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Dwight Platt
Hatteberg's People
Reporter: Larry Hatteberg
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July 6, 2003--Dwight Platt's small acreage near Newton is near perfect for a retired biology professor. This weekend (Saturday, July 12th) he holds the fourth annual butterfly count for Harvey County. |
| Around Dwight, you find out how much you don't know about nature. |
"I've lived on this plot of land for over 55 years now, so one gets attached to it."
Dwight lives on the edge of N. Newton, Kansas not far from Bethel College. Surrounding his home are several acres of land that is a haven for every species of grass and flower Kansas can offer. |
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He points out to me some specific butterflies and moths. He knows all about them. They have been his life. Most of what we're looking at most of us pass by every day without stopping to notice.
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"Yeah, we overlook a lot of the little things that are common out here."
A 'Red Admiral' butterfly sits on a flower as if posing while Dwight and I get a closer look. His love for biology just won't quit. |
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"It's the appreciation of learning some of the complexity of nature and God's creation around us."
For 40 years he taught biology at Bethel College in North Newton. Now, in retirement, his yard is his classroom.
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"It isn't everybody that gets to do in their profession the things that they really enjoy."
Dwight organized the butterfly count sponsored by the North American Butterfly Association. But it is only one of the many things he's interested in. |
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He spends hours at the Kauffman Museum near the Bethel College campus. There, he's helped develop a prairie preserve....finding out what plants work best with each other and the prairie.
"It's interesting because it's basically an experiment."
Sometimes he says, people aren't sure what they're seeing when they notice the 'head-high' plants in front of the museum. |
"People talk about this as a weed patch. I guess it's a matter of people beginning to see what is around them."
And for those who don't--the museum has listed the plants that are currently blooming adjacent to the land. |
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So when you hear of people chasing butterflies on the prairie...
"There goes a Monarch."
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It's people like professor Dwight Platt who take time to see the beautiful things of nature, things the rest of us usually miss.
"I guess there is just a lot of native plants and animals that are under appreciated. It just takes opening your eyes."
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| And if you would like to visit the Kaufman Museum where Dwight Platt serves as a reconstruction consultant, it's located right across the street from the Bethel College Campus in North
Newton. |
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