What is a Naturalist?

If you've heard someone referred to as a "naturalist," you might have wondered just what exactly that meant.  An unshaven John Muir-like figure?  Someone living chained to a redwood tree?  A contemplative observer, the reflective Thoreau type?  A scientist?  A hippy?  Just what is a naturalist?

The definition of a naturalist is "an expert in or student of natural history."  And natural history can be described as the scientific study of plants and animals, based primarily on observation.  In my definition, I would add the study of geology as well.  Synonyms for a naturalist include natural historian, wildlife expert, and a number of scientific-sounding titles: ecologist, biologist, zoologist, botanist, environmentalist.

A Naturalist at work (or play), in Joshua Tree National Park

But don't let that deter you!  You need not have a degree in science to be a naturalist!  Children can be naturalists.  Retired folks can become naturalists.  Being a naturalist can be anything from a hobby to a full-time profession.

Being a naturalist means having a love of nature and passion for its conservation, plus a little more: it means paying attention to the daily and seasonal rhythms of the natural world, and having the desire to learn not only the names of species, but their life histories as well.  Naturalists can tell you more than the name of a bird.  They can tell you about annual migratory patterns, breeding cycles, and feeding habits. 

Tools of a Naturalist

Naturalists are, perhaps above all, curious.  They want to know things, like where the sparrows go in the winter, what formed a particular rock, when the lupines bloom.  To find the answers, they observe and they read and they ask questions.  Naturalists are observant, perceptive, and patient.  They tend to be quiet and contemplative, but hardy folk not deterred by inclement weather or dirt.  Naturalists are also systematic and organized, at least to some degree!  Records are valuable: field notes, photographs and the like.

Being a good naturalist requires little more than curiosity and observation.  But a few tools are useful in the field, such as a notebook, field guide, camera and binoculars.  It's always helpful to take ample photos, as well as sketch and describe what you see.  At home, the accomplished naturalist will have a well-used collection of reference books and field guides, as well as a collection of interesting specimens acquired over time.*

A collection of field guides and reference books, packed up and ready for a trip to the desert.

I encourage you to be an naturalist.  Be curious, explore, observe the natural world.  Notice things, like the birds in your yard and what wildflowers bloom during each season.  There's no need to venture deep into the wilderness if you'd rather not; you can study nature at a local park, or visit a natural history museum.  All it takes is a little time to slow down and notice what is around you to gain an appreciation for our beautiful, fragile environment. 

So take a little time, pick up a field guide and head outside.  You might be surprised at what you discover!

*Note: Please NEVER collect anything on protected land, including but not limited to National and State Parks.  Be aware of the rarity of a specimen and ecological significance of removing it from the environment before you do so.  And be selective: when you do collect, take only what you need and know will be useful to you.  Leave the rest where you found it and be content with a good photo.

Comments

Post a Comment

You Might Also Like:

Birds of the Desert: Residents & Spring Migrants

Image
Nearly everyone knows the desert as a barren, desolate land of extremes: high heat, low precipitation; little available food and water; prickly, spiny, unfriendly plants growing in a sea of rocks and sand as far as the eye can see.  But for those who stop and look closer, the desert reveals itself as the beautiful, incredible, mesmerizing place it truly is, teeming with unexpected life. Juvenile male Costa's Hummingbird visiting chuparosa blooms next to our campsite in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. I particularly love the desert in the spring, when the annual wildflowers, cacti, flowering trees and shrubs are all in bloom.  (I've experienced the desert in the searing 120 degree heat of summer, and the rainy, even snowy cold of winter... and spring wins every time!)  Eric and I just returned from a week in the Colorado desert, exploring the imperiled, accidental Salton Sea (more on that coming soon), the vital wetlands of the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refu
Read more

