DiscoveryNews

April-May 2018

Prescribed Fire Improves Habitat

Hi Everyone,

On Saturday, March 17, we conducted a prescribed burn at the ODC Nature Preserve.

PlantWise LLC from Ann Arbor was contracted to manage the prescribed burn. PlantWise, a highly respected organization in the field of ecological restoration, has conducted prescribed fires throughout the state, including burns for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Zeeland Public Schools, and Herman Miller.

Prescribed fire is an important tool to combat non-native species such as autumn olive, purple loosestrife, and reed canary grass.

These invasive plants decrease the biodiversity of our meadows and reduce the amount of food for native animals. Burning in the spring has a dramatic result on invasive species as their growing season begins earlier than our native plants. Removing the non-native species will allow these areas to be reclaimed by native plants and will improve the overall

habitat quality.

Native plants grow faster after a burn because nutrients are returned to the soil, and the dark color of burned meadow absorbs more sunlight, warming the soil more quickly than usual. Stop by and watch the meadow regrow!

Thank you for your interest in the ODC Network. Our mission is to connect people, land, and nature through outdoor education, greenway development, and habitat and wildlife conservation.

In this work, we are redefining education, restoring and conserving land and water, and making our community the best place to live, learn, work, and play. We rely on partnerships and support from the community to accomplish our goals.

In this issue, we are excited for the regrowth that follows our prescribed fire, for the conservation grants we’ve been awarded recently; and to share the perspective of one of our Little Hawks’ parents.

We hope you share our passion for creating a nature-rich community and enjoy this edition of Discovery News!

4214 56th Street • Holland, MI • 49423outdoordiscovery.org

616-393-9453

Travis WilliamsExecutive Director

Support the ODC with a Night Out!We are privileged to have a variety of community fundraisers in April and May. We hope you’ll take time to gather with loved ones while supporting the ODC. Thank you to the generous businesses who have partnered with us and continue to give the community great places to dine!

Month of April—Hops @ 84 East, Holland; $5 of every community pizza will be donatedApril 15—Peachwave, Holland; 15% of sales donatedMonth of May—Saugatuck Brewing Company, Saugatuck; $1/Raptor Pint and $5/Raptor Flight donatedMay 16—Brewery Vivant, Grand Rapids; $1/beer donated

Creating personal relationships between students, teachers, and

their environment

ODC EducationNetwork

Students Enjoyed Outdoor Experiences at Exploration DayOn March 8, over 680 students and their teachers —representing ten school systems—gathered at Ridge Point Community Church to celebrate with a day of learning and adventure. During the experience, classes rotated through a variety of sessions that helped them to discover, learn, grow, and play with a nature-based theme.

Classes included an interactive session with Emily Christensen from Culture Works, where kids got a chance to draw their wonders in nature while Emily led them on a nature journey infused with art and curiosity. Students were also able to explore wetlands, observe animal

behaviors, and record ecological interactions throughout their day; these topics connected with state standards for science and literacy in Michigan. All the while, teachers were able to observe and take home lessons and experiments to use at their schools.

While students and teachers

were engaged throughout the property, school leaders met with GMB Architects & Engineers to discuss the learning potential of nature-based play in schools and ways to incorporate it into the teaching and learning goals in area districts.

Overall the day was a huge success with ODC team members from across the organization coming together to promote kids learning in the natural world. If you are interested in attending an event like this in the future, contact bob@outdoordiscovery.org for details about our next opportunity!

Photo by M. Lozon

Photo by M. Lozon

Little HawksDiscovery Preschool

A five-star, public, nature-based preschool program enrolling 3- and

4-year old children

Paint on hands and face…mud covered Oakiwear suit…dirt all over the floor…and the biggest, happiest grin on my daughter’s face! This is how Ivy’s typical Little Hawks day ends.

In finding Little Hawks, we were excited to provide Ivy with a nature-based preschool hoping she’d learn about the world around her along with the basics to start kindergarten. What we didn’t expect is how Little Hawks would become more than just teachers, staff, and school, but our own Little Hawks family!

