Elk Lick Creek flows through the heart of Floracliff and provides habitat for a diversity of amphibians, reptiles, insects, fish, and more. Join Floracliff Naturalists on this trek along a scenic 1/2-mile section of of the creek to explore the biodiversity and take in the beauty of the area.
Floracliff has a diversity of moths that come in many different sizes and colors. These insects play an important role in the ecosystem, having intricate relationships with our native plants, birds, and bats. Join us for this program to kick off National Moth Week, when we will have a few light stations set up with sheets to get a close-up look at our moths and other nocturnal insects. Bring a flashlight!
Elk Lick Creek flows through the heart of Floracliff and provides habitat for a diversity of amphibians, reptiles, insects, fish, and more. Join Floracliff Naturalists on this trek along a scenic 1/2-mile section of of the creek to explore the biodiversity and take in the beauty of the area.
Hike Leaders: Dan Patrick and Mark Wells
Join us for this hands-on demonstration using iNaturalist along the trails of Floracliff. We’ll spend some time exploring biodiversity, and we will cover the benefits of nature observations, basics of the app, and effective photos for species identification.
The Asteraceae, or composites, contain more species of flowering plants than all others (but the orchids). There are more composites in our regional flora, and indeed any temperate flora, than any other plant family. They inhabit just about every habitat and are conspicuous throughout the growing season, especially in late summer and fall. Easy to recognize as a family when flowering, the large number of species and its sometimes inconspicuous but important identifying field characters, can overwhelm us. Knowing what to look for and how the family is organized will help! We will review the features and specialized terms that allow us to recognize a composite to the family. Then we will dive into Asteraceae organization (systematics)- learning to recognize groups of genera called tribes- that can help us work our way through and identify most composites, at least to genus. We will look at herbarium specimens and collected live plants, as well as explore late-blooming composites within Floracliff.
Floracliff and the Lexington Chapter of Wild Ones are partnering this fall to host the Bluegrass Land and Nature Symposium. Join us Saturday, October 1st, for a full day focused on the biodiversity, ecology, and stewardship of the Bluegrass region. Registration opens August 2, 2022.
Floracliff’s forested ravines are home to some of the oldest known trees in Kentucky. This hike will feature many of these 17th- and 18th-century chinquapin oaks. We will discuss the characteristics of old trees, the uniqueness of Floracliff’s old trees, and their significance to the region.
If you’ve ever thought birdwatching would be fun or interesting but didn’t know how to start come join us for a Birding for Beginners walk and sit. We’ll discuss the use of binoculars (we have nice ones you can use for the day); what to look for when you see a bird; discuss some free apps that help you figure out what you are seeing and we’ll go see some birds! The bird walk will be slow and relaxing and we’ll end with watching some feeders for our most common feeder birds.
Meet some of Kentucky's oldest known trees on this hike at Floracliff.Floracliff’s forested ravines are home to some of the oldest known trees in Kentucky. This hike will feature many […]