About Snake and Newt

"Snake" and "Newt" are pseudonyms for Linda Bender and Liz Thompson of the Genesee Country Village Nature Center in Mumford, NY, near Rochester. Together (and with other assistants), they teach a variety of nature camps and classes for kids throughout the year. They also hold seminars and nature walks for families, and are remarkably able to gear their presentations to the interest levels of their audiences. If you are in the greater Rochester area, join them most Sundays at 2pm for a walk through one of the trails at the Nature Center's 175 acres. You can click here to get the event schedule for the Nature Center for the upcoming 10 days.

Linda Bender ("Snake") serves as the Nature Center's Director and Chief Naturalist. Before starting in her official role at the Center in 1996, she served there as a volunteer monitoring bluebirds and helping with children's classes. Linda's background is in elementary education, but her true love has always been the outdoors. Her areas of special interest include bluebirds, snakes, wildflowers, trees, and local geology. She enjoys backpacking (and has even taught a course in "backpacking on the Appalachian Trail") and canoeing with her family, birdwatching and identifying plants. You can contact Linda at LBender@gcv.org.

Liz Thompson ("Newt") has been a naturalist at GCV for 5 years. She has been interested in nature ever since as a little girl she would accompany her father on "adventures" on my grandparents' farm. The Center's resident "batphile," Liz has also been giving bat talks at local schools, libraries, summer recreation programs and as a > presenter during Braddock Bay Raptor Research's Bird of Prey Week. She has been an active member of Bat Conservation International since high school and has participated in week-long bat workshops in Arizona, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, California and Belize. The picture to the left is of Liz cuddling a Common Vampire Bat in Belize; click on it to get a bigger picture. Contact Liz at Lthompson@gcv.org

To submit your child's question to Linda and Liz for possible publication on KidsOutAndAbout.com, click here to complete the form. Linda and Liz regret that they will not be able to answer all questions, but you will be notified if your answer is selected for publication. Thank you!