OAKS! Red ? White ? Feed Thousands, Rule the Waves
From food, to medicine, to European expansion – oaks have played very important roles through history.
Dormancy – How trees survive the winter
Ever wonder why a lot of our trees here at the Refuge – maples, oaks, hickories, cottonwoods, among others – lose their leaves every year but manage to live through the winter without freezing?
Take Refuge
What is a refuge? Refuge is a part of Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. It is a refuge for wildlife, but what about us?
Doug Tallamy and Bringing Nature Home
Bringing Nature Home. We can bypass gridlock and inaction by creating habitat ourselves. We all have the ability to do something for our local ecosystem.
2020 Oak Orchard Swamp Christmas Bird Count
It’s time again for the Oak Orchard Swamp Christmas Bird Count! The count began in December 1968. The National Audubon Society has been sponsoring Christmas Bird Counts for 120 years and the Friends of Iroquois …
Socially Distant Nature Sharing
Hi Everybody! By now we are all anxiously awaiting the news about vaccines that will meet approval for distribution to the public. All of us will especially have to still keep doing what is recommended …
Springtails: Unexpected Life in the Snow
If you do much winter hiking, you will often find tiny black soot-like dots in the deep snow boot prints you have made. Few of us pay any attention to those little dots, but a …
Wildlife Refuge or Wildlife Preserve?
There are many words used to define a protected place of nature. Sanctuary, Preserve, Refuge – just to name a few. And exactly what gets protected varies greatly depending on the words used. Let’s take …
Good Things Come to Those That Wait
Fall seems to be a sad time of year. We lose things – warmth, leaves and favorite song birds. However, bird migration is an astounding phenomenon. That these small, seemingly delicate creatures can travel such distances …
Book Review: The Overstory by Richard Powers
This Pulitzer Prize winning novel is the perfect winter read for anyone who cares about the preservation of public lands, and especially trees. But … it takes reading stamina. Beginning with a series of short …