Environment Archives - Ohio History Connection

August 11, 2025

Can Artificial Intelligence (AI) Benefit Natural History Collections?

Or: How a Comment About iNaturalist Led Me Down an AI Rabbithole Rather than an exhaustive report, this blog is intended to give a brief overview of the topic and jumping off points for further investigation. This blog was written without the assistance of AI writing tools. While identifying a butterfly on a social media […]

July 21, 2025

A Brief History of the Golden-winged Warbler: Part II

Author’s Note: Be sure to catch up with A Brief History of the Golden-winged Warbler Part I, here. The Golden-winged Warbler was seemingly never common in Ohio. It had been variously described as a "transitory visitor" by Jared Kirtland in 1838; a "rare summer resident" by John Wheaton in 1879; and "irregular in distribution" by […]

May 12, 2025

A Brief History of the Golden-winged Warbler: Part I

By Erin Cashion, Curator of Natural History At first glance, it appears to be only a brownish wad of grapevine bark strips and old beech leaves. Its age alone (and the person who collected it) make it a specimen of high historic and scientific significance. But this plain-seeming clump of old leaves has an even […]

June 27, 2024

An Ode To Caterpillars

October 8, 2021

Restoring a Sense of Wonder

“I fell in love with every bird I met and everything they did. Their world, my world, was all new. I swooned to kinglets, warblers, tanagers...

July 14, 2021

Celebrating World Snake Day 2021

World Snake Day 2021 is Friday, July 16! Want to learn more about these misunderstood animals?

April 28, 2021

Get Ready for Brood X!

Western Ohio as well as Indiana, Maryland, Illinois, Tennessee, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Virginia, and North Carolina are all due to experience...