A Walk Home

As I walk home from work these last few weeks at Dunes Learning Center, I can’t help but see three years worth of walks at the same time. 

Walking down the cottage trail from the Dunes Learning Center, I first run into the seemingly ever-present puddles. There I see me and another educator, Hope, on icy mornings crunching ice and seeing how much weight we can put on them before they crack. Even on the coldest mornings this silly winter tradition made me smile. 

Past the puddles is the garden, which I’ve cared for the majority of my time here at DLC. I see all the late summer afternoons where I walk out with arms full of tomatoes and peppers. I see the time I got a bunch of fifth graders to plant strawberries for their stewardship project. Then I see the springtime, and the stubborn trillium that keeps popping up in the middle of the path are just starting to grow. I remember all the days I had to avoid the trillium with the wagon full of plants fresh from my closet for planting. 

Somewhere in my walk, I run into the young cabin leader Kate walking in the dark. She’s with several of the other cabin leaders, on their way back from a Friday night hang out at the educator house down the road. Just that Wednesday they learned all about how they’re going to be leading night hikes that summer without flashlights, and that night was as good as any to start practicing walking in the dark. She hadn’t yet realized she even wanted to stay in environmental education post-college. She didn’t know all the good things that would happen in the next four years. She didn’t know she would end up living in the house the next year, that she would come to know the ins and outs of that road like the back of her hand. She definitely would not have guessed she’d still be walking that road almost four years later. 

Then my walk brings me to the gate house, and I can’t help but smile. I go straight back to all the late evenings spent chatting with friends after work before going our separate ways on our walks home. It really started last summer. The four of us would walk down cottage trail (which is the long way home for the other house), then linger down at the end of the driveway for half an hour to an hour after work. In the winter, the sun would often be setting as we stood at the end of the driveway. 

As I walk down the road, I see the spice bush leafing out, the garlic mustard popping up, and all the flowers blooming. I can’t help but think back to discovering it all my first year. I see the spot where we spotted the beaver three times in one week my first year. I watch for the muskrats along their usual stretch of the river, and I still look for a watersnake in the sunny spot I once saw during my first summer as an educator. 

Three years is a long time to spend on one stretch of road/trail, which is why that walk feels so deeply tied to my time at DLC. It has truly been a joy, and I look forward to coming back to visit one day.

Kate Valentine, Environmental Educator Fellow III

The Nature of Grief: Helping to Work Through Grief by Connecting to Nature

Most of us have probably heard that nature is good for our mental health or that nature can help us heal, and science backs us up on this. Being in nature can generate a multitude of positive emotions, such as calmness, joy, and creativity. These emotions can be linked to our biophilia and emotional connectedness to the natural world. It’s important to note that the genuine feeling of connection to nature—not simply spending more time in nature or being surrounded by nature—may be the link to inspiring positive emotions. It’s also been found that nature connectedness is also associated with lower levels of anxiety, improvement in mood, and can help people cope with stress (Schony & Mischkowski, 2024). 

 Now, I’m not a licensed therapist or psychologist, but from first-hand experience I can say that nature has positive effects on my mental health. Over the past 6 months I’ve been healing from the loss of my childhood cat, Patchpaw. Just after I moved to California his health started to deteriorate and for months all I could do was watch. After numerous vet visits, medications, and injections, he took a turn for the worse. I flew home to see him in October, knowing it was the last day I’d see him. After 12 years of growing up with him, he was gone. Nothing could have prepared me for that loss. I felt as though half of me had been torn away and I would never be whole again. 

All through this time, I thought back to the Dunes and all the good memories I have of this place. I always tell people that the Indiana Dunes is one of my favorite national parks because it’s so unique. But it’s also my favorite because of the people I met there and the home I had found. Even after a year and a half away and thousands of miles traveled, I still felt a strong connection to it. So, I decided to move back to the Indiana Dunes and to the Dunes Learning Center. 

 My first few weeks back were a roller coaster of emotions. I was happy to be seeing some old friends and revisiting my favorite places but I still felt very drained. I tried spending more time exploring outside and I did feel calmer and had a bit more mental clarity, but I didn’t feel normal. It took over a month to start noticing changes, but soon I started to notice that the students in my trail group were helping me to reconnect with my younger self. I slowly allowed myself to feel some joy and wonder again after months of feeling guilt and anger. It was refreshing to see how enthusiastic and curious students were on the trail and their silliness during campfire and weather skits gave me the chance to laugh and have fun. 

The moment I found myself opening back up to new discoveries were when I went on hikes and “wanderings” through the woods with my friends. Sitting on the frozen beach along the shelf ice at sunset calmed me and gave me the opportunity to be creative and get back into photography. Watching the world come alive in early spring after months of cold greyness reawakened my sense of inspiration and excitement. Without realizing it, I was slowly connecting to nature in a way that gave me a sense of belonging. 

Nature’s way of helping us find ourselves and our place within the world offers purpose in a way which not only connects us to the natural world but our community and encourages resilience and strength as well. The feeling of being connected to nature is also associated with beneficial mental health outcomes, such as psychological wellbeing and psychological resilience (Schony & Mischkowski, 2024). Engaging with the natural world around myself is helping me navigate through hard times with a greater understanding and acceptance, which hopefully can lead towards further healing.

The past 6 months have been a rocky road, but I’m surprised and proud of how much I’ve changed for the better. I don’t think I’ll ever stop missing Patchy, and I think I’ll still be healing for a long time. Things have gotten easier though, and I’m so thankful for such a welcoming and supportive environment that I’ve found here. The Dunes Learning Center is home to some of the most wonderful and dedicated people that I’ll ever have the pleasure of knowing. They’re amazing coworkers, roommates, and even better friends and they’ll always have a special place in my heart. 

In memory of Patchpaw  

3/17/12-10/4/24

Schony, M., & Mischkowski, D. (2024). Feeling Connected to Nature Attenuates the Association between Complicated Grief and Mental Health. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 21(9), 1138. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph21091138

Sierra Conley, Environmental Education Fellow III

Capturing Nature

Spending time outside is one of my favorite things to do, especially when it involves drawing and watercoloring in my nature journal. Nature journaling has become one of my main hobbies and passions because it gives me a chance to slow down and appreciate the small intricacies of nature while capturing its essence through personalized creative expression. Over time, my journal has become more than a clustered collection of sketches and notes, it has become a personal record of my relationship with the natural world, evolving with each adventure in nature. 

