Natural North Dakota
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Hosted by Chuck Lura, a biology professor at Dakota College in Bottineau. Chuck has a broad knowledge of Natural North Dakota and loves sharing that knowledge with others. Since 2005, he has written a weekly column, Naturalist at Large, for the Lake Metigoshe Mirror. His columns also appear under The Naturalist in several other weekly newspapers across North Dakota. Natural North Dakota is..
Natural North Dakota
4d ago
One of the common signs of spring is when we look up at the trees and see something different up there. The trees must be leafing out! Spring is officially here! But much of what we see up there is more likely flowers ..read more
Natural North Dakota
2w ago
If you like to watch falling stars, this next month or so is a good time to see them. The Lyrids meteor shower will start soon, and it overlaps with the Eta Aquarids meteor shower. Between the two, the show will run to the end of May ..read more
Natural North Dakota
3w ago
Shortly after beginning their journey down the Missouri River in April of 1805 after spending the winter at Fort Mandan, Meriwether Lewis wrote in his journal about an animal that Captain Clark had recently observed: “Captain Clark walked on shore today and informed on his return, that passing through the prairie he had seen an animal that precisely resembled the burrowing squirrel, accept in point of size, it being only about one third as large as the squirrel, and that it also burrows ..read more
Natural North Dakota
1M ago
It seems that every year when spring comes around, we are ready to go outdoors. Nature has much to offer, but all too often summer arrives, and we realize we did not get to enjoy the spring like we had hoped ..read more
Natural North Dakota
1M ago
The short days of winter are starting to fade away as the days continue to lengthen. And next Wednesday, March 20, is the spring equinox ..read more
Natural North Dakota
1M ago
If you have never been to the petrified forest in Theodore Roosevelt National Park’s South Unit, you might want to consider doing so this year. And even if you have been there before, another visit to see these remnants of another time is a worthwhile experience ..read more
Natural North Dakota
2M ago
I recently happened upon the above map of the Red River Watershed. I suspect that the watershed is much larger than most of us would think ..read more
Natural North Dakota
2M ago
January is in the rearview mirror, as is a good portion of February. And whether Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow or not, no self-respecting North Dakota groundhog would stick their head out of the burrow in early February. Any thoughts of spring are premature. Or are they ..read more
Natural North Dakota
3M ago
I recently saw a news article about a 240-pound lake sturgeon caught in the Detroit River in 2021. That’s a big fish! Perhaps someday North Dakota will produce a lake sturgeon of that size ..read more