Interpreters Blog

September 4 & 5, 2010: Mammals of Illinois

This weekend is the premiere of the new mammal display at Fox Ridge State Park. We replaced our old furs and pelts with a new larger selection of furbearing mammal pelts. We even have a bison pelt in the mix for visitors to touch and feel. Along with our new pelts, we have a brand new skull display. A viewer can examine the similarities and variations between 12 different carnivore skulls. I hung several posters in the nature center to augment the displays. I made three of the four posters I hung, and my posters include one about how hunting and trapping helps furbearer populations, another highlights a few statewide furbearer trapping regulations, and the last explains how habitat is essential for furbearing mammals and all organisms. The last poster I displayed is called Illinois Furbearers and is produced by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Office of Resource Conservation. You can access the information on the Illinois Furbearers poster at http://www.dnr.state.il.us/orc/wildlife/what_is.htm. The new mammal display was funded in part by Illinois Department of Natural Resources through the State Furbearer Fund which is supported by contributions from Illinois hunters. Come by sometime to feel the new furs and see our new displays!

Aug. 29, 2010: Bats of Illinois

Bats are amazing creatures. They are the only mammals that can truly fly, and one single bat can consume 3,000 insects in one night! Bats also help pollinate plants. Despite their important place in our ecosystem, bats are feared by some. To educate and alleviate fears, I decided to make this weekend’s exhibit about bats.

On my poster this weekend, I displayed information about bat trivia, bat benefits to people, bat longevity, bat legal protection, bat description and identification, about bat reproduction, behavior, about the white nose syndrome, and bats’ ecological role. I also put some pictures on my poster including one showing bat anatomy, a bat skeleton, a picture of a Big Brown Bat, a map showing affected areas in the U.S. for white nose syndrome, and others. I made available to the public a bat word find, a bat myth sheet, a bat finger puppet activity page, a bat brochure called Bats and You from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and an article about white nose syndrome from the Outdoor Illinois magazine. You can access the information in the brochure, Bats and You, on the Illinois Department of Natural Resources website at http://dnr.state.il.us/conservation/naturalheritage/bats/bats.htm. To augment my exhibit, I displayed a Bats of the Great Lakes Region poster from Bat Conservation International and others and a Bats of the Eastern United States poster from the Indiana Division of Fish and Wildlife, the Tennessee Chapter of the Nature Conservancy, the US Forest Service, and others. If you are interested in learning more about bats, you may visit the Bat Conservation International website at www.batcon.org or call at (512) 327- 9721.

I hung a poster I put together about why we should conserve and protect drinking water. I also made available to the public my brochure about how to conserve and protect drinking water, and the booklet, Water on Tap: What You Need to Know, about water quality and drinking water from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. If you are interested in a free copy go to www.epa.gov/safewater or call the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791.

Aug. 21 & 22, 2010: Lake Ecology and Illinois Fish

Lakes are widely used as a place of recreation. We fish, swim, boat, water ski, picnic, inner tube, bird watch, wade, hike, relax, and etc. in or around lakes. Lakes are beautiful natural areas, and support rich ecosystems. For many of us, fish from our lakes becomes part of our meals and a good source of healthy protein to supplement our diet. Some lakes even produce electricity with their hydroelectric dams. Lakes really are wonderful places. Don’t you think so too?

On my poster this weekend, I displayed information about water temperatures and which fish live in certain temperatures, the natural aging process of lakes including the oligotropic, mesotrophic, and eutrophic stages, and the temperature stratification patterns in lakes. I added images to my poster including a diagram of recommended ice thickness for ice fishing, snowmobiling, driving a car or driving a truck, a picture illustrating the lake aging process, and two images illustrating lake and pond temperature stratification cycle. Besides my own poster, I hung three other posters in the nature center. One poster was called Bighead and Silver Carp Watch produced by the Illinois and Indiana Sea Grant among others. You can find this poster online at http://www.fws.gov/midwest/lacrossefisheries/asian_carp.html. Another was the Exotic, Invasive Plants in Illinois Habitats, Aquatic Areas… produced by the USDA and others. A pdf of this poster can be found at http://www.inhs.illinois.edu/research/CAPS/docs/WetlandWeedsfinal.pdf. The last poster that I displayed was Great lakes Fishes produced by the Sea Grant: Great Lakes Network and is available at http://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/greatlakesfish/. I offered to the public a bluegill coloring page, a fish activity page, a fish facts and fallacies sheet, and a knot tying guide for anglers.

