June 11   Wildwood’s Secret World- The Spring Woodland Wildflowers

Frank Taylor: Radford High School

·         Learn about Wildwood’s hidden gems -- the ephemeral spring flowers: where to find them, how to identify them, and their unique cultural and natural history.
 

June 25  Slimy Salamanders: The Ecosystems “Civil Servant”   

Jeff Brown: Radford High School

·         Striking photography, an energetic life history presentation, and hands-on with live wriggling salamanders – lead you and your family to appreciate, find and identify these mysterious creatures on your own salamander hunts! 
 

July 9   Virginia’s Black Bears: Population and Human Health Research.

            Michael Vaughan: Virginia Tech Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences

·         Dr. Vaughan has worked with black bears for almost 30 years and will share some of his experiences with these incredible animals as he talks about his research and its implications to human health.
 

July 23   Mow is Less: Simple Steps You Can Take to “Green” Your Yard.

            David Richert: Virginia Department of forestry

·         How to reduce the amount of grass you mow and improve the aesthetics, energy conservation and wildlife habitat of your home with tree friendly landscaping.
.

August 6  Running Amuck: A Turtle’s Tale of Water Pollution

            William Hopkins: Virginia Tech Department of Fisheries and Wildlife sciences

·         Live turtles of the New River, their fascinating natural history, how they fit into the food web, and how they are used to study contaminants in watersheds.
 

August 20  Mother of Pearl! A look at Freshwater Mussels

            Mike Pinder: Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries

·         Hands-on with the shells from the region that has the highest diversity of mussel species in the world - Southwest Virginia!   Learn about their unique life cycle, their surprising historical importance, and their value to us and our ecosystems today.