Spring Cleaning

It’s that time of year when we start looking forward to the end of a long winter. A season of renewal is looming. However we often enter this time of year feeling that we are still weighed down by the debris of winter, those piles of leaves that hide under the snow. It’s true for those of us who write about nature as well. So here are some tidbits of spring-cleaning that need to occur before we can move on.

Refuge liberated

After a 41 day siege of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge by armed individuals, the refuge has been cleared of occupiers and is now a federal crime scene. Twenty-five people have been charged with crimes, and more indictments are soon to follow. It will take weeks for the FBI and state officials to collect evidence. It will likely be longer before U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees can get back to work. We still don’t know the extent of damage to Native American sacred artifacts, research projects by USFWS biologists, or infrastructure within the refuge. Another tragedy of this incident is what the people of rural Oregon communities have had to endure. Neighbors became pitted against each other spurred by outside ideologues stoking fires of discontent. It could take years for them to heal and recover. A lot of anger poisoned the region. We can only hope that the resilient people of rural Oregon can find the strength within themselves to get past the vitriol that was spread and come through this stronger. It’s a lot to ask of a community that didn’t want to be in the spotlight to start with.

The Eagle has landed

The Peoria Audubon Society has completed its 2016 Midwinter Bald Eagle Count, which took place on Jan. 30. Each year, teams go out and census Bald Eagle populations along the Illinois River from Henry to Havana. This year, 178 bald eagles were seen along the 100-mile stretch of river. Observed numbers of eagles this year were lower than recent years for some interesting reasons. For starters, it has been a relatively mild winter up to the date of the count, so there is a lot of open water in the upper Midwest. Eagles have not had to migrate far to be near open water this year. Many eagles that nest in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan didn’t have to make the trek to Central Illinois to find fish. They are eating closer to home. We also had an unusual winter flood this year. High waters in January along with freezing temperatures, and jumbles of ice sheets made accessing the river nearly impossible in some areas. We were unable to get a boat team out to count this year. However, even with the adverse observation conditions, we are seeing something really amazing — Bald Eagles are nesting in the area! In this stretch of the Illinois River there are close to two-dozen nests that I know of, almost a half dozen of those are new nests this year. Each year, the local population of nesting Bald Eagles is increasing. The number of nests found on this 100 mile stretch of river is now more than the number of nests that could be found in the entire state of Illinois just 20 years ago. Let’s hope they are here to stay.

PHOTO BY DEB ROE, PEORIA AUDUBON SOCIETY
This eagle near Lacon is one of 178 spotted on a 100-mile stretch of the Illinois River between Henry and Havana on the annual Midwest Eagle Count Jan. 30.

Tawny Oaks Update

A few months back, I wrote about a project of Peoria Park District called Tawny Oaks. This is a new access area being developed adjacent to Singing Woods Nature Preserve in Peoria County north of Cedar Hills Drive. This large woodland along the bluffs of the Illinois River has been a Park District property for many years, but access and public amenities have been lacking. This year, that is changing. A former horse barn has been repurposed into a visitor center with restrooms. The Park District is planning an opening this spring. Tawny Oaks will offer access to trails through prairie plantings and access to Singing Woods Nature Preserve. The Park District’s volunteer Trail Team is also developing trails so visitors can access the nature preserve and see a wonderful hill prairie. It is an exciting time to be able to offer the public a glimpse of this wonderful natural area. Learn more by visiting the Peoria Park District’s website, or by picking up a copy of the Spring Playbook at a Peoria Park District facility this April.

Finally, come to a free program 7 p.m. March 9 at Forest Park Nature Center. The Peoria Audubon Society will present a program by Rich and Marion Miller on the Kane County Chimney Swift Tower Project. These small birds build nests in hollow structures such as chimneys, but with recent trends in efficient heating, chimneys are becoming a thing of the past. Rich and Marion will share their experience with developing and building artificial nesting structures to help preserve future generations of this species.