biodiversity Archives - 91¶ÌÊÓƵ News /now/news/tag/biodiversity/ News from the 91¶ÌÊÓƵ community. Fri, 10 Apr 2026 15:08:42 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9 Professor’s backyard pond makes it onto cover of national magazine /now/news/2026/professors-backyard-pond-makes-it-onto-cover-of-national-magazine/ /now/news/2026/professors-backyard-pond-makes-it-onto-cover-of-national-magazine/#respond Fri, 10 Apr 2026 15:08:41 +0000 /now/news/?p=60994 In the spring 2026 issue of , Steven David Johnson, professor of Visual and Communication Arts (VACA) at 91¶ÌÊÓƵ, writes about how his daughter’s school project building a small backyard pond turned into a family native plant landscaping effort bringing biodiversity to their yard. 

Johnson’s photography of the pond and its bountiful wildlife—think butterflies, hummingbirds, and frogs—are beautifully captured on the magazine’s cover and its glossy pages, as well as online.

Read his story and view the photos .

As a result of the project, Johnson wrote, “we went from seeing an occasional wandering toad to now having a fully functioning ecosystem.”

“For me, this is a story of hope,” he said. “Tackling the extinction crisis can seem overwhelming, but everyday folks can transform their backyards into an oasis for wildlife.”

Professor Steven David Johnson’s photography also graces the cover of the March-April 2026 issue of Virginia Wildlife Magazine, which features a story about Virginia’s vernal pools and the salamanders that inhabit them. To view his photos with that story, click on the photo above or visit . (Photos courtesy of Steven David Johnson)
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