Beaverwatch

By Naturalist Megan Harrison

Last month we had the pleasure of teaching Highland High School’s environmental science class. These juniors and seniors completed hikes through jack pine forests, dunes, deciduous forests, and of course, the beach. After learning about the ecology and succession in the Indiana Dunes, naturalists and students headed to the Little Calumet River for Riverwatch. Hoosier Riverwatch is a program that utilizes citizen participation for local water monitoring efforts.

The Highland environmental science class has experience monitoring water quality, but they had a new and very exciting observation: a BEAVER! Our group was busy sampling macroinvertebrate insects when the much larger beaver stole the show. This close encounter allowed students to observe, learn about unique adaptations, and explore their curiosity.

Despite the elusive nature of beavers, our group was able to spend a lot of time observing the beaver and his behaviors. For example, he entered the river by sliding down on his stomach. Beavers typically enter this way in the same spot every time creating something known as beaver slides. Once in the water, he showed off by swimming around the group, chewing on some snacks, and even laying on the bank to groom himself! Naturally, there was a flurry of cameras and cell phones from both the students and the naturalists but there was also time for a quick lesson on beaver adaptations. I can think of no better classroom for this lesson than the Little Calumet River!

Naturalists taught the students about many wildlife adaptations. For example, hair is important to mammals, but not usually vital for water dwelling animals. Since the beaver is both, they have two layers of fur. The first is for trapping in warmth, and the top layer is waterproof to keep them dry when they come back to shore. Like ducks, beavers also have webbed feet for swimming through their aquatic environment. Their tails are adapted for their underwater lifestyle as well. The classic paddle shape is important for steering underwater, but also provides balance on land.  For many, including myself, this was the first time seeing these adaptations at work in the wild.

As an educator, it’s very easy for me to say how interesting or important our native species are but it’s quite another to get students to actually believe it. Seeing curious teenage minds at work was one of the most rewarding experiences that I have had in my career.

Highland High School Environmental Science Class

I believe the best way to gain an appreciation for nature is to experience it first-hand. I have learned, studied, and even taught about beavers, but have never appreciated them to this extent until that day in the river. Our only real shot at saving our beloved Mother Earth is to encourage future generations to care. This experience could not have aligned more with the mission of Dunes Learning Center: “to inspire lasting curiosity and stewardship in nature.” Thank you Highland High School for sharing this great experience with us!

Megan Harrison

Naturalist

(In character during the Walk through Time)

Homecoming Celebration at Dunes Learning Center

By Naturalist Baleigh Haynes

Over the past 20 years, Dunes Learning Center has taught 120,000 kids and has had nearly two hundred naturalist interns, all as a part of our mission to inspire lasting curiosity and stewardship with nature. This year was no exception, as we celebrated our 20th anniversary of bringing nature a little closer to children’s hearts.

Celebratory Cake

To celebrate this milestone in Dunes Learning Center history, we opened our doors with a “Homecoming” event. Everyone that has been involved with Dunes Learning Center was invited to spend an evening full of music, food, tie dye, and of course a campfire. Many friends of Dunes Learning Center, including teachers, students, campers, board members, NPS friends, and even former naturalists came to partake in the festivities. We had one very special guest attend Homecoming, one of Dunes Learning Center’s very first naturalists, Kate Boersma.

Homecoming campfire

Twenty years ago, Dunes Learning Center co-founder Lee Botts asked Kate to be a naturalist after she finished her freshman year of college. Kate had worked with children at a nature center throughout high school and enjoyed it, so she was very interested in the position. Kate earned a B.A. in Environmental Science from Northwestern University. She then worked for Oregon Museum of Science and Industry doing very similar work as she did while at the Dunes Learning Center. Kate went on to get her M.S. in Fisheries Science and her PhD in Zoology from Oregon State University. Kate is now a professor of biology at the University of San Diego, and gives the credit to Dunes Learning Center for her career advancement, saying, “This job got me where I am today.”

While reminiscing about her time at Dunes Learning Center, Kate shared one of her favorite memories as a naturalist. “I was on a night hike with some students from Chicago. I asked all the girls to turn off their flashlights, and of course there was a lot of screaming. Once all the lights were off one of the girls looked up at the sky and said “I didn’t know there were that many stars.” That single moment is something that so many of us past and present naturalist get to share with the countless of children that walk through our doors. Kate’s closing words about her memory of that night hike is what rings true for all that have had the privilege to work here at the Dunes Learning Center, “Because of moments like those, that’s why I do what I do.”

Planetary Blues Band performing at the Homecoming Celebration

Baleigh Haynes

Naturalist