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Happening
at the Crossroads
February 15,
2010
by Coggin
Heeringa
Crossroads at Big Creek is again a winter wonderland, thanks to the fresh layers of snow.
Our
cross county skiers are thrilled, as are dogs and our native birds. The
dogs seem to love rolling in the snow and clearly, so do our
little birds. The birds have been fluttering enthusiastically in the
fresh white stuff.
For birds, feather maintenance is a
matter of life and death. To take care of their feathers, birds
need to bathe. At Crossroads in all seasons, birds bathe in the
springfed stretches of Big Creek. But birds can also bathe in fresh
snow.
After moistening their feathers, the birds
preen – they spread oils as they smooth and clean each of their
feathers. The oil comes from the preen gland which is
located near the base of the tail. The bird gets oil on its beak
and then spreads it through the damp feathers. The oils act like a
conditioner or styling gel to keep feathers in place, and at the same
time, waterproof and flexible.
If birds did not care for
their feathers, they would quickly lose the ability to fly. Also,and
this is important in winter, if birds fail to arrange and waterproof
their plumage, the feathers would lose their insulating properties and
the birds would succumb to hypothermia.
Birds lack sweat glands,
so they don’t need to drink much water in the winter. They eat snow or
sip from dripping icicles. In a few weeks, sap dripping from maple
twigs will get them a sweet treat.
Sometimes birds drink
from puddles in our parking lot, which usually is not particularly
dangerous. But occassional, puddle water is sweet if is polluted with
antifreeze.
Drinking polluted water is not good for little birds. It’s not good for humans either.
On
Thursday, February 25, Crossroads will host a presentation called
“Protecting Your Water” , which is co-sponsored by the League of
Women’s Votes of Door and Kewaunee Counties, the Door County
Environmental Council, and Sustain Door.
The program will begin
at 6:30 when area students from the Niagara Escarpment Awareness Team
(NEAT) will demonstrate how local karst topography effects the water
quality in our wells. At 7:00, guest speakers Melissa Malott, Water
Program Director for Clean Water Wisconsin and Danny Caneff, Executive
Director of the Wisconsin River Alliance will explain what can be done
to create a special management zone in Northeast Wisconsin to address
water quality issues. Friends of Crossroads will provide refreshments
will provide refreshments for the Meet & Greet following the
presentation.
“WaterFest” is the theme for the
Cross-generational Educational Program to be held from 10:00-11:30 on
Saturday, February 27. Designed so one adult and one youth (aged
7-12) can learn together, this class will focus the amazing properties
of water which can be demonstrated with everyday objects. Thanks to a
grant from the Door County Community Foundation, activities are
free, but pre-registration is required. Limit to 8 pairs of learners.
Call 746-5895 by Thursday (February 25) noon to register. No walk-ins.
Our
trails are open and groomed whenever snow conditions allow. We are so
grateful to Door County Memorial Hospital Ministry Health Care for
providing a grant to help make trail grooming possible. Friends
of Crossroads loan out ski and snowshoe equipment every Sunday
afternoon, weather permitting.
Crossroads at Big Creek is a
donor-supported preserve welcoming learners of all ages to programs
focusing on science, history and the environment. The Collins Learning
Center , located at 2041 Michigan in Sturgeon Bay , is open 2:00-5:00
daily.
Sunday, February 21 1:00-3:00
Community Ski (weather permitting)
Friends
of Crossroads loan snowshoes and cross-country skis on a first come
first serve basis to anyone who wants to get in touch with nature.
Free. Collins Learning Center.
Thursday, February 25, 6:30
Protecting Your Water
The
program will begin at 6:30 when area students from the Niagara
Escarpment Awareness Team (NEAT) will demonstrate how local karst
topography effects the water quality in our wells. At 7:00, guest
speakers Melissa Malott, Water Program Director for Clean Water
Wisconsin and Danny Caneff, Executive Director of the Wisconsin River
Alliance will explain what can be done to create a special management
zone in Northeast Wisconsin to address water quality issues. Friends of
Crossroads will provide refreshments will provide refreshments for the
Meet & Greet following the presentation.
Saturday, February 27, 10:00-11:30
Cross-generational Program;Waterfest
Designed
so one adult and one youth (aged 7-12) can learn together, this class
will focus the amazing properties of water which can be demonstrated
with everyday objects. Thanks to a grant from the Door County Community
Foundation, activities are free, but pre-registration is
required. Limit to 8 pairs of learners. Call 746-5895 by Thursday
(February 25) noon to register. No walk-ins.
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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