Seth Mcgee, Lab Manager of the Biocore program, gave a fascinating behind-the-scenes summer look at natural restoration efforts and student related research projects. The UW Biocore Prairie provides a unique and successful natural classroom experience that supports the goals of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve. Biocore students experience the land ethics concept and carry it into their future professions. They learn effective research methods in this outdoor laboratory by beginning with the question "Why is this this way?" The big steps are to come up with a question, take observations, posit possible answers, and  develop testable methods to investigate answers. 

​Participants tried out some Why questions, beginning with the leaves of Prairie dock (Silphium terebinthinaceum).   "Why is the underside of these leaves so rough?" They feel bumpy. One possible answer is that these bumps increase surface area and thus photosynthesis. The super-sized leaves seem to be like giant solar panels. Looking at the underside with a microscope, we discovered honey-comb like patterns  with tiny hairs standing upright, almost like scales. "Why would the leaves have these hairs?" These hairs would help to trap water. "Why do the broad sides of the leaves face the west and east?". This positioning would minimize evaporation from the large leaf surface during the hotter parts of the day. All these answers would need to be tested. 

We also had a chance to crush and taste the leaves of various plants. Pairie dock has a rough texture and a "piney" taste. It is related to Rosinweed (Silphium integrifolium), also of the Silphium family, which has that same piney taste. Seth shared that young boys used to collect the copious resin exuded from injured parts of the plant and chew it like gum. Mountainmint (Pycnanthemum virginianum), with elegant flower sprays atop slender stems and foliage, has leaves that smell and taste distinctly like mint. Wild Quinine (Parthenium integrifolium) smells and tastes medicinal. We discussed many other plants, not listed here. 

Biocore student Olympia Mathiaparanam, who came along on this walk, is researching germination questions by raising various prairie plants from seeds that do not easily germinate.  She has raised a good number of seedlings of a rare Prairie bush clover (Lespedeza leptostachya), which is a federally protected rare prairie plant. Other varieties of clover in the Biocore are Slender bush clover (Lespedeza virginica) and the taller Round-headed bush clover (Lespedeza capitate). 

At the Biocore shed we also had a chance to view the Biocore Prairie Journal written by the Biocore Interns for many years, the wooden door covered on the inside with the students' signatures, and the most amazing built-to scale model of the Biocore Prairie, which was  conceived, produced and is updated by Seth McGee. 

The walk concluded with a look at the latest prairie restoration area towards Bills Woods. The restoration is going well, with large clusters of "first arrival"  prairie plants, such as Rudbeckia and Monarda, beginning to outpace the weeds. The weather held, with none of the rain and thunder predicted, Thank you, Seth, for an an excellent experience. Report and photos by Gisela Kutzbach,  the Friends host.  ​

Paul Noeldner, creator of the 4th Sunday Birding and Nature walks, greeted the 16 attendees for the walk at the entrance to Picnic Point. Paul loaned binoculars and DNR diagrams of wetland invertebrates to participants.  Although the marsh is the oldest part of the Preserve, it was the first tour into it for many of the participants.  Doris Dubielzig, Friends President, took the group across University Bay Drive to the dedication rock for the Class of 1918 Marsh, and reviewed the history of the site since the time of settlement in the 1850s. John Magnuson, Emeritus Professor of Limnology and past Friends President, led the group along the eastern edge of the “really disturbed” marsh to the inlet to the pump house, which is used to manage the water level of the marsh.  Prof. Magnuson shared what he had learned from his own research on chloride concentrations in the marsh and from a recent tour of the marsh he took with wetland ecologists and restoration specialists. Because fluctuating water levels benefit sedge meadow plants over the cattails, the water level in the marsh should be lowered each autumn.  Then, in the winter, when the ice is solid, the cattails and other plants would be cut, and, ideally, burned onsite.  In the spring, flooding the marsh again would favor the diverse species of a sedge meadow. 
 
The tour continued to the southern inlet conveying storm water drainage from the hospital complex, and along the western edge, the healthiest part of the marsh, where a variety of plants, including milkweeds and sedges flourish.
 
The birders in our group were happy to see the family of sandhill cranes, with two healthy colts, and to hear marsh wrens and catbirds. 
 
In preparation for restoration of the entire marsh, Magnuson envisions testing the wetlands specialists’ suggestions in two pilot areas each a square football field in size.  The first would be off the existing observation deck near the northern end of the marsh, and the second would extend beyond a floating pier installed off the path along the southeastern edge.  The group on this tour responded favorably to Magnuson’s information and his suggestions for the marsh’s future. Summary by Doris Dubielzig  Photos by Paul Noeldner.