Aug. 14 & 15, 2010: River Ecology and the Embarras River

When I think about rivers, an early memory comes to mind. My mother and I would walk with a small cane pole in hand down the road to the bridge just east of our house. We would walk off the road into our cattle’s pasture which surrounds our home and down to the creek that runs through the pasture. We investigated animal tracks in the sandbars, admired dragonflies as they flew by, and listened to the melody of bird song while visiting the creek. Mom and I would try to catch the little minnows in the pools of the creek. Yes, a creek is not as large as a river, but to a little girl, it’s big. It was special for us—a little quiet retreat. Maybe it was our trips to the creek that helped me appreciate rivers and their important ecosystems.

On my poster this weekend, I displayed Embarras River facts, information about riparian zones, information about a river food web, and information about Illinois mussels. I also displayed pictures of some mussels from Illinois, three pictures illustrating freshwater mussels’ anatomy, a picture that explained what a watershed is, a map showing the land cover in the Embarras River basin, a chart showing the 25 longest rivers in the world, a flow chart illustrating a food web, and a picture of a riparian zone. To supplement my exhibit, I displayed in the nature center an Illinois Mussels poster from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Education. If you are interested in learning what kind of educational materials the IDNR’s Division of Education can offer, you may contact them at 217-524-4126 or email them at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or even visit their website at http://dnr.state.il.us/education/. I also hung a Major Watersheds of Illinois poster by Sally A. McConkey and Kathleen J. Brown. You may order a free copy of this poster at http://www.watershed.uiuc.edu/getting_involved/map.cfm. I made available for any interested individual a Fat Pocketbook Mussel coloring page, a fish dot to dot, a Great Blue Heron coloring page, and a River animal and Fact Scavenger Hunt which I put together before the exhibit. The participants of the scavenger hunt were supposed to use the displays in the center and the river exhibit to find the items in the game.

Aug. 7 & 8, 2010: Birds

Birds and their amazing ability to fly has inspired us and mesmerized us! Songbirds with their melodious calls leave birders still and straining to hear. At Fox Ridge this summer, I have been scolded by a House Wren, Troglodytes aedon, and an Eastern Bluebird, Sialia sialis, since they have chosen to have their nests and broods near the park office. The House Wren and Eastern Bluebird are two birds that I am fond of, and who wouldn’t be fond of the energetic wren with its song much, much larger than its size, and the Eastern Bluebird with its lovely plumage and less vociferous way. Anyhow, this weekend is for the birds!

On my poster this weekend, I displayed information about precocial and altricial birds, why birds migrate, determinate and indeterminate layers, and how a bird’s bill is an indicator of what it eats. Also on my poster, I included a picture of the North American migration flyways, an illustration that compares size and shape of eggs from different birds, a chart that showed how many eggs are laid in a clutch by different birds, an image showing the egg and yolk of precocial and altricial birds, a chart showing how long it takes for eggs of different birds to hatch, a picture of the lung and air sacs of a bird, and two images illustrating the anatomy outside and the digestive track of a bird. To enhance my exhibit, I posted Illinois Common Birds, a poster provided by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Education. If you are interested in learning what kind of resources might be available to you through the IDNR Division of Education, you may contact them at 217-524-4126 or email them at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . You may also visit their website at http://dnr.state.il.us/education/. I made available to any interested individual, an owl word search, a Common Loon coloring page, a Mockingbird coloring page, and a booklet providing plans for wood projects like nest boxes and feeders for birds and mammals called Wood Projects for Illinois Wildlife produced by Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Natural Heritage. You may download the pdf version of the booklet at http://dnr.state.il.us/education/CLASSRM/aquatic/WOODPROJ.PDF.

July 31 & Aug. 1, 2010: Insects

It is estimated that there are one million insect species on Earth! Insects live in just about every conceivable habitat and environment. We would be lacking in food if we did not have insects because, we rely on insects to pollinate our food crops. Insects also aid in decomposition of organic matter, and we also are harmed by insects such as a species of mosquito that spreads malaria. Since insects are an integral part of our ecosystem, this weekend’s exhibit is dedicated to insects.

