A nearly 8,000-acre preserve in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta will be named in honor of famed natural scientist Edward Osborne Wilson.
The E.O. Wilson Land Between the Rivers Preserve was announced by the Nature Conservancy and the E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation on Tuesday, what would have been the Alabama native’s 96th birthday.
“There is nobody more associated with the Delta than E.O. Wilson,” said Mitch Reid, director of the Nature Conservancy in Alabama. “The Delta is as unique and iconic as Dr. Wilson, and it is fitting that his name and legacy be forever connected with the place that inspired him on his incredible journey.”
The Mobile-Tensaw Delta, called “America’s Amazon,” is the second-largest intact delta system in North America and one of the most ecologically diverse places on the planet, according to the Nature Conservancy.
“Nothing would have brought Ed more joy than knowing this extraordinarily important habitat will be protected,” said Paula J. Ehrlich, president and CEO of the E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation. “This place inspired so much of the global conservation ethic he so keenly advanced. I’d like to imagine his spirit will always be there.”
Wilson died in 2021 at age 92.
