Naturally, A Good Dog by Anna Cooke
There are more than 50 wildlife Ambassadors at the E. O. Wilson Biophilia Center including foxes, bobcats, Bald Eagles, turtles and owls. Many of the Center’s
staffers have names that reflect their passion and life’s work. “Longleaf” Laura is a Master Gardner specializing in native plants. “Diamond Back” Dalton
is the Center’s assistant director. “Armadillo” Ashlyn is the environmental educator
who specializes in Birds of Prey. “Bluegill” Jill overseas the Center’s foxes,
bobcats and skunks.
You can probably guess what Turtle Bob does. He’s shown with the legendary Roscoe.
G
race manifests itself in ways that many of us may never would have noticed were it not for a worldwide
crisis that kept us home. We learned to notice shifting shades of sunlight, and hear the pres- ence of tiny wildlife in our yards. Through conversations with a friend, I
discovered a place whose core philosophy is preserving an ecosystem and subsequently teaching children about biodiversity. The E.O. Wilson Biophilia Center is
nestled in the Longleaf Pine ecosystem, which is considered the sixth most biodiverse area in the continental United States. Walton County conservationist and resident, M.C. Davis, developed the Center in 2009 on his 50,000 acre land, Nokuse (pronounced NO-Go- SEE) Plantation. Davis named the Center after a world-renowned scientist, Dr. Edward O. Wilson, whose life mission was to educate the public about the importance of conserving the world’s biodiversity. Dr. Wilson coined the term “biophilia” which literally means “the love of all living
60 THE NEW BARKER things.” Before the pandemic, this was a gathering
place for scientists to conduct ecological research. During the school year, the Biophilia Center hosted, on average, 100 elementary and high school students a day. During the summer, children were able to visit the muse- um and take guided trail hikes where they experienced animal encounters. Sadly, all in-person programs have
stopped as a result of COVID-19. Work continues, however, for the staff, who have been encouraged to bring their own pets to work with them. “Nothing can take the place of the
positive energy of having student guests at the Center,” said “Pine Tree” Paul Arthur, president of E. O. Wilson Biophilia Center. “The uncertainty of when we’ll open again has, of course, caused a lot of anxiety. We have 16 dogs among our staff. I have a cat; Spice, aka Spicy Meatball. With all this land and great facilities, we have encouraged our staff to take advantage of it for ourselves.”
www.TheNewBarker.com
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