4 Credit Hours May 25 – June 5, 2026 Instructors: Kenneth H. Kozak, Ph.D. (University of Minnesota) & Joseph H. K. Pechmann, Ph.D. (Western Carolina University) The Southern Appalachians are home to one of the richest and most ecologically significant salamander assemblages on Earth. This immersive field- and lab-based course introduces students to the extraordinary […]

2 Credit Hours June 1–5, 2026 Instructors: Dr. Joey Shaw, UT-Chattanooga True sedges are famously challenging to identify. With numerous species often growing side by side in the same microhabitats, reduced and specialized floral structures, unique terminology, and diagnostic features that may rely on very small measurements—or even mature material—students of botany can easily feel […]

Botany Bootcamp June 1, 2026 | 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM Instructor: Dr. Paul Manos, Duke University Botany Bootcamp is an engaging, hands-on workshop designed to introduce participants to the remarkable diversity of plant life found on the Highlands Plateau. Hosted at the Highlands Biological Station, this immersive day blends short lectures with interactive activities to […]

Paper Botanicals – Fraser’s Magnolia June 4, 2026, 9:00AM - 3:30PM Instructor: Cynthia Woodsong Celebrate the beauty of one of the Southern Appalachians’ most distinctive trees in this hands-on botanical art workshop focused on Fraser’s Magnolia (Magnolia fraseri). The workshop will begin with a short introduction to Fraser’s Magnolia led by Dr. James Costa, Executive Director of Highlands […]

Join Highlands Biological Station and the Blue Ridge Bird Observatory for a morning of bird banding as part of the MAPS, or Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship, program. Established at HBS in 2020, the MAPS bird banding station is part of a larger effort to assess trends in avian demographics across North America. During banding […]

2 Credit Hours June 8–12, 2026 Instructors: Dr. Laura Boggess, Mars Hill University & Mr. Gary Kauffman, USFS (Emeritus) Cliffs and rock outcrops are among the most striking and ecologically distinctive landscapes in the Southern Appalachians. These environments support rare, endemic, and specialized species shaped by extreme conditions and long-term geological processes—yet they remain understudied, […]

Join Highlands Biological Station and the Blue Ridge Bird Observatory for a morning of bird banding as part of the MAPS, or Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship, program. Established at HBS in 2020, the MAPS bird banding station is part of a larger effort to assess trends in avian demographics across North America. During banding […]