On my poster this weekend, I displayed information about what are insects, insect trivia, insects as food, how do you say insects in another language, insect classification, and an example of how an insect, the Monarch butterfly, is classified. I also included two pictures illustrating insect anatomy and 4 pictures illustrating the different forms of insect metamorphosis. I made available an insect crossword puzzle page, a bumblebee coloring page, an insect activity booklet, and an activity page where you pick out the insects from a set of assorted arthropods. Besides my own poster, I put up an Illinois Moths and Butterflies poster from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Division of Education. You can access the information on the poster at the IDNR website at http://dnr.state.il.us/education/moth/index.htm. I also put up an Illinois Insects poster also from the IDNR Division of Education. If you would like to inquire about their educational resources and posters, you can contact the IDNR Division of Education at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 217-524-4126. To add a little fun to my exhibit, I included a Metamorphosis of a Butterfly: Giant Shaped Floor Puzzle for any interested individual to put together. The puzzle is product of Frank Schaffer Publications, and you can view the puzzle at http://www.carsondellosa.com/cd2/Products/CarsonDellosa/PID-0768216370.aspx .

July 24 & 25, 2010: Illinois Settlers

It has always been intriguing to me to learn about the people who came before us--people who were fearless and strong, who were searching out the new frontier, and who did not have the amenities of today. They lived without electricity, indoor plumbing, modern medicine, and other technologies that have through time rendered us almost helpless without such conveniences. These people and their stories and cultures, who can no longer be reached except through books and artifacts, are intriguing because they lived a life very different to our lives today. Through study of Illinois Settlers, one can piece together their history and get a picture of their lives. It makes one realize that the span of one human life is relatively quick, but in history, a lot can happen in just one generation. This interest in anthropology has persuaded me to make this weekend’s exhibit about settlers in Illinois. I wanted to learn more about settlers’ interaction with their environment. And I have a personal reason which is I had a relative who came to Illinois from Kentucky on a Conestoga wagon. I wonder how my life would be different if my relative had not decided to make that trip to settle in Illinois. I would probably not be here at Fox Ridge State Park writing this note to you.

On my poster that I put up in the nature center, I displayed information about the first Europeans in Illinois and how they lived, about how Illinois was settled from bottom to top, about traveling methods of settlers and how they lived in their environment, and about other aspects of their lives. I also included a little information about Illinois becoming a state. To enhance my poster, I put images of an early French settlement, a map of early villages in Illinois from 1800 to 1850, a flatboat on a river, a Conestoga wagon, a map of settlement pattern in 1820 and in 1840, and a map showing how a homestead was laid out. I made available a pioneer life word search and a pioneer coloring page. I also put together an activity where visitors could look at images of commonplace nineteenth century items and guess their uses. After visitors made their guesses, they could ask me if they were right and I would reveal the identities of the objects. I used the Early American Museum, the Heritage Center of Champaign County’s website (www.earlyamericanmuseum.org/prairiesettle2.htm) and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Education’s Prairie Resource Trunk as my resource for this exhibit. If you are an educator who would like inquire about borrowing a resource trunk, you can call Fox Ridge State Park at 1217 345 6416 or contact Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Education at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

July 17 & 18, 2010: Acid Rain and the Water Cycle

Acid Rain is a global problem, and the emissions produced by burning fossil fuels feeds the problem. There are lots of things individuals can do to help reduce acid rain including carpooling and conserving energy. However, the first step in reducing acid rain is education. Hopefully my exhibit helped to educate some people about acid rain this weekend.

On my poster, I displayed information about what is acid rain, how is it formed, about wet and dry deposition, where is acid rain a problem, and how to help reduce acid rain. I used the United States Environmental Protection Agency website as my resource, and you can find information about acid rain on their website at http://www.epa.gov/acidrain/. I also displayed a picture illustrating the water cycle, and another illustrating acid rain. In the nature center, I put up a poster called Water Quality…Potential Sources of Pollution produced by United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), among others. Near this poster, I displayed information about the effects of acid rain. I found a great acid rain activity book and acid rain word search also from the EPA which I made available to the public. Also available in the nature center, was a true and false page about water trivia and a water cycle word matching page.