Nature journaling focuses on observing the world around you through art and practicing your ability to notice finer details. Luckily, you do not need to be “good” at art to be able to try nature journaling! Whether you prefer drawing, writing, painting, or a different art form, or maybe even a combination of multiple, nature journaling can be whatever you want it to be, as it is all about capturing your unique perspective and interactions with nature. 

Here are a few of my favorite journal spreads from the past year, featuring moments I captured while exploring the Indiana Dunes National Park and other adventures along the way.

These two pages are on my trip to Washington state, I got to see a lot of wildlife and landscapes that I haven’t seen before!

A nature journal page I did while sitting outside the lodge here at DLC, drawing and painting the trees and cabin circle.

I love to incorporate nature journaling activities into my programs at DLC whenever I can. Nature journaling is an incredibly flexible tool that works for different ages, learning styles, and creative abilities. Using nature journaling as a technique for learning helps individuals connect with the outdoors in a way that feels personal and meaningful to them while encouraging kids to tap into their creative side, practice observational skills, and inspire a passion for exploring as well as a desire to protect their local and national parks - a passion that DLC strives to inspire through our programs. Whether I have kids draw what they see in the ecosystems that we explore or set aside time for quiet reflection during our Cowles Bog hikes, nature journaling can look different for each group. No matter how it is implemented and how it looks, the goal remains the same: to encourage kids to slow down, make observations, and build lasting, thoughtful connections with nature. 

Throughout each season, the education fellows learn about the different wild edibles that grow in the park. Drawing and painting the plants in my notebook helped me learn more about the information we were given.

 The addition and exploration of nature journaling into my personal hobbies and how I approach spending time outside has been a huge part of building my ongoing connection to nature. If you’re someone who wants to spend more time outdoors and be intentional while doing so, nature journaling is worth trying. It’s a flexible and rewarding activity - something you can pick up anytime, whether you’re out on an adventure or simply enjoying your local park! 

Cleo Johnson

Environmental Educator

Using Nature to Create Art

My earliest encounter with art was Claude Monet’s Bridge over a Pond of Water Lilies (1899). I was amazed by his ability to paint trees that were so defined, but also worked as a collective. The water lilies and trees reflected into the pond to the point that the pond seemed almost invisible. It was absolutely incredible to witness and I tried to some avail to paint my own attempt. Even if I am not a Monet, art has always been an escape of sorts for me. A place to be creative and use different mediums to make something beautiful! 

During my first year at Dunes Learning Center, I did a lot of research on Frank V. Dudley, a prominent artist of the Indiana Dunes. Often, he was known as the ‘Seer of the Dunes’ and had a part in advocating for the Indiana Dunes to become a federally protected area. My favorite work of his is Strangers from Far Away (Cactus) (1952). This piece depicts an Eastern Prickly Pear cactus in the Dunes, definitely something you wouldn’t think to find in Indiana!

Being inspired by nature is nothing new for art and artists, and I feel grateful to live in a community where there is a large emphasis in capturing the beauty of nature. Between nature photography and the Artist in Residence program sponsored by the National Park, there is a lot to capture! This led me to the question: how can I use nature in artwork of my own? The answer came to me with creating handmade paint brushes made out of materials found right outside my back door!

Now it is important to remember that you can not take things from the National Park, as it is federally protected land, but you can take things that have fallen to the ground in your backyard. I went and searched the forest floor and came upon five interesting materials to use in my paintbrush building project (from left to right): Goldenrod, prairie grass, White pine needles, Hyssop, and Oak leaves. Now, make sure you bring a field guide because there is the added challenge of trying to identify what you are seeing, especially in the winter!

The next step was to assemble the paintbrushes. For the handle, I found sticks that were about the width of my pinky and the size of an unsharpened pencil. I gathered my leafy materials around the stick, making sure that the tip of the stick was surrounded. Once I was happy with how my dried plants were placed, I rubber banded them to the stick. If I was having trouble getting the plants around the stick, I would rubber band them together and then rubber band them to the stick. I trimmed any extra-long bits. Since it would be difficult to wash the paint from the brushes, I decided that each brush would have a designated color. Finally, I added some wire around the plants to really secure the materials to the sticks. It was time to paint. 

Now a warning! These sticks were fragile, but created beautiful textures that I used to make a rainbow. I hope this inspires you to admire the beauty around you and when the time comes (hopefully sooner rather than later) the beauty of Spring! Now, I am off to my next challenge, which is going to be to try to use wildflowers to make my own watercolor paints! Wish me luck! Go explore!

Lauren Hardebeck is a third year Environmental Education Fellow at Dunes Learning Center.

A call to rest!

A call to rest! 

As the winter continues, the Indiana Dunes have reached a quiet serenity. Many of the birds who call our park home have made their yearly pilgrimage south. Our animal friends who have chosen to stay will have to find ways to survive the cold. Deer and rabbits will grow warmer winter coats. Squirrels and woodpeckers will stash food to keep themselves well fed when food is scarce. But some animals will choose to sleep throughout the winter months. This is called hibernation!

One of my favorite hibernators in the Indiana Dunes is the groundhog! Groundhogs spend the months of late fall to early spring snoozing in their burrows. They are an example of true hibernators, which means that they aren’t just taking an extra long nap, they are dropping their body temperature, slowing their breathing, and lowering their heart rate. These elements all help a groundhog use less energy. They will go up to 5 months without eating and only lose about a quarter of their initial body weight! 

Punxsutawney Phil (Groundhog Celebrity)--AP Photo/Barry Reeger

Most reptiles will utilize a special sort of hibernation during the winter called brumation. Reptiles are cold blooded–they cannot regulate their own temperature. Because of this, cold temperatures will involuntarily send them into a deep sleep. To prepare they dig burrows, which hide them from predators and keep them at a more consistent temperature than above ground. Sometimes they’ll even snuggle together in their burrow with other reptiles. It’s like a reptile slumber party! The six lined racerunner that calls our dunes home is perhaps the champion of brumation! This tiny lizard only grows to be about nine inches long–with half of that length going towards their tail. They also have a low tolerance for the cold. Here in Indiana, adult lizards will often begin their brumation towards mid-August and sleep until mid-May. That’s a lot of sleep!

