How Natural is Nature

            That ever so repetitive song rang out from a distance; so distinct I could identify it yet so faint I could not pin point it. I sat very still waiting to get a glimpse of that magnificent bright white cheek stenciled between that dark black cap and bib. There he landed on a long slender branch at the mid-section of a large white oak, with a ruffled dusty white underbelly and those steel grey wings that seemed to sit so uniformly as if they were painted on. As I watched his head turn from side to side so frantically I became captivated by every movement that he made. Trading from branch to branch of the tree until he reached the very top and then taking off to a nearby bird feeder to pick the perfect seed to return with. After finishing each seed was that high pitched sequenced trill, almost like a subtle chuckle. The Carolina chickadee, like many birds I have observed, has such subtle color and is so small that one may not its presence without actually looking for it.

I never knew how much I would appreciate growing up in a rural area on a farm. My childhood was spent exploring a nearby old growth forests and sifting through streams to find bugs, frogs, or anything living I could get my hands on. Those deep winding ridges covered in understory moss and decomposing leaves from the oak trees that towered above made me feel like I was in an impenetrable fortress that I never wanted to leave. Being outside with all of the flora and fauna of the living world has never been a hard thing for me to do; it was almost like instinct to me. I fell further and further in love with nature when picking up outdoor sports like hunting and fishing. Growing up doing all of these things made me appreciate the land and what it has to offer: valuable life lessons, stories to tell, and a feeling of belonging. But spite of all these experiences, engaging in natural history observation has revealed a completely different side of nature than I had heretofore known.

            Sitting still in one area while paying close attention to the details of what is happening in the moment and trying identify all the things that are going on was very eye opening. I was no longer running through a forest seeing things as I passed by; rather, I was sitting in one place and watching as nature passed me by. Small details of birds like the magnificent red of a northern cardinal against the fresh fallen snow became as captivation as overturning a rock near the stream and finding an adolescent red backed salamander as a child. Experiencing everything from snow, rain, to beautiful sunshine filled days brought a new adventure and something new to marvel at every single day. In choosing an empty lot in a neighborhood I found myself wondering what type of nature could I really observe there? A lot is not this

            Observing at the natural history level allows one to apply a deeper thinking to what is seen by the eye. Applying my feelings evoked by what I saw, in a way, helped me to see it better. Rather than just identify a bird like I used to, noticing its actions and reactions to the environment around it. The flora and fauna present in this lot found a way to adapt to it and use it for their certain ecosystem services; whether it is for food, protection, or shelter. A great example of this was a small tufted titmouse that I had seen at a distance feeding on a bird feeder in the yard adjacent to this lot. The titmouse, after spotting a car in the street, flew directly over into the lot and took cover in the top of a very dense holly tree. As the cat made its way back into its owner’s yard, and eventually into the garage, the titmouse flew out of the holly tree and into the very top of the white oak tree. A few moments later he returned to the bird feeder to begin eating once again. Putting this entire scene of events together had me in awe. Birds like this titmouse that have frequented more developed neighborhoods have identified new found predators and adjusted to these areas in order to live and provide for themselves.

            While the natural world that I had been used to be one vastly larger than the one the empty lot, there was still plenty of activity to be observed all around. This opportunity to sit and observe nature became both relaxing and eye opening at the same time. Nature does not have to be restricted to untouched parts of woodlands or vast amounts of forest. Nature happens even on the smallest level with the smallest organisms whether it is in a scenic park, an empty lot, or a drainage ditch on the side of the road. Ironically enough this small parcel of land is where I found myself week in and out learning more and more about natural history and what it meant to me.

            The idea of secondary nature, that is, nature that has been affected by humans in some way; was not so off putting but more so an entirely new study within itself. Animals like the titmouse becoming aware of its surroundings helped me to become more aware and more alert of my own. Secondary nature is an idea that while alterations may come, nature has a mysterious way of adapting and dealing with them. Observations in that lot became more detailed and carried on long after I had left the area. In my note taking of the things I had seen and what they were doing I began asking myself why they may have been doing them in that way. At that point I knew that I was thinking like a natural historian would; posing questions about why things were happening more and more.     

            The experience of having a class where making your own experiences happens and learning how to share them through natural history has been challenging and exciting to do. This empty lot in a way has grown on me and taught me how natural history is a valuable tool for us as humans to better understand nature. Understanding is no longer something that has to been done through various books, readings, and assignments; rather through physical observation and personal reflection. The great part about natural history is that it does not work in the same direction as most sciences where developing a hypothesis leads to an observation; instead, the observation leads to ask new questions. Natural history requires you’re first hand experiences to enable you to pose questions about why things work the way they do. The answers themselves can sometimes be the challenging part because they are not so cut and dry as a question and a direct answer, nor are they structured in a formatted way. Natural history then becomes something not so natural to me at all.

             My life of schooling has taught me structure and organization and natural history has given me a capacity that I had been longing for. This connection between freedom and learning is what I have truly found. Allowing me to change over time and think in these ways has not been easy at all. Natural history requires you encompass many different ways of thinking rather focusing on something from one perspective. While admiring the beauty of an old growth forest had been what shaped my childhood; the experience in this lot it was helped me further shape my understanding of nature and the different ways in which we interact with it as well as manipulate it. Natural history was not some easily memorized formula or a simple set of directions that I had to follow it is a learning capacity that continues on as long as you allow yourself to open up and experience what is going on around you.

- Brennan Tarleton