Bird & Nature Blog
A clutch of the latest stories from Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance
The seed bonanza continues at Goose Pond. Seven volunteers answered the call. With Graham, Emma, Calla, and Sayre—the latter two being expert seed collectors hired to help this fall—eleven of us took to the field. With each seed collecting session, we're assembling the components of new or improved prairies at Goose Pond and some partners' lands. Analogous perhaps to kids in a Lego store.
Photo by Peter Gorman
Our recent heat wave prompted an urgent request from Graham and Emma at Goose Pond. The culver's root seed had matured much more quickly than expected and needed to be collected.
This is a seed well worth collecting. With its white plume of a blossom, culver's root is one of the most lovely and graceful plants on the prairie. Some pollinators love it including the federally-endangered Rusty Patched Bumble Bee.
Photo by Graham Steinhauer
Shooting stars are early bloomers and beloved by folks walking and watching those prairies and savannas in the spring. They also see queen bumblebees and other early, native pollinators for whom shooting stars are an important food source. They are highly desirable prairie dwellers and their seed is expensive-- $1500 a pound. So when Graham Steinhauer, Goose Pond’s land steward, called for shooting star seed collectors on Thursday of last week, several of us happily joined Graham, Goose Pond’s restoration technician Emma Raasch, and Hailey Wedewer and Andi Hokanson, two of our wonderful Goose Pond interns.
Photo by Peter Gorman