Six Lined Racerunner–Photo by Kate Valentine

Even though our schedules generally won’t change much in the winter, I still think it’s worth recognizing nature’s winter lullaby. We feel it too! We aren’t built to hibernate, but shorter periods of sunlight lead our brains to produce more melatonin. It makes us sleepier in the winter. Bright, artificial lights (like our lamps and cell phones) might reduce the amount we experience those shifts in sleep patterns, but can’t completely offset seasonal changes in sleep. If you can, it may be a good idea to bed a little earlier during the winter. You have things to do and people to see! Going to bed earlier may help you wake up with the energy you’ll need. If nothing else, I hope our need for more winter sleep can serve as a reminder that we are connected to the creatures we share the Earth with and as a reminder to be gentle with ourselves through the coldest time of year.

Wishing you sweet dreams!

Sources:

http://www.minnesotaseasons.com/Reptiles/six-lined_racerunner.html 

https://peedeewildlifecontrolinc.com/hibernation-brumation-and-torpor-when-animals-sleep/ 

https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/blog/groundhogs-facts/#:~:text=Few%20animals%20hibernate%20as%20long,start%20looking%20for%20potential%20mates. 

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20230315-how-the-seasons-change-our-sleep 

Alissa Miller

Environmental Education Fellow

“Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes!"

Change can be a terrifying concept when you think about it, especially when viewed through a natural lens. Take the caterpillar, which is a cute and harmless (enough…) looking creature at the start of its life cycle. Through metamorphosis, though, these insects will change their appearance so completely that one can scarcely tell that butterfly and caterpillar are the same creature. Compared to the changes that a human child experiences as they grow, the transformation of these bugs is incredibly bizarre! However, this kind of change is just a natural part of their lives, no different to them than a human growing up.

Life’s twists and turns seem strange but are pleasant compared to other categories of change, such as the death of a species. Extinctions, or rather, the MULTITUDE of mass extinctions that have occurred over the long history of planet Earth have long perplexed me. Think about it, where we stand today there were once creatures that’d look more at home in books of myth and legend than the pages of school textbooks.

The world of modern humans has never known what life was like alongside towering dinosaurs, lumbering mammoths, gigantic insects, or the other untold masses of prehistoric creatures. A plethora of different organisms once lived and breathed here, just as you and I do now, but have been lost to time. Still, even after many losses (RIP T. rex) life has remained! And over the millennia, it has had the chance to grow, evolve, and change.

Change is just an unavoidable part of nature, whether it be as simple as a shift in the weather, or as far reaching as the rise of humanity as Earth’s dominant life-form. There’s no denying that change can be scary, but it has its silver lining; an opportunity for something new. There are many changes on our horizon that we’ll have to overcome as we continue into the next quarter century. Habitat destruction and the threat of extinction within the natural world as well as a plethora of social and economic pressures (some new, some old)… the list of changes on our plates is extensive and exhausting to contemplate.

But just because change is unavoidable doesn’t mean that we can’t influence it! After all, the lives we have today wouldn’t be possible without the help of change. Humans have more knowledge and power today than ever before. If we want to make the world a better place for ALL to live in, then we should seriously consider how we think about the changes we want to make for ourselves. One thing that shouldn’t change, though, is our relationship to the world and to each other. Humans need nature and nature needs humans to exist, and as the social creatures we are, humans need each other as well. So let's be kind, be smart, and be good about the changes we make this year!

Alex “Burdy” Burdsall

Environmental Education Fellow III

Egrets, Owls, and Cranes! Oh my!

Indiana Dunes National Park is a haven for bird enthusiasts, teeming with spectacular species. Some of my most awe-inspiring bird encounters have been alongside students during Dunes Learning Center programs.

Great blue heron at Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Photo: Kate Valentine)

Most of my memorable bird experiences with students happened on hikes through Cowles Bog. Once when hiking with students from Chicago, a great blue heron took flight just ten feet ahead of us! Many students were enamored with encountering such a large bird. Another time, as dusk fell on Cowles Bog in November, a group of energetic fourth graders were so captivated by the sound of an eastern screech owl that they sat quietly on the boardwalk to listen. Other favorites of trail groups are the elegant great egrets in the wetlands and ring-billed gulls on the beach. One bird I haven’t encountered with students so far is the sandhill crane. These majestic birds, known for their loud, trumpeting calls, remain a sight I eagerly anticipate experiencing with our young visitors and chaperones.

Great egret perched on a tree at Cowles Bog in the Indiana Dunes National Park (Photo: Kate Valentine)

Sandhill cranes at the Indiana Dunes National Park (Photo: Kate Valentine)

While Cowles Bog hikes take a pause for the winter, our on-campus third-grade program delves into how animals adapt to the cold. One way that animals adapt to freezing temperatures is through migration. We lead a sandhill crane migration game to illustrate the challenges that sandhill cranes and other animals might experience when migrating. The third graders in the game pretend to be sandhill cranes as they try to complete a migration cycle. They run from their nesting grounds in Canada to their stopover grounds in Indiana, and to their winter grounds in Florida, all while encountering obstacles like habitat loss and predation. 

The Dunes Learning Center staffhad a chance to watch sandhill cranes at their stopover place in Indiana. During our winter program training in November, the DLC environmental educators visited Jasper-Pulaski Fish and Wildlife Area. On a viewing platform, we marveled at nearly 5,000 cranes feeding on corn husks, flying in from the surrounding wetlands for the evening. Among them, we spotted what many birders would be envious to see—a juvenile whooping crane! With only around 600 whooping cranes in existence, seeing this endangered bird was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Standing five feet tall as adults, the whooping crane is North America's tallest bird, a true spectacle of nature!

A whooping crane (brown and white bird) among sandhill cranes at Jasper-Pulaski Fish and Wildlife Area (Photo: Alex Burdsall)

As spring approaches, I look forward to the return of the sandhill cranes to the Indiana Dunes. Perhaps this time, I’ll share the joy of spotting these magnificent birds—and maybe even a whooping crane—with a trail group of students.

Sources: https://www.in.gov/dnr/fish-and-wildlife/properties/jasper-pulaski-fwa/sandhill-cranes/

Lisa Nalliah

Environmental Education Fellow

Is it Jack Frost or Jack Pine?

