panorama
Winter 2017
Lake Michigan Edition
WELCOME We are thrilled to offer this all Lake Michigan edition of Panorama! Our Great Lake provides important context for us as an organization, as a city, and as a region. Our feature story provides a brief history of the lake, it geology and formation, its importance to our community, and some of the challenges it faces. In another piece, you’ll read how visitors of all ages intimately experience the diverse seasonal lives of this one body of water. In All Day Great Lakes, we elaborate on all of the fascinating ways students learn to deepen their relationship with Lake Michigan. Lake Michigan is so vast, both as a topic and as a body of water, that we’re barely able to peek below the surface within this publication. For a more in-depth exploration join us in March, when we host Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Great Lakes Reporter Dan Egan to present his new book The Death and Life of the Great Lakes. For another perspective, we sought out renowned photographer Kevin Miyazaki to display photographs from his book, Perimeter: A Contemporary Portrait of Lake Michigan, in the Center’s gallery and to give a program on the topic. At Schlitz Audubon, our land and its location provides the foundation for everything we do. In fact, Lake Michigan is so integral that we included it in our updated Mission Statement: Schlitz Audubon Nature Center conserves our land’s diverse habitats on Lake Michigan and provides meaningful experiences and environmental education for all. With our new Mission Statement, we felt it was important to state our commitment to environmental education for every age while fostering experiences for all people. Our commitment to conserving and improving these 185 acres as habitat for native Wisconsin species, was also essential for us to convey. Being a nature center on the shoreline of this Great Lake is such an ecologically priceless opportunity, and with it comes responsibility. The Center’s land management plan considers what the lake provides and how we can respond by improving its ecosystem. Our interaction with Lake Michigan is an active relationship that we foster. We invite you to join in celebrating and improving our neighbor, our city anchor, our provider of fresh water, Great Lake Michigan.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS Officers John Grunau President Tim Gerend Past President Kevin J. Kane Treasurer Meg Kinney Secretary Jane B. Bell VP-Development John E. ‘Jack’ Gebhardt VP-Governance Board Aliah M. Berman Jonathan T. Bloom Shane Delsman Margarete R. Harvey Eva Osborne Justin K. Patrick Arthur T. Phillips Sanderson S. ‘Andy’ Read Benjamin F. Rikkers Mark Siler Carol Wolcott Mai Der Yang Past Presidents John H. Kopmeier, Jr. Philip R. Smith Dennis L. Fisher Terrence K. Knudsen Thomas J. McCutcheon Thomas B. Fitzgerald Randolph H. Dean Stephen F. Geimer Thomas J. Drought David K. Hoover John S. McGregor Margarete R. Harvey
Preschool Applications Now Available
Honorary Directors Edwin P. Wiley
Summer Camp Applications Available Mid-January
Director Emeritus Dorothy K. Vallier (1910-2013)
Follow this timeline of important dates in Lake Michigan’s history throughout the following pages. “BP” denotes Before Present.
Schlitz Audubon is an independent, locally supported partner of the National Audubon Society.
438,000,000 BP
1,800,000 BP
26,000 BP
20,000 BP
North America is covered by the Silurian Sea.
During Pleistocene Epoch the world cools and as many as 12 Ice Ages occur.
Glacial ice sheets reach maximum positions.
Laurentian Great Lakes are formed by a glacier up to two miles thick.
SEASONAL SIGHTINGS
Visit the Center and discover the beauty of Lake Michigan through the seasons! CASSIE RINCON Naturalist
Lake Michigan is a treasure that reveals new surprises and discoveries throughout every season. For this Seasonal Sightings, we’ll show you how our shoreline changes through the year. During cold weather months, magnificent ice canos and other formations are continually being created, melted, and re-formed. The spray and splash of waves, snow from above, and sun melting the topmost layer continually reshapes these ice formations. We often think of the word ephemeral as being specific to spring, but no other word better describes the winter features along Lake Michigan that may form one day and change completely by the next. As the temperatures begin to rise in spring, watch how the colors of the lake vary based on the day’s weather. Moments after spring showers, discover a startling range of blues. Be on the look-out for the colors of the songbirds that use the Lake Michigan flyway to come back to their breeding grounds or for food stops on their migration north.
