Peter Alden Wild Life

My final summary report on the groupings of organisms and the people who found them during Walden Biodiversity Days in 2009 and 1998 is finished and can be downloaded here (5.7 MB). These events wouldn’t have been possible without hundreds of experts and helpers of all sorts deserve our gratitude for their time in the [...]

In the run-up to Thanksgiving this week Shannon Mullen of National Public Radio interviewed me and Martha Stewart about Oriental Bittersweet, one of the most aggressively destructive invasive plants in the North East US and a staple of holiday decorations. Not surprisingly we come to different conclusions about it’s place at the table.

Sometimes you’ve got to roll up your sleeves – or pants leg – to get the job done, as I was doing to identify leeches in the Concord woods during Walden Biodiversity Day, a 24-hour bio-blitz to inventory all species that can be seen with the naked eye in Concord, Carlisle and Lincoln Massachusetts. The [...]

On July 3rd and 4th I’ll be leading the second Walden Biodiversity Day, a gathering of top naturalists and field biologists — many of whom participated in the first Biodiversity Day in 1998 — who will fan out to find, identify and photograph over a thousand species of mushrooms, plants and animals in a day. [...]

Here are some excerpts from “Nature Sense with Peter Alden” produced by Ernie Sarro. Invasive alien plants are a major threat to America’s native plants and trees. Look for my regular segment on The Expert Series which airs on many community access TV stations in Boston and beyond.

This October I’m leading a trip to the Galapogos for Road Scholar, with several more departures planned for next April and May. There’s no doubt the Galapagos Islands provide one of the most thrilling wildlife experiences in the world. Without natural predators, the endemic species of the islands live fearlessly, so curious humans can observe [...]

I was recently interviewed by Karen Nugent of the Worcester Telegram about a topic near and dear to my heart – invasive alien plants, specifically, a state-banned non-native vine called Oriental bittersweet that is popular this time of year. Karen wrote: “On a visit to Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center and Wildlife Sanctuary in Worcester, [...]

Democratic Candidate for U.S. Congress Niki Tsongas invited me to provide color commentary on environmental issues during her “Rolling Down the River” campaign on the Sudbury River in July. Along the way I pointed out birds, turtles, and native and invasive trees, shrubs, vines and wildflowers, particulary the invasive plant (and animal) challenges affecting us [...]

The Smithsonian Magazine has a an excellent article this month, Teaming Up With Thoreau by Michelle Nijhuis, that does a beautiful job of conveying what’s so special — and what’s changing too fast — in my small part of the woods. An excerpt follows or you can read the whole article on Smithsonian.com. “Even in [...]

Americans seem to know less and care less than ever about the natural world in their environs. As evidenced by the popularity of “action-oriented” nature shows and films about far away places, they are more interested in the cats of the African plains, the penguins of Antarctica, or the crocs and reefs of the tropics [...]