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Happening
at the Crossroads
June 30,
2008
by Coggin
Heeringa
We
won't be hanging patriotic bunting because the Collins Learning Center
will be closed on Independence Day, but you may see an Indigo
Bunting if you go bird watching at Crossroads at Big Creek.
Many
birders take a "Red, White and Blue Hike" on the 4th. It's
simple, You get points for every red, white or blue bird you see
and bonus points if an American Bald Eagle flies by, which
happens frequently at The Crossroads.
Whites are a given. Gulls
almost always are circling. This summer, we have occasionally
seen a flying formation of White Pelicans. Stunning!
For
reds, Cardinals sing enthusiastically from tree tops.
Earlier in the season, we had Scarlet Tanagers (which my Dad insists on
calling black-winged redbirds) These birds are as red as a stripes on
the flag, but alas, they apparently left for thicker canopies. We
haven't seen hide nor feather of them lately.
Blue Jays and
Indigo Buntings nest at Crossroads. Most folks know ignore jays, but
it's always a thrill to see a bunting. As the name "indigo" indicates,
the bird is as blue as the blue on the flag. Its Western cousin,
the Lazuli Bunting, actually is red, white and blue, but our
bunting is spectacular enough when seen in bright sunlight.
The
odd thing about red, white and blue birds is that in 1776, none of them
would have lived at Crossroads. Before European settlement, the Door
Peninsula was shore-to-shore forest. Cardinals and Indigo Buntings nest
in brushy edges and they moved into this part of Wisconsin only after
the forests were logged out and farms and rural development
created the habitat they prefer.
Blue jays, though much maligned
and arguably noisy birds, may be the reason we have forests in Door
County. During the last Ice Age, trees (and everything else, including
soils) were removed by the glaciers. Many ecologists credit Blue
Jays (which bury acorns and nuts) with planting the oak
and beech trees after the retreat of the Ice Age glaciers.
If
you want to see the stars of Old Glory, you'll have to come back to
Crossroads on Saturday, July 5. After dusk (which is around 9:30 PM )
the members of the Door Peninsula Astronomical Society will help you
explore the beautiful night skies at the Leif Ever son Observatory. You
can use the Utah Street Entrance to reach the observatory, but please
dim your lights as you near the Astronomy Campus.
Have a safe
and happy holiday weekend and spend plenty of time outdoors. The
Collins Learning Center will be closed July 4 and July 8.
Otherwise, the Wisconsin Wilderness Exhibit is open daily from
1:00-3:00. Crossroads is located at the intersection of Highway 42/57
and Michigan (County TY) in Sturgeon Bay. Trail use is free.
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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