Mid-winter burns!

On Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, we were able to successfully set fire to four different burn units on the property, on the Reimer, North Whiterock, and Anthofer farms, all on the north side of the Middle Raccoon River. The relative drought of the last few weeks, along with warm temperatures and a low relative humidity, created the perfect conditions for a few days of mid-winter burning on south facing slopes!The map above shows the four different units that we burned during the mini-spring we had this week. For reference, the Middle Raccoon River represents the sourthern boundary of all of the units and the three ponds in the middle of the page are due east of the Whiterock campground, which is labeled with the black arrow. Last fall, we attempted to burn the two easternmost units, South Reimer and Anthofer Triangle, but the days were cold and the ground was moist, so we had little luck.

On Tuesday of this week, a small crew went back to South Reimer and secured a portion of the perimeter by relighting the burn line. We then went in to the interior and set fires on the degraded woodland ridges. On Wednesday, a larger group, including myself, Matt Reiling, Sean Christensen, Jeana Feazel, Brian Golay, Liz Garst, Mary Garst, Doug Ramsey, and Jerry Peckumn, went out and burned the Log Cabin Pasture, North Whiterock, and relit the Anthofer Triangle. The log cabin, which was built in 1933 by Delbert Brutsche, is located northeast of the campground and in the middle of our burn unit and is a Whiterock Valley antiquity, and we took extra care to not burn it down!

The Log Cabin Pasture and North Whiterock units are dominated by cool-season oak savanna pastures and woodlands, and the mid-winter burn helped to topkill the invasive multiflora rose, honey locust, and eastern redcedar, and also stimulate the smooth brome. Most of these units have historically been sprayed with herbicides, so the presence of native plants is limited, and they are both part of the Whiterock Conservancy pasture system. Many of the fires that we'll light later on in the spring will be aimed at diminishing the smooth brome in areas where native plants dominate, like our prairie and savanna remnants. By using fires set during different times of the year, we can manage for and against many species.

The burns this week went way better than expected, due to our fabulous staff and volunteers on the prescribed fire crew, and some of the most excellent burn conditions we've had in the last year! Keeping up-to-date with the weather and fuel conditions is a hard thing when you're watching over 5,000 acres of land, but it's worth it when you get to set fires like these!

Keep up to date with our prescribed fire program over the next few months, and sign up for our volunteer crew by emailing elizabeth@whiterockconservancy.org if you'd like to receive updates of when we'll be burning.

The weather forecast for today reads:

Today: Sunny, with a high near 56. Breezy, with a west southwest wind between 10 and 18 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.....

Wait...a high near 56?

The warm weather this weekend, together with the flocks of bluebirds and American robins and the sounds of dripping and running water reminded all of us that this winter will not last forever. This morning, a group of several hundred Canada geese were up on the Riis Farm wetland (north of Highway 141 and east of the Middle Raccoon River). The water on the wetland opened up yesterday due to the extreme thaw we’ve had over the last three days, and the Canada geese showed up immediately.

We’ll begin to see more and more migrating waterfowl over the next few weeks, and within a month, there will likely be more ducks and geese that we know what to do with. Folks recently saw an American Wigeon up at Swan Lake State Park, and further west, close to Council Bluffs, there were Greater White-fronted, Cackling, and Ross’s geese mixed in with the Canada geese.

During the next month, if you are interested in following the waterfowl migration on and around Whiterock Conservancy-managed properties, watch the Riis Farm Wetland from Hwy 141 or take a hike back to the Whiterock ponds, due east of the campgrounds. McChord’s Pond, a 112-acre IDNR Wildlife Management Area, is locate 5 miles east and 1 mile south of Hwy 141 (on Hickory Ave) and always hosts a diversity of waterfowl during the migration. Dunbar Slough WMA, a 1,640-acre IDNR wetland complex, provides habitat for thousands and thousands of waterfowl species. Drive up the Carroll/Greene county Line on N-58 (Grant/Apple Ave.) and look for parking areas east of the county highway on 290^th, 270^th, 250^th, and 240^th Streets. This spring, there will be a birder's trail map of the Carroll/Guthrie/Greene/Audubon area posted Roadside Park, east of Coon Rapids on Hwy 141.

In the meantime, another check for the weather this Friday looks like things are going to be back to normal soon…

Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 16.

Now that's what I'm talking about

Winter Birds at WRC

Most folks don't think that winter is the perfect time for birdwatching, however, with no leaves on the trees and reduced species diversity, this is actually a great time to get outside (or sit inside looking at your bird feeder) to become more familiar with Iowa birds and to see a few species that you won't during the summer. And, with the warm weather last weekend and another few days of warmth to come, get out there and enjoy the winter birds!

Juvenile and adult bald eagles have been back in the valley for the last few months, so keep your eyes out for open spots in the water where they can be found fishing, or look for them scavenging animal carcasses. For deer hunters, a switch to copper slugs will keep our eagles safe from lead poisoning during the winter months--check out more information at http://www.soarraptors.org/EaglesandLead.htm

There are about 40 common bird species that can be found relatively easily at Whiterock Conservancy, and I'll describe a few that you might not get great looks at during the summer:

Eastern screech owls are small gray, brown, or reddish-brown owls (6-10" and up to 1/2 lb) with feathered ear tufts

Rough-legged hawks have been seen on both sides of the river valley recently. They are large hawks with broad wings (with dark tips) and black wrist patches and dark bellies, but they occurs in both dark and light morphs.

Pine siskins are small finches that are streaked brown overall with either buffy or yellow wing and tail markings. They have very thin beaks and are the most common winter finches to see.

Horned larks can be found in flocks along the roads and on the runway north of hwy 141 (it is hayed very short during the summer). They are about the same size as many sparrows, but look as if they are crouching down. They have black masks and breast bands as well as tiny black "horns."

