Nature Now

Nan Evans talks with Steve Grace, a local author and marine science educator, about a "Lost Wilderness" he found on the Quimper Peninsula and efforts to protect this treasure. (KPTZ airdate: February 27, 2019) Nature Now is created by a dedicated team of volunteers. If you enjoy this episode and can support the work that goes into making Nature Now, we invite you to go to kptz.org/donate to make a...

Nan Evans talks with local naturalist Steve Grace about recent efforts to protect a very special old forest on the Quimper Peninsula. (KPTZ airdate: November 27, 2019) Nature Now is created by a dedicated team of volunteers. If you enjoy this episode and can support the work that goes into making Nature Now, we invite you to go to kptz.org/donate to make a contribution. Thank you for your support!

How can we act locally to protect special forest habitats while providing for sustainable forest harvests and supporting our local communities and economies? A tough prospect. Nan Evans explores specific efforts here in Jefferson County, WA, to do just this. Guests are County Commissioner Heidi Eisenhour, and Malloree Weinheimer, owner of Chickadee Forestry. (KPTZ airdate: January 28, 2026) Learn...

This week we review the remarkable life of pioneer/explorer James Swan, who lived and worked and recorded extensively in our area from 1859 to 1900. Debaran Kelso speaks with James Swan scholar Steve Ricketts at Swan's burial site in the Laurel Grove Cemetery in Port Townsend, WA (KPTZ airdate: January 21, 2026) Learn more: Winter Brothers: A Season at the Edge of America by Ivan Doig Swan, James...

The hosts of Nature Now - Jackie Canterbury, Nan Evans, and Debaran Kelso - start the year by sharing their favorite books about natural history. The conversation roams from bees to wolves, research to poetry, and beautiful photographs to whimsical illustrations. Laugh with them, listen to the awe and amazement they share, and find a new favorite book to read. Happy New Year, listeners! (KPTZ aird...

Jackie Canterbury talks with Dr. Steve Hampton with the Rainshadow Bird Alliance, formerly Admiralty Audubon, about the oldest citizen science program of its kind, the Audubon Christmas Bird Count or CBC. The CBC began on Christmas Day 1900 as a way to count birds rather than shoot them as people began to become visibly concerned about declining bird populations. This year is the 126th year of the...

Jackie Canterbury talks with Paul Koberstein, an award-winning environmental journalist and the co-author of the book "Canopy of Titans: The Life and Times of the Great North American Temperate Rainforest". Paul has explored many environmental issues through his career as a writer. Join us as we talk with Paul about the global importance of our own temperate rainforest ecosystem in the Pacific Nor...

Debaran Kelso speaks with wolf biologist Jim Holyan. The adventures and heart-breaks of wolf reintroductions in Idaho are the subject of his recent book "I was a Middle-Aged Wolfman: Chasing Wolves in Idaho's Backcountry". (KPTZ airdate: December 10, 2025) Learn more: I was a Middle-Aged Wolfman: Chasing Wolves in Idaho's Backcountry by Jim Holyan Sound recordings: BBC Nature Sound Effects Library...

Nurse logs, a common site in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, blur the distinction between life and death as they support not only the next generation of trees, but also a host of other plant and animal species. Learn more about nurse logs and what the Jefferson Land Trust is doing to give a hand to these incredibly significant ecological systems. Nan Evans talks to Carrie Clendaniel, Preserv...

The stunning mountains of Western Washington draw many people who dream of reaching their summits. The views from these peaks can be breathtaking, but climbing them comes with significant challenges. Few know this better than Dave Rugh, who has spent decades climbing mountains. Join Jackie Canterbury as she talks with Dave about his experiences climbing in Washington State. (KPTZ airdate: December...

Debaran Kelso takes a deep dive into the world of whale sound with humpback whale expert Dr. Fred Sharpe, whose recent research has focused on aerial whale signals - the "blows", "wheezes", and "thrums" of everyday life. (KPTZ airdate: November 12, 2025) Learn more: Happywhale Mystery sound recording: Fred Sharpe Music by Rick Bauer Nature Now is created by a dedicated team of volunteers. If you e...

It's getting cold and rainy outside. We've gotten out our winter clothes and rain boots, checked that our home's furnace is working well, stocked up on comfort foods, and perhaps, planned a winter vacation to a warmer and sunnier place. As the seasons change, some birds migrate to warmer places. But, how do the birds that stay the winter survive? Listen as Nan Evans talks with Christie Lassen of W...

What was that "pffit, pffit" sound? That small, triangular fin? A dolphin? But it doesn’t want to play in our boat's bow wake. Ah, it is a Harbor Porpoise, the smallest cetacean found in the Salish Sea. What do we know about them? Not very much it seems. Scientists are just learning more through direct, non-invasive observations of individuals. Join Nan Evans as she talks with Dr. Cindy Elliser of...

