Elk Rapids Almanac
Elk Rapids Almanac, February 2025
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February 11-Now’s the time to plan for Spring Planting. A few years ago, Doug Tallamy introduced our community to the “Home-Grown National Park” concept. As you may recall, HNP raises awareness to address the biodiversity crisis by adding native plants and removing invasive ones from where we live, work and play. Some of us locally have jumped onto that band wagon by converting parts of our lawn area into native plantings. To date over 100,000 acres of turf grass have been converted into thriving eco systems across America. If you have not been part of this movement, now is the time to start planning your own Home-Grown National Park. To quote Doug “You don’t need a big yard.” A ten-foot by ten-foot plot will make a difference in our community and the world we live in. For more information go to https://homegrownnationalpark.org -Gary Buczkowski Note: Several Elk Rapids gardens are included on the national map, and to inspire and assist our community in such activities, Green Elk Rapids will host a citizen education event on identifying local native and invasive plants on Saturday, May 31. February 14-Backyard Bird count. I did my bird count this morning between 8:00 and 8:15. There were 25 finches/sparrows (?) on the east side of the house and 3 finches on the west side. Five squirrels made their way up the feeders as well! -Terri Reisig |
Photo by Gary Buczkowski
Photo by Gary Buczkowski |
February 16-Ottawa Street, backyard bird count, 3:00-3:30 p.m. Three cardinals, one Piliated Woodpecker, 12-15 finches, one red headed woodpecker, several sparrows, several crows. (There happen to be seven bird feeders in the back yard, maintained by an avid bird fan).
-Ottawa Street bird lover
Note: The Backyard Bird count is an annual event conducted by National Audubon Society to track bird populations and the related impacts of environmental change, with collected input from citizens nation-wide.
February 17-Are there wolves in the lower peninsula of Michigan? There is ongoing interest and debate over wolf presence in lower Michigan and wolf management policies and hunting regulations in general in several states.
Per DNR request, members of the public are invited to report sightings, tracks, or other evidence of wolves in the lower peninsula, from Monday February 17 thru March 10, to Tim Riley, DNR Grayling field office, 989-370-7313 [email protected].
Note: See American Wolf for a history of the reinstated wolf packs in Yellowstone Park. The book details various perspectives on the values and trade-offs of the reintroduced wolves as observed by environmentalists, park rangers, ranchers, and the vast public who followed them. Also mentioned are the upper Midwest wolf packs in northern Wisconsin and Michigan. American Wolf: Nate Blakeslee. 2017
Note: For an interesting fictional (but drawn from actual events) account of rewilding wolves in Scotland, see Once There Were Wolves: Charlotte McConaghy. 2021
-Ottawa Street bird lover
Note: The Backyard Bird count is an annual event conducted by National Audubon Society to track bird populations and the related impacts of environmental change, with collected input from citizens nation-wide.
February 17-Are there wolves in the lower peninsula of Michigan? There is ongoing interest and debate over wolf presence in lower Michigan and wolf management policies and hunting regulations in general in several states.
Per DNR request, members of the public are invited to report sightings, tracks, or other evidence of wolves in the lower peninsula, from Monday February 17 thru March 10, to Tim Riley, DNR Grayling field office, 989-370-7313 [email protected].
Note: See American Wolf for a history of the reinstated wolf packs in Yellowstone Park. The book details various perspectives on the values and trade-offs of the reintroduced wolves as observed by environmentalists, park rangers, ranchers, and the vast public who followed them. Also mentioned are the upper Midwest wolf packs in northern Wisconsin and Michigan. American Wolf: Nate Blakeslee. 2017
Note: For an interesting fictional (but drawn from actual events) account of rewilding wolves in Scotland, see Once There Were Wolves: Charlotte McConaghy. 2021
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February 19-A recent screening of The Fish Thief documentary, hosted by Green Elk Rapids at Elk Rapids Cinema, portrayed the history of the Michigan Fisheries Commission and numerous individuals who successfully controlled the invasive species sea lamprey populations in the Great Lakes. The sea lampreys were decimating the lake trout populations and threatening all aspects of the fishing industry and sport fishing activities. These efforts are now imperiled by the recent firings and downsizing of U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service employees who manage the program.
Info: https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-environment-watch/trump-firings-hit-great-lakes-sea-lamprey-program-michigan-forestry?utm_source=Bridge+Michigan&utm_ |
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February 24-We've had more ice this season than in the past two or three years. We have a few bald eagles flying around in the mornings and a few musk rats have been seen at the rock wall. That's about it.
-Mike Singleton, harbormaster
February -For the past month, IPR has been doing an informal CAWcus on air and online of what listeners think the state bird should be, with opportunities to campaign for their candidate. The votes were tallied recently at the Rare Bird Brew Pub in Traverse City, and the clear favorite was the Kirtland’s warbler, with strong support for the chickadee, and no votes for our current state bird, the robin.
Details: https://www.interlochenpublicradio.org/2025-01-30/2025-ipr-state-bird-cawcus-result
-Mike Singleton, harbormaster
February -For the past month, IPR has been doing an informal CAWcus on air and online of what listeners think the state bird should be, with opportunities to campaign for their candidate. The votes were tallied recently at the Rare Bird Brew Pub in Traverse City, and the clear favorite was the Kirtland’s warbler, with strong support for the chickadee, and no votes for our current state bird, the robin.
Details: https://www.interlochenpublicradio.org/2025-01-30/2025-ipr-state-bird-cawcus-result
