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In this issue:
- New Year, New Look!
- Evening Lecture Series
- Upcoming Programs
- Tales From the Trail: A New Phase
- Greenways: A Salty Tale
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EIC Staff members left to right: Alexis Kott, Laura Mallard, Dorothy McLeer, Jacob Napieralski (with Cairn Terrier, Gigi) Dale Browne, Rick Simek, Dalia Rabbah, Mike Solomon, and Valerie Osowski. | |
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New Year, New Look!
When you visit the EIC next time, you may notice some changes to our reception area. Our lighting is brighter and, soon, there are plans to be spotlighting a new mural. Designed by Parkhurst Fellow Alexis Kott, the proposed mural incorporates our mascot, the Great Blue Heron, with one of our featured habitats, Fair Lane Lake. Nearby, EIC staff photos will greet visitors so they will know familiar faces when they stop in.
Down along the front wall, the numerous awards and recognitions we have received over the years will be accessible for all to read. We have much to be proud of and to celebrate, and we look forward to sharing the New Year with you!
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The EIC staff introduces a new series of monthly programs to coax you out of your house in the winter months. Staff members, as well as local speakers, will offer talks on topics of their own interests related to environmental themes including spring ephemeral wildflowers, mushrooms, and our inaugural topic, climate change and its effects on biodiversity. We'll have more to report in our next newsletter, so please stay tuned. | |
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Climate Change and Biodiversity Loss are Interconnected
Speaker: Valerie Osowski, President, Student Sustainability Coalition
Date - Tuesday, February 20th
Time - 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Location - Environmental Interpretive Center, Room 119
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Unprecedented increases in the rate of climate change over the last several decades have come with a number of consequences, including sea level rise, extreme weather, and species extinction. This lecture will focus on how climate change is currently affecting species and biodiversity in Michigan, as well as ways that we can help protect our environment.
Please register for this event.
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Full Moon Night Walk
Friday, January 26 6:30-8:00 PM
Join EIC naturalists for a moonlit walk to celebrate the "Wolf Moon." The full Moon names used by The Old Farmer’s Almanac come from a number of places, including Native American, Colonial American, and European sources. Traditionally, each full Moon name was applied to the entire lunar month in which it occurred, not just to the full Moon itself. Dress in layers for the weather that evening. Please register for this program. (Photo source USFWS) A possible visit to the UM-Dearborn Observatory is offered, if weather conditions are favorable.
Maple Sugaring Time!
Tree Tappers Needed
Saturday, February 17, 1:00-3:00
A great cure for cabin fever is to walk out to the sugar bush to get the maple sugaring season started. Tap into the fun and enjoy a forest walk with the EIC naturalists to hang sap buckets on the maple trees. We can't make syrup without the sap...
Maple Syrup Boil Down!
Saturday, March 9, Two walks: 1-2:30, 1:30-3:00
How do we choose the correct tree for making maple syrup? What do we do with the sap in the buckets? How is maple syrup made? Find out the answers to these questions and more on a walk to the sugar bush, then gather around the stove in the "outdoor kitchen" for a taste of last year's "liquid sunshine."
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Bi-weekly Programs
Nature Walks for Mental Health Winter 2024
Schedule: 3:00-3:45 PM on January 16, February 6th & 20th, March 5th & 19th, and the final walk & celebration on April 2nd.
Relax, unwind, and get outside; with brief guided meditations, and 45-minute nature walks. You will be entered into a raffle for each event you attend, where winners will be announced at the final walk and celebration. Please dress appropriately for walking outdoors. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, email ankott@umich.edu. Please RSVP
Art in Nature Winter 2024
Schedule: 2:30-3:30 PM on January 18th, February 15th, March 21st, and April 18th.
Guided nature walks include art demonstrations, tips, and prompts. Art supplies available upon request, or bring your own. There will also be opportunities to submit your artwork to be displayed in an Art Showcase in April. Please dress appropriately for sitting outdoors. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, email ankott@umich.edu. Please RSVP
Photography Walks Winter 2024
Schedule: 2:30-3:30 PM on February 8th, March 7th, and April 4th.