July 10 &11, 2010: Drinking Water

All living things on Earth depend on clean water to survive and be healthy. Since drinking water is so important, I thought it would be fitting to devote a weekend exhibit to drinking water. On my poster I put information about where our drinking water comes from, information about surface water and ground water, some water trivia, and information about different types of wells. I also posted pictures or diagrams about ground water, different types of wells, and the water cycle. Besides my own poster, I also displayed a Watershed Health poster produced by Harmony, and a poster called How do we Treat Our Waste Water? by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

I made available a matching game page titled How Much Water and a water themed word scramble page. I found a water conservation coloring book produced by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Office of Water Resources which I also made available to any interested individuals.

To augment my exhibit, I displayed a Water Flow Model which I borrowed from the Coles County Soil and Water Conservation District. If you are interested in borrowing a Water Flow Model, you can contact them at (217) 345-3901, ext 3. The Coles County Soil and Water Conservation District also has a webpage you can visit at http://www.colescountyswcd.org/index.html.

July 3, 4, & 5, 2010: Noxious Plants

More than likely, just about everyone has regrettably come in contact with a noxious plant. For example, poison ivy is a very common noxious plant. I remember even getting a poison ivy rash on my face one time. I was miserable, but thankfully, my rash eventually went away. Individuals who are sensitive to poison ivy, including me, are secretly envious of individuals who aren’t sensitive to poison ivy and can walk right through a poison ivy patch and not get any sort of rash anywhere. This weekend, I decided, would be a good time to have an exhibit about noxious plants including poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac.

On my poster, I displayed pictures of poison ivy, oak, and sumac. I also included maps of North America that show where plants are by state. I put facts about allergic reactions from poison ivy, oak, and sumac on my poster. I also displayed information about how to prevent allergic reactions. I put up a series of smaller posters called Exotic, Invasive Plants in Illinois Habitat: Grasslands, Woodlands, Agriculture, and Aquatic Areas. For more information about invasive plants, you can visit the Illinois CAPS website at: www.inhs.uiuc.edu/research/CAPS. Wild parsnip is another noxious plant, and one which I recently came in contact with. I posted pictures of wild parsnip, a distribution map that showed where wild parsnip is located in the North America by state or province, and some information about wild parsnip too. I also made available a Noxious Weed Coloring Book by Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board and artwork by Kathy Merrifield and Laurel Baldwin. You can get a free copy of this coloring book at: www.nwcb.wa.gov/education/publications/coloring_book.pdf. I also made available a poison sumac coloring page and a poison ivy coloring page.

June 26 & 27, 2010: Illinois Prairies

It’s true, I have an enthusiasm for prairies. My love of prairies was cultivated at an early age since I encountered them through the restored prairies on my family’s farm. My family and I work together to maintain the prairie habitat. We conduct prescribed burns and eradicate invasive exotic plant species. Sometimes we seed by hand new prairie areas with Prairie Dock, Compass Plant, Blazing Star, Rattlesnake Master, Purple Coneflower, Spiderwort, Big and Little Blue Stem, and many more prairie plant species. It is a joy to see prairie flowers bloom, and I love to see wildlife that thrives in prairie habitat like a Short-Eared Owl scanning the grasses for prey as it flies low over the prairie.

The theme for this weekend’s exhibit happens to be about Illinois prairies. My resource for the exhibit was the IDNR’s Illinois Prairie resource trunk, and what a wonderful resource! If you are an educator and ever need any information about the natural world I would suggest borrowing a resource trunk. I found wonderful posters, books, information, and display items to aid in educating about prairies. If I had more space in the nature center, I would have displayed more posters--they’re just that cool! Posters that I did display include Illinois Prairie Wildflowers by the IDNR Division of Education and Illinois Natural History Survey, Jewels of the Prairie: Mesic Prairie printed by Iowa’s Living Roadway Trust Fund and by Mark Muller, and Illinois Prairies: Pre-settlement and Current Conditions by the IDNR.

On my own poster I displayed information about what is a prairie, types of prairies, prairie plants, and prescribed burns. I also included images of prairie birds, prairie soil, a prairie food chain, prairie mammals, and an image showing animals who live on a prairie. I found an image comparing track sizes of White-tailed Deer, Elk, and Bison that I displayed on my poster.

