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Keith Hartman started as a volunteer for the Conservancy earlier this year. As part of his Delta College associate’s degree, Keith needed to obtain some volunteer hours so he reached out to the Little Forks Conservancy. His interest in the outdoors and recreation activities, such as hiking and biking, led him to Little Forks.
After meeting with staff and discussing some potential volunteer opportunities and projects, Keith got right to work. For multiple weeks, he was busy with different tasks to help the Conservancy improve its preserves, for both visitors and wildlife. His first project was repainting and refinishing the trail signs at the Averill Preserve. After years of being exposed to the elements and some signs being vandalized, they were looking rough and needed some work. Keith ventured out to gather the signs and then spent hours fixing them up. Once they were refinished, he went back out to the property to reinstall them.
While out gathering signs at Averill, Keith noticed some of the birdhouses were damaged. He took the initiative to ask Little Forks if he could fix them up or replace them with new birdhouses. After a few more days of work, Keith had reattached the fallen birdhouses and made three brand new ones to install.
In addition to the work at the Averill Preserve, Keith also spent a day in the field with Little Forks’ staff and AmeriCorps member removing invasive shrubs along the Tittabawassee River at Riverview Natural Area. “The whole experience has been wonderful.” Keith said, “My favorite was clearing the invasive species near the river. It was nice to work alongside like-minded people and learn more about invasive plants and the local ecosystem.”
When asked what he would say to others that are interested in volunteering with the Conservancy, Keith said, “I can't recommend them enough! They have a very friendly and accommodating team, and the work can be really fun and interesting.” We are incredibly grateful for our volunteers, they are a crucial part of the work that we do. If you are interested in volunteering and getting involved with our work, you can fill out a volunteer form on our website.
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  Little Forks Conservancy is participating in the MSU Science Festival BioBlitz event for the entire month of April! Host sites, such as Little Forks, invite people to come to their property and photograph different species for iNaturalist. This is an example of citizen-led science, where anyone in the community can help to document organisms found in the area to better help us understand our ecosystems. iNaturalist is an app that collects observations and helps provide identification. To submit an observation just upload a photograph of the plant, animal, or other organism (preferably multiple photos). Additional information can be provided as well, such as sounds or animal tracks. Little Forks Conservancy invites you to participate at Riverview Natural Area and see how many observations you can make by the end of the month! We also have created a few guides to aid in your exploration! A species of interest list and a daily observation challenge calendar can help you find more organisms specific to Riverview Natural Area. Click the buttons below to access our guides. To read more about MSU Science Festival's BioBlitz and to see other participating organizations, click the button below. On my last day as the AmeriCorps Member at Little Forks Conservancy I’ve been reflecting over these past ten months. I’ve been thrilled to assist with a wide variety of projects. By far my favorite project has been the biannual MiCorps Stream Sampling. Learning to collect macroinvertebrates, identifying them, and then watching volunteers participate in collecting data has been a very rewarding experience!
Witnessing wildlife in Michigan, like porcupines, has also been a highlight for me. In May I was fortunate enough to help survey for eastern massasauga rattlesnakes. At Little Forks’ preserves I’ve seen salamanders, hognose snakes, and amazing wildlife in vernal pools!
 Hognose snake at Riverview Natural Area. Finally, my last highlight was building two boardwalks with volunteers at Riverview Natural Area. I had never built a boardwalk before, and it was very satisfying to build each boardwalk in less than a day and know that it will be used for years to come.  My experience at Little Forks Conservancy has been wonderful and I appreciate the community at Little Forks that made this possible! Written by Huron Pines AmeriCorps member Erin Dodd. Huron Pines AmeriCorps is a program of Huron Pines and is supported in part by the Corporation for National and Community Service, Michigan Community Service Commission, Huron Pines, and contributions from host sites.
On July 28th Little Forks Conservancy’s AmeriCorps Member, Erin Dodd, assisted with the release of Galerucella (pronounced gala-ru-sell-a) beetles in Sanford. This project was coordinated by Matthew Lindauer from the Central Michigan Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area. Galerucella beetles are small light brown beetles that are native to Europe and Asia. They have been introduced to the U.S. to help control purple loosestrife, which is also native to Europe and Asia.