Everyday Ivy comes home with exciting stories about exploring outside, painting with her friends, and proud to show us the things she’s learned. She’s grown in her communication skills by leaps and bounds, and has learned how to make friends whom she talks about every day. Ivy loves going to school; she even wants to go on the weekends because she misses her teachers and friends. I couldn’t imagine her having such a passion for school if she’d gone anywhere else. Even with the amount of outdoor activities she does each day, she still wants to go out and explore after school. With so many kids plugged into electronics and indoor activities, this is an encouraging trait we see growing in our daughter!

Little Hawks has surpassed what we had hoped for from any preschool setting. Ivy has a strong grasp of the alphabet, numbers, counting, colors, communication and community, all without being forced to sit at a desk all day. They’ve given her the ability to problem solve each day, whether it be counting out supplies needed for a project, or how much water to pour in each cup for her friends during snack time, or figuring out how to do tasks that she may not want to do (like cleaning up).

Watching your child jump belly first into a mud puddle can be unsettling for some, myself included…however, when your child’s teacher follows suit right behind her, the level of

commitment and enjoyment of their job becomes beyond apparent. Teachers and staff at Little Hawks have the remarkable ability to encourage our little ones to venture and learn the best way they know how, by jumping right in with them! Having the teachers get just as engaged as the children in outside exploration and play is the hallmark of the Little Hawks program. Allowing a child to use their senses to explore the world around them in uninhibited way gives them confidence and exposure that would not occur in a traditional school setting, and having the teachers lead the way makes sure they feel safe enough to do so.

As our last year at Little Hawks gets closer to its end, it’s obvious to us this was the absolute, best choice we could have ever made for Ivy’s preschool. The only way they could top the experience so far would be to continue education past preschool into a Kindergarten setting. We’d be among the first to sign up!

Summer Fun at Little Hawks Discovery PreschoolLittle Hawks Discovery Preschool is partnering with Ready For School for a summer learning experience! Start School Ready is a program for incoming kindergarten students in the Holland, Zeeland, and Hamilton area. Start School Ready is a springboard for success for children entering kindergarten in the fall! They will have ample time to explore, connect, and communicate while enjoying all that the summer weather provides!

Questions? Call Rachel Hucul, Little Hawks Director at 616-393-0949.

To apply, fill out the online application at: readyforschool.org/parent/start-school-ready

• Attend Monday, July 9—Friday, August 3, from 8:15 am–12:15 pm

• Spend hours outside immersed in the natural world and have a focus study on insects!

• Enjoy breakfast and lunch each day.

• Have literacy, math, and social-emotional skills incorporated into their daily experiences while spending time outdoors and indoors.

Children who participate in Start School Ready will:

Little Hawks Preschool from a Mom’s EyeBy Erin Cardamone, Little Hawks Parent

Michigan Invasive Species Grant Program

Invasive Species Profile: Multiflora RoseMultiflora rose is a multi-stemmed shrub native to Japan, Korea, and eastern China. It is easily identified by its thorny stems and aromatic clusters of 5-petaled white to pink colored flowers. Originally introduced to the U.S. in 1866, the rapid spreading didn’t occur until the 1930’s when the U.S. Soil Conservation Service promoted

the species as a viable option for erosion control, living fences for livestock, and habitat cover for wildlife.

Multiflora rose is now known to aggressively take over old fields, roadsides, forests, streambanks, and wetlands, crowding out native vegetation. Its ability to tolerate a broad range of soils and moisture conditions allows it to thrive in almost any environment, making it one of the top invasive plant species of the northeastern United States. The best way to control well-established populations is to spray the leaves with a 1-2% Glyphosate herbicide in early summer after flowering. A few native shrub options to replace the multiflora include common ninebark, chokeberry, or New Jersey tea.

