New date – June 3
We have rescheduled the Nuttall excursion. It will be on Saturday June 3. All the other particulars remain the same–9a to 5p, meet at Kiamichi Technology Center in Poteau.
Field trip postponed
I am sorry to let you all know that we are going to reschedule the Nuttall expedition we had planned for tomorrow. The weather prediction is a 90% chance of 5 inches or more of rain, basically all day. We…
KUAF interview
Jacqueline Froelich at KUAF (NPR Fayetteville) interviewed me earlier this week about Thomas Nuttall and our planned field trip on Saturday. You can check it out here.
Field trip plans
From Barry Bruton: Hey Steve! where we meetin’, what time, and is there a rain plan? Or do we need one? Looking forward to it! Reply from Nina Morgan: Barry, we are still planning to go, but will make a…
Fire
The effect of frequent burning on the landscapes of eastern Oklahoma is a constant theme in Nuttall’s journal. Fire influenced not only the prairies, but also uplands and forests. On June 15, making his way back to Fort Smith through…
White shooting stars
I spent the afternoon with Jay Randolph exploring Massard Prairie in Fort Smith, AR. Jay is restoring and enhancing some 100 acres of Ben Geren golf course prairie remnants. We also looked at other prairie remnants in the area, at…
Elysium prairies of the Poteau
Nuttall’s journal, May 17, 1819: “The day was delightfully clear and warm…We were again in full view of the two picturesque mountains, the Cavaniol and Point Sucre…Our route was continued through prairies…” “These vast plains, beautiful almost as the fancied…
Brain teaser for Nuttall trekkers
What could this article on the role of elephants in dispersing seeds and generating savanna ecologies have to do with a common local tree that Nuttall describes and we will see? Link Reply from Jacob Dyer: Osage-orange! The fact it…