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Happening
at the Crossroads
May 5,
2008
by Coggin
Heeringa
Despite
erratic and often dismal weather, spring has arrived at Crossroads at
Big Creek. The suckers have run, the frogs serenade each evening, marsh
marigolds (a.k.a. cowslips) are in bloom, and shorebirds are
feeding on the margins of the ponds.
This is a dream come true.
Crossroads designed our ephemeral ponds to be a stop-over site for
migrating birds. As wetlands and shorelines become developed/or
degraded, fewer and fewer places remain for migrating birds to rest and
feed. We are delighted to that our ponds fit the bill. (Actually,
when talking about shorebirds, I should say fill the bills.
Plural. The bill of each shorebird species is unique, perfectly
adapted to its particular feeding habits)
As the
name shorebird suggests, most of these birds prefer wetland or beach
habitats . They are well camouflaged and quite spooky, so getting a
good look is not easy. Killdeer nest at Crossroads and we see
Upland Plover occasionally, but most of these birds are on the
way to arctic breeding grounds in Canada. This is all the more
remarkable because shorebirds winter in South America, some as far
south as Chile and Argentina.
Speaking of South
America....in fact Argentina... the Global Lens International Film
Series opens at Crossroads this Friday at 7:00 PM. Dana and
Laurel Brooks, in collaboration with the Green Bay Film Society and
Neville Museum are sponsoring this series which "presents audiences
with diverse and powerful cinematic perspectives.... revealing a world
without political or geographical border, [the free film series] will
inspire us to understand our shared humanity thought universal sorties
of love, loss, grief and joy.
The first film in the series "The
Custodian", is in Spanish with English subtitles. Set in Argentina, it
tells of "a body guard for a high profile politician, reduced to a mere
shadow of a man; every action in his life is regulated by a series of
mundane routines, and everywhere his boss goes, he must follow."
This compelling chronicle is not rated, but is intended for mature
audience. A short discussion will follow the viewing.
On
Saturday, May 10h at 10:00, the Door Property Owners are sponsoring a
Forum on Storm Water Run-off. This meeting will be an open dialog
about the proposed storm water runoff ordinance. Members of DPO invite
all interested parties "to the table" for this important discussion.
Monday,
May 12, DCIST (The Door County Invasive Species Team) will
present the program “A Walking Tour of Invasive Plant
Species”. In this tour, participants will learn to identify
invasive species early in their growth and learn which habitats
the identified terrestrial invasive plant species prefer. Also
learn methods to manage these species. Come enjoy an afternoon in
the outdoors – and learning.
The program will be presented by
Dean Volenberg, UW-Ext. Agricultural Agent who writes, " I love
weeds so much I spent 10 years paying someone else to teach me about
them. Along the way I researched biological control systems,
chemical control, cultural etc…you name the management system and I
have investigated it. I spent a substantial amount of time
researching the evolution of herbicide resistance in weeds and its
impact on agriculture. I even went so far as to investigate the
molecular genetics of herbicide resistance.
“One thing I
have learned along the way – weeds have many ways to adapt to our
imposed management. Well the other great thing about weeds is
they keep popping up everywhere – job security for someone like me. "
Some
pretty plants are popping up. You are invited to join the naturalist in
several nature hikes: In Search of Cowslips along Big Creek. Or
enjoy them any time you hike. The trails of Crossroads are free and
open to the public. Crossroads is located at the intersection of 42/57
and Michigan Street (Highway TT).
The
Collins Learning Center at Crossroads is located at on County Highway T
across from Whitetails Unlimited. To reach the Leif Everson Observatory
and Stonecipher Astronomy Center, use the Utah Street Entrance. If
skies are clear, call 746-5896 for a recorded message announcing
whether the observatory will be open.
Many of the Past News articles may be retrieved from this directory,
indexed and named in the following manner: 080101-news.htm where
the first two numbers are the year, the second two the month and the
last two the date.
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