Ever wonder what it means to be a “Naturalist?”
The brief definition of a “Naturalist” is someone that studies nature in nature. Well doesn’t that mean that we can all be Naturalists? Yes, yes it does. What does it mean to study “nature in nature?” It means that we go out into the great outdoors, find something that catches our eye and study that something in its natural habitat.
Naturalists at Irvine help children and adults of all ages become Naturalists every day! We educate the importance of exploring, respecting, and protecting nature. We not only educate outdoors, but we sometimes even bring nature indoors! We provide tons of hands on learning!
An example of how a Naturalist would study “nature in nature” would be to roll a log over, and explore what type of habitat we would find underneath. We use our senses to study the habitat. Such as, using our eyes to find creatures, touch to feel the moisture, smell to smell the stages of decomposition, hearing to hear for things moving around, and leave out taste when in others habitats (for safety). We then carefully roll the log back over and leave everything where it was.
Some of the programs that allow us to reach out to the community and help others strive to become naturalists are School Field Trips, Nature in the Classroom, Birthday Parties, Day Off Camps, Summer Camp and so much more!
We hope that you will strive to become a Naturalist and help us “Leave Nature in Nature,” and to “Take only pictures, leave only footprints.”
