EcoStrides

Lost Valley Prairie SNA

This fall I dodged raking leaves at home, but today I spent four hours raking twigs for the Department of Natural Resources. The reward was spending a beautiful autumn day outdoors. After raking down to the bare soil, we spread native grass and flower seeds.

Lost Valley Prairie is designated a Scientific and Natural Area with the purpose of preserving Minnesota’s diversity of plants, animals, and geological features. In this case it is a prairie on top of limestone.

The SNA Program’s goal is to ensure that no single rare feature is lost from any region of the state. This requires protection and management of each feature in sufficient quantity and distribution across the landscape.

Minnesota currently has over 140 SNAs, and wishes to have 500. Although SNAs are open to the public, they are not really parks, as there are no restrooms, trails, or major recreational opportunities. But you can still visit and enjoy the view!

The Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers meet

I volunteered today at two separate events. In the morning I hauled invasive buckthorn out of the woods and picked up litter in Como Park. In the afternoon I spread native grass seeds in Crosby Farm Park, overlooking the Mississippi River. Working outside makes me really tired — in a good way. Coming home to a hot shower and a short nap is one of life’s simple pleasures.

As a Minnesota Master Naturalist volunteer, I have pledged to spend at least 40 hours per year volunteering for the great outdoors. In 2008 I unfortunately failed miserably at reaching this goal. This year I am again struggling to log in that many hours, but I think I can still do it! I will need to devote most of my Saturday mornings to volunteering.

So far this year I have:

• chaperoned kids on a snowshoeing/animal tracking excursion
• pulled invasive species: burdock and garlic mustard
• planted native grasses and flowers on a steep hillside overlooking the Mississippi River (then my legs hurt for 3 days!)
• collected acorns for planting this fall
• planted rain gardens at a school

If you are interested in habitat restoration in Minnesota, here are some organizations that host volunteer events. I hope to see you at some events this fall!

• Great River Greening
• Friends of the Mississippi River
• Saint Paul Parks & Recreation
• The Nature Conservancy - Minnesota
• Minnesota DNR Scientific and Natural Areas

Yesterday, President Obama announced a call to service:

… I ask every American to make an enduring commitment to serving your community and your country in whatever way you can … Together, we will measure our progress not just in number of hours served or volunteers mobilized—but in the impact our efforts have on the life of this nation … We need your service, right now, at this moment in history. I’m not going to tell you what your role should be; that’s for you to discover. But I’m asking you to stand up and play your part. I’m asking you to help change history’s course.

Today, on Earth Day, as a Minnesota Master Naturalist, I pledge to volunteer at least 40 hours per year for environmental causes. My charity dollars and my free time are spent enjoying and protecting nature.

What’s your pledge?

I spent this morning counting birds for Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count. This annual event occurs throughout the Americas and its purpose is to assess the status of bird populations.

This was a new experience for me, as I haven’t done much bird watching. Four men and I drove around a specified territory and we counted all the birds we saw. We went through cemeteries, trails, wooded areas, busy streets, and residential neighborhoods. We got out and walked at times. I appreciated the opportunity to learn from long-time birders.

What I discovered:

• I can be much more observant than usual if I try.
• I can now identify the dark-eyed junco.
• There are several nearby trails that I didn’t know existed.
• When birders drive a car they don’t keep their eyes on the road!

It was a very snowy day, so the birding supposedly wasn’t very good, but I was impressed with our numbers. We saw (or heard) 17 different species and a total of 369 birds.

Field trip to Interstate Park

I started the year looking for an opportunity to learn more about nature. Signing up for a college-level class was a possibility, but I couldn’t imagine enduring freshman biology. Then I stumbled across the Minnesota Master Naturalist website. Perfect!

For 11 weeks in the spring I learned about Minnesota’s natural history. The idea behind this program is that graduates will volunteer 40 hours per year toward environmental causes (education, stewardship, science, and/or administration). The official slogan is “Explore. Teach. Conserve.” Right up my alley and just the impetus I needed!

There is an article about my class in Mankato’s weekly for farmers, The Land.

Ten fun activities from the Minnesota Master Naturalist course:

1. Searching for delicate spring ephemerals at Interstate Park.
2. Searching for scat at Fort Snelling State Park and learning that rabbits eat their scat.
3. Watching a classmate get dressed up like a beaver to discuss adaptation.
4. Watching a fish dissection and learning that fish have a swim bladder to control buoyancy.
5. Tasting sap straight out of the sugar maple, and then having homemade maple syrup on top of ice cream, thanks to a classmate.
6. Learning to identify trees by their branches and bark before the leaves bud out.
7. Learning about the oak savanna and prescribed burning at William O’Brien State Park.
8. Discovering, by digging through the sludge in Snelling Lake, that lots of tiny creatures live in our wetlands.
9. Collaborating with classmates to create a tree identification guide for a small park.
10. Having that AHA! moment. Why wait until summer to visit our parks? Each season has something unique to offer.

The master naturalist course was a great experience which will evolve with my pledge of volunteer service.