Butterflies to be topic of annual Greenway dinner

The Carantouan Greenway will host Charlie Smith as the evening’s speaker at their annual dinner meeting on April 14 at Yanuzzi’s Restaurant, located at 235 Desmond St. In Sayre. Things begin at 6 p.m., and the cost is $30 per person. 

Reservations may be made by sending a check to Carantouan Greenway, P.O. Box 441, Sayre, Pa. 18840-0441 or by contacting Marty Borko at (607) 565-2636. The public is welcome to attend, and the deadline for reservations is April 7.

Charlie is a naturalist, educator, and conservationist who retired from Cornell University in 2012. Raised in the Roan Mountains of Tennessee, he graduated from East Tennessee State University with majors in botany and zoology. He earned his PhD from Cornell in 1977 and was hired by the university, where he eventually served as Executive Director of the Laboratory of Ornithology. His research and teaching specialties were in grassland birds. 

Charlie was introduced to butterflies and moths in 1988 and his interest culminated in 2019 with the publication of Butterflies and Moths of the Smokies. He has been a member of the North American Butterfly Association since 1995 and has served as co-regional editor for NYS’ Annual Butterfly Counts. 

Charlie’s presentation, “Introducing Butterflies – Fancy of Flight,” describes and illustrates some of the basic biology of butterflies. Twenty species of butterflies frequently seen in the Twin Tiers will be introduced, and their larval food habits discussed. Size and field marks that distinguish each species will be illustrated using photographs taken by the speaker. 

Locally, Charlie serves with the Finger Lakes Land Trust and the Town of Dryden Conservation Board. He lives with his wife, Claudia Melinn, and their border terrier, Bobby, near Dryden, New York.