Summer provides the opportunity to discover everything that washes up on the beach. You can find fossils from the Silurian Sea that are over 450 million years old resting alongside granite that was brought down by the glaciers 10,000 to 25,000 years ago. Just as glaciers left these rocks behind for all of us to discover, we ask that beach explorers leave rocks and fossils on the beach for others to see. Climb the tower in fall to view the contrasting golden, orange, and red leaves against the colors of the lake. During this time, you can observe migratory hawks and waterfowl that often stay throughout the winter. The waterfowl use the unfrozen areas of Lake Michigan to find food. The one constant of Lake Michigan is that it is constantly changing. This dynamic anchor for the Center, and our city, is continually recreating itself, and in doing so provides an abundance of experiences year-round.
13,000 BP
12,500 BP
12,500 BP
11,800 BP
Continued glacial retreat creates outlets to Canada during Two Creeks Phase.
Deglaciation begins across North America.
Sea levels rise as a result of worldwide glacial melt.
Ice advances into the Great Lakes Basin. Megafauna go extinct.
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EDUCATION
All Day Great Lakes How great are the Great Lakes? Our All Day Great Lakes program, an onsite fieldtrip designed for students in grades 4 - 8, begins with this question as we focus on the health of the Great Lakes. Lakes Superior, Huron, Michigan, Erie, and Ontario form the largest freshwater system on Earth, containing approximately 6 quadrillion gallons of freshwater. Even though our planet is 78% water, 98% of that is saltwater. And most of the remaining 2% is locked in polar ice caps or underground aquifers. The Great Lakes possess 20% of our world’s surface freshwater and 11,000 miles of shoreline - more than the entire Atlantic and Pacific coasts combined. Rather than teaching about the lakes as individual entities, we explain that they are one large moving system of water. Students work in five groups (one for each lake) to collect lake vitals such as air temperature, wind speed, water temperature and pH level. Students also sample the water for coliform bacteria such as E.coli. We then scour the beach for garbage, from the smallest pieces of plastic and Styrofoam, to a 10-pound rusty metal pole we once found washed ashore. Each group gathers as much garbage as they can find, and we take it back into the classroom where we dissect and inventory each piece. Our findings are submitted to the Alliance for the Great Lakes, an organization that works with beach adopters of the Great Lakes. This information is used to assess the health of the lakes, and where they need assistance.
JESSY KNOX School Programs Manager
Over the past four years, we’ve removed more than 5,400 pieces of trash, weighing 187 pounds from our Lake Michigan surf, beach, and watershed. More than three quarters of it was plastic. Students have made sure that 4,150 pieces of plastic did not end up in the bellies of birds above the water and numerous fish species below. Great Lakes water eventually makes its way to the Atlantic Ocean through the St. Lawrence Seaway, where many creatures, such as the Beluga Whale, live in this brackish water. In recent years those Beluga Whales have developed instances of cancer where there previously had been none. Polluted water from the Great Lakes is the suspect. Litter follows the water cycle, as do other forms of pollution, such as atmospheric pollution and nonpoint source pollution. Keeping our water as clean as possible is the driving motivation for our All Day Great Lakes class. Students also build a watershed on the beach with buckets, shovels, and trowels. We create landforms: ravines, river valleys, lakes, rivers, streams, islands, and peninsulas. Then we fill our watershed and witness the water ebbing, flowing, eroding and altering the formations. Our watershed becomes more complicated by accidentally “polluting” it with toxic sludge (food coloring) that we try to contain, but becomes breached by erosion due to moving water. Our students learn to appreciate the forces we can’t control, but they learn about the impacts we can. Together we keep Lake Michigan, and its connected bodies of water, GREAT!
Trash collected by students on our beach during one All Day Great Lakes Program in November.
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11,800 BP
5,000 BP
5,000 BP
5,000 BP
Valderian Period, a substage in Wisconsin glacial history begins.
Most recent Ice Age ends.
Last glacier, Valders, occupying Lake Michigan’s location begins to retreat.
Nipissing Great Lakes are formed.
Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
EDUCATION
2,800 BP
2,500 BP
1000
1142
American Indians begin constructing Earthen mounds.
The Great Lakes reach modern water levels and area stabilizes.
Mississippians move to Wisconsin from present day St. Louis.
Likely start of the Five Nations of the League of Iroquois.
Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org 0
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Great Lake FEATURE
Michigan
ED MAKOWSKI Communications Specialist
T
he crashing waves and glassy calm of Lake Michigan waters draws us to its shore. City forefathers built along Lake Michigan for many reasons, including the access to fresh water, shipping, fishing, and recreation. Lake Michigan is also the reason we’re located in one of the busiest migratory flyways, and are a birding hotspot in spring. American Indians have lived in this area for millennia because of the abundant resources provided by the Lake and the rivers that flow into it.
