The annual Highlands tradition of Zahner Conservation Lectures continues next week in a new digital format.
Join the Highlands Biological Station’s Associate Director, Jason Love, next Thursday, August 20 at 6 p.m. on Zoom as he discusses current research on plastic pollution as well as his own microplastics research involving local waterways.
WHO: Highlands Biological Foundation
WHAT: Virtual Zahner Lectures
WHERE: Zoom: Register at http://www.highlandsbiological.org
WHEN: Thursdays August 20 and 27 at 6 p.m.
COST: Free
This will be the second lecture of the Highlands Biological Foundation’s three-part Zahner series this summer. These lectures are free for all and a wonderful opportunity to get to know more about your local environment. Registration is required.
On August 20, “The New Pollution: Microplastics in the Little Tennessee River and its Tributaries” with Jason Love, Associate Director, Highlands Biological Station.
Since the 1950s, plastics have become an increasingly important and pervasive part of our everyday lives. However, the attributes that make plastics useful – they are durable, long-lasting, and cheap to produce – are the same factors that cause them to be persistent, major sources of pollution.
This presentation will delve into some of the current research on plastic pollution. Emphasis will be placed on microplastics, those plastics that are <0.5 cm in length and include fibers from our synthetic clothes, fragments of plastic grocery bags, and microbeads from hand soap.
The presentation will also include results from recent research from Macon and Jackson Counties in the Little Tennessee and Tuckasegee Rivers.
On August 27: “Monitoring Bird Populations at Highlands Biological Station: A Long Term Survey” with Mark Hopey, Southern Appalachian Raptor Research (SARR).
For more information on our Zahner Conservation Lecture series or to register for one of our Zahner webinars, please visit our website at http://www.highlandsbiological.org or call us at 828.526.2623.
Pictured at the top of the article HBS Associate Director Jason Love gently removing a damselfly from a net to identify.