Take a hike with an EIC Naturalist and Nature Photographer! Bring your own cameras and accessories, we supply the scenery. There will also be opportunities to submit your photos to be displayed in a Photography Showcase in April. Please dress appropriately for walking outdoors. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, email ankott@umich.edu. Please RSVP
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A New Phase of EIC Habitat Management
For years, the Center’s habitat management within the Environmental Study Area (ESA) focused heavily on the removal of invasive woody plants. Between around 2012 and 2022, tens of thousands of good-sized Amur Honeysuckles (Lonicera maackii) and European Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) were removed, often from where they had come to form dense, almost single species monocultures that had crowded out native plant life. Extensive patches of Oriental Bittersweet (Cilastrus orbiculatus), and Glossy Buckthorn (Frangula alnus), were also cleared. (European Buckthorn photo by Andrew Kling)
In response to having far fewer large invasive woody plants in the ESA, a gradual but distinct shift has occurred in our habitat rehabilitation efforts. Barren habitat patches left over from invasive woody plant clear-cuts are now receiving a great deal of our attention. We closely monitor these areas to see what plant species are coming up from the existing seed bank, and
guide those toward a healthy native habitat trajectory.
However, sometimes very few viable seeds remain due to having invasive plants dominate for so long. In that case, we lend a helping hand by seeding these patches with native plant species, of local genotype, which are best suited to habitat conditions.
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Instead of proceeding with a willy-nilly selection of plantings based on
certain preferences we may have, we let “nature be our guide” and seed with native species that are already found in the ESA. This ensures that these plants will be able to stand on their own, and spread, in the ESA over time. (EIC staff photo)
Thanks to the assistance of our many wonderful Center volunteers, we have already been able to seed portions of the ESA for the past several years. Going forward, we expect that to be our primary management focus, at least when there are seeds of native plants to collect in and around the ESA, such as from the Center rain gardens.
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Already, we are seeing the very positive outcomes of seeding and planting native species over the past half-dozen years in an assortment of locations in the ESA. A highly rewarding activity, collecting and dispersing the seeds of native plants in the ESA offers a bit of instant gratification along with an opportunity to come back and see how the seeded areas respond over time.
If you wish to volunteer to assist with these and other habitat enhancement efforts in the ESA, consider joining in on the monthly Stewardship Saturdays at the Center. Many helping hands will be needed!
-Rick Simek
EIC Natural Areas Manager
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A Salty Tale
Along with the new year comes colder weather, which means more snow, ice, and blizzards. Commuting safely is a high priority, and putting salt on our roads, sidewalks, and driveways is one method of ensuring safer travels during our daily lives. Although it is necessary to deice roads, this salt–especially in high quantities–has effects on our environment. (Photo courtesy NTB Scanpix)
Once the salt melts away the ice, the mixture often flows off the road and into a storm drain. These drains will carry the salty slush directly into a nearby stream, river, or lake. When an abundance enters a body of freshwater, this can harm the wildlife that is not accustomed to so much salt.
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The overuse of salt has other consequences as well, including erosion of metal and concrete and damage to plants in nearby lawns and gardens. It can also alter the composition of plants in an area. Salt marsh sand-spurry, a plant native to coastal salt marshes, has been introduced to freshwater lakes in the Great Lakes region where there is saltwater runoff from roads. (Photo by Ron Vanderhoff)
Thankfully, there are a number of simple ways to prevent these harms to your home, neighborhood, and environment. Before using any deicers, try to remove as much snow and ice from your driveway or sidewalk as possible. This will both reduce the amount of deicer you will need to use and maximize its effectiveness.
Furthermore, there are a number of sustainable alternatives to the typical rock salt and calcium chloride. Store-bought deicers such as calcium magnesium acetate and potassium acetate are much less corrosive and toxic. Products that you may already have at home can also act as deicers–including sand, pickle juice, and coffee grounds.
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If you need to use a commercial deicer, pay attention to the climate outside, as deicers are only effective at certain temperatures. For example, rock salt is only able to melt ice at a low of 15 degrees Fahrenheit, while calcium chloride can melt ice down to -25 degrees Fahrenheit. (Photo by Marian Vejcik) | |
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The amount of deicer that is necessary is much lower than many expect, too. One handful of rock salt can melt a cubic yard of ice, and one handful of calcium chloride can melt three cubic yards.
Stay safe, stay green, and have a happy new year!
Valerie Osowski, EIC Cooper Family Intern
Student Sustainability Coalition President
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Venturing outdoors and encountering nature is good for your health. Our trails are accessible, so please visit our Environmental Study Area. Stay engaged in learning activities and check out our Remote Learning Activities & Resources page for ideas to create a “Neighborhood Nature Journal” and “Family Nature Walk” activities!
We also hope to see you in person at our upcoming programs!
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Please remember...
The EIC Environmental Study Area is open daily from sunrise to sunset. We would like to remind nature-goers that fishing on site is prohibited and to leave bikes and dogs at home because they cause disruption and stress to the EIC wildlife.
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