Biology & Environmental Sciences, Department of

The variety of plants surrounding Athens, Georgia, are well documented and cataloged. This isn’t the case for Baldwin County and Middle Georgia.But students and faculty in the herbarium at Georgia College & State University are working to change that. “The majority of our samples are from Georgia, and mostly Baldwin County,” said Dr. Gretchen Ionta, associate professor of environmental science and current curator of Georgia College’s herbarium. “Around Athens there’s a ton of herbarium...

 Some people love the red-eyed buzzing critters. Others can’t wait for them to go.But for soil ecologists like Dr. Bruce Snyder, these last few weeks are a waning opportunity to learn more about periodical cicadas and the lasting impact they leave behind.The clock is ticking. Soon, millions of cicadas from the Great Southern Brood XIX will go silent. They won’t be back until 2037.“When they’re gone, they’re gone,” said Snyder recently, as he checked multiple wire cages and netted traps...

They don’t sting, and they don’t bite. They don’t suck blood. They won’t make you itch. And your garden is safe. But miniature exoskeletons might be attached to your house. You might see flickers of red-and-black buzz by. Over the weekend, you might’ve heard a monotonous droning begin. No, your eyes are not deceiving you, and your ears are just fine. They are cicadas, part of the Great Southern Brood XIX that reemerge every 13 years.   And, despite some maps showing their arrival only...