The holiday season is here, bringing with it the joy of decorating Christmas trees, baking cookies, singing carols, and more. A prominent symbol of this season is the pine tree which can be seen everywhere. From famous holiday displays at Chicago’s Millennium Park or New York City’s Rockefeller Center to homes across the country. Pine trees, part of the Pinus genus with about 115 species, are found worldwide though they’re primarily native to northern temperate regions. These trees are valuable for both the environment and for people, offering food and shelter to wildlife, erosion control, and improved air quality. 

The Indiana Dunes National Park is home to a unique species called the jack pine (Pinus banksiana). The jackpine can be identified by its fascicles (groups) of two short dark green needles and its gray, flaky bark. It grows between 35 and 65 feet tall and prefers acidic, well-drained sandy soil. Currently the evergreen tree is native to the southernmost regions of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota, extending northward into Canada. Given that its optimal growing conditions are much further north, how did jack pine trees find habitat in the Indiana Dunes? 

Dr. Henry Chandler Cowles, a renowned botanist from the University of Chicago, explored this question in his work The Book of Plants. Around 11,000 years ago, hardwood forests of oak and maple trees were abundant in the southernmost regions (Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota) creating an environment too crowded for jack pines. As the climate shifted, winters grew longer and summers shortened. One might imagine that jack frost gifted a vast accumulation of snow that over time turned into ice, known as the Ice Age. Under the pressure of its own weight, a glacier will begin to move outwards and downwards. Glaciers periodically retreat or advance depending on the amount of snow accumulation or melt. The jack pines could not survive the rivers of ice and their seeds spread further south to Indiana and Illinois.

The pine seeds remained in the barren sandy soil of the young dunes as the glacier slowly melted and retreated north. Hardwood forests could no longer thrive in the conditions of the sandy terrain as the temperatures rose, allowing the jack pines to thrive. These trees, now considered relics of the Ice Age, have proven resilient enough to withstand poor soil and harsh conditions. At the Indiana Dunes, you can find jack pines along the lakeshore on the Dunes Succession Trail at West Beach and on the Paul H. Douglas Trail in Miller Woods. 

The next time you think of Jack Frost, remember how his “gift” of ice reshaped the landscape, making way for the dunes - and the jack pines - that we know today.

Happy holidays from the Dunes Learning Center!

Sources

https://ag.purdue.edu/news/department/fnr/2023/04/intro-to-trees-jack-pine.html
https://mortonarb.org/plant-and-protect/trees-and-plants/jack-pine/?_ga=2.142990709.1574364819.1731341849-1750240908.1731341848#overview
https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/jack-pines-on-lake-michigan-s-southern-shore.htm
https://www.indianadunes.com/explore-the-dunes/plan-your-visit/dunes-101/geographic-regions/the-dunes/

Ixchel Barraza Zapata

Environmental Education Fellow

Eye Spy

One of the first activities we complete with our middle school DuneVersity programs are “eye spy” activities. These activities help students learn and practice the first step in the scientific process, observation. This first step is often overlooked when people think of science. People  will usually think about filling up beakers or mixing different substances together. Others think of memorizing different organelles in a cell. These activities can help us learn more about the world around us, but may not show the big picture like making observations does. 

When I lead groups on hikes, one of things that I will tell students is “If you see anything cool along the trail, let me know and we can talk about it.” This usually leads to the question “What type of plant is this?” or “What type of bug is this?”

I usually respond with “What do you notice about the plant/animal?” Without realizing it, the student starts making observations. They notice that the bug is green and camouflages with the leaf, or that the plant has thorns to protect itself from predators. These observations are often more important than what the species is because it helps inspire curiosity instead of just memorizing a species name.

This curiosity helps students learn that the world around them can teach them a lot. They do not need to know the scientific name of every plant in order to know a lot about the plant. Also, allowing students to use their natural curiosity helps them build empathy. By practicing asking questions about the plants and animals, students can learn to ask questions of others in their community to have a better understanding of the world. By allowing them to be curious and ask questions we are not only promoting empathy, but we are letting students know that it is fine to not know the answer to every single question. This leads to kids growing up to be more curious, empathetic people.

Alex Butina

Environmental Education Fellow II

Invasive Plants Don't Have To Be Scary!

When you take a trip out to Cowles Bog, the first ecosystem that greets you is the wetlands. The signature water-loving plants and birds offer welcoming waves and sing the tunes of the dunes. But looming in the distance is an invasive tall grass more frightening than any halloween ghoul: phragmites! 

Phragmite grass

Invasive species are non-native species that cause harm to the health of the environment, animals, or plants in the area. Phragmites are very aggressive thanks to its seed production and rhizome network. Phragmites spread from ecosystem to ecosystem quickly because they produce up to 2,000 seeds a year! Their rhizomes, an extensive network of underground stems, are also used to create new plants. Rhizomes can grow 1 to 3 feet below soil surface and can creep horizontally up to 10 feet in a season! To make things worse, phragmites can grow up to 15 feet tall and out-compete plants below them for valuable sunlight. All of these factors make it extremely difficult for plants to cohabitate with phragmites. 

For a National Park that is well-known for its plant and animal biodiversity (ranking fourth most biodiverse out of all National Parks), plants like phragmites threaten this biodiversity with their quick reproduction and ability to survive difficult conditions. 

But don't be scared, we don’t have to let phragmites haunt our wetlands! There are different techniques to help bring native ecosystems back from the grave, reviving them to their natural state. Several sites in the National Park were once overgrown with phragmites, but thanks to consistent hard-work of phragmite phighters the native plants are thriving in recovered wetland ecosystems. 

Before and after phragmites removal at west beach

There’s something you can do to help protect your park, too. Using a stiff brush or a boot cleaning station before and after the next time you hit the trails you keep seeds from accidentally planting themselves in the ecosystems you’re visiting. Also, just by visiting your outdoor spaces you’re proving why we should invest into protecting our ecosystems from being overtaken with invasive plants. With your help we can keep our natural gems free from invasives for generations to come! 

NOTE: There are both native and invasive phragmite in the Dunes. Native phragmites have a purple-red hue to the stem and have leaves with a yellow tint, while invasive phragmites have a dull green stem with bluer leaves. 

Lily Olander

Environmental Education Fellow

Orange Flutters of Spring

There are classic signs of Spring all around us: flowers blooming, warm rain, and the emergence of flora and fauna that have been dormant all winter. For me, seasons changing bring with them a sense of excitement and a bit of anxiety. There is a feeling of newness that comes with the springtime. A feeling of evolution from our winter selves that have been bundled up to the emergence of shorter sleeves and sunshine. The perfect visualization of the journey between winter and the new life of spring is the Monarch butterfly.

