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February 2007
February Thaw

“Thaw with her gentle persuasion 
is more powerful than Thor with his hammer. 
The one melts, the other breaks into pieces."
Henry David Thoreau

What to Do This Month:
Keep your bird feeders stocked for winter-loving birds.

Write about, draw or take a picture each day of a snow pile in your backyard - track how it changes with the variation in temperature and weather.

Keep your nose alert for the smell of skunks - who may be out of their dens for short spells through out the season.

Visit the UW Arboretum on February 10th for the "Eat, Sleep or Flee - Animals in Winter" program.

Check out the Nature Net Calendar of Events for fun family programs.

Tricks of the Trail for Parents:
Tracks of My Deer
No need to explore far flung exotic locations - you can find evidence of wildlife right in your own backyard!  Particularly following a brief warm spell, when more animals may be out foraging, look for animal tracks criss-crossing the melting snow: deer, squirrel, bird, rabbit, raccoon, even cat and dog. The melting snow can sometimes hold the details of track impressions remarkably well.  Get out and look at the tracks, especially when the sun is at a slant (not straight overhead) so there's some shadow in the impression - how many pads are there, can you see nail points, how deep are the tracks, do you think the animal was moving fast or slow?  Check out January 2005 Nature Net News for more tracking tips and information.  Now, follow the tracks you find. What stories do they tell?

Instant Outdoor Expert:
Hibernation Station
When the cold and dark of the season sets in, many of us certainly wish we could act like a ground squirrel and curl up in a den for the winter, snugly sleeping until spring returns.  As it turns out, however, we're missing two critical components needed to allow our bodies to survive at reduced temperatures and without nourishment for months.  The first is Hibernation Induction Trigger (HIT), a substance found in the blood of hibernating animals which scientist believe assists in reducing the animal's metabolic rate, including body temperature, heart rate and breathing.  The ground hog's heart rate which, for example, normally beats 80 times per minute, drops to 3-4 beats per minute during hibernation.  This state of dormancy is known as torpor  - and some animals, like the hummingbird, go into a state of torpor each night while others, like bears and skunks, sustain long periods of torpor during the winter.  Comparatively, true hibernators, like ground squirrels, ground hogs and bats, experience a sharp decrease in bodily function and  generally cannot be woken from their winter-long state of torpor.   
The second hibernation component our bodies lack is brown fat.  Actually, we're born with brown fat (making up about 5% of our body weight as newborns) but it disappears as we age.  Scientists have found, however, that animals who hibernate maintain pockets of brown fat throughout their life.  This fat, unlike white (or "normal") fat, is richly vascularized and through its normal cellular function, actually releases stored energy as heat, helping to maintain body temperature and prevent hypothermia.
Scientists are still trying to figure out many of the mysteries of this amazing adaptation, including how animals know when to hunker down and how humans might benefit from these complex bodily functions.  For more information on hibernation, you might want to visit the following websites: Wisconsin DNR's EEK, Wolf-Rigde.org, Whyfiles.org or Encarta.msn.

Eco-Exercise:
Rabbit and Fox
Live like the animals who stay active and hunting (or hiding) all winter with a game of Rabbit and Fox.  You'll need some friends and a safe outdoor space to play.  First select one player to be the fox who must cover her eyes and count to twenty while all the "rabbits" run and hide.  The "fox", while keeping her feet in one place (but moving her body in all directions), seeks out the prey and calls out the name of anyone she sees.  If the fox cannot determine who the rabbit is, she can call out a description of the location and clothing or body part she sees.  All rabbits called out of hiding mustn't tell the fox where other rabbits are hiding.  If rabbits still remain in hiding, the fox can cover her eyes again, this time counting to ten, while the rabbits try to move closer to the fox without being detected.  How close can the rabbits get?  How quiet do the rabbits need to be?  What color coat or clothing keeps the rabbits well hidden?  When the fox can find no more "food", all rabbits are called out and a new "fox" is selected.

Featured Nature Net Site

Nature Craft

Mackenzie Environmental Education Center
The MacKenzie Environmental Education Center is one of the most complete environmental education centers anywhere in Wisconsin. Situated on 280 acres of rolling fields and forest land, MacKenzie is a wonderful place for family outings, picnics and out of the classroom adventures.

The Center features an exhibit of live Wisconsin wildlife, self-guided hikes and trails, museums, a fire tower, a picnic area and much more. The seven self-guiding trails (two are handicapped accessible), include themes such as Ecology, Nature, Wildlife, Conifer and Hardwood management.  And the sawmill is an actual mill, just like the ones may early Wisconsinites used when lumbering was the main industry of Wisconsin.

Whether on your own, with your family and friends, or as an organized group, come enjoy and learn about resource management in Wisconsin.

Grounds Open dawn to dusk year-round except deer gun season.
Wildlife Exhibits and Museums open year around.
Accessible Facilities: Picnic area and office restrooms, office, conservation museum, two trails, wildlife exhibit, and the Resident Center.
Open Hours:
Winter (mid-October through April 30) Open M-F only 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (closed on winter holidays)
Summer (May 1 through mid-October) Open daily 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Bird Feeder
While many birds migrate to warmer climes during the food-scarce wintertime, others, like cardinals, blue jays, chickadees and juncos, brave the Wisconsin cold.  You can help them stay healthy and well-fed with backyard feeders.  Here are a couple ideas to keep children busy and birds happy:

 Clean and dry an empty cardboard milk carton, cut openings on opposite sides and coat it with nontoxic paint. Glue Popsicle stick shingles onto the roof. For a perch, poke holes below the openings and slip a dowel through the holes. Fill the bottom of the feeder with birdseed mix. (You can make your own mix by combining a variety of nuts and seeds, such as sunflower seeds, millet, thistle seeds and yellow corn.) Then hang the feeder with wire in a spot that's easy to view but far enough away from fences or posts to thwart predators. (Courtesy of FamilyFun.com)

Or, mix up a batch of homemade Birdseed Biscuits with 2 cups biscuit baking mix and a 1/2 cup cold water. Roll out dough to 3/4 inch thick and cut it into shapes with cookie cutters. Using a straw, punch a hole in the top of each cookie. Melt 2 tablespoons of margarine and brush over the dough. Now sprinkle sesame and sunflower seeds onto the dough and press in firmly with a fork. Bake for 15-20 minutes in a 425° oven, until light brown. When cool, thread brightly colored ribbon through the hole and hang in a tree.

For more birdfeeder ideas or to find out which birds will eat your seeds, visit KidzKorner.

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