The five Great Lakes are connected. The water that begins flowing from Lake Superior eventually makes its way through the Great Lakes before emptying into the Atlantic Ocean. Combined, the Great Lakes possess 20 percent of the world’s surface fresh water, and given their interconnectedness, the health of one lake impacts the health of all. Glaciers once covered most of the Midwest and formed many of our land features, including the Great Lakes basin. Lake Michigan was formed in stages by glaciers advancing and receding, increasing the depth of the lake with each movement. The process completed about 5,000 years ago. The glaciers were more than a mile high and worked like bulldozers, digging and scraping while melting and freezing. The erosive abilities of these glaciers dug way down to some of the earliest origins of life on our planet. We find fossils on our beach from the Devonian Period (419 –359 million years ago) and even the Silurian Period (444–419 million years ago). Our most common fossil find is the Crinoid, aka “Cheerio Fossil”, which waved in the current at the bottom of the Silurian Sea. The glaciers that dug out the Great Lakes basin also eroded down to the more resistant dolomitic limestone known as the Niagara Escarpment. This landscape feature stretches from the west side of Lake Michigan all the way east to the edge of Niagara Falls, which empties into Lake Ontario. Although humans have given separate names to Lakes Michigan and Huron, hydrologically, the two are the same. Lakes Michigan and Huron are connected by the Straits of Mackinac, a five-mile
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opening at the top of the Michigan mitten. Michigan-Huron contains the largest surface area of any body of fresh water in the world, and combined possesses 5,467 miles of shoreline. Lake Michigan has low algae production, which is a result of being a low-nutrition oligotrophic lake. Thus, it is an extremely clean lake, which is optimum to provide drinking water. The cold and deep waters are rich in oxygen, which have historically supported many fish species, such as Lake Trout, Yellow Perch, Lake Sturgeon, Muskellunge, and Lake Whitefish. They provided great opportunities for the fishing industry and sportsmen alike. A century of overfishing, followed by the unintentional introduction of invasive species, has caused Lake Michigan’s native fish populations to dwindle significantly. After the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway, international ships began traveling inland more extensively. Inside the ballast tanks of the ships arrived species from similar habitats a world away, but which had no natural predators in this new environment. Sea lampreys began to attack the remaining large predator fish species native to Lake Michigan. When the invasive Alewife fish
1634
1833
1836
1846
Frenchman Jean Nicolet lands near Green Bay, encounters Ho Chunk tribe.
The First Welland Canal is completed, forerunner to the St. Lawrence Seaway.
United States government incorporates the Wisconsin Territory.
Following the Bridge Wars, Juneautown and Kilbourntown join to become Milwaukee.
Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
FEATURE LAKE MICHIGAN & HURON
1.3 QUADRILLION
5,467 GALLONS
1,300,000,000,000,000
MILES of water in of combined shoreline
Lake Michigan
Mishigamaa (Michigan) is Ojibwe for
4.3% of Earth’s
LARGE WATER
Route water flows through Great Lakes into Atlantic Ocean
Lake Superior
Lake Huron
Lake Ontario
Fresh Water Lake Michigan
923ft 184 depth of Lake Michigan
Lake Erie
INVASIVE
SPECIES and counting
arrived in 1949, there were not enough predator fish to make a dent is actually returning to normal levels. At Schlitz Audubon, we are in the newly established population. At one point Alewives ac- fortunate that our vegetation and wetlands provide shoreline procounted for 80 percent of Lake Michigan’s entire biomass! tection and storm water mitigation. Faced with an enormous ecological and fiscal problem, the Wisconsin DNR introduced Coho and Chinook Salmon to Lake Michigan, hoping these fish would dine on the Alewives. Their plan was successful. Salmon have buoyed Lake Michigan as a fishery and as a tourist destination for shoreline towns. But while salmon do have some favorable short-term human outcomes, and were intentionally introduced into this environment, ecologically, they are still an invasive species. One of the most obvious examples of how invasives affect the quality of Lake Michigan and its shore is Cladophora, the invasive green algae. Cladophora makes the beach smell terrible and harbors various harmful bacteria. Quagga Mussels, also invasive, create an ideal environment for Cladophora to perpetuate. Cladophora, and the bacteria surrounding it, is the reason for many of our health-related beach closings throughout the warm weather months.