I hold a hint of jealousy for the Monarch because it gets to migrate to warm places and avoid the snow that we see here in Northwest Indiana (and it doesn’t even send a postcard!). In the spring months, the delicate butterfly begins its migration back from Mexico to the Southern region of the United States, in search of a milkweed plant to lay its egg on. When it finds this special plant, the lifecycle and the miracle of the Monarch begins. After the laying of the eggs, the caterpillar will hatch and eat its egg and the milkweed plant it is laid on. It will feed and feed on this plant until it has the energy and resources to form a chrysalis, a cocoon-like structure where the caterpillar will undergo its final transformation. After about two weeks in the chrysalis stage, the soft orange wings of the butterfly will emerge and it will continue its journey north towards places like the Indiana Dunes!

Just like most things in nature, butterflies rely on signals from the environment in order to start their migration process. When it starts becoming too hot in their winter home, they journey further north to lay eggs and escape the heat. Climate change and habitat destruction are causing major issues for these travelers. Changing weather patterns may give false cues to begin migrating and as a result, they start their journey too early. When they finally arrive at their destination, the milkweed is not mature enough to support their eggs. Deforestation and habitat degradation also contribute to the loss of the ecosystems that allow milkweed to thrive. This can be as severe as illegal logging of Oyamel fir trees in Mexico or the use of dangerous herbicides and pesticides within local communities. It is important that humans recognize and learn about the impacts of these practices in order to better inform their practices in the future!

The Indiana Dunes National Park is in a unique position because it is a stopover point for the Monarch butterfly in both the spring and fall. It is a place where they will stop to rest and gather the energy needed to continue their journey. I would encourage you to do two things this spring. 1) Hike the beautiful trails of YOUR national park and look for signs of spring and vibrant Monarch butterflies and 2) find a spot in your community- it can even be your backyard- to plant a pollinator garden that uses native plants. The planting of milkweed, and other butterfly-friendly plants, can provide a place for Monarchs to pollinate, feed, and lay eggs. In return, like a true symbiotic relationship, humans can enjoy the beautiful orange flutters of Spring!

Lauren Hardebeck

1st Year Environmental Educator Fellow

Photoperiodism

Young leaves blooming on a ginkgo tree in early spring (Photo credit: Margo Taylor)

The seasons come and go every year. The continual shift from spring to summer to fall to winter and then back to the beginning. But as most of us have experienced, we often get a “false spring”. Every year, we get a few days that are warm like springtime when it should feel cold like winter, and then days later we get hit with more winter weather. But during this stretch of warmth, how do plants and animals know that this is only a “false spring” and there is more winter weather to come? Many plants and animals use a mechanism called photoperiodism, which is a response triggered by changes in the length of daylight in a day. This response often comes with the changing of seasons and cues seasonal actions. 

Many plants use photoperiodism to regulate one or several of their functions. These functions include reproduction, flowering, leaf production, and dormancy. Photoperiodism is especially evident with deciduous trees. Deciduous trees lose their leaves in the fall and become dormant before growing leaves again in the spring. But how do they know the right time to start growing? Trees do not want to start growing too early and experience damage due to the cold, but they also do not want to start growing too late and miss out on vital sunlight. To address this issue, trees use photoperiodism. There are special receptors called photochromes in the bark of trees that measure the amount of light it receives during the day. These photochromes help the tree recognize the signs of “false spring” and wait until the arrival of “true spring” to begin growing.

buck with antlers (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

antler shed from a white tailed deer (Photo credit: northamericanwhitetail.com)

Animals can also use photoperiodism! Indiana’s largest resident mammal, the white-tailed deer, is one example. Every spring, male bucks will shed their antlers. Antlers are used to signify breeding status, attract potential mates, and also help the buck defend its territory. Antlers stop growing after a certain amount of time, but shedding antlers allows a buck to grow bigger antlers than before. This process is dependent on photoperiodism because light directly influences the hormones that cause the shedding and regrowth of antlers. 

These are just a few of the many organisms that use photoperiodism to respond to the changing of the seasons. Other environmental factors may influence an organism's activities, but the use of photoperiodism is an important tool for plants and animals so they are not fooled by a “false spring”.

Margo Taylor

1st Year Environmental Educator Fellow

Maple Sugar Time

This time of year is prime time in Northwest Indiana for maple sugaring! The Indiana Dunes National Park is unique for many reasons, including that it is one of the only National Park sites where the park taps trees and boils the sap down into syrup on-site. The park’s Maple Sugar Time festival is definitely worth visiting, but my favorite part about this time of year is getting to teach Dunes Learning Center’s high school forestry program on sugar maples because it’s a great opportunity for the students to get to experience maple sugaring for themselves and explore different ways they could get involved in stewardship or forestry in the future.

indiana dunes maple sugar range

boiling sap into syrup in the sugar shack

So many different conditions have to happen just right for us to be able to make maple syrup. Sugar maples only grow in a limited range across the northeastern U.S. and the southeast region of Canada, and their range continues to shift with the ongoing effects of climate change. Not only that, but the prime season for extracting sap to make syrup requires specific weather conditions: usually, temperatures need to reach up to about 40 degrees during the day and then drop below freezing at night. This temperature swing makes pressure build up underneath the bark so that sap will flow out when someone taps it. These two factors and more make it so remarkable to me that there is such a long history of maple sugar production and that we are able to carry on this tradition in the region.

Indiana dunes sugar shack at chellberg farm

It’s also remarkable that high schoolers and their teachers and chaperones are able to take time out of their busy schedules to attend a day-long field trip at the sugar bush across from Chellberg Farm. Our Climate Change in the Maple Sugar Range program is one of the only opportunities we have to work with high schoolers during the school year, so it’s extra exciting for us as educators.

students measuring trees in the sugar range

My favorite part of our Climate Change in the Maple Sugar Range program is getting to see students grow confidence in their abilities with forestry tools and making observations about the nature around them in the sugar bush. Both years that I’ve helped teach this program, I’ve watched the students gain a closer understanding of the trees around them as we work, and I especially enjoy talking with them about what they wanted to do moving forward past high school. Even if they don’t all see themselves becoming foresters, I hope that getting the chance to do field work in the national park plants seeds in students’ heads about how they can grow into stewards of nature in whatever way works for them.

