Just as he does on his syndicated NatureScene show, Rudy Mancke had much to say about seemingly ordinary surroundings, snatching a flower from a nearby azalea to explain the intricacies of plant reproduction. Mancke, who observed USC's first Earth Day celebration in 1970, was back on campus as part of Earth Week activities, offering up his encyclopedic knowledge of natural history.

Mancke's lecture on the Horseshoe was like a scene from his own syndicated show as he pointed out a robin here, a squirrel there, then turned to a palmetto planted by the main walkway and recounted the story of how it became the state tree.

Hoping to spot a lizard, he lifted a loosened brick on a Horseshoe wall; finding none, he turned his attention to a trumpet vine climbing its way to the top, then quizzed his audience on the type of soil used make the wall's bricks. It was vintage Mancke whose gift for gab about the great outdoors has been a staple on NatureScene for years.

As he turned the discussion to recycling, Mancke reminded his audience that "nature started recycling--not Alcoa Aluminum. All of us are recycled material.

"That robin over there on the grass is recycling earthworms. Redtail hawks are nailing squirrels and pigeons here on the Horseshoe--they drop down and recycle them. And there are flies waiting over there in the sunshine for the smell of death so they can lay their eggs."

Mancke stopped his monologue for a brief moment when a gnat flew down his throat.

"Just give me a second," he said, gasping. "I'll recycle it."

It was nearly the perfect epigram for Earth Week.