Despite all of the threats facing Lake Michigan, and the other Great Lakes, there is hope. The Great Lakes Compact, signed in 2008, protects fresh water as a resource, requiring that all American states and Canadian provinces bordering the lakes must agree to any Great Lakes water withdrawals or diversions. The Alliance for the Great Lakes continues to push for strategies to keep the lakes clean. Multiple organizations partner to restock Lake Sturgeon, the longest-living fish in Lake Michigan, which was nearly extirpated by overfishing. Our location on Lake Michigan informs everything we do as a Center, and the experiences we are able to offer students, members, and visitors. In 2014, The Fund for Lake Michigan awarded Schlitz Audubon with a $60,000 planning grant to create a storm water management plan, as part of our Center-wide 15-year conservation plan. Integral to this is stabilizing our ravines and bluffs with native plantings to lessen erosion and creating storm water wetlands. These wetlands will help us conserve forested ravine habitat, home to many species such as turtles, frogs, salamanders and birds. Both management strategies improve our land and the health of Lake Michigan.
Invasive bottom dwelling mussels such as the Zebra and Quagga mussels also filter the lake’s nutrients to the bottom, changing the makeup of where the lake’s nutrients exist. This is part of the reason the lake looks clearer than it had in the past, and although it may appear to be positive, it is actually evidence of how invasive species are altering the ecology of the lake. Hundreds of generations of people have respected this invaluable gift, which we have inherited. We have the ability to nurture Great Lake Michigan is continually shaping and redefining itself and its Lake Michigan for countless generations to come. boundaries. In the last four years, the lake has risen three feet. Cold winters led to an unusual amount of the Great Lakes to be frozen, which capped evaporation. These winters were followed by sum- Written with contributions from: mers with heavy rainfall. This rise may seem dramatic, but the lake Tom Finley, Jessy Knox, Don Quintenz, and Marc White
1848
1888
1907
1925
Wisconsin becomes a state.
Milwaukee creates flushing station tunnels, pumping contaminants into Lake Michigan.
Milwaukee typhoid scare after decades of water pollution.
Jones Island Waste Water Treatment Plant is built on Lake Michigan.
Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
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PRESCHOOL
Lake Michigan: Our Teacher CATHERINE KOONS-HUBBARD Preschool Director
Outdoor exploration is possible nearly every day with the right clothing. Whether our lakefront brings snow, rain, sun, or fog, our Preschoolers trek down to discover Lake Michigan. In winter, there is a constant spray of water as the incoming waves meet the growing ice shelf. Before the preschool children can explore the ice formations, teachers spread out to make boundaries. They instruct the children on how best to assess the risks that come from navigating this icy and unstable terrain. Because risk is a part of learning, we want the children to think before they step. In this way, they develop the skill to make informed decisions in any number of situations. With every visit, Lake Michigan shows us something new, and we invite the children to reflect on these changes. We teach that water turns to ice in the winter and melts back into puddles and ponds in spring. Preschoolers learn that water moves downhill due to a force called gravity and then link the water they see on the trails and in the ponds to that of Lake Michigan. Spring also
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brings beach glass for the students to find on the lakeshore. Throughout the warm months, children chase waves back and forth across the beach; the water catches them and washes across the toes of their rubber boots. Using sticks, they draw pictures in the sand, and look for fossil prints in the rocks. In fall, children collect brightly-colored orange maple leaves, and we talk about the seasonal processes on land while hiking toward the sound of rushing waves. In a single year Preschoolers learn that the seasons – and our Lake – are always changing. They discover how both animals and we as people are connected to these changes. They begin to develop a relationship with the natural world and the lake that we all share. At Schlitz Audubon, we are fortunate to have Lake Michigan as part of our living, outdoor classroom. It is a destination that the children and teachers are always eager to explore.
1948
1959
1966
1969
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) is written into law.
St. Lawrence Seaway is completed, removing a natural barrier against invasive aquatic species.
Native Lake Michigan fish populations are in collapse, DNR stocks the lake with salmon.
The Cuyohoga River, which feeds into Lake Erie, catches fire due to pollution.
Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
AUTHOR EVENTS
Dan Egan The Death and Life of the Great Lakes
Wednesday, March 22 at 7:00pm | Free with membership or admission The Great Lakes hold 20 percent of the world’s supply of surface fresh water and provide sustenance, work, and recreation for tens of millions of Americans. In a landmark work of science, history, and reporting, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Reporter Dan Egan delivers an eye-opening and compulsively readable portrait of an ongoing ecological calamity. Egan describes how our efforts to engineer the Great Lakes have allowed devastating invasive species to destroy ecosystems across the country. He also examines other risks, such as toxic algae, fluctuating lake levels, and the chronic threat to siphon off Great Lakes water to drier regions. In an age in which dire problems like the Flint water crisis or the California drought bring ever more attention to the indispensability of safe, clean, easily available water, The Death and Life of the Great Lakes is an urgent and powerful book. Egan has twice been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, and his coverage of the Great Lakes has received several other awards. The Death and Life of the Great Lakes was awarded the J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award. Presented with Boswell Book Company.
