I have been a lifelong amateur naturalist, starting as a kid with my dad, identifying things at our weekend property in WV. As a kid and young adult I attended and worked at the Burgundy Center for Wildlife Studies, a "nature camp," also in WV, where I specialized in plants. I took botany and horticulture classes in HS and college, and then got a Masters degree in Horticulture, which filled out my knowledge about cultivated plants.

Now, honestly, I'm still just an amateur naturalist – a plant nerd with more plant ID ability than I could possibly have use for. I also know a smattering of things about other kingdoms, from my time at camp: birds, herps, arthropods, mushrooms. I just love learning, and I don't see any reason to stop.