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Vol. 3, No. 3. December 2014-January 2015 The Internet Site for Environmental Information in Oklahoma
Open to All Ages!
IN LONDON
Enter the next competition from 5 January 2015 - 27 February 2015.
Article posted by Bored Panda.
http://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit-us/wpy/competition/index.html
All the necessary information can be
found at the following website:
Since 1964, the National History Museum in London has been organizing their annual Wildlife Photographer Of The Year contest. This year, the Grand title winner in Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year, which includes photographers up to 17 years of age, was Carlos Perez Naval – a 9-year-old boy from Spain. Carlos’ parents are tireless travelers, and they always take their son on all their trips around the world. When he was 4, he started taking pho-tos of all the nature he saw – first with a compact camera and now with professional equipment. He gets a bigger lens every time he goes abroad. Carlos doesn’t need to be in far away lands to take nice photos – during the school year, the flora and fauna in his garden and surrounding Teruel can’t escape the “clicks” of his camera. More info: carlospereznaval.wordpress.com. This website is in the Spanish language.
Season’sGreetings
2
An environmental education newsletter for the citizens of Oklahoma sponsored by the Department of Biology at Oklahoma City University. Items appearing in this newslet-ter do not necessarily reflect the opinions or endorsement of the sponsoring organization. Editor: Beth Landon [email protected]
Please send any submissions to The EnvironMentor Newsletter or The Calendar to: [email protected] Published bimonthly each year. The next deadline is January 20, 2014. If you wish to receive an email announcing when a new issue has been uploaded, please send an email to [email protected].
Download your EnvironMentor newsletter in pdf form from: http://www.okcu.edu/environmentor/
Visit The EnvironMentor Calendar at http://www2.okcu.edu/environmentor/ Regularly updated as information becomes available.
In this issue ...
Wildlife Photographer of the Year Cover
Editorial Page 2
Not an Endorsement, but ... 2
Season’s Greetings Quiz 2
BioBlitz Wrap-Up and Look Ahead 3-4
Winter Scavenger Hunt 5
It’s Not Too Early to Think About
National Public Lands Day 6
Green Apple Day of Service at Lincoln Elementary
with Oklahoma Green Schools Program 7
Lotta Birdin’ Goin’ On 8
The Next Great Backyard Bird Count 9
Eagle Watch 9
Introduction to Healthy Streams — A Seminar 10
Blue Thumb New Volunteer Training 11
“Weather and Climate” EEExpo 12
Green Words for All Ages 13
“Acorns, Pumpkins, and Osage Oranges” 14-15
Birding From the Classroom 15
The EnvironMentor on Facebook 16
QuikLIST 16
Calendar Form 17
Not an Endorsement , but ...
Season’s Greetings Quiz
What position does this living thing
hold in the State of Oklahoma?
Answer on Page 4
Check out the website:
http://wildernessmatters.org/
“Nearly 20% of our population has a disabil-ity that prevents them from engaging with nature in authentic and meaningful ways. Wilderness Matters seeks to mitigate or re-move these barriers through design that cre-atively solves these issues.”
wilderness
matters
Current project in Martin Nature Park in OKC
The project’s intent is to preserve the ecological
advantages of the area while expanding access to
its natural experiences – including feelings, sights,
sounds – to people with disabilities.
3
2014 Wrap-Up
It was the 14th Annual BioBlitz, held at the historic site of the Washita Battlefield / Black Kettle National
Grasslands Cheyenne, Oklahoma. BioBlitz, a rapid 24-hour survey of biological diversity, is made possible
with the help of expert biologists and citizen scientists. With a small fee you register for the survey, meals, and
an overnight camping experience. It’s a hands-on scientific experience that allows people to learn and appreci-
ate the diversity of Oklahoma, raising awareness for the preservation of such diversity!
BioBlitz is a great way to interact with others that share similar interests in protecting the diversity of species.
Participants range from college students to families to the community. Expert biologists lead group activities,
give talks about their area of study, and handle/collect the organisms with care, and the citizen scientists volun-
teer with scheduled activities, assist with the biological surveys, and increase their knowledge of organisms
from the experts.
Two of the many experts
attending are two with
whom I am especially fa-
miliar as they are professors
of mine! Dr. Stancampiano,
a mammologist, and Dr.
Ryburn, a botanist, are both,
among other titles, profes-
sors of biology at Oklahoma
City University. They each
held separate surveys focus-
ing in their respective ex-
pertise, and I chose to at-
tend Dr. Stancampiano’s
small mammalian survey.