“Five years ago I began research to develop our All Day Great Lakes class on the shore of Lake Michigan. In his book, Dan Egan discusses the challenges of the Great Lakes like no other resource I’ve come across, while remaining incredibly readable. As a natural science educator, I’ve used this book to refresh our program. It’s an important and moving read for anyone with a love for the natural world.” JESSY KNOX SCHOOL PROGRAMS MANAGER
Kevin Miyazaki Perimeter: A Contemporary Portrait of Lake Michigan Sunday, February 5 at 2:00pm | Free with membership or admission
Kevin Miyazaki’s book Perimeter: A Contemporary Portrait of Lake Michigan is the result of a two-week journey around Lake Michigan. Miyazaki loaded his hatchback with camera gear and a portable studio, and set out to explore the 1,800-mile shoreline of Lake Michigan. During the trip he photographed the people he found visiting the lake for work, pleasure, and sustenance. From residents, environmental scientists, and artists, to a Native American water rights advocate, surfers, and commercial fishermen, Lake Michigan holds a powerful place in the life of each. Miyazaki also photographed the water as he went, creating waterscapes of the ever-changing lake affected by weather and time. Perimeter gathers these images together, creating a diverse portrait of both people and place, encapsulating Lake Michigan’s significance to those who are drawn to it. He will display artwork from Perimeter: A Contemporary Portrait of Lake Michigan in the Center’s Mezzanine gallery from January 13 - March 19.
“Kevin’s work captures the story of Lake Michigan through a vibrant juxtaposition of people and place.” ZOE FINNEY GRAPHIC DESIGNER
1971
1972
1993
2008
Schlitz Audubon is established.
The Clean Water Act is signed into law, updating the FWPCA.
Milwaukee’s Deep Tunnel System begins operation.
The Great Lakes Water Compact is signed.
Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
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CALENDAR Adult Program Family Program Preschool Program Handicap Accessible Member Price Non-Member Price Pre-Registration
Pre-registration helps us prepare for our programs. There will be an additional $2.00 charge for walk-in participants attending a program that requires pre-registration. Youth price is for those ages 3–17. 18 and up are charged the adult price. Refunds will only be given to those who cancel 14 or more days before a program. If Schlitz Audubon cancels a program, refunds will be given.
Call 414-352-2880 x0 to register. Hangin’ with Hyatt: Family Snowshoe*
Saturday, January 7 | 9:00am - 11:00am
Join Jim Hyatt in trekking across the Center’s snowy landscape, while looking for animal signs and winter phenomena. Schlitz Audubon provides snowshoes, although they may not fit those under age 10. Please dress for the weather.
M: Youth $5 | Adult $10 NM: Youth $10 | Adult $15
Wednesday, January 11 | 6:30pm - 8:30pm Wednesday, February 8 | 6:30pm - 8:30pm Wednesday, March 8 | 6:30pm - 8:30pm
Co-presented with Milwaukee Audubon Society. Please check our online calendar for the specific topics for each month. Young adults and birders of all interest levels are welcome to join this drop-in program on the 2nd Wednesday of each month.
Free to all
Raptor Saturday
Animal Movie Night*
January Celebrate Save the Eagles Day with us! We’ll compare eagles to other raptors of Wisconsin to understand the awesome size and power of our national symbol. Learn how far conservation efforts have come, and how we can continue to help protect raptors. February What’s For Dinner: What kind of bird do you eat like? Some birds are particular, but others eat almost anything. Raptors employ a variety of diets and hunting strategies. Compare the menus of our resident raptors & how those eating habits affect our ecosystems. March A Raptor’s Life Story: Succeeding as a raptor in the wild is no easy feat! Springtime is nesting season, and just-hatched raptors will soon be out and about for us to see. Our resident birds will teach you about the life stages of these predators.
The fun starts with s’mores by the fireplace. Then Jim brings out his live animal friends to touch and hold. Bring a pillow, blanket, stuffed animals, and whatever you like to get comfortable during movies. Check the Center’s website for which movie plays on each date.
