Biodiversity is short for “biological diversity.” It is a big word that essentially means the variety the living things making up a particular habitat or part of the world.
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What is biodiversity and why does it matter
Discovery Place Nature’s Trail Guide takes you on a journey through a unique Piedmont forest exploring the rich relationships between the land, animals and people along the way.
Bonus: you can download it before your visit!
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Get lost in a local oasis on our Paw Paw Nature Trail
Let's beat these rainy day blues by planning our next outdoor activity, learning about clouds!
With a DIY cloud viewer, you can identify the three different types of clouds and make a fun activity afterward.
Happy North Carolina Day! Here are some socially distant, family-friendly hikes to view changing leaves this fall.
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12 Of The Most Beautiful Fall Destinations In North Carolina
Want to become a bird watcher without leaving your house? Make a simple pine cone bird feeder with a pinecone, 1 part vegetable shortening to 2 parts cornmeal, a string and birdseed. Then sit back and relax!
For more Stay-at-Home Science activities, click here: https://bit.ly/333GrhX
In the wild chipmunks hibernate but instead of storing fat, they will periodically dip into their stash of nuts and seeds throughout the winter.
See Chuck the Chipmunk and other North Carolina wildlife at Discovery Place Nature.
A Southern black widow spider is saving a snack for later.
We understand that some people think spiders are scary but remember, spiders are good for our ecosystem and play a vital role in keeping insect numbers down.
Let’s talk about the best season of all.. fall!
Join us tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. as we go live on Facebook with Discovery Place Nature Naturalist, Alden.
We'll be talking about different leaves - their color, shape and pigmentation in the fall.
Indicator species are organisms that are sensitive to their environmental conditions and, as such, can provide invaluable information about the overall health of an ecosystem.
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What the scarcity or abundance of some species may tell us
Here are some suggestions for what to do when you encounter an animal that you believe might need help.
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When to help a wild animal and when to leave it alone
Have we mentioned how nice it is to see you in our Museum again? Thank you for supporting us since we've been open and we can't wait to bring more science and nature fun to our community.
To reserve tickets, click here: https://nature.discoveryplace.org/plan
When beekeepers work with bees they need to do a few things before going into the bee yard.
Step 1 is putting on protective gear.
Step 2 is lighting a smoker.
Beekeeper and Naturalist Alden is going to show us how to properly light a smoker to keep our bees calm.
Terrariums are self-sustaining ecosystems are that designed to replicate all the elements of a naturally thriving community.
Today, we're making a snail terrarium so you can use the scientific method (question, research, hypothesis, experiment, observe, conclude and repeat!) to observe and document your findings.
Just remember to let your new snail friend go when you're done with your experiment.
Although sometimes they get a bad rap snakes are actually good and should be found in your backyard.
Get to know the black rat snake, one of our Ambassador Animals.
Pictured here is a turkey tail fungus. Not only are they found worldwide and are very common but they contain cancer-fighting properties.
During fall, they may be found on food plants or wandering around looking for a place to pupate and are more readily seen.
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Be Careful with Fuzzy and Hairy Caterpillars!
HAPPENING NOW
Fall Festival
Remember the first year we harvested Discovery Place Nature honey?
Below is our entire honey harvesting process.
Why do birds have feathers, snakes have scales and humans have skin?
Let's take a closer look and find out.
Good news! Starting tomorrow we're extending our hours of operation.
The Museum will now be open Friday through Monday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Make your online reservation here: https://nature.discoveryplace.org/plan
In today’s activity, we will grow our own plants using recycled material.
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Stay-at-Home Science: Explore sustainability with this self-watering seed starter activity
Explore the Madagascar hissing cockroach, Darkling beetles, millipedes and more in Insect Alley.
You never know what scurrying creatures you may encounter!
When the days get short and temperatures decline, the chipmunk starts to put finishing touches on its winter abode and stores for the winter.
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Ask a Naturalist: What do chipmunks do in winter?