Preparation has commenced in the second and final year of the Michigan Invasive Species Grant Program (MISGP), ODC’s partnership with West Michigan Cooperate Invasive Species Management Area (WMCISMA), to eradicate aquatic invasive plant species. Our focus has been on two of the most aggressive invasive

plants in West Michigan; phragmites and Japanese knotweed. In 2017, ODCMG managed to treat over 70 acres of phragmites and Japanese knotweed along the Macatawa and Kalamazoo Rivers. We hope to reach close to that acreage again this year and eliminate the spread of these invasive plants within the watershed.

Habitat and wildlife preservation through sustainable land

management

Want to help us combat the invasive species threatening our ecosystems? Conservation work days are a volunteering opportunity that occurs eleven times annually in which volunteers will go out with staff to improve the quality of our nature preserve and greenway properties. Whether you are planting trees or getting rid of invasive species, every little bit helps.

Conservation Work Days

Photo by R. W. Smith

Photo by L. N. May

Japanese Knotweed before (bad) Japanese Knotweed after (good)

Join us:

April 20 • Rabbit River Preserve

May 11 • ODC

May 25 • ODC

June 8 • ODC

June 29 • ODC

August 17 • ODC

August 31 • ODC

September 21 • ODC

September 28 • ODC

October 17 • Rabbit River Preserve

October 31 • Rabbit River Preserve

Registration Required • Fee: FREE

A community initiative to permanently clean and restore the waters of Lake Macatawa and the

Macatawa Watershed

PROJECTclarityDepartment of Environmental Quality Grant AwardedThe ODC and our Project Clarity partners were recently awarded a $251K grant from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to help address water quality issues in the Macatawa Watershed. The funds will go toward restoring nearly a quarter mile of Peters Creek in Zeeland Township, identified as one of the highest contributors of sediment and nutrients in the watershed. Additionally, we will work in implementing best management practices in the upper reaches of several tributaries to the

Macatawa River, helping further reduce pollutants and detain stormwater. We are happy to continue working with the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council and Niswander Environmental on these projects, and will be working with state and local DEQ staff on the stream project as well. Look for our stream project to commence this fall into next spring. Project Clarity will continue to seek sources of funding to match local dollars for projects around the watershed.

Agriculture LuncheonOver 75 attendees packed into Zeeland Farm Services’ conference room to join us for the Project Clarity Agriculture Luncheon on February 14th. Dave Brandt provided an entertaining and engaging presentation on his farming experiences and techniques, and Rob Vink of the MACC provided an update on best management practice implementation around the watershed. Thanks to all our sponsors for

making this event possible: Zeeland Farm Services, Charles Schwab, CHS, Brink Consulting, Great Lake Partners, Vriesland Co-op, GreenStone Farm Credit Services, Green Valley Agriculture Inc. and Farm Bureau Insurance Inc.

Project Clarity Community Progress UpdateJust ahead of the unofficial start to summer, join us for an update on the health of the Macatawa Watershed. On May 24 at 7:30 amover breakfast at Boatwerks, the Project Clarity team will provide updates on their research in the watershed and will provide expert analysis for all your questions on the health of Lake Macatawa. We’ll also recap the projects that have been completed over the past five years and outline our team’s vision for Project Clarity through 2020. The event is $20 per person. You can register at outdoordiscovery.org, or by calling the office at 616-393-9453.

Nature-based group trips to regional, national and international

destinations

Over 100 Billfish Caught (and Released) During 5-day TripIn early February, the ODC Explorer Network traveled to Guatemala for a 5-day billfishing adventure. Guatemala is known as one of the best billfishing locations in the world, logging some of the highest catch rates for Pacific Sailfish and Blue Marlin. In three days of fishing the group caught

104 Pacific Sailfish, 30 Durado (mahi mahi), and 1 Blue Marlin.

Do you see yourself standing next to your snow shovel for a nice early February photo or would you rather be standing next to your 9’ sailfish when that photo is taken? If you are interested, we are planning another trip during the winter of 2019. Let us know if you would like to participate in this unique experience by emailing explore@outdoordiscovery.org.