Saturday, January 7 | 1:00pm - 2:00pm Saturday, February 4 | 1:00pm - 2:00pm Saturday, March 4 | 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Free with membership or admission Sponsored by:
SPARK!*
Tuesday, January 10 | 1:00pm - 2:30pm Tuesday, February 14 | 1:00pm - 2:30pm Tuesday, March 14 | 1:00pm - 2:30pm
This special program is designed for people going through cognitive changes, such as memory loss, to participate in alongside their care partners. Each session is devoted to learning about the simple beauty found in nature and how it enriches our lives. Programs are led by Director of Education Tom Finley, and take place indoors, but may include a brief outdoor component close to the building.
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Bird Club*
Free to participants and care partners
Friday, January 13 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm Friday, February 17 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm Friday, March 24 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm
M: Youth $5 | Adult $10 NM: Youth $10 | Adult $15
Stories in the Snow*
Saturday, January 14 | 9:30am - 11:00am
Tracking animals in the winter is fun. We learn about wildlife and their habits and actively solve mysteries. Animals leave clues behind that help us tell what they were doing, where they have been and where they were going. Join Education Specialist Shelly Rollins in exploring the world of stories in the snow. After brushing up on our observation skills indoors, we’ll venture out to explore. An adult must accompany children. Adults attend free.
M: $5 per youth NM: $10 per youth
Spiritual World of Nature: Chez Monet, Spring*
Tuesday, January 17 | 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Dottie Diggs presents her photographs from Giverny in France, where she photographed the Gardens of Claude Monet, the French impressionist painter. This assemblage of pictures is from her 2015 and 2016 trips, and is accompanied by French impressionist music. By popular demand, this is a reprise of Dottie’s August program.
M: $10 NM: $15 Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
Hand-in-Hand*
Session 1 | 9:00am - 10:15am Session 2 | 10:30am - 11:45am Thursday, January 19 | Gently Falling Snow Thursday, February 2 | Owl Babies Thursday, February 16 | Winter Reds Thursday, March 2 | Maple Sugaring Thursday, March 16 | Fur and Feathers
Explore nature with your littles ones! Hike, play, enjoy art activities, and listen to a story. Dress for the weather; we explore outdoors in snow, rain, mud, and sunshine! We recommend warm waterproof boots for all participants. This program is for 2-to-4 year olds and their adult.
M: $12 pair per person NM: $17 pair per person
Audubon Babies*
Thursday, January 19 | 10:00am - 11:15am Thursday, February 2, 16 | 10:00am - 11:15am Thursday, March 2, 16 | 10:00am - 11:15am
Children are never too young to enjoy the wonders of nature. Come enjoy a hike on the trails filled with sensory explorations and meet new friends. We will start inside and venture out when everyone is ready. Dress for the weather but if the weather is not appropriate to go outside, we will explore indoors. Warm, waterproof shoes or boots are recommended. This program is for babies 6-24 months with their adult.
M: $12 pair per person NM: $17 pair per person
Environmental Voices: Chicken Soup, The Universal Medication* Thursday, January 19 | 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Chicken soup is especially nutritious using homemade broth. Since it uses every part of the chicken, it is also ecologically sound, and requires less fossil fuel to produce than pork or beef. Presenter Joan Tendler, an architect by trade, became interested in chicken soup after discovering its impact on her own health. Joan shares samples and recipes from her precious broth.
M: $10 NM: $15
Preschool Open House
Saturday, January 21 | 9:30am – 11:30am
Are you interested in learning more about our Nature Preschool? Join us for our open house! Preschool staff will provide tours, introduce our teachers, share information and answer questions. See website for 2017-2018 Preschool registration details.
Free to all
CALENDAR Cozy Corners* Monday, Monday, Monday, Monday,
January 23 | 1:00pm - 3:00pm January 30 | 1:00pm - 3:00pm February 6 | 1:00pm - 3:00pm February 13 | 1:00pm - 3:00pm
Come enjoy the best of winter in this new program designed for preschool-aged children and adults to share together. Depending on the weather, we will have fun on the Preschool sledding hill, looking for animal tracks in the snow, visiting the spectacular ice formations down at Lake Michigan, or boot skating on the frozen ponds. We will end our time with hot chocolate in front of a cozy fire. For children ages 3 – 6 and their adult.
M: $12 per pair NM: $17 per pair
Perimeter Kevin Miyazaki*
Sunday, February 5 | 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Milwaukee-based photographer Kevin Miyazaki spent two weeks traveling the 1,800mile perimeter of Lake Michigan. During this journey, he captured waterscapes and portraits of the people he found experiencing the Lake. Hear Kevin discuss his photographs and the stories behind the project that came to encompass Perimeter: A Contemporary Portrait of Lake Michigan.
