Leslie Mertz has the unusual combination of experience in newspapers and the media, and in field biology. She spends her summers outdoors chasing frogs, snakes, insects, and other critters in the field-biology classes she offers through Eastern Michigan University and other colleges, and the rest of the year writing and engaging in her own outdoor adventures. Mertz, who holds a Ph.D. in biology, has written nine books and co-authored a 10th on topics including nature, travel, biology and medicine, and has written hundreds of widely ranging articles for magazines, newspapers, and other publications, as well as numerous chapters on exploration and discovery for major encyclopedias.