Blog

Ask a Naturalist: Winter Tree Identification Skills

Woody plants known as "trees" show various anatomical strategies to survive in winter, dubbing them "winter trees." While evergreen trees retain their waxy cuticular leaves, deciduous trees lose their leaves to conserve little available energy and go dormant.

Ask a Naturalist: The Science of Fall Color

Fall is an exquisite season of change that shows one of the more amazing processes in nature. As the days get shorter and shorter, the trees are signaled that their period of growth is at an end.

Ask a Naturalist: Spiders Around Us

Spiders are perhaps nature's most wondrous but misunderstood creatures. Their unique behavior and immense diversity inspire awe to anyone who wants to learn more about them.

Ask a Naturalist: Evening Wonders

Summer gives plenty of time to enjoy the wonders of nature brought on and unraveled by the setting sun.

Ask a Naturalist: Enjoying Bird Sounds

Spring is the best time to listen to and learn to identify bird songs, whether you are walking by Gateway Nature Preserve or elsewhere.

Ask a Naturalist: Wildflowers at Gateway and Beyond

Although the amazing variety of wildflowers is seen in NC throughout the year, nothing paints the landscape in beautiful colors like the spring ephemerals.

Ask a Naturalist: Identifying Fall Trees

These native tree species all grow at the Gateway Nature Preserve, many of them along the Forest Discovery Trail above Salem Creek Greenway.