Pam Otto, Shaw Local

Pam Otto

Shaw Local

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Recent:
  • Unknown
Past:
  • Shaw Local
  • KaneCounty Chronicle

Past articles by Pam:

Good Natured in St. Charles: Keep eye out for insects thriving in winter

Sure enough, we were looking at honest-to-goodness insects! Flying! In winter! → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Nature’s gifts spell year-round Christmas

What I am keenly aware of now, is that every day can be Christmas when you’re a naturalist. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Osage oranges add rich history to holidays

Osage orange fruit brings bright color, a pleasant scent and a whole lot of history to holiday displays. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Badgers dig deep into pest-control role

The American badger is ideally suited to its role as fossorial carnivore, or a predator that digs. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Stinkhorn proves mighty fungi weightlifter

Learn all about a soft-bodied organism that can lift thousands of times its own weight. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Open gate tempts tortoise into slow chase

Ding Dong is a charming soul I was privileged to meet as his on-the-road odyssey ended – shortly after it began. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Fun with taxonomy that’s run a bit wild

Every once in a while, the nomenclature train derails, and runs wildly off the tracks. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Shedding their skins a positive growth step

One estimate puts the amount of arthropods on our planet at 85% of Earth’s total animal biomass. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Cooper’s hawks a wild child-rearing primer

August is back-to-school month, a time when kids of all ages leave home, some for the very first time. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Randy Ratsnake quite the snake charmer

Are there any animals more misunderstood than snakes? Let's do some myth-busting. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Young praying mantis is a pampered guest

True to its name, the insect held its two front legs up and clasped together as if in prayer. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Volunteers help keep kestrels flying strong

A corps of volunteers works to counter the declining numbers of these colorful falcons who are tiny dynamos. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Spotting a spotless ladybug rare native find

Determining the status of our native lady beetle species is one of the first steps toward starting to help them. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Long-horned beetle encounter gets personal

Warm summer nights give rise to all sorts of insect activity, and all are irresistible to this nature girl. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Glowworm shines like ‘a circle of diamonds’

This insect’s genus name, Phengodes, can be traced to the Greek word for light – and with good reason. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Every day is Father’s Day for giant water bugs

As a male giant water bug, it’s his lot in life to ensure that pretty much every day is Father’s Day. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Tense family saga turns out to be just ducky

Sometimes a nature column practically writes itself. This, happily, is one of those weeks → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Masked common yellowthroat oh so elusive

If you’re lucky you might catch a glimpse of a male and, if you’re super-lucky, a female. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Rare Virginia rail an unexpected visitor

Sitting there on the concrete step was one Virginia rail that was hard to miss. → Read More

Good Natured in St. Charles: Turtles show some fancy courtship moves

Courtship is a big deal in the animal world, and turtles are no different. → Read More