Purple loosestrife is an invasive species that can outcompete native vegetation and reduce biodiversity. It grows in wetland habitat and flowers from July to October. Purple Loosestrife is a tall plant that can grow over 5 feet tall. For small patches of purple loosestrife, it can be pulled (remove all of the roots) before the flower petals start to drop and disposed of in plastic bags. Trying to control large areas of purple loosestrife with chemical and mechanical methods can be expensive and require years of follow up. It can also result in spreading the seeds to new areas if people aren’t careful. Biological control with the Galerucella beetles is much easier. The beetles eat the purple loosestrife and researches have not found any detrimental effects since their introduction to America in 1992. The beetles we received for release were kept in netted pots of purple loosestrife. These plants also had Galerucella larvae. About 40 of these pots were split among five locations in Sanford to release the Galerucella. Pots were placed in areas full of purple loosestrife where Galerucella could easily move from the potted plant to neighboring plants. Larvae and beetles caught in the net were also shaken out and removed by hand to ensure the maximum number of Galerucella were released.
Galerucella can overwinter and females lay a couple hundred eggs each year. Hopefully the small population we released July 28th can spread to control purple loosestrife in areas we did not reach. Written by Huron Pines AmeriCorps member Erin Dodd. Huron Pines AmeriCorps is a program of Huron Pines and is supported in part by the Corporation for National and Community Service, Michigan Community Service Commission, Huron Pines, and contributions from host sites.
Jeff Nedwick  The Michigan Outdoor Writers Association (MOWA), in partnership with Enbridge, has selected Little Forks Conservancy as its recipient of the MOWA Clean Waterways Award for 2022. Little Forks Conservancy received the award, which recognizes and rewards organizations that demonstrate continuous, voluntary efforts to protect, preserve, and enhance the lakes, rivers, and streams of Michigan, and in particular for Little Forks' efforts to improve the overall health of the Cedar River watershed in Gladwin and Clare counties, and land adjacent to the Tittabawassee River between Midland and Sanford. “The award means so much to Little Forks. As an organization founded on a goal to protect lands along our local rivers and streams, being recognized for our work to improve water quality is an honor and lets us know our work is making a difference”, said Little Forks Conservancy Executive Director Elan Lipschitz. Lipschitz was presented with a plaque and $500 at MOWA’s annual conference in the Dow Conference Center in Hillsdale Michigan. “The funding will help us with our efforts to protect and improve land within the Cedar River watershed”, added Lipschitz.
Threats to Michigan’s waterways are on the rise and it’s more important than ever to protect our most vital and treasured assets. While stewardship of our waterways is everyone’s responsibility, MOWA is specifically seeking to reward local or regional organizations operating within the state of Michigan in their voluntary stewardship efforts.
Detailed information about the award can be found by visiting the Clean Waterways Award section of the Michigan Outdoor Writers Association website: http://www.miowa.net/clean-waters-award/ About MOWA Founded in 1944, MOWA is a non-profit organization comprised of outdoor communicators with a passion for communicating about nature, the environment, and outdoor recreation. MOWA’s members communicate on various outdoor subjects including hunting, fishing, skiing, hiking, snowmobiling, backpacking, the environment, education, trapping, travel, humor, natural resources, conservation, ecology, bird watching, boating, canoeing, kayaking, shooting sports and more. Have an organization in mind for next year contact: Jeff Nedwick (jeffsoutdrs@gmail.com)
When asked why Roger volunteers with LFC he explained that “as a member of the LFC Board of Directors I believe it's important to support staff by working with them in the field when volunteers are needed. Doing this has helped me learn firsthand about the challenges of maintaining and monitoring LFC's nature preserves. I believe I've become a better Board member because of what I've learned through participating in a variety of events and work sessions. Of course, it's also fun to be outdoors and enjoy the natural surroundings.”  Roger thinks if preserving natural areas is important or of interest to you, you can contribute to that effort by volunteering with Little Forks. “Through volunteering you can make a positive and tangible difference in the natural environment. Most if not all tasks completed by volunteers provide tangible benefits that can be seen immediately. Anyone who likes to spend time outdoors and isn't afraid to get their hands dirty will have a rewarding experience.”