Hope Rodgers

2nd Year Environmental Educator Fellow

Snowy Owls

One of the most prized species for birders in Indiana to find is the Snowy Owl. This bird is elusive to many in the United States but can be found abundantly in its breeding grounds within the Arctic Circle. The Snowy Owl occasionally migrates far enough south in the winter to be seen in Northern Midwest states- including here in the Indiana Dunes. The Snowy Owl has even been seen as far south as Southern California! These owls capture the interests of people across the country because of their unique features and rare visits.

The Snowy Owl is the only species of owl that has mostly white plumage. This coloration lets the bird blend into its surroundings of white snow in the Arctic. It uses this camouflage to help protect it from predators such as foxes and wolves. If they were a brown color like most other owls, they would stick out to their predators in the arctic snow.

This magnificent bird has multiple adaptations that help it survive the cold arctic winters, where temperatures often reach -4°F (-20°C). Eating lots of food is important to maintaining a high metabolism and keeping their bodies warm. An adult Snowy Owl can weigh up to 4.5 pounds (which is surprisingly heavy for a bird) and can eat over a pound of food each day. Can you imagine a human eating one-quarter of its weight in a single day?? Their diet consists mostly of lemmings during the summer months, but if food is sparse they may also eat ducks, fish, and whatever small animals that they can find. Snowy Owls also have particularly long, thick contour feathers- surface feathers that cover the majority of the tail, wing, and body of birds- to protect them from the wind. 

Snowy Owls are one of the most unique birds that we can find in Northern Indiana. So the next time that you are outside in the winter, make sure to look out for these elusive birds!

Alex Butina

1st Year Environmental Educator

Migration vs Hibernation

Something about winter that has often intrigued me, aside from the winter wonderlands, are the reasons why different animals choose to migrate or hibernate. In nature, migration is the act of traveling from one area to another to escape seasonal changes. Hibernation is the act of “shutting down” and “sleeping” to avoid harsh environmental conditions. Many organisms of the Indiana Dunes have evolved to either use migration, hibernation, or a combination of the two during the winter. But what is it that makes these strategies so desirable? Why do some species waste precious energy traveling hundreds of miles, while others stay confined in a cramped-little den for months-on-end? These are the kinds of questions I’m left with when I wonder to myself, “how are our various Dune’s critters doing these days?” 

What I’ve come to think is that these animals may have had the right idea all along. The reason these techniques are so preferable is because they are especially helpful for avoiding the worst aspects of winter. 

Take hibernators for instance; little creatures like groundhogs, turtles, and snakes don’t have the mobility necessary to travel long distances. A winged-warbler can fly from Northwest Indiana to South Florida with (relative) ease, but a lowly-lizard would have a pretty hard time crawling that far. So if they can’t leave their frigid homes so easily, then their only practical option is to stick around. Times are tough in the winter though, and finding enough food, water (that isn’t frozen solid), and shelter can be hard. It’s a challenge that our cold-blooded friends must overcome in order to survive though. Enter hibernation: a real winning strategy! By “going to sleep” for the winter, animals can cut back on the amount of food and water they need to survive. Other animals that stay awake all winter, like deer, need to forage constantly for food or run the risk of starvation. But all a hibernator needs to survive the winter is a belly full of fat and a good shelter to hide in until spring. Of course, when they do wake up, they’ll be hungry and seriously dehydrated, but that’s a problem they can solve when the snow thaws!

Migrators, on the other hand, avoid the problems that come with winter by leaving all together. They COULD stay and try to weather the cold with the rest of us, BUT as we said earlier, times are tough in the winter and finding enough resources to survive is never a guarantee. For those with the means then, getting away for the season is pretty appealing. “Why bother staying amidst the snow and ice when we could go to the tropics instead?” Birds are probably the most recognizable migrants; every year millions of birds travel back and forth between their summer and winter homes during migration season. Traveling so much takes a long time and a lot of energy (like A LOT of energy), but they can just “recharge their batteries” in their vacation homes. Food sources like fruit or insects, especially, are a lot easier to find in warmer, more southern areas compared to Indiana in the winter season.

It’s truly amazing what adaptations nature can come up with to survive. I believe that we all could learn a thing or two from our Park’s winter critters. Maybe we all can try taking a nap the next time a blizzard blows through, or perhaps we may be happier in Mexico enjoying some “invierno” cuisine! Whatever strategies we choose though, we can rest easy knowing our Dunes critters will still be here when spring arrives again.

Alex “Burdy” Burdsall

2nd Year Environmental Educator Fellow

"Sprucing" Up the Holidays

With the arrival of the holiday season, I thought it would be appropriate to write about something that includes both nature and holiday traditions! So if you’ve ever wanted to learn more about the tradition or science behind Christmas trees, you’ve come to the right place.

Evergreen boughs have been used as a symbol of life and a ward against darkness and illness at least since ancient Egyptian times. However, the first written record of a dedicated Christmas tree dates back to 1441 in Tallinn, Estonia, where the men from a local merchants’ guild decorated and danced around an evergreen tree before setting it on fire. Households in Germany soon after adapted this custom, using small evergreen trees decorated with apples, citrus fruits, nuts, paper strips, and candles as table centerpieces as part of their Christmas celebrations. German immigrants introduced the tradition to America during the late 1700s/early 1800s, where the custom evolved into using ceiling-height trees. The tradition of harvesting and decorating a tree became so popular that there was serious concern that the continued harvest of coniferous trees would lead to their extirpation (local extinction). 

In an effort to protect American forests, Theodore Roosevelt was advised to eliminate the use of live Christmas trees. To reduce the risk of overharvesting, the first commercial Christmas tree farm was planted in New Jersey in 1901. Today, approximately 30 million live Christmas trees are sold every year in America. Over the past several decades, the use of artificial trees has become increasingly popular, accounting for nearly 60% of all Christmas trees in the U.S. 

https://www.thechrisfoxgroup.com/blog/what-is-your-favorite-type-of-live-christmas-tree/ 

So what trees do we typically use as Christmas trees? You may be surprised to learn that there are over 600 different evergreen tree species worldwide! The vast majority of Christmas trees used today belong to three different groups- fir trees, spruce trees, and pine trees. While these trees are similar in that they all bear needles year-round, there is an easy way to differentiate them. Pine trees are easily distinguished by having needles that grow in clusters. Each cluster grows from a ‘fascicle’, and the number of needles per fascicle can be used to help determine the actual pine species. Fir and spruce trees have needles that grow individually instead of in clusters, but the shape of the needle can be used to tell them apart. Spruce trees have squarish four-sided needles with sharp, brittle tips. In contrast, fir trees have flat two-sided needles with soft, rounded tips. Below is a helpful guide to identifying some of the most commonly used Christmas tree species in America!

