Mark Khosravi has taught freshman biology and advanced placement environmental science at Lake Braddock High School in Burke for eleven years, and at his Clifton Exercise Studio for 20 years teaching fitness Taekwondo, basic boxing, graduated blackbelts to level of 3rd degree. He works as a part time naturalist at Ellanor C. Lawrence Park, in Chantilla, VA. A graduate of George Mason University, Khosravi also volunteers during the summer for his alma mater monitoring water quality and other environmental factors on Pohick Bay and the Potomac River. A photo he took of a garter snake mating ball, which has never been recorded in Virginia before, was published in a Smithsonian book titled, “Snakes in Question.”
“People aren’t always aware of what’s out there,” he says. “When they see a snake, they immediately think it’s poisonous. I try to teach my students and others about the importance of reptiles and amphibians to the entire natural system.”
Education: M.Ed. George Mason University; B.A. biology degree George Mason University
Expertise: local amphibians and reptiles
Most interesting discovery: garter snake mating ball
Tools of the trade: pitfall traps, snake hook, digital camera, motion-detecting camera
You can follow him on YouTube