Mianus River Gorge has received an enticing “Challenge Grant” to boost our efforts to raise the remaining capital to fully fund the historic High Tor acquisition. It’s simple. If MRG can raise an additional $20,000 for the purchase by December 31, 2018, a generous, anonymous donor will match the total amount raised up to $20,000. […]
Invasive Species Update
A major component of the Mianus River Gorge strategic management plan is invasive species control. The task of eradicating invasive vines, plants, and other pests, such as the hemlock woolly adelgid, seems endless. However, MRG remains optimistic that many can and will be controlled, and others may become naturalized over time. In the meantime, Mianus […]
Tree ID Pop Quiz
MRG’s Budd Veverka led an enjoyable and informative walk through Mianus River Gorge Preserve to help participants learn to identify trees by their bark, leaves, and fruit. Budd helped us answer some of these questions: 1. Which native species is allopathic, sending out a poison of sorts to discourage other trees from growing in its […]
Donation adds 13 acres to MRGP
Thanks to an extremely generous donation from Susan Heller, Mianus River Gorge (the Preserve) has just added almost 13 acres of sugar maple woodlands along Mianus River Road. This beautiful land was once the site of an orchard in the late 1800’s and now is a mature sugar maple grove. Laced with ancient stone walls […]
Volunteer Work Day Sept. 29
Come on out to help keep the Preserve in good condition, both for hikers and its unique flora and fauna. Your help is needed to do some trail work and some invasive species removal work. This work is both important and gratifying as you can see the results of a job well done! Saturday, Sept. […]
2018 Wildlife Tech Application is up!
The Mianus River Gorge is currently accepting applications from the Class of 2020 for our Wildlife Technician Program (WTP). The WTP provides an opportunity for high school students to design, implement, and evaluate multi-year studies in the field of ecology within the framework of the Science Research in the High School curriculum. The WTP is part […]
Non-native flora
Non-native flora can also be called alien, invasive, or exotic, each having a slightly different meaning. In effect, non-native plants are those that have established themselves in area from outside its native range. They move around with people as a result of immigration, migration, and trade. In their new homes, they can have a multitude […]
CISE Students Wrap Up at the Gorge
2018 College Internship in Suburban Ecology (CISE) students wrap up at Mianus River Gorge Each summer, Mianus River Gorge offers a highly sought-after internship for undergraduate college students with an interest in ecology. Under the tutelage of MRG staff scientists and graduate research assistants, the interns contribute to the Gorge’s on-going research in and around […]
Summer Reading
Welcome to the old-growth forest! Walking through the Gorge, many say, is like visiting “the forest primeval” — deep, dark and old, more like the venerable redwood forests of the west than the second-growth forests so common in the east. Visitors get the feeling they are stepping back in time and getting a rare glimpse […]
Zach Gajewski
2016 RAP Award Virginia Tech – Ph.D. Candidate Distribution and risk of chytrid fungus in amphibian communities Candidate Zach Gajewski, a Ph.D. student at Virginia Tech, was awarded the 2016 Research Assistantship Program grant to conduct his research on the distribution of the pathogenic chytrid fungus that affects frogs and other amphibians. This fungus is […]