We reached out to Mary to see what she enjoys most about volunteering with Little Forks Conservancy. “I enjoy volunteering with LFC because land conservation in mid-Michigan is important to me, and Little Forks is a great steward of the lands they protect. Also, it's fun to meet other volunteers and to spend the day outside making improvements to a beautiful natural area.” A fond memory Mary has while volunteering happened during the Spring Stream Sampling in 2021, which took place on a beautiful sunny day. While at the George and Sue Lane Preserve, picking macroinvertebrates from a tray, Mary recalls being impressed by the amount of life in the Cedar River. However, finding a small trout upon emptying the bucket brought back from the collector, added to the excitement of the event! The young trout was returned to the river quickly.  Mary thinks others should become a volunteer at Little Forks because “there's something that everyone can do. It's great for families, businesses, and retirees to sign up and provide much-needed muscle for improvement projects.” With a small organization of only three full time staff, volunteers are essential to getting projects completed.
Mary emphasized that “For those who prefer to show their support through a donation, it's important to know that Little Forks is a careful steward of their finances, and is always striving to make their dollars deliver the best value. Little Forks appreciates their volunteers, so it's enjoyable to get involved in any way you can!”  Little Forks Conservancy is participating in the MSU Science Festival BioBlitz event for the entire month of April! Host sites, such as Little Forks, invite people to come to their property and photograph different species for iNaturalist. This year’s theme is to look for signs of spring, such as birds returning from migration and flowers blooming, but observations of all kinds are welcome! iNaturalist is a collective effort, where users help each other by providing or confirming identifications. Skill levels of users vary, so people of all ages and knowledge can participate! Little Forks Conservancy is inviting people to collect observations for Averill Preserve, Forestview Natural Area, and Riverview Natural Area.
MSU Science Festival coordinators will introduce the BioBlitz project and all the host sites on April 5th 12-1pm on zoom. On April 26th, an additional zoom meeting will be held to go over highlights from the events again from 12-1pm. Click the button below to go to MSU's 2022 BioBlitz website and register for MSU webinars. Written by Huron Pines AmeriCorps member Erin Dodd. Huron Pines AmeriCorps is a program of Huron Pines and is supported in part by the Corporation for National and Community Service, Michigan Community Service Commission, Huron Pines, and contributions from host sites.
Little Forks Conservancy is pleased to announce the completion of two conservation projects at the end of 2021. This takes our total of protected lands over 4,000 acres. We are grateful for the landowners that helped make this possible.  A 42-acre property in Bay County, just 10 minutes from Downtown Midland was donated by Tom and Barbara VanderKelen to Little Forks and will become a natural area open to the public. This property is already well-loved by the local community with social trails throughout and fishing on the three man-made ponds on the property.
For over 15 years we have been working with landowners in the Cedar River Watershed to protect and improve this amazing resource. Stay tuned for more details on these exciting new conservation projects.
Head over to the Land Protection page to learn more about conservation options in your area.  □ from Flickr User Likeaduck Keeping a bird feeder or bird bath is one of the easiest ways to enjoy and support the wildlife in your backyard. In 2021 birds in several states around the country, including Ohio and Indiana, started to show signs of illness. Luckily cases weren’t reported in Michigan, but cleaning your bird feeders and baths and observing the birds using them is critical to keep them healthy.
To learn more about bird disease in our area and the latest news visit https://www.michigan.gov/mdard/animals/diseases/avian/avian-influenza Martha from Nature Niche did an in depth video about this topic - watch the Mondays with Martha episode below. Written by Erin Dodd of Huron Pines AmeriCorps, Supported in part by the Corporation for National and Community Service, Michigan Community Service Commission. Huron Pines and contributions from host sites. Huron Pines is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization and an equal opportunity provider.
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