Free with membership or admission
Beginning Tai Chi with Alice Kuramoto*
Wednesdays, February 8 to March 29 4:00pm - 5:00pm
This class is led by Alice Kuramoto, who has over 30 years of experience with Tai Chi. Tai Chi is a Chinese exercise based on slow, gentle movements, meditation, and breathing. Its health benefits include: improving balance, posture, muscle strength, and lowering blood pressure. Wear comfortable shoes and clothing.
M: $80 NM: $96
Environmental Voices: Exploring the Wisconsin River* Wednesday, February 8 | 6:30pm - 8:30pm
Ruth Oppendahl, Executive Director of the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin, paddled from the source of the Wisconsin River to the Mississippi confluence, meeting with conservation groups and citizens along the way. Ruth will highlight conservation work, and bird sightings along this important flyway through photos and stories. Environmental Voices is teaming up with Bird Club in February for this free, engaging presentation.
Hangin’ with Hyatt: The Search for Antlers*
Environmental Voices: Tour Big City Greens*
Join us as we search for the signs and sounds of this annual competition of the White-tailed deer. Learn about antler formation, how to decode a deer trail, deer ecology, and so much more! Then we’ll head out on the trails and search for shed antlers – if you find one, you get to keep it!
Spend a balmy, verdant afternoon learning about microgreens at Big City Greens, a family owned and operated Microgreen farm, in the city of Milwaukee. These baby plants are packed with nutrition and flavor, and they use organic, sustainable practices throughout their indoor facility. The tour will end with a tasting; sampling the various flavors of these pesticide-free and fertilizer-free microgreens. All participants will receive a greens sampler to take home. Transportation from the Center is included.
Saturday, February 11 | 9:00am - 11:00am
M: Youth $5 | Adult $10 NM: Youth $10 | Adult $15
Saturday Hand-in-Hand: Winter Delight*
Saturday, February 11 | 10:30am - 11:45am
Celebrate the beauty of winter during this special Saturday Hand-in-Hand program! Hike, play, have fun exploring the snow and ice, and look for winter animal signs. Dress for the weather; we will explore outside as much as the temperature allows. We recommend insulated snow boots for all participants. This program is for 2 to 4 year-olds and their adult.
M: $12 pair per program NM: $ 17 pair per program
Winter River Snowshoe*
Saturday, February 11 | 12:30pm - 2:30pm
Join Don Quintenz to search out the animals and signs that animals necessarily leave in their journey to meet their wintertime needs. Snowshoes are provided; no experience is necessary. We will hike along the Honey Creek Parkway. Maps will be sent out just prior to the program. If there is no snow, we will hike on foot.
M: $12 NM: $17
Spiritual World of Nature: Wintry Love*
Wednesday, February 15 | 7:00 - 8:30pm
Love is everywhere in these cold, dark winter months! Valentine’s Day, the Jewish holiday of Tu b’Shvat, and Maple sap rising all happen very close to each other - for a good reason. Our discussion, connections, and demonstrations will connect all this love and these life-giving processes to the spirituality of the doldrums of the winter season.
M: $7 NM: $12
Tuesday, February 21 | 1:00pm - 4:00pm
M: $ 15.00 NM: $ 20.00
Winter Concert Series Sundays | 2:00pm - 3:00pm February 26: Michael Drake March 5: Digbii March 12: Bob Druker March 19: Mike’s Classic Country March 26: Ukuladies April 2: David HB Drake “Wiscon-sing”
Join us on Sunday afternoons after Word with a Bird for live music! Performances take place in our auditorium and feature a variety of music appropriate for the whole family.
Free with membership or admission
Environmental Voices: Climate Change and Milwaukee’s Waters* Thursday, March 2 | 1:00pm - 2:00pm
We welcome Cheryl Nenn of Milwaukee Riverkeeper to discuss impacts from climate change on Milwaukee’s rivers and Lake Michigan. She will focus on water quality, water levels, flooding, aquatic life, recreational use, and our water-based tourism economy. We will explore how we can be more resilient to climate change impacts. Cheryl’s work includes patrolling local waterways, identifying problems in the Milwaukee River Basin, and helping find collaborative solutions to problems that affect local rivers.
M: $10 NM: $15
Repamphibiantile Sunday* Sunday, March 5 | 12:00pm - 1:00pm
Winter is coming to a close, so come warm up with your sun loving friends like snakes, turtles, and frogs. Jim will have you ready for froggin’ season by practicing their calls.