The survey was conducted along a grassland and wetland area of the park. We used Sherman traps (a live trap
with peanut butter bait which closes once the mammals step on the trigger) and aluminum plates. The plates
use a mixture of alcohol, carpenter’s chalk spray, and mineral oil to make the substance stick with a fish smell-
ing bait. When the alcohol evaporates the chalk is left for the imprint of tracks. These are most commonly
used with game cams to get a picture of the mammals present.
“I have also loved
the opportunity
that this event
provides; I get to
interact with my
fellow classmates
and professors
outside of the
classroom!”
Dr. Anthony Stancampiano with chalk spray
(Continued on Page 4)
4
We are excited to confirm the first weekend of October (the 2-3) for BioBlitz! 2015 at Osage Hills State Park in Pawhuska! We will have the group camp facility for general BioBlitz! activities, a large grassy area for tents, and a number of camp-style bunkhouses availa-ble for request during registration. The park has a lim-ited number of private cabins available for reservation also (reservations are being taken now- you can call the park at 918-336-4141).
http://www.stateparks.com/osage_hills.html
Once the traps were set, we had to wait till the next
morning to see if we caught anything, but there were
other activities to do until late into the night, includ-
ing a bat survey. Using areas that typically attract
bats – areas near water or lights - we set out bat nets
among the camping grounds and at a creek area of a
cattle ranch about 12 miles east of the park. We
checked them at night, but not in the morning so the
bats didn’t get trapped and die. It also prevented
morning birds from getting caught in the traps. We
ended up leaving empty handed at both netting sites;
although we thoroughly enjoyed getting stuck by
thorny bushes as we traipsed through the grasslands!
I have attended BioBlitz for two years now, and from
my own experience I’ve seen many different species
of small mammals, plants, reptiles, arthropods, etc.!
I have also loved the opportunity that this event pro-
vides; I get to interact with my fellow classmates and
professors outside of the classroom! Plus, who
doesn’t love camping?
By Roving Reporter Stormy Vandeplas
Graduating Environmental Studies Senior
Oklahoma City University
Plan Ahead for BioBlitz 2015
October 2-3, 2015
Students surrounding one aluminum plate
(Continued from Page 3)
Answer to the Quiz from Page 2: the State Floral Emblem,
not to be confused as the State Flower
5
If you find something interesting and take a picture of it,
send it to The EnvironMentor at [email protected].
We would like to include it to brighten up our next issue:
the Mid-Winter Issue.
6
Canton Lake
It’s Not Too Early to Think About National Public Lands Day
In 2014 there were two projects in the state on National Public Lands Day: Canton Lake and
Lake of the Arbuckles.
Canton Lake's event was to clean up the
exposed lake bed. With the lake level be-
ing low, the group could concentrate clean
-up efforts at the swimming beach, boat
ramp areas and the north side of the lake
bed from Sandy Cove Recreation Area to
the Longdale Recreation Area. With the
help of willing volunteers, the site hoped
to remove much of the trash and other de-
bris to help with safety and environmental
concerns.
Low water in the park presented a great
opportunity to clean up the shoreline of
Lake of the Arbuckles. The National Park
Service at the Chickasaw National Recre-
ation Area hosted a National Public Lands
Day shoreline and creek clean up.
Think ahead to how you can help on the next
National Public Lands Day
Saturday, September 26, 2015
And remember that will be a fee-free day!
7
The Oklahoma Green Schools Program selected Lincoln Elementary School in Norman as the
school to assist for the 2014 Green Apple Day of Service. On November 1, 2014, OGSP along with
students, parents, teachers, and staff from Lincoln Elementary school, students and professors from
the University of Oklahoma, OSU Extension staff from Stillwater, Earth Rebirth, Eagle Scouts and
other volunteers gathered to construct six raised bed vegetable gardens at the school. Teacher Di-
ane Wood said, “Our students are very excited about growing their own vegetables at school and
then taking them home to share with their families.” The school has partnered with Earth Rebirth and
will participate in the “Garden Your Own Growth” program. Volunteers from Earth Rebirth will come
to Lincoln every week to work with students in the after-school program, teaching them how to gar-
den and cook the vegetables they harvest. Goals for the garden are to teach students about the im-
portance of nutrition and locally grown food through planting, maintenance, and harvest of fresh fruits
and vegetables. Some of the expected beneficial outcomes include an increased willingness to try
fruits and vegetables, increased access to fruits and vegetables, and increased fruit and vegetable
consumption. After the beds were constructed, students planted Swiss chard and cabbage that
should be ready to harvest in
January 2015. It was a won-
derful day of volunteerism with
the community rallying together
to make short work of a project
that will impact students for
years to come.