Calvin Williams

1st Year Environmental Education Fellow

Fall Bird Migrations

As fall rolled through the dunes, it brought with it a wave of migratory birds. There was one weekend earlier this fall that I saw a particularly large amount of birds moving through the area. Migration season is very exciting for me because it combines two of my favorite things: photographing birds and learning new birds.

Blackpoll Warbler

On one particular Saturday afternoon, I was on a walk past Dunes Learning Center. It was on this walk when I first noticed the large amount of warblers. It was very exciting because these were birds I haven’t been seeing around here throughout the summer, and many of them were birds that I wasn’t able to identify without looking them up. There were black-throated green warblers, blackpoll warblers, and chestnut-sided warblers. They were mostly hanging out along the stream and in the bushes along the road, foraging for food to fuel up for  their migration south.  

Ruby Throated Hummingbird

The next day, I went birding with another DLC educator (the legendary Alex of the Birding with Burdsall Instagram series) at the state park. Besides seeing a lot more warblers, it was also nice to see some of our more common summer birds before they headed off for the winter. The catbirds were as loud as ever, the hummingbirds were buzzing about outside the nature center, and a summer tanager landed right in front of us almost as if it was posing.

Summer Tanager

That week also brought in signs that our winter birds are becoming easier to spot. The geese were flying overhead, with a couple of them even landing to hang out in the pond along Howe Road. I had better luck capturing photos of chickadees and tufted titmice, which seem to elude me more in the summertime. Alex and I even found a red-breasted nuthatch at the state park, a bird which leaves the dunes during the summer. The dark-eyed juncos have also shown up in the dunes. Just like the changing of the leaves, the return of our winter bird species and the departure of our summer bird species serves as a reminder of the changing seasons!

Written & Photographed by Kate Valentine

2nd Year Environmental Education Fellow

Summer Memories

As the sun sets on summer and we welcome a new school year, I asked some of our environmental education fellows to share a single memorable moment from our summer camp programs. Included below are just a few of the highlights of a summer filled with laughter, adventure, learning, and memories that will last a lifetime. 

Calvin: One of my favorite moments from summer camp was watching the variety of emotions when campers participated in our insect show and tell. Jim Louderman, an entomologist from the Field Museum in Chicago, brought living and preserved specimens from across the world to our camp and gave kids the chance to hold some of the insects from his collection. The room was always filled with excitement, curiosity, wonder, and surprise and the range of facial expressions was fun to watch. Despite many campers having a previous dislike of bugs, the majority of our campers came away from the experience talking about how cool insects can be.

Hope: At the end of every week of camp, the trail groups have a brief reflection time to talk about what we did at camp and our "roses, buds, and thorns" of the week. One of the quieter campers in my group said that their "rose" -- their favorite part of the week -- was learning how to open up and make new friends that they didn't expect to make. This moment warmed my heart and reminded me of how formative camp can be in helping kids develop confidence and make friends.

Kate: During teen camp, we gave campers the opportunity to pick their own adventure. Campers were asked to rank their preference of the following activities: fishing/kayaking, nature photography, a 5 mile hike at Cowles Bog, insect investigations and research, and arts/crafts. Unfortunately, one of my students wasn’t selected for any of their top preferences and ended up being placed into the photography group. Although initially disappointed and disinterested, they quickly realized that nature photography was similar to liminal photography, a topic they were much more interested in. Watching them go from the least excited student in the group to one of the most engaged and passionate students was satisfying and rewarding. 

Alex Butina: During the summer, one of our most anticipated activities is spending a day at West Beach. Unfortunately, we had to cancel a beach party one week when the air quality alert was in place from the Canadian wildfires. The campers were understandably disappointed about the situation and our staff had to come up with alternative plans at the last second. It was a challenge to adjust and adapt, but I was impressed with how our campers were able to turn lemons into lemonade and still get the most out of the day. 

Margo: My summer highlight comes from teen camp, when the campers were divided into small groups and given several tasks to complete in order to earn pieces to a map that would lead to the legendary Sandsquatch. One of the tasks was to build a fire tall enough to reach and burn a piece of string nearly 2 feet above the ground. To add to the challenge, the rain started to come down during the activity. My group struggled to build the fire, but each failed attempt made them more determined to make it work. The sense of accomplishment and pride when they finally succeeded, after nearly 30 minutes of failure, was incredible.

Lauren: On one of the hottest days of the summer, I was leading a group of campers on a 5 mile hike at Cowles Bog. In the middle of the hike, we have to climb several dunes and my students were doubtful that we’d be able to handle the task. We took it slow and stopped many times, sharing many words of encouragement. We were only halfway up the dune and it was clear that energy and morale were nearly gone. At this point, one camper reached out to their trailmate behind them, looked them in the eye, and said, “We will finish this together.” Those words gave me the motivation to finish the steep climb and filled me with a new sense of confidence in the young generation.  

Alex Burdsall: One of my favorite experiences from this summer was getting the chance to see a beehive up close for the first time! Our summer camp theme was insects, and having actual beehives on site was a wonderful way to teach campers about our pollinator pals. Every person that visited the hives wore a special bee suit for protection, which allowed us to get a closer look at the intricate structure of a hive. We learned about the different roles each bee has within the hive, how bees communicate through the “waggle dance”, and why bees are an important part of the ecosystem. As the summer comes to an end, I’m looking forward to even more new adventures and experiences around the Indiana Dunes!

Hannah: This summer only confirmed the idea in my mind that there is something magical about being around a large body of water. There were several kids during our summer camps that didn't seem to enjoy anything we were doing. It being my first year, I thought "maybe camp just isn't made for them." One camper in particular sticks out in my mind: they were overwhelmed and anxious throughout the week. During our weekly trip to West Beach, I was on the lookout for them, hoping they were enjoying themselves. I almost didn't recognize them with their beaming smile and beautiful, carefree laugh as they splashed through the water. This was the first time at camp I saw a kid completely transform. Something about the water was able to wash this camper's stress and anxieties away. It reminded me why we are doing this day after day - kids need to create memories in these spaces so that they want to protect them in the years to come.

