The Wandering Naturalist

Angela and Brandon are joined by Miranda Jones, resident firefly expert at Eastman Nature Center. Join us as she lights up our world with facts about firefly biology, why they glow, and where you can…

Learn how early European settlers in the 1800s navigated childcare by listening to guest Jayne Becker from The Landing. How was the diaper invented? What games were played? Listen to find out! 

Childcare among humans has advanced across history within many cultures, but it has never been easy.  Michelle Defoe of the Red Cliff Ojibwe tells us about traditions she has reclaimed after they wer…

Time to visit Gale Woods Farm with supervisor Tim Reese to talk all things farm babies.  Tim highlights volunteer project Lamb Watch and other farm babies you may encounter on a visit to the farm.  L…

Join Angela and Brandon as they celebrate Mother's Day by discussing the spectrum of parental care found throughout the animal kingdom.  Some animals have little if anything to do with their offsprin…

Trumpeter Swans are now a common sighting in the metro area of Minnesota but still little is understood about their movements and habitat selection.  David Wolfson, a current Ph. D. student at the Un…

John Moriarty, Senior Wildlife Manager at Three Rivers, helps Angela and Brandon visit the important timeline of events that starts with the disappearance of Trumpeter Swans from Minnesota but ends i…

Join Angela and Brandon to learn more about North America's largest waterfowl, the Trumpeter Swan.  Learn interesting facts and basic biology behind these birds including how to identify them from ot…

Steven Hogg explains what the 80/20 policy of Three Rivers Park District is, why it is so important for managing the habitat of our park reserves, and how GIS is used to track it.

How does the Park District decide where to put a trail and where to preserve habitat? How do we decide how each park will be developed? Join us as we talk with  Johnathan Vlaming, Associate Superinte…

Luke Skinner, Associate Superintendent of Three Rivers Park District, joins us to discuss how the park district has created a spectrum among its parks of parks primarily for recreation, to parks with…

Join us as Nick Beaufeaux, Maintenance Chief for Elm Creek Park Reserve and Mississippi Gateway Regional Park, discusses why Three Rivers Park District operates a dam and how t is being used to stop …

Matt Cassidy, Program Specialist with Minnesota Historical Society joins us to discuss how the geology of the Mississippi River has shaped the way humans have used the river for the past 10,000 years…

Join us as we discuss one of the rivers Three Rivers Park District is named after, the Mississippi River! Ashley Smith, Interpretive naturalist at Mississippi Gateway Regional Park, teaches us how to…

Explore how humans interact with ice as we talk with park volunteer and Ice Harvest historian Tim Graff about how and why people harvested ice in the 1800's and how you can experience ice harvesting …

How do invasive species impact life under the ice? What do they do to the oxygen? Can you do anything to help? Find out as we talk about Aquatic Invasive Species with Amy Timm,  Three Rivers' Natural…

Join us for the start of season two as Brandon and Angela dive into to a listener requested topic: Life Under the Ice. Explore the murky depths of a lake in the winter and learn what creatures stay a…

Join us as John Moriarty shares new research Three Rivers has participated in to find out what turtles do in the winter. It turns out it is a lot more complicated than just sleeping in the mud. Heath…

Did you know that Minnesota birds have 5 types of migration habits? Join us as we discuss this with Ron Refsneider, a retired biologist for the MN DNR and a Master Bird Bander. He shares with us what…

Wander with us as we explore how animals survive the winter. Angela and Brandon investigate three strategies that animals use to survive the winter, Migrating, Adapting, and going Dormant. Learn how …