Green Apple Day of Service at
Lincoln Elementary School
8
Sign Up, Join In The 115th Christmas Bird Count will be conducted from Sunday, December 14, 2014 through Monday, January 5, 2015. The Christmas Bird Count is FREE, but it does rely on donations. If you would like to donate or for more information about how to participate, see the following website: http://birds.audubon.org/get-involved-christmas-bird-count-find-count-near-you
Since the Christmas Bird count began over a century ago, it has
relied on the dedication and commitment of volunteers like you.
OKKE Kenton Black Mesa Max Thompson [email protected]
OKAN Arnett Eddie Stegall [email protected]
OKWA Washita NWR Levi Feltman [email protected] 12/20
OKWM Wichita Wildlife Refuge Michael Husak [email protected] 12/29
OKSC Stephens County Roma Lenehan [email protected] 1/3
OKCH Chickasaw NRA Ron Parker [email protected]
The bird count at the Chickasaw National Recreation area starts at the Travertine Nature Center between 9:00 am and
5:00 pm. Experienced and novice birdwatchers will receive a map and an area to search. Novice birders will matched
with more experienced birders, and binoculars and field guides are available to borrow. There is no charge for this event
and participants will receive a compilation of the Christmas Bird Counts done all over the nation.
OKTI Tishomingo NWR Charles Brown [email protected] 12/14
OKLA Lake Atoka Eric Beck [email protected]
OKBB Broken Bow Reservoir Mia Revels [email protected] 12/23
OKSE Sequoyah Chad Ford [email protected]
OKRS Red Slough Berlin Heck [email protected]
OKSV Spavinaw Sandy Sullins [email protected] 12/14
OKRC Rogers County Richard Stuart [email protected]
OKTU Tulsa Jo Loyd [email protected]
OKHR Hulah Reservoir Don Wolfe [email protected]
OKTP Tall Grass Prairie Preserve Don Wolfe [email protected]
OKSL Sooner Lake John Couch [email protected] 12/15
OKST Stillwater James Ownby [email protected]
OKSP Salt Plains NWR Glen Hensley [email protected] 12/20
OKNO Norman Mark Howery [email protected]
OKOC Oklahoma City John Shackford [email protected]
Lotta Birdin’ Goin’ On!!
See listed below the Christmas
Bird Counts going on around
the state. Please register with
the people listed. Some dates
are listed as well.
Citizen Science at its best!! Continued on Page 9
9
Eagle Watch
There is a Great Backyard Bird Count handout for identifying tree pests when looking for birds. This PDF is currently the 2014 version but there will probably be a new one re-released for 2015 at the following URL. Here is the link for the 2014: http://www.dontmovefirewood.org/sites/default/files/HolesInTrees2014.pdf
The next
Great Backyard Bird Count
February 13-16, 2015
For more information about how to participate see the following website: http://gbbc.birdcount.org/
Sequoyah State Park and Lodge Eagle Tour—January 24, 2015 Kaw Lake Ultimate Eagle Watch—January 17, 2015 Osage Cove at Kaw Lake—Eagle View Trail Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge Check out the live Bald Eagle Test Camera at this website: http://www.suttoncenter.org/pages/live_eagle_camera
Eagle and Loon Watch—January 24-March 7, 2015 Robert S Kerr Reservoir Tenkiller State Park Keystone State Park Lake Thunderbird State Park
December 21, 28, 2014 January 11,25, 2015 February 8,22, 2015 March 8,15, 2015
Tips from Travelok.com:
The best time to observe eagles is
around sunrise or sunset.
For some of the eagle-viewing events, a
portable camp chair or lawn chair is
recommended.
Always call ahead to state parks or wild-
life management areas for up-to-date
eagle viewing information before your
trip.
