Two weeks into June and it’s time to take an early morning dog walk and consider the beginning of June and the summer that lies ahead. The calendar is full of events. The distances and speeds of our travel take place among all the activities that surround us.
After joining some young nature explorers for an afternoon walk along Main Street (not Sheridan Street) in Ely, we visited Pillow Rock, which has not moved since at least the last glacial period. Then we examined a core of greenstone that was extracted to create an airway into the earth for underground mining. This started at the beginning of the month, while elsewhere living species were growing, flowering, seeding, traveling, finding food, feeding young, planting, traveling, vacationing, gathering with families and friends, working, etc.
Travel and you can see many of these happenings and more. While walking the dikes at the local aquatic management area, two broods of hooded mergansers were just examples of two groups of young recently hatched and out feed in the muskie rearing ponds that draw water from Wolf Creek before it flows into Burntside River and flows on through Shagawa Lake in Ely.
Common loons are nesting on Shagawa Lake and are challenged in their efforts to succeed. Recent concerns have been expressed about all the summer recreational activities occurring on Shagawa and other local lakes. Every conversation and place visited builds appreciation for flow served during this season.
Turtles laying eggs, birds nesting, mammals raising young, plants growing, flowers pollinating, fruit growing, and people appreciating the values of all habitats are providing. There are lots of people who spend time walking, paddling, camping, and joining together to slow their pace and flow for full engagement with what summer offers. Outdoor experiences result in observations and questions that lead to discoveries and more explorations.
Natural Program Thursday, June 25 The Ely Field Naturalists will hold its end-of-the-month meeting at the Vermilion Campus of Minnesota North College in Classroom NS 111 at 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. This meeting will prepare participants for encounters with birds and other wildlife. There will be lots of information and handouts Heather Griffith, Wildlife Rehabilitator, Sherry Abst, Area Loon Specialist, along with Naturalist, Bill Tefft and others have recent and previous experience helping to care for loons, owls, songbirds, and a variety of other wildlife. This program will share recent activity and answer your questions about situations that can occur with wildlife and your interactions with it.
This program is free and available for all ages.
Anyone who would like to join a nature hike and tour of the campus – indoors and out along with a trail and forest walk before the program is welcome to join Bill Tefft at the Greenstone Outcropping on campus at 1 p.m. to begin the tour.