On a cloudy yet beautiful June 27th morning, John Magnuson and his partner, David Harring, took 12 attendees across Lake Mendota – in two boats – to view the full expanse of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve and learn about the region’s history. We were told stories of previous inhabitants of the preserve–Black Hawk and Winnebago Native American tribes, the Frautschi family, farmers–and the transformation of  the landscape over the years. Our guides also informed us about the important role of the limnology building, which due to its position between the Preserve and the urbanized city, has on occasions protected construction (e.g. of roads and parking lots) from occurring within the Preserve. Attendees were also given the opportunity to use some limnology gadgets to learn more about Lake Mendota. We raked the floor of the lake to find and identify native and invasive plant species, sampled water from the various depths of the lake, and collected and viewed microscopic zooplankton and daphnia. Summary and photos by Olympia Mathiaparanam, Friends host. 

John Magnuson added the following explanations to the photos of cyanobacteria and zebra mussles below: "The green microscopic organisms are a mix of several species of Cyanobactera (often referred to as bluegreen algae). These photosynthetic organisms contain gas vacuoles that cause them to float upwards in the bottle and in the lake to bring them to the upper sunlit layers required for photosynthesis. In the clear area at the bottom of the jar the small zooplankton have swum downward. In the lake they would hide from their predators in the deeper dark layers of the lake. The water below about 2 meters on this day was darker and would reduce their visibility to the young, small fishes that feed on small zooplankton. The two visible types of zooplankton were crustaceans called Copepods and Cladocerans.
 
The mussel on the small dead branch that we raked from the bottom in shallow water is the Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha). A graduate student at the Center for Limnology has been researching this species since it was first discovered by a limnology laboratory class (Zoology 316) near the Limnology pier in 2015. See this Madison News article on Zebra Mussel quickly filling Lake Mendota or google: Center for Limnology Zebra Mussel." ​

Friends of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve and McPherson Eye Research Institute co-sponsored a special field trip on the afternoon of June 3, Vision at the Lakeshore Nature Preserve: Our Nocturnal Neighbors. Sixty five attentive learners gathered at Eagle Heights Community Center to hear comparative ocular pathologist Gillian Shaw and wildlife ecologist David Drake share their knowledge of the opossum and the flying squirrel. Following the presentations, McPherson Eye Research Institute provided refreshments of bagels, cream cheese, tea and lemonade for all to enjoy. After energy levels were restored, Steve Sentoff and Doris Dubielzig led 27 hikers of all ages on a refreshing walk through Eagle Heights Woods where we enjoyed the fragrance of lush vegetation and a pleasant westerly breeze. Steve and Doris fielded countless questions, explained vegetation management practices and identified native plants and trees throughout the woods. The group circled the mounds and enjoyed the lovely view overlooking Lake Mendota. Several people explored the beauty of the woods through their camera lens stopping along the way to capture the glimmering light on the leaves and fungus on the fallen trees. Thank you to the McPherson Eye Research Institute for sharing in the creation of this informative afternoon outing. Friends host and photos by Sarah Congdon.

Planting pollinator patches of flowering forbs and grasses along the path to Picnic Point and at the entrance kiosk was quite an honor and much fun. Planters were a group of Friends, including Doris Dubielzig and her house guest, Paul Quinlan and his daughter, Steve Sentoff, Marj Rhine, Gisela Kutzbach, Glenda Denniston, and Gretel Dentine, as well as five cheerful volunteers from Memorial HS school's youth volunteer club, Bryn Scriver, Preserve volunteer coordinator, and her neighbor and son, and Laura Wyatt, Program manager. The group at the Preserve entrance planted good-sized flowers adding color and beauty to this area, purchased with funds provided by the Friends. Just past the giant cone effigy mound, we planted hyssop, columbines, bottlebrush grass, Short's aster, Black-eyed susan, Beak grass and others flowers, most from the 6 flats of greenhouse seedlings that Glenda Denniston had patiently raised all spring in the greenhouse. At the Isthmus, the planters took great care to space the plants evenly on the steep slope toward the bay. Further up the path, past fire circle #4, another group planted a  larger area with flowers where once buckthorn dominated. The day was rather cloudy, and at night a good rain gave the new plantings a head start. After the work was done, the planters relaxed at circle #2 with cake and fruit. The next day after the rain, Marj observed a duck settling down in one of the new planting areas. A great thanks to all the volunteers who helped make the Preserve more beautiful. Photos provided by Glenda Denniston, Gisela Kutzbach and Laura Wyatt.