Visit the Travelok website for more tips
and information:
http://www.travelok.com/article_page/top
-10-places-for-eagle-watching-in-
oklahoma
All information from Travelok.com
Chickasaw National Recreation Area Bald Eagle Watch—January 10, 2015 Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge Eagle Watch—January 9-17, 2015 Eagle Roost Nature Trail Great Salt Plains State Park Arcadia Lake Eagle Watch—January 2-4, 2015 Quartz Mountain Nature Park In Search of Eagles—January 3-4, 2015 Black Mesa State Park and Nature Preserve
And More
10
11
12
We are excited to announce that EE Expo 2015 will be held at the National Weather Center. We
plan to take advantage of the local knowledge and focus on weather and climate. In 2015, we will
make the connection between environmental education and weather and climate. With the National
Weather Center in Norman as our backdrop, EE Expo will highlight the variety of weather and cli-
mate activities and ideas that can be explored.
New Venue for 2015 - The National Weather Center in Norman. The National Weather Center houses a unique confederation of University of Oklahoma, Na-tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and state organizations that work together in partnership to improve understanding of events occurring in Earth’s atmosphere over a wide range of time and space.
During EE Expo, you will have the opportunity to take a NWC tour and hear from the scientists working in some of the many agencies housed there. We will have several presentations by National Weather Center scientists and educators. And our keynote speaker will be Gary McManus, State Climatologist, and author of the Mesonet Ticker.
presented by
13
A Siege of Bitterns: A Birder Murder Mystery
by Steve Burrows
This first installment of a promising Birder Murder Mystery se-ries from across the pond, A Siege of Bitterns by Steve Bur-rows, gives us some useful information right off. Most of us know that a flock of crows is called a murder, but a siege of bitterns?! Burrows goes on to mix what might be two of our favorite pastimes, birding and mystery stories, and tops it off by setting it in a remote part of England about which we may not be familiar. Close in resemblance to cranes and herons, which also cluster in sieges (alternately sedges), zealous birdwatchers argue about a sighting of this rare (to this part of the world) bird, but can it lead one of them to murder? We are introduced to this new investigator, with a tantalizingly mysterious past, and his outspoken team as they interrogate the inhabitants of Saltmarsh, a fictional town in Norfolk on the northeast coast of England. In a note to the crossword puz-
zlers among us, don’t be put off by the unfortunate choice of name for Burrows’ sleuth, Detective Chief Inspector Domenic JeJeune (regardless of spelling). He isn’t as naïve and simplistic as his name would imply. Settle in for several evenings with a cup of tea and this book; there are more to come.
Reviewed by Sarah Markham
Green Words for All Ages
The trees in Oklahoma have lost their leaves for the
year and there has already been one measureable
snowstorm If you like to walk in the snow, you might
like to walk in the woods in the snow. Go for a walk
with a boy and his dog in this book, Winter Trees by
Carole Gerber with illustrations by Leslie Evans. In
your imagination you can take in the sights, sounds
and smells as you wander among the trees.
Before you venture out check out this website:
http://www.charlesbridge.com/productdetails.cfm?
PC=5547
There is a poster you can download to hang in your
room — Identifying Trees in the Winter .
Reviewed by Sarah Markham
14
From The Earthteller,
Fran Stallings
Acorns, Pumpkins, and Osage Oranges
There was once a young man who went for a hike through the autumn countryside. When he felt like taking a rest, he sat down under a big oak tree and leaned his back against the trunk, looking out at the field of pump-kins that surrounded the tree.
"How very strange," he thought. "Those big pumpkins grow on skinny, weak vines that can't even stand up with-out climbing on something. Wouldn't it make more sense if pumpkins grew on something big and strong, like this oak tree?"
Just then, an acorn fell from the tree onto his head: blip! It bounced away.
"Whew! I'm lucky! If that had been a pumpkin, it would have smashed my head! I guess it's better that acorns grow on trees, and pumpkins lie on the ground."
######
In the original folktale about Nasreddin Hodja, a folk hero of Asia Minor, he sat under a walnut tree admiring the pumpkin vines.
Follow this link to read this story: http://www.readliterature.com/h010415.htm
from Zingerbug.com
from wallpaperstock.net
from thegardenhound.com
This was a good year for acorns: many oak trees produced an abundant crop, and the squirrels were busy tucking them away for winter. Next spring, the acorns they didn't dig up will try to start an oak forest in our lawns and gardens!
Trees and animals often work together in spreading the trees' offspring to new areas. Sometimes, as with acorns and pecans, the new trees start from what squirrels overlook. Trees with tasty fruit, like persimmon and wild plum, have smaller hard-coated seeds that pass through an animal's di-gestive tract and get dropped somewhere new, along with some fertilizer. The animals help to spread the trees, and the new trees grow more food for the animals. It's a balanced partnership.
