We often think of wild nature and magnificent animal life as things that can only be seen by travelling far away to remote places. However, nature abounds all around us. I was reminded of this reality yesterday, when I was on the beach of Lummi Island with a group of students. One of the spotted this small crab in the surf:

Lummi Island is about a thirty-minute drive and a short ferry ride from the mid-size town of Bellingham. Yet, when you are on it, it’s easy to feel as if you are in someplace far more remote. The waters around the island, which also lap against the beach along the Bellingham waterfront, are full of extraordinary marine creatures most of which go unnoticed by the vast majority people. I believe this particular crustacean is a cryptic decorator crab (Pugettia richii), a species that’s new to me. With its carapace designed to blend in almost perfectly among red seaweed, it is an amazing masterpiece of evolution–just like every wild animal, plant, or other organism.

While Lummi Island may be close to Bellingham, the island itself can hardly be called urban. However, it’s also possible to find natural wonder in much more unexpected places. Earlier last week, I found the beautiful catkins below blooming on a Hooker’s willow (Salix hookeriana) growing in a patch of trees along Bakerview Road in one of the most urban parts of Bellingham itself. Cars roared by as I snapped this photo:

I’m certainly someone who enjoys visiting remote places and “wilderness” areas. But I’m also reminded almost daily of the fabulous nature to be found much closer to home. The Earth is alive, and its beauty is all around us.