38 Bird Species Seen Around the SooThere was good weather and good birds for our winter birding trip to the Upper Peninsula this past February. We found 38 species including eight snowy owls, two short-eared owls, one rough-legged hawk, 20 bald eagles, 40+ sharp-tailed grouse, 40+ common redpoll, 18 evening grosbeak, and 1 pine grosbeak! Our travels had us finding birds in places like Rudyard, Pickford,

Dafter, Hulbert, and Sault Ste Marie. With over 1,000 miles put on the van, we came back to ODC tired but full of stories and a good list from birding in the UP in February!

Sharp-tailed Grouse Snowy Owl Common Redpoll

Expanding Greenways in West MichiganThe ODC Network was awarded a one-year planning grant from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to create a master plan to implement a greenway corridor along the Kalamazoo River in Allegan County to address environmental restoration, contaminated sediment, conservation, recreation, and education. We are excited to take the lessons learned and experiences we’ve had in the Macatawa River and apply them along the Kalamazoo and Rabbit Rivers.

Greenways are corridors of protected land managed for the benefit of conservation, economic vitality, and recreation. Greenways typically follow natural features like rivers and link people and habitat across a geographic region. In addition, greenways have demonstrated to increase collaborations among communities. Over the course of this year, we will hold

community meetings with stakeholders to create a vision that will guide conservation and educations efforts in the area for years to come.

Bucket List Trips Abound This April—Alaska and EcuadorThis April is going to be an exciting month for trips with the ODC Explorer Network, with two big bucket list trips taking place. Executive Director Travis Williams is leading a 15-day journey to the Inside Passage of Alaska. He and the group will be aboard the Sea Wolf, a 12-passenger vessel perfect to explore the rugged terrain and winding coastline of the Pacific Northwest. The nearly 1,000 mile journey from Poulso, Washington to Juneau, Alaska will be packed with wildlife encounters. From the deck of the Sea Wolf or its zodiaks, the group will watch for marine life including resident and migrating whales and birds. There will also be numerous opportunities to get on dry land in search of bears, moose, and other wildlife.

Program Director Jamie Krupka will be traveling with a small group to Ecuador to explore one of the most biologically diverse countries in the world. The 15-day experience will visit the Amazon Rainforest within the Yasuni National Park and the amazing Napo Wildlife Center and Lodge. They will also explore the paramo region at San Isidro where they are above the treeline

on the eastern slopes of the Andes at the edge of the Amazon basin. Time will also be spent in the ancient city of Quito with a visit to the equator. Last but not least, the group will spend four days traveling throughout the Galapagos Islands aboard the catamaran Nemo.

Though you have missed the opportunity to join these trips, plans are being made for 2019 and 2020 with more great adventures. Our trips are unique, all-inclusive experiences guided by our staff and experts in the eco-tourism industry. If you would like to join us for a once-in-a-lifetime trip, email the office today to see what we have planned at explore@outdoordiscovery.org, or visit odcexplorernetwork.org.

Macatawa Riverreenway

A corridor connecting and protecting habitat along the Macatawa River

Kalamazoo Riverreenway

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Hours of OperationMonday - Saturday 9 AM - 4 PM

Extended Hours: Memorial Day thru Labor DaySundays 12- 4 PM

Welcome New Staff

Looking for Programs?

We are pleased to announce that Tracey Nally has joined our team as the Development and Communications Manager. Tracey comes with extensive knowledge and experience in grantsmanship and administration after working 30 years in academia. She will help sustain our nature-rich education and conservation services through grants and developing key communication pieces that address our growing network of community initiatives. Tracey grew up in a small farming community in northern Indiana and learned the enjoyment of being outdoors. She loves sharing with family and friends her favorite outdoor activities which include boating, skiing, walking, and perennial gardening.

The ODC had an exciting 6 months of welcoming 5 healthy baby boys to 6 staff members. Pictured left to right, Tom and Joy Funk with Archer, Jayne Schutter with Johnny, Ashley Van Zee with Adam, Kim Lane with Rowan, and Ben Heerspink with Bennett. All the babies were born between the months of July 2017 and January 2018.

Look for our program guide, Discover Nature, in the mail!Programs are also listed at outdoordiscovery.org

Baby (Boy) Boom!