Nature Now explores the world of science books for kids! Debaran Kelso speaks with celebrated author Melissa Stewart about her book From Bam! to Burp! A Carbon Atom's Never-Ending Journey Through Space and Time and YOU. (KPTZ airdate: October 1, 2025) Learn more: Melissa Stewart From BAM! to BURP! A Carbon Atom's Never-Ending Journey through Space and Time and YOU Nature Now is created by a dedica...

We are all familiar with bees. Did you know that honey bee colonies are highly organized, complex, with a rigid caste system, and whose individuals depend on their societal organization to survive? Join Jackie Canterbury as she talks with Colleen Ebken, a beekeeper on Marrowstone Island (WA), about her bee colonies and the wonderful world of bees in general (part 1 of a two-part program). (KPTZ ai...

Nan Evans talks with Port Townsend mushroom enthusiasts, Helen Kolff and Jessica Latourelle. They explore attitudes, myths, truths, and edibility of mushrooms. Did you know what we see are only the fruiting bodies of extensive mycelial networks? Or, that they are not plants and they perform critical ecosystem functions. And, why are some people fascinated with fungi? (KPTZ airdate: September 17, 2...

Nan Evans talks with Lynda Mapes, longtime environmental reporter for The Seattle Times, about how culture, economics, and science have fundamentally changed how we use timber resources and perceive our relationship with forests. Much of the conversation is driven by Mapes’ most recent book, The Trees are Speaking: Dispaches from the Salmon Forest (part 2 of a two-part program). (KPTZ airdate: Sep...

Nan Evans talks with Lynda Mapes, longtime environmental reporter for The Seattle Times, about how culture, economics, and science have fundamentally changed how we use timber resources and perceive our relationship with forests. Much of the conversation is driven by Mapes’ most recent book, The Trees are Speaking: Dispaches from the Salmon Forest (part 1 of a two-part program). (KPTZ airdate: Sep...

Jackie Canterbury talks with Karin Ertl about the Salish Sea Guillemot Network and the Pigeon Guillemots that uniquely nest beneath the Hood Canal bridge. Pigeon Guillemot surveys began in 2004 on Whidbey Island, WA. As of 2024, surveys are taking place in 8 different regions with about 250 volunteers. (KPTZ airdate: August 13, 2025) Learn more: Salish Sea Guillemot Network Pigeon Guillemot Survey...

Debaran Kelso and field recorder Meg Amos continue the conversation with owl expert Jamie Acker in his backyard wildlife sanctuary, about his work studying owls near his home on Bainbridge Island, WA, for the past 25 years (part 2 of a two-part program). (KPTZ airdate: August 6, 2025) Bird sound recording courtesy of Cornell Lab of Ornithology | Macaulay Library Music by Rick Bauer Nature Now is c...

Debaran Kelso and field recorder Meg Amos meet with guest Jamie Acker in his own backyard wildlife sanctuary, to speak about his work studying owls near his home on Bainbridge Island, WA, for the past 25 years (part 1 of a two-part program). (KPTZ airdate: July 16, 2025) Bird sound recording: Bob McGuire, ML187078 , courtesy of Cornell Lab of Ornithology | Macaulay Library Nature Now is created by...

Marine mammals, especially the cetaceans, are a popular focus for wildlife viewing throughout the world. So, which species live here in the Salish Sea, and how are they doing? Jackie Canterbury speaks with wildlife biologist Dave Rugh. Local cetaceans include harbor porpoises, Dall's porpoises, Pacific white-sided dolphins, minke whales, gray whales, humpbacks, and killer whales. Other local marin...

Debaran Kelso speaks with founder Linda Landkammer and naturalist Dr. Fred Sharpe out in the garden, celebrating the lovely Kul Kah Han Native Plant Garden in Chimacum, WA, on a gorgeous summer afternoon! (KPTZ airdate: June 11, 2025) Learn more: Kul Kah Han Native Plant Garden Bird sound recording courtesy of Cornell Lab of Ornithology | Macaulay Library Music by Rick Bauer Nature Now is created...

Nan Evans talks with Thor Hanson, biologist and author, to explore the wonders of biodiversity. Biodiversity is the variety of life on earth from genes and species to ecosystems. Biodiversity encompasses the interactions between all living things, animals (including humans), plants, fungi, microorganisms and the environments they inhabit and communities they create. Biodiversity has been attribute...

Nan Evans talks with Port Townsend photographer Kerry Tremain about the beauty of his bird photography and the emotional connections we all have to birds once we open ourselves to honor that we humans co-evolved with birds. (KPTZ airdate: May 7, 2025) Learn more: Kerry Tremain Photography Kerry Tremain's newsletter Wild Things Bird sound recording: Jay McGowan, ML66621141 , courtesy of Cornell Lab...