‘Canopy Meg’ Takes Study of Treetops to New Heights

From noozhawk.com:

Biologist encourages students to pursue careers in science

Conservation biologist Meg Lowman (affectionately known as “Canopy” Meg) spoke about her career and her work at a recent Channel City Club meeting.

A lifelong “arbornaut,” Lowman has been called the mother of canopy research and has spent her career exploring the biodiversity of the forest canopy and conserving forests worldwide. She now works at the California Academy of Sciences.

Lowman grew up in rural upstate New York, and always enjoyed being outside. She said the tree forts she built when as a child were what sparked her interest in trees.

Growing up she was considered a “geek” for being a young girl interested in nature and bird-watching, but that never stopped her from competing in the county science fair or pursuing higher education in science.

In college, Lowman went to Australia on scholarship to study that country’s rainforests. At the time, canopy science was a new field; all that people knew about trees was based on observations made from the ground.

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