DLC Staff

September 2023

2022-2023 Highlights

While we’re gearing up for summer camp and welcoming new seasonal staff at DLC, we’re also saying goodbye to the class of 2022-23 Environmental Education Fellows. For the last Naturalist Note of the spring, the fellows (plus Anthony, our On-Site Education & Fellowship Manager) would like to share some of their favorite moments from the past year. We hope you enjoy!

Kate: The first week of summer camp was really hot, so we played a game one afternoon in the lodge. As part of this game, we asked the campers to do an impression of a trail group leader. One of my kids came up and did a spot-on impression of me on our hike earlier that day: “If you haven’t had water in the last five minutes, take a drink of water!”

Sierra: On a rainy day on the Cowles Bog trail, I found a baby snapping turtle and I got to show all the students! It was cool because it was the first turtle I’d found on trail.

Jarrod: During Dunes Adventure camp, I was on the Cabin Leader shift for one night. After a long day I was very tired, so when we got to our tent in the evening I was falling asleep, leaving the campers to entertain themselves. I heard one of them say, “Let’s play Uno in our minds!” The next words I heard were “red four,” followed by “green four,” then “wild card!” Although it started out normally, they soon played orange cards, pink cards, and made up special edition cards. For a half hour or so this continued. As tired as I was, they were having fun and that was all that mattered to me.

Alex:  There’s a plywood board in front of the garage at Sears House. In the summer, the Fellows living at Sears liked to search under the board for critters. One day, we found two milk snakes curled up underneath! They weren’t the first or last snakes we found, but they were pretty cool!

Anthony: I loved sitting around the fire during our fall staff training trip to Conner Prairie. It was great just having casual conversation and learning more about each other. Everyone was so concerned with me overcooking my hobo packet, and I loved it. 

Genevieve: During a Frog in the Bog program, I introduced the waste dilemma to my trail group and we had a great discussion! We talked about both big- and small-scale changes to reduce waste. My group even felt inspired to make some changes at their school like trying a food waste challenge and starting an environmental club.

Stephanie: One of my favorite memories happened during a night hike. My group and I were starting our “solo hikes,” and we made owl calls back and forth to each other so the next student knows when to start hiking. While we did our owl calls, a real barred owl started calling back to us! It was the first time I’ve had an owl call back during solo hike, it was a really awesome experience!

Travis: During a high school winter program, one student shared with the group after trying a wild edible plant that he had a list of things he had eaten before. Another student commented that the list was full of strange things. The teacher and I both stated we wanted to see the list. The student then turned around and said to me and the teacher, “Have you ever eaten a bus seat before?”

Aoife: I have a few so I will keep them short! My first favorite that comes to mind is when we went to Jasper Pulaski to see the sandhill crane migration. I had never seen anything like that before, it was really special. Next is the first filming of Birding with Burdsall – we had a good laugh! Another was coming home and finding a personal concert in the living room when Sierra and Hope were playing violin and flute. And last I will say seeing a cute little blue-spotted salamander for the first time.

Hope: One day when we were out picking up trash, I found what looked like dryer lint on the ground. When I got closer, I saw that it was actually owl pellets. Sierra came by to look and she said, “there must’ve been an owl right above us!” I looked up and there really was an owl right there – a saw-whet owl, to be exact! That moment made me feel the kind of excitement I see kids have all the time when we spot an animal on trail.

Bella: I returned to DLC as an Educator after two years away, and I felt so grateful to experience something I had done before with new people, new knowledge, and a new mindset. I saw firsthand just how much impact an organization like DLC can have. I met returning campers moving up from Discovery camp to teen camp, teen campers moving on to being cabin leaders, and a new set of Educators who were motivated, passionate, and welcoming. During the school year, every time a student said this was their favorite field trip or a chaperone mentioned how impactful this experience is, I remembered how influential my work is.

Fellows, Class of 2022-2023

Surprise, Surprise!

During my senior year at college, I undertook my first expedition to LaRue-Pine Hills Research Natural Area, part of Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois, also known as “Snake Road.” As one may expect from such a name, there were indeed snakes on the road at Snake Road! The quantity and range of different snakes there though was completely unexpected; over the two-day period my herpetology class visited the area, we saw fifty snakes and almost a dozen different species. To say I was blown away would be a tremendous understatement… I was over the moon with joy! 

I’ve gone back to Snake Road half a dozen times in the years since I first visited, in an effort to top my all-time record for sightings. I just went again this year, on the 15th and 29th of April, in fact. Even though I’ve yet to beat my first trip’s numbers, I still find myself pleasantly surprised by something every time I journey there. For instance, in all my time visiting Snake Road, I had never seen a Timber Rattlesnake until one of my trips this year! I went out there with limited expectations, hoping to see something but not sure what it would be, and the universe rewarded me with my first ever sighting of a wild rattlesnake. 

I’ve found that life has a funny way of surprising us like that. Sometimes you’re out looking for lemons and instead you find lemon sharks! Or maybe you go panning for gold but keep coming up with goldfish! One can never be 100% sure what to expect whenever they step outside. You can look in all the right habitats, at the exact right time of day, at the exact right time of year, under all the right weather conditions and still not find any of the right wildlife if they’re just not cooperative. Likewise, you may find yourself stumbling upon critters in the most unexpected of times and places. One time, while taking out the garbage, I almost stepped on a hognose snake that was right outside my front door! Other days, I’ve spent hours searching high and low for morel mushrooms, only to find sycamore balls, half-eaten walnuts, and other look-alikes.

I find that the more expectations and anticipation I have on the days I go out in nature, the less enjoyable my time feels when I come up short of them. While there are definitely some days that feel more frustrating than others though, there is always opportunity for joy in the form of the unexpected. You just have to be able to see it; you could find happiness in the form of a beautiful cloud formation, or maybe as a hidden grove of wildflowers. Sometimes it even comes in the form of finding a cool snake (though probably not for everyone)! Somehow, I always find something new and beautiful every time I explore, and it always seems to be when I don’t expect it. I guess you could say that nature is just full of surprises!

Alex Burdsall

Environmental Education Fellow