 provided Over 20 people joined bird and warbler expert Roma Lenehan for a two mile, early morning birding hike to Frautschi Point, the Biocore Prairie and the Picnic Point Marsh. On this beautiful morning, even the Gray-crested flycatcher looked brilliant in the golden sunlight. The air was filled with urgent bird calls and joyous songs, and the group was rewarded with spotting a total of 60 different species. The warblers were still hanging out in the tops of the tall blooming oaks, feasting on plentiful food, along with emerging critters and bugs, while toxic oak chemicals were still absent. On a short side trip toward Raymer's Cove, the group flushed a male Wood duck that flew toward the lake. But the female Wood duck, silhouetted against the blue sky, flew into a hole of an oak tree trunk about 10 feet above the ground.
    At the Biocore Prairie, we surprised some Swainson's thrushes, now ten times more common than the Gray--cheeked thrushes. Indigo buntings were in the pine trees along the old field. They will soon be feasting on the dandelion seeds maturing in the meadow. At the Picnic Point marsh the birders were rewarded with sights of the Green heron, Sora rail, and Sandhill cranes.
    This was a most fascinating field trip, not only because of the many birds present, but also because Roma shared her vast knowledge with regards to location, habitat, food, migration, and individual bird calls and songs and identification of many birds. Experienced birders like Marty Evanson, Susan Slapnick and others also helped inform the group. Susan Slapnick also provided the list of birds, in the order they were seen. Friends hosts: Galen Hasler, Gisela Kutzbach, Peter Fisher. Bird photos were taken by Marj Rhine

Along with the Biocore program’s 50th anniversary, the Biocore Prairie turned 20 this year! On May 14, a grand birthday celebration marked the anniversary on site at the prairie. Visitors were greeted with celebratory soft music and root beer floats. The community of students, alumni, faculty, administrators, and friends enjoyed walking tours with the knowledgeable team of Biocore Prairie interns. There were informal presentations by current Biocore director Janet Batzli, former director Ann Burgess, who in 1997 first envisioned the transformation from abandoned agricultural, weedy field to prairie, Curt Caslavska who tireless worked at this amazing restoration project with scores of students, paid workers, and volunteers, and Seth McGee, current Lab manager of the Biocore program and supervisor the Biocore summer interns.  

Today, the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Biology Core Curriculum is an award-winning intercollege honors program and the Biocore Prairie is a central field site for two Biocore lab courses and for summer independent research projects, service learning, and collaborative research and teaching efforts with many other UW-Madison programs.
 
There were six exhibits along the birthday celebration path, including two exhibits by the Biocore courses 382 and 486 students, the UW Lakeshore Nature Preserve with Bryn Scriver, Laura Wyatt and Adam Gundlach the Biocore Bird Observatory with Jackie Sandberg and volunteers, the Citizen Science projects of the Biocore Purple Martin house and Bluebird trail sponsored by the Friends of the Preserve, with Gisela Kutzbach, Paul Noeldner, and Janis Cooper, and the undergraduate Bat research project with Thomas Guerin, sponsored by the Friends and supervised by Seth McGee. Visitors included one of the earliest graduates of the program, Bob Majeska who graduated in 1971, scores of enthusiastic students and visitors of the Madison community. With the late spring this year, visitors could still enjoy Shooting Stars in bloom and budding Golden Alexanders. Plan to visit this special place this summer or with Friends field trips on July 14 and 29, and August 4 and 11.

Roma Lenehan reports that 16 people pulled about 18 bags – probably less than 1/3 of the Garlic Mustard in the west side of the “Endless Block” – along the Big Oak Trail and in the cut which connected the Big Oak to the Lake (area cleared by the Arboretum in the mid to late 1990s). The Preserve student technicians will continue work on the area and try to complete it. Roma thanks everyone for their help. The Garlic Mustard Pull of the Friends was a strenuous but fun-filled time on a warm summer day, as we were pulling side by side and chatting back and forth. The plants were no more than a foot high and were easy to pull because the ground was still wet from earlier rains. This was an "on" year in the two year cycle of Garlic Mustard, one reason why the willing pullers couldn't finish the job. Volunteers were: Pat Becker, Ann Burgess, Glenda Denniston, Doris Dubielzig, Sarah Goldenberg, Galen Hasler, Grace Hasler, Gisela Kutzbach, Roma Lenehan, Karen Nakasone, Marcia Schmidt, Monica Sentoff, Steve Sentoff, and Lillian Tong. Preserve staff volunteer coordinator Bryn Scriver and Program Manager Laura Wyatt also pulled and filled bags.