Bird & Nature Blog
A clutch of the latest stories from Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance
The mission was to collect heaps of New England aster and rattlesnake master. The former is a key source of nectar for the latest batch of monarchs departing for Mexico and the latter is a mainstay of southern Wisconsin prairies. Much of this seed is needed for a 50 acre restoration at Hillside Prairie Sanctuary, our newest sanctuary near Cambridge. Fifty acres is a really big restoration requiring barrels of seeds.
Photo by Tom Koerner/USFWS
Remember those monarchs? They were nectaring on meadow blazing star, a lovely native species of blazing star (also known by its genus, Liatris). Of all the blooming plants at this point in the season, meadow blazing star has the reputation of being the monarchs' favorite and a most important source of energy as the flight generation of monarchs emerges. All native blazing stars offer these critical food resources, so SoWBA and its partners work hard to ensure their prairies include Liatris species.
Photo by Arlene Koziol
About a dozen volunteers assembled at Erstad Prairie on the morning of the 4th of July for Goose Pond's first volunteer seed collecting of the year. The plant was spiderwort, a perfect plant to kick off the season. It's easy to identify, no stooping, abundant (at least where Graham pointed us), and an important link in a healthy prairie chain of grasses and flowers. We had a temperate two hours of picking before the heat rolled in.
Photo by Arlene Koziol
A few dedicated seed collectors gathered at Goose Pond for the final volunteer effort of the season. We were looking for New England asters (NEAs) and white baptisia. Both are important for pollinators with New England asters being one of my favorites. A late bloomer, it and showy goldenrod are the flowers that give our migrating monarchs the nutritional boost they need before flying south.
Photo by Tom Koerner/USFWS
Stiff goldenrod was one of the plant seeds we collected. Collecting goldenrods occasions a goldenrod identification seminar that Graham and Emma conduct for the volunteers — the many species of goldenrod look similar and one species is on the “avoid” list. We certainly want to collect whatever the desired species is but we also have to avoid Canada goldenrod.
Photo by Graham Steinhauer/SoWBA
