It was my joy and honor to participate in the Poetic Inventory of Saguaro National Park Project this October. Wendy Burk and Eric Magraine, both poets and naturalists, put this project together in conjunction with the National Geographic Bioblitz, an event celebrating biodiversity at Saguaro National Park. One park a year is chosen to host this national event. This year, Tucson got the honor, and thousands of people enjoyed the opportunity to learn about the flora and fauna in our desert habitat. Naturalists recorded more than four hundred species previously uncatalogued in the park and at least one species of bryophyte that may be new to the scientific community at large. Not bad for a day’s work.
The Poetic Inventory Project brought hundreds of poets into the action. We each wrote a poem about one species that lives in the park. I chose the Eleodes armata, also called the pinacate beetle, or stinkbug. The videos below show my reading and a bonus track courtesy one musically gifted park ranger and the spontaneously assembled Turtle Song Dance Troupe. Thanks to everyone who organized this event; special thanks to Sherri Mitchell for the great camera work.
Trent Tano (not verified) said:
Great poem, Erin. Loved the wild west flavor. Wouldn’t call it cowboy poetry, but it still had the smell of six guns and trail dust.