This course includes all three flora walks as a bundle. Please refer to course numbers 10xx, 10xx, 10xx, to register for individual flora walks.

This field course will observe the tremendous diversity of the spring flora in three habitats within an hour of State College. There will be a special emphasis on understanding plant-pollinator interactions. Leisurely walks will explore the flora at:

• Lower Trail – Monday, April 22, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
• Shaver’s Creek/Stone Valley – Wednesday, May 1, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
• Martin’s Gap – Monday, May 20, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (includes travel time and the walk, start and end at the Penn State Outreach Building)

Instructor: Andy Stephenson graduated with a B.S. from Miami University (OH) in 1973 and a Ph.D. from Michigan in 1978. He retired as an emeritus distinguished professor in the fall of 2019 after 41 years in the Department of Biology at Penn State. His teaching and research focused on the ecology and evolution of plant reproduction, and he has given both public and professional talks on this subject across the U.S. and around the world. His interests include nature photography, spring flora hikes in the woods of Central Pennsylvania, biking on country roads, and volunteering at The Arboretum at Penn State.