A Shorebird Primer: Godwits, Curlews, Willets and Whimbrels

Image
For those of us living in the Great Central Valley, autumn is the time to head to the coast.  Of course, there is no bad time to visit California's magnificent coastline.  But as the heat and haze of summer drag on in the Valley, the sea becomes increasingly tantalizing: September and the onset of autumn bring sunny weather and an abundance of migratory seabirds and shorebirds to our coast. A new birder visiting California's Central Coast will undoubtedly be met with a splendid array of very confusing birds.  Among these are small shorebirds like  "peeps" (sandpipers), Sanderlings and various  plovers .  But the larger birds can be just as confusing, until you learn a few distinguishing features.  Four large shorebirds that are commonly seen (and commonly confused) along California's Central Coast are Godwits, Curlews, Willets and Whimbrels. Marbled Godwit (upper left), Whimbrel (upper right), Long-billed Curlew (center front) The distinguishing featu
Read more

Birding in Adverse Weather Conditions: Wind and Rain

Image
Though I often extol the virtues and merits of winter in the Central Valley , especially when it comes to birding, the whole truth is that we experience "bad" weather also, just like anywhere else.  But even when the winter weather rolls in, the birds are still out there!  And sometimes, despite our best planning efforts, a birding day happens to coincide with crummy weather.   In that case, what's a birder to do?  Usually, we go birding anyway!   Birders far more intrepid than I regularly brave the ice and snow of northern winters to see their favorite birds, so perhaps you should look to them for real tips on winter birding!  For those of us in the valleys of California, the worst weather we see - wind and rain - is really comparatively mild.  Birding on an extremely windy day! I don't know of anyone who actually likes birding in the rain.  But I would argue that birding in the wind is just as aggravating as trying to bird in the rain!   Wind can be utterly infuri
Read more

Winter Gulls: The Great I.D. Challenge

Image
Gulls are a fun challenge for birders, from beginners to experts.  A few things make gulls an interesting study: they are large and conspicuous in their open habitats, so they are easy to see, easy to put a scope on, and easy to watch and study for long periods of time.  Furthermore, gulls are almost always identifiable as gulls; none of this confusing warbler/vireo/kinglet nonsense! And yet, gulls are almost impossibly difficult!  (Though perhaps not nearly as difficult as Empidonax flycatchers!) An intimidating scene to many a birder: a mixed flock of gulls.  I see five different species of gull here. Oh, and one American Coot in the background. One of the reasons they are so complicated is most gull species take two or three years to achieve adult plumage, and go through multiple molts in a year.  So, you may be looking at three or four gulls together that look like four completely different species, when they are actually just different ages (individuals in their first, s
Read more

Joshua Tree Woodlands: A Tale of Sloths, Moths and the Trees that Need Them

Image
In 1844, early California explorer John C. Fremont gave a somewhat scathing review of Joshua trees when he wrote, "...their stiff and ungraceful form makes them to the traveler the most repulsive tree in the vegetable kingdom."  Rather unkind, don't you think?  But when Joshua trees were formally described by scientist William Trelease in the 1890's, he noted that Joshua Trees are "the most attractive of all the Yuccas."  I am inclined to agree with this sentiment, and must disagree most heartily with Lieutenant Fremont! I, for one, adore Joshua Trees, with their whimsical shapes and great ecological significance!  If you struggle with plant identification, the iconic Joshua tree, hallmark of the Mojave Desert, is a good place to start.  With densely spiked tufts protruding from the ends of gangly arms stretched towards the heavens, this looks like a plant straight from a Dr. Seuss book.  Native people called these trees “humwichawa,” and used thei
Read more

Exploring New Places: South Carolina's Salt Marshes and Tidal Creeks

Image
Throughout South Carolina's Low Country, winding tendrils of water wend their way through a sea of grass, rising and falling with each new tide.  Low-lying intertidal areas immediately inland from the coast, salt marshes and tidal creeks form the interface between upland forests and urban areas, and brackish estuaries where freshwater and saltwater mix.   Tidal creeks are, to a first-time visitor to the South Carolina coast like myself, absolutely beautiful, mysterious, enthralling places where silvery ribbons of water meander seemingly aimlessly through a vivid green matrix.  They give the impression that there is water everywhere , a foreign concept to someone from arid, drought-stricken Mediterranean California.  And that was my first impression of South Carolina: there was water everywhere I looked!  Water in the ocean, lakes, rivers, creeks and wetlands, water covering the ground, falling from the sky, in the air itself!   Is there any land at all in this veritable wa
Read more