I made available a Prairie Chicken Maze, a Black-eyed Susan coloring page, a Bison coloring page, and a Prairie Chicken coloring page. In the Illinois Prairie resource trunk, I found a Bison chip, a sample of Bison fur, a Bison jaw bone, and a Bison horn cap which I displayed in my exhibit. To accompany my bouquet of prairie flowers that I picked for this exhibit, I displayed the two page prairie plant identification sheet, Prairie Quality Indicators of Illinois produced by Illinois Natural History Survey, IDNR, and EcoWatch.

June 19 & 20, 2010: Mosses and Bryophytes of Fox Ridge State Park

I can thank Dr. Gordon Tucker, a professor at Eastern Illinois University, for my interest in mosses and bryophytes. I was enrolled in his Bryology course in the spring semester of 2008, and little did I know the consequences of taking his class. Weeks into the course, I realized that I had developed an appreciation, enthusiasm, and love of bryophytes. While hiking with my family or friends, I often point out my favorite, or noticeable bryophytes along the trail probably to my friends’ or family’s annoyance. Since Dr. Tucker started it all with his Bryology course, I would like to dedicate this exhibit to him. Thanks Dr. Tucker for giving me a passion for Bryophytes!

I brought in eight species of moss and one liverwort which I placed in Petri dishes to display. Since the most accurate method of identifying moss is by microscope, I set up three optical light microscopes and made slides of several of the species of moss and the liverwort. I also brought in a branch and some bark that had some creeping moss attached to it so people could see the difference between the upright (acrocarpus) moss and creeping (pleurocarpus) moss. On my poster, I put information about what is a bryophyte, what types of plants make up bryophytes, growth forms of moss, and some bryophyte trivia. I also had a brief description of moss, liverworts, and hornworts, and a picture of the life cycles of each. It is hard to find a moss or bryophyte coloring page, so I made my own and made them available for any interested individual to color. I displayed the Illinois Bryophytes poster from the IDNR Division of Education. If you are interested in learning how you can obtain educational resources from the IDNR’s Division of Education, contact them at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 217-524-4126.

June 12 & 13, 2010: Trees of Fox Ridge State Park

This weekend, I highlighted five trees that are common here at Fox Ridge State Park. I choose the Boxelder, Red Oak, White Oak, Sassafras, and Slippery Elm to feature in my exhibit. My poster had a picture illustrating simple, lobed, or compound leaves, a picture illustrating the structures of a compound leaf, and a picture illustrating how leaves could attach alternately or oppositely to a branch. I also had a picture that showed all the different margins and structures of a leaf. Beside leaf anatomy, I had pictures of the Boxelder, Red and White Oak, Sassafras, and Slippery Elm leaves, fruit, and the scientific name along with the common name of the trees on my poster. Most of my information about leaf structures, attachment, and shape came from the field guide Trees of Illinois by Stan Tekiela. The images I found for the leaves on my poster came from the third edition of How to Know the Trees by Howard A. Miller and H. E. Jaques.

I brought in twigs with leaves of the trees I featured in the exhibit this weekend so people could match the leaf with the correct picture on my poster and identify the tree from the whence the leaves and twigs came from. I made available a White Oak coloring page, a Sassafras coloring page, a tree crossword puzzle, and a tree word find. Also, I found a small booklet guide to the Acorn Avenue trail prepared by the Fox Ridge Foundation. It had sixteen total trees and other woodland plants to look for while hiking the trail. I made the Acorn Avenue trail guide available to the public too. I displayed the Illinois Trees and Illinois Trees Volume II posters in the nature center. The posters were produced in part by the IDNR’s Division of Education. If you are interested in learning how you can obtain educational resources from the IDNR’s Division of Education, contact them at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 217-524-4126.

June 5 & 6, 2010: Amphibians and Reptiles

This weekend’s exhibit happens to be about amphibians and reptiles. On my poster, I displayed information about the similarities between amphibians and reptiles, what is an amphibian, what is a reptile, the life cycle of frogs and toads, and the differences between a frog and a toad. Along with my poster, I displayed Illinois Frogs and Toads a poster from IDNR’s Division of Education in the nature center. I made available to the public, a species listing of amphibians and reptiles in Coles County from the Illinois Natural History Survey. I also put out some coloring pages including a salamander coloring page and a toad coloring page. There was a word game about snakes that I made available to the public too.

