This is bound to be another one of those cheesy narcissistic "about me" pages, but to understand why it was important to me to do this you should know something about me.  Also I wanted to see how many times I could use "I" or "me" in a sentence.
    I was born on November 6, 1977 in Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, PA.  I grew up in a rural area so was always around wildlife and animals.  My uncle was around a lot then and growing up I remember catching snakes, minnows, and crayfish with him.  That was my first introduction to the wildlife.  Although I didn't know much about them, and most of the people around knew even less (except my grandfather, father, and uncles), I was fascinated by the creature's shapes, colors, and behaviors.  My grandfather and father along with my uncles taught me a lot about all the different things you can see in the area.  They taught me all they knew about reptiles and the outdoors.  Most importantly though, they taught me that wildlife is something to be respected and revered.  Each animal is an individual and like us they have feelings, emotions, and ideas.  (Try to say that in college without being ostracized by the "academic community.")  All through elementary and high school I spent time outdoors and although we moved from the country, I spent a lot of time along the rivers and lakes in the Waverly, NY area.

    I don't recommend holding large snappers that way.  It puts undue stress on their tail and vertebral column, especially with a fatty like that one.  In 1995 I went of to college at SUNY Geneseo half an hour south of Rochester, NY.  The school is small and is in a semi-rural setting.  Although my main interest is herpetology, the herps at Geneseo are more difficult to find than in Tioga County.  The birding however is excellent.  I got into birding with a fervor and now can identify most of the state's species.  (Empidonax flycatchers still piss me off because the songs never sound like anything on the tapes and although I know I've seen both Willow and Alder Flycatchers I can't tell them apart by voice or sight.)  Senior year I took a class in plant taxonomy and although I didn't do well (you mean I have to do homework?) it inspired an interest in botany.  After graduation I worked at a crappy job until I got a slightly less crappy job and then a decent job with good pay.  Currently I am a Quarantine and Labeling Technician at the American Red Cross.  (That means I get to take infected blood out of circulation <pun intended> so it doesn't get transfused into patients.)  Although I handle HIV and Hepatitis B infected blood every day, I get sick less often than I used to.  How's that for irony?
 
 

    Now that the history's out of the way, here's why its so important to me to do this page.  A lot of people think they know a lot about wildlife.  A lot of people don't.  I'm not an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I do know this.  Animals, Plants, Fungi, and all other living things are alive.  So are you.  Each living thing is an individual.  There is only one of them.  Like there is only one of you.  Killing a turtle is like killing a human, only worse because the turtle can't defend itself.  Plants are too unlike humans to fully understand, but animals we can relate to.  When you see a Garter Snake in the yard it is feeling something.  Nervousness, perhaps fear.  Animals feel hunger, they feel pain, not just physical but emotional.  Animals cry.  It has been documented in chimpanzees and elephants that cry tears.  Other animals cry in different ways.  They feel happy, they do have emotions.  Academic circles ignore what they know to be true because it hasn't been "scientifically proven."  If I ask you to prove to me you feel hungry can you do it?  If you're screaming how do I know you're in pain?  You cannot judge another animal's feelings the way you would judge your own.  This is the biggest mistake academics makes.
    Having said that I want you to know I'm not an animal rights extremist.  I do believe animals should have rights, but also do believe they can be useful.  I'm not a vegetarian.  I don't have any problems with work animals, although they must be taken care of properly.  The same goes for plants.  That rare orchid has a right to grow undisturbed in its bog.  We can't pick the flower or pull the plant just because it looks pretty.  Wanton destruction of our wildlife is inexcusable.  A few weeks ago I pulled over to help a snapping turtle out of the road.  Unfortunately someone had beaten me to it and it was dead.  Not by car, but it was hit over the head with a baseball bat or a shovel or some other blunt object.  And left for dead.  I have no problem with hunting of wild animals for food or population control, but to kill an animal or chop down a tree just for the sake of doing it is below us as humans.
    The last reason I wrote this page is to expand people's knowledge and observation of our state.  If because of this web page you can see a narrow-leaved cattail and differentiate it from the common cattail, this page has fulfilled its purpose.  If you see a tall tree with large leaves and a multicolored trunk, and know its an American Sycamore that means you've learned something.  And noticed it in the first place.  It's amazing how many people don't even notice the wildlife around them.  They don't respect it and it means nothing to them.  For our own preservation we need to see the world around us and keep it clean and alive.  Living things remove toxins from the air and ground.  Picture your front lawn without the grass, no trees, no crickets chirping at night, no birds to sing.  It's a bleak picture reminiscent of post-apocalyptic sci-fi movies.  So please, notice what's around you.  Don't kill what you don't have to, and realize that you are not the only living thing on this planet.