It's no surprise that Richmond recently tied for the most beautiful liberal arts college in America in a national survey of educational consultants. We can, in part, thank generations of architects for that, but we should also thank the spectacular biodiversity that thrives on our campus.
From the ubiquitous pine trees that shed all over our cars — and provide significant air cleaning and cooling benefits — to the elusive southern flying squirrel — biology professor Peter Smallwood has seen only one in the 10 years he's been here, and that was while studying them — there is an intriguing and sometimes surprising ecosystem right outside our gothic-arched doorways. Above is a guide to just some of what it offers us every day.