Over the weekend, I had several specimens of reptiles and amphibians in the center. I had an Eastern Box Turtle, an Ornate Box Turtle, a Painted turtle, a Small Mouth Salamander, and a small Southern Leopard Frog. It was exciting to be able to have two of Illinois’ box turtles in the center at once.

May 29, 30, & 31, 2010: Wetlands and Vernal Pools

The theme for this weekend’s exhibit is wetlands and vernal pools. My poster had information about what wetlands and vernal pools are, the life cycle of a dragonfly, the species diversity of wetlands, and some pictures of wetland plants and animals. I also included some wetland water trivia. One of my trivia facts was that soils of wetlands attract pollutants in the water and allow the chemicals to be broken down by microorganisms. Along with my poster, I also displayed the Southern Illinois Wetlands poster developed by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Natural Heritage (217/785-8774) in the nature center. I had available a wetland coloring book from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (www.fws.gov), a wetland crossword puzzle, and a Canada Goose maze. I captured some tadpoles, some small fish, a crayfish nymph, and a dragonfly nymph for the display. I also put out the lily pad game for anyone interested to play. I made several lily pads out of paper which I then placed on the floor in a pathway. At the end of the path on the last lily pad, I attached a dragonfly I fashioned out of a cotton swab and construction paper. The object of the game is for the “frog” or the person standing on the lily pads to move from lily pad to lily pad until he or she reaches the dragonfly. Another person must read wetland facts to the “frog” who then says if the fact is true or false. If he or she was correct, the “frog” can move forward one lily pad; if not, the “frog” stays at the current lily pad. If the player can get to the end of the path of lily pads and reach the dragonfly then he or she wins the game.

Illinois’ State Symbols May 22 and 23, 2010

Hello! Summer is here and that means time for exhibits at Fox Ridge State Park. The first exhibit is about Illinois’ State Symbols. I put together a poster for this weekend that ended up being more like a game. The poster had seven pictures of state symbols which I covered individually with a flap of paper. On the paper, I put a question about what the state bird, fish, animal, etc. was and also added a hint to make it a little bit more fun. People were suppose to guess the state symbol then lift the flap to see if they were right.

I found some great coloring pages from the Illinois’ State Symbols activity booklet put together by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Education. If you are interested in contacting the IDNR Division of Education for educational materials call (217)-524-4126 or email them at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . The coloring pages I found and put out were about the state fossil, the tully monster, the state flower, the violet, and the state prairie grass, big bluestem. I put out the Metamorphosis of a Butterfly floor puzzle for any interested individual to play. I found a Kids for Conservation activity page that had a maze and a word game on it which I also included in the exhibit this weekend.

Along with the Illinois’ State Symbols poster, I hung a poster I put together about why we should conserve and protect drinking water. Last summer I put together a brochure about how to conserve and protect drinking water which I made available for the public again this weekend. I also put out the booklet, Water on Tap: What You Need to Know, about water quality and drinking water from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. If you are interested in a free copy go to www.epa.gov/safewater or call the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791.

Sarah’s Bio

Hello everyone! I am very excited to get to be the intern here at Fox Ridge this summer. Fox Ridge has always been a getaway for me while going to school at Eastern Illinois University, and I hope I can give back a little to this wonderful natural area. I am looking forward to putting together the summer programs presented in the nature center on the weekend, and while presenting programs I hope I can inspire the love of nature in others.

I am a senior studying art and biology. Biology has always been an interest for me because of the influence of my family. My family is very biology oriented because we are all interested in the natural world, and we are often hiking, fishing, and hunting together. I grew up knowing which grass was Big Blue Stem or what a Blue Bird looked like. When it was time for me to attend college, studying biology was definitely in my cards. My skill however is drawing so I decided to improve upon my talent by majoring in art.

While studying biology, I have done some research with vegetative propagation of a few of Illinois native plants. I also work as a research assistant propagating sand prairie plants and other native plants during the spring semester. I have done some botanical illustrations and hope to do more in the future.

My hometown is Newton, IL, and I live on a farm with cows, chickens, and a couple farm cats. Before I attended Eastern Illinois University, I was a student at Olney Central College.

Come on in and visit me on the weekends!

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