Check out the Iowa Winter Birds publication from the Iowa Association of Naturalists (http://www.extension.iastate.edu/Publications/IAN602.pdf)

Some of the bravest Eastern bluebirds and American robins have stayed up during the cold winter months too--a peek at one of them is pretty exciting this time of year. Email me (elizabeth@whiterockconservancy.org) if you'd like a list of winter birds that frequent WRC!

Brome-to-Prairie Transition

During the last few weeks of 2008, our flagship acres of the "Brome-to-Prairie" Project were seeded to tall and mixed-grass prairies by Jon Judson of Diversity Farms. Of the 240 acres total, nearly 160 acres of Whiterock Conservancy-managed properties were seeded with a 50+ species mix after being newly enrolled in the SAFE Initiative (State Acres For Wildlife Enhancement). Another 80 acres are left to plant, but snow, ice, sleet, and rain kept us from continuing. The rest of the planting will take place over the next few weeks--we're just waiting for a day or two with low winds.

The acres seeded to prairie were recently enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) under the Gaining Ground for Wildlife, SAFE initiative, which assists landowners in establishing high-quality grassland habitat with cost-share assistance, sign-up incentives, and an increased annual rental rate. The initial SAFE acres dedicated to the state of Iowa were all allocated as of December 2008, but there is the possibility of more acres becoming available in the future. This program has enabled us to plant a diverse array of local ecotype seeds on a large expanse of land, with little cost to us—the essence of subsidization of conservation

The reconstructed prairies planted this winter have the highest diversity and conservatism of any of the planted grasslands on Whiterock-managed property—and we invite you to watch them grow! We’ll be developing maps that show the areas where active savanna and prairie restoration/reconstruction have been taking place this winter, and will be accessible on the website by March.

Oak Savanna Restoration continues...

The Americorps NCCC crew is back in action following the Thanksgiving break, and we've been concentrating our efforts on one of my favorite places Whiterock Conservancy-managed lands: Long Creek Ridge. The ridge is easily accesible from the Riverhouse and campground areas, it's just a 3/4 mile jaunt north up the west side of the river.
Long Creek is the largest tributary of the Middle Raccoon River on the property, and the ridge along the north side of the creek just before it empties into the river houses both sand savannas and prairie remnants, a 85' tall sandstone outcrop, and a commanding view of two intersecting valleys. Over the last 40 years, Eastern redcedar, honeysuckle, and honey locust have invaded many of the high-quality areas on Long Creek Ridge. While prescribed fires have diminished the thick shrub cover, there are many trees too big for the fire to hurt.

Over the last two weeks, we've been out on Long Creek Ridge, in the snow, sleet, and cold wind, mechanically removing the invasive trees and shrubs. Check out the photos of Americorps NCCC crew members Kerry, Laura, Clifton, Zach, Charles, Brooke, and Whiterock Conservancy staff Sean and Elizabeth completing a 16-acre savanna restoration project on Long Creek Ridge. We are so thankful for having the crew here--but only for a few more days! .

Free the baby oaks!

The Americorps NCCC crew has been hard at work these last few weeks, and no synonym of the word miraculous would be applicable to the amount of work that has been done. We've been systematically going into the degraded prairie and savanna remnants on bluffs above Long Creek and removing Eastern redcedar, honey locust, prickly ash, multiflora rose, and honeysuckle.

Here's an image of a little baby bur oak tree (red arrow) on the side of a prairie remnant that has been completely outcompeted by a honey locust (black arrow), which is being cut down.

In the next picture, Brooke, the Americorps NCCC crew leader, is standing with the baby oak, now bathed in sunshine!

The crew has all headed home for Thanksgiving, but we'll be back at it next week!

Autumn & Americorps have arrived

After a flourish of autumnal splendor, almost all of the leaves have fallen and the blustery days of late fall have arrived. The vast acreage of woodlands in the Whiterock Valley are the best kept secret of western Iowa autumn. The abundance of oaks (black, white, red, and bur) in the valley make for a scene of crimson, golden, and tangerine. Here's a picture of the valley from last week, looking over into South Whiterock: the oaks leave are ablaze with color and after they've fallen, they'll be ablaze with prescribed fire! Sign up to come help us on burns starting next week.


It isn't just the woodlands that show off the vibrant colors of fall, the prairie remnants also show off the splendor of scenescing plant parts. At right, the changes in coloration of prairie dropseed and little bluestem are as brilliant as the woodlands October transformation!
We've been hard at work harvesting prairie seed to add to pastures and prairie reconstructions on the property, although the last few days of wind and rain have caused many seeds to drop. Now all there is to do is enjoy the beauty!


This autumn also means the arrival of Whiterock Conservancy's first ever Americorps NCCC crew. The crew, composed of 7 volunteers from 7 different states, has come to Iowa to work first on flood recovery and now on environmental conservation projects. They spent the first two weeks of this spike project near Iowa City, working on savanna and prairie restoration projects for Johnson County Heritage Trust, and will spend the next 6 weeks working at Whiterock Conservancy and for Polk County Soil and Water Conservation District doing restoration projects in rural uplands and urban watersheds.
This crew knows how to work, and have been diligently bagging prairie seed and chain-sawing honeysuckles for the last few days. We are so very excited to have them here! Check out the before and after of one day of work--you can see the amazing difference of this degraded woodland. After we finish removing the invasive honeysuckles and barberry, we'll conduct a prescribed fire on this piece of land and be well on our way to savanna restoration!

For a living example of the oak savanna work that Whiterock Conservany is doing, check out the woodland south of the pond at the Home Farm/Headquarters--you'll be amazed!