place at a wetland or pond.
Field Trip: Thursday, May 22: This field excursion will be divided into morning and evening sessions. The morning session will focus on the acoustic communication of birds. We will meet from 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. at the CRESO research building (address & map provided at first lecture). The evening session will take place form 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the wetland behind Norris Elementary School in Norris, TN. This session will focus on “Frog Talk.” Be sure to bring a flashlight. You are welcome to attend both sessions or pick one that best fits your schedule. We will use May 24 as an alternate date if weather is an issue.
Note: Field trip safety is always first and foremost. You are encouraged to wear long pants and hiking boots. Please inform us of any medical conditions that might interfere with your field trip enjoyment. Trips will involve walking for short distances.
Three sessions:
Tuesday, May 20, 6:00 p.m. (RSCC - Room F-110)
Thursday, May 22, 7:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. (CRESO Research Building)
Thursday, May 22, 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. (Norris Elementary School, Norris, TN)
Byrd Holtzclaw
John Byrd, Fred Holtzclaw, and Shelley Phillips will serve as course instructors.