- Trails are open 24/7 at no charge. Enjoy a Winnie-the-Pooh themed TRAIL TALES Storybook Walk.
What’s Happening: Welcome Summer!
Now that it is truly summer, we at Crossroads at Big Creek are turning our binoculars, recording devices, and attention to breeding birds—and to summer outdoor education programs.
Visitors are likely to encounter both birds and young people throughout the Big Creek Preserve this season, as we host environmental excursions for the Boys & Girls Club and YMCA summer camps. We’re also delighted to welcome back Naturalist Joan Wilkie, who will begin offering family programs.
Her first session on Tuesday, July 1 at 1:00 PM is titled “Glaciers to Great Lakes.” The following day, she’ll explore the “Mysteries of Migration.” Both programs are designed for families.
While researchers can’t definitively say that the Ice Age glaciers caused bird migration, the last glacial advance certainly shaped the patterns we see today. For thousands of years, much of North America was buried under ice, forcing birds to remain near the equator. But as the glaciers retreated, birds began taking advantage of the newly exposed, insect-rich landscapes.
Migration flyways often developed along geographic features created or influenced by glaciers, including river valleys, the Great Lakes, and our own Door Peninsula.
Though migration is both risky and exhausting, most songbirds exhibit a behavior called “sitefidelity”—meaning they return to breed very close to where they were born. And that makes sense. If a habitat provided enough food, cover, and safe nesting sites to support them to adulthood, it should, in theory, support future generations. Should being the operative word.
Unfortunately, many once-rich breeding habitats have been degraded. The good news? Birds can fly. They can still seek out new breeding grounds. And that is why we at Crossroads are working to preserve and restore prime bird habitats on our three properties.
To help evaluate our progress, we are conducting bird surveys at our Ida Bay Preserve as part of a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Midwest Coastal Grant. These surveys measure the success of our restoration efforts.
After establishing baseline data last summer, we will be conducting follow-up surveys on Wednesday, June 25, and on Thursday, July 3, beginning at 5:15 AM. Crossroads staff and volunteers will be listening to and analyzing the songs and calls of breeding birds.
Participants need to dress for the weather and have the Merlin bird ID app downloaded on their phone. We will meet in the parking lot at 1195 Canal Rd, then participants will be staged throughout the preserve recording birds they see visually and record birds they “hear” with their phone. For more information and to sign up, visit www.crossroadsatbigcreek.org.
Bird enthusiasts will not want to miss this week’s Monday afternoon video presentation, featuring Wisconsin Public Television’s “Birds of Wisconsin.” And speaking of breeding birds, the pair of robins that nested in the porch eves of the Collins Learning Center is now tending their second brood. Finally, we acknowledge the passing of Del Herrbold, who served as President of the Sturgeon Bay Education Foundation during the first acquisition of land that would become Crossroads at Big Creek. Our most meaningful tribute to Del and our other founders is to honor their vision by protecting and restoring this land and continuing the mission they imagined.
– by Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist
For more information, please check out our Crossroads calendar or stop by the Collins Learning Center and pick up a printed calendar. Our trails are open all day every day, free of charge, thanks to donors like you!
Crossroads at Big Creek Learning Center and Nature Preserve is located at 2041 Michigan Street, Sturgeon Bay. Crossroads is a 501(c)3 organization committed to inspiring stewardship of the environment through education, research, and outdoor experiences. We welcome your support.
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