Free with membership or admission
Free to all
Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
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CALENDAR March: In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb* Saturday, March 11 | 9:30am - 11:00am
Most of us have heard the expression “In like a lion and out like a lamb,” in reference to the weather for the month of March. Join Education Specialist Shelly Rollins in learning about the meanings behind this saying and what takes place in nature at this time of the year. We will also go for a hike and see if the day is more like a lion or lamb. An adult must accompany children, adults attend free.
M: $5 per youth NM: $10 per youth
Hangin’ with Hyatt: Snake Patrick Day*
Friday, March 17 | 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Who’s up for some Family Fun? Jim is bringing his cuddly friends out for a party. Shake hands with a snake while eating green cake. Snuggle a salamander while nibbling a cookie. Celebrate Snake Patrick Day with your human and animal family!
Free with membership or admission.
Maple Sugar Time*
Saturday, March 18 | 10:00am - 12:00pm Saturday, March 18 | 1:00pm - 3:00pm
Here comes the melting snow, muddy shoes and MAPLE SUGAR! Bring your big boots and sweet tooth, and we’ll do the rest. We will begin inside with a story of how maple sugaring may have been discovered. Then travel outside through the stages of making maple syrup, from tapping trees to boiling sap with the sugar farmer at the evaporator. Top the morning off with REAL maple syrup over silver dollar sized pancakes. Celebrate the sweetest of seasons: Maple Sugar Time!
M: Youth $6 | Adult $10 NM : Youth $ 11 | Adult $15
Dan Egan*
Wednesday, March 22 | 7:00pm
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Great Lakes Reporter Dan Egan presents his book The Death and Life of the Great Lakes. This timely and thoughtfully-researched book illuminates the threats facing Lake Michigan, and other fresh water resources, and the efforts to protect the Great Lakes for future generations. Presented with Boswell Book Company. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
Hatha Yoga Class* Every Monday | 5:30pm – 6:45pm
Start your week right with our yoga instructor Claire Stillman. Classes are designed for all levels of students, they are therapeutic in nature, and will be challenging at times. All students are taught to observe their body and breath, and to practice within their capacity. De-stress the beginning of your week. The first class is always free!
M: $100 for 10 weeks | $15/single class NM: $120 for 10 weeks | $20/single class
Word with a Bird Saturdays and Sundays | 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Each Word with a Bird program focuses on the specific skills, traits and adaptations that make that bird such a unique creature. Meet a different bird each time! While visiting the Center make sure to spend some time outdoors on the trails. There is no WWB on January 1 (Center closed), or January 29 (Winter Carnival).
Free with membership or admission
Free with membership or admission
Elinor Lipman Author of On Turpentine Lane Sunday, February 19 at 2:00pm
Join us for a special event with novelist Elinor Lipman, in conversation with Bonnie North of WUWM Lake Effect. In On Turpentine Lane, Faith Frankel returns to her hometown where she is a development professional at her alma mater. The purchase of a sweet bungalow appears to mean that life is finally on track. But things are never as they seem. Once again, Elinor Lipman, author of The Family Man, delivers a novel that is funny, poignant and a little bit outrageous. Visit our Calendar of Events on our website for ticket purchasing and other details. Presented in partnership with Boswell Book Company.
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Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
THANK YOU THANK YOU In Memory Of
In Honor Of
Raptor Sponsorships
Daniel S. Berry A. Kipp and Mary D. Koester
Sofia and Liliana Espinosa Janina Knechtges
Barley – Barn Owl
Margaret A. Chmela Anonymous
Margarete and David Harvey Mary and John Emory
Richard M. Evans John and Betty Ames William C. and Thea L. Brunsell Richard and Sandy Buchman William and Nancy Carpenter Beth Chapman John and Sue Esser Jeanne Gaenslen Janet Humphrey Dorothy Dickens Mestier
Richard and Sherry Lundell Wm. Brian and Janet Henning William and Shirley Walker
In honor of Richard and Sherry Lundell Kristin and Ryan Nord Diane Visty Saturday Raptor Crew
Steve and Dorota Schultz FPZ, Inc.
Malary – American Kestrel
Myra Van Uxem Jean Downie
In honor of Amy Jo and Ronda Amy Jo Lakey
Tskili – Great Horned Owl
In honor of Brian Bear Sue B. Holcomb
In honor of Rosie Marotz Sue B. Holcomb In honor of Jessica Zappia Sue B. Holcomb
Monica L. Ingwersen Geri and Marvin Olson
In honor of Sophia Zappia Sue B. Holcomb
David J. Luedtke Brian Adam
