About Nature Notes
Nature Notes is a little website run by me (Laura). I'm an ecologist, artist, and writer with a life-long fascination for animals and wildlife.
I have been writing about nature and wildlife for more than seven years, during which time I've researched and written about animals of all sizes, shapes, and demeanors, from mites to blue whales. I've yet to encounter an animal that fails to amaze me—I have as much appreciation for oft-maligned creatures such as great white sharks, funnel-web spiders, and Komodo dragons as I do for beloved animal icons such as pandas, dolphins, and giraffes.
This site serves as an online notebook and professional portfolio. Here you'll find field observations, research notes, natural science illustrations, and various bits of information about plants, animals, habitats, and the natural history that ties them all together.
Nature Notes also participates in the following science writing and blogging communities around the web:
Education and Memberships
I hold bachelors' degrees in biology and chemistry from the University of Illinois as well as a master's degree in environmental science and ecology from Indiana University. I attended the Shoals Marine Laboratory where I studied Biological Illustration. I am a member of the National Association of Science Writers, the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Photographs
Each photograph used at the site is credited at the bottom of the article in which it appears. Images are obtained with all appropriate permissions from a variety of sources including press releases (I hold press passes for Eurekalert and Newswise), reader submissions, and stock photography providers such as ShutterStock and iStockPhoto.
Photos © iStockphoto.