Continued on page 14
15
Thursday, January 15, 2015
@ Rogers County Conservation Education Reserve
Claremore, OK
Thursday, February 19, 2015
@ OKC Zoo, Oklahoma City, OK
Thursday, March 12, 2015
@ Dewey County Conservation District, Taloga, OK
Thursday, May 28, 2015
@ Hackberry Flat WMA, Frederick, OK
But what about Osage Orange (Maclura pomifera)? Why do those trees put so much energy into growing grapefruit-size green fruits, when it seems almost nobody eats them? In fact, their thorny trunks and branches hardly welcome an herbivore to get close. What's go-ing on there?
One suggestion is that long, long ago, Osage Orange depended on giant ground sloths, mammoths, mastodons, and even ancestors of the horse to eat its fruits and dis-perse its seeds. In those days, Osage Orange grew over most of eastern North America! But when those animals went extinct thou-sands of years ago, the tree's range contracted to Kansas/Oklahoma/Texas.
It was still useful, so people helped to grow it. Native American warriors prized its tough wood for making archery bows. French observers called it bois d'arc (wood for bows), hence "bodark" as one of its names. Before barbed wire was invented, pioneer farmers planted the spiny trees as wind-breaks and hedges around their fields, and later used the strong rot-resistant wood for fence posts.
Sometimes horses take a bite of a "horse apple," and squirrels may chomp into the big fruits to dig out the small seeds. One of the "oranges" (they are really in the mulberry family!) can roll a good dis-tance if it falls on a slope, but that's nothing compared to the travels of a mastodon. It's kind of sad to see the trees laden with big green "hedge apples," offering up their fruits to animals who disap-peared millennia ago.
The hiker in my folktale was lucky that he didn't take a rest under an Osage Orange tree in autumn!
Osage Oranges in the dry streambed of Campbell Creek within the Oklaho-
ma City boundary during the drought. They almost look like tennis balls, but
they are Osage Oranges.
Maclura pomifera
All K-12 educators are invited to spend the day
learning about birds. This 6-hour workshop will in-
troduce you to methods for identifying birds and at-
tracting birds to your schoolyard or outdoor class-
room. You will also learn ways to incorporate bird
watching into your daily curriculum. Information on
citizen science programs involving birds will also be
shared. Come prepared to observe a variety of birds
in a classroom setting as well as outdoors.
16
10301 South Sunnylane Road
405-814-0006
http://
www.museumofosteology.org/
Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Saturday 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.
On February 23, 2013 The EnvironMentor
dipped a toe into social media. We made
this decision because, at this time, there
are two to three months between issues of
the Newsletter. During this past gap an im-
portant event had an application deadline of
April 1st so an announcement went out
from Facebook. We won’t bother you with
anything trivial, so …
“Like” The Environmentor on
Facebook!!
QUIKList Oklahoma
Oklahoma Blue Thumb
http://bluethumbok.com/
Oklahoma Blue Thumb Association
Oklahoma Green Schools
http://www.okgreenschools.org/
Oklahoma Master Naturalists
http://okmasternaturalist.org/
Oklahoma Native Plant Society
http://oknativeplants.org/
Oklahoma Recycling Association (OKRA)
http://www.recycleok.org/okra/
Project Learning Tree (PLT)
http://www.plt.org/
http://www.forestry.ok.gov/project-learning-
tree
As with all hyperlinks in The EnvironMentor
Newsletter, these are clickable.
Do you know an environmental group in Okla-
homa that should be listed. Send that infor-
mation to:
Project WET
(Water Education for Teachers)
http://projectwet.org/
http://projectwet.org/where-we-are/host/
oklahoma_conservation_commission/
Project WILD
http://www.projectwild.org/
17
To go directly to The Calendar click on:
http://www2.okcu.edu/environmentor
Most people who remember The EnvironMentor Newsletter know that the pages at the end of the issue
were reserved for The Calendar. Being online has some great advantages. When you downloaded your
copy of the newsletter you may have noticed the box on the right side of the webpage. This is a conven-
ient listing of the next events from The Calendar. This will always be up-to-date because it happens au-
tomatically. For more information on the event just click on it and a window will open up with all the de-
tails. If you wish, you can access the rest of the calendar from the there.
To have your event posted to The Calendar, copy and paste the following list into an email, fill
in as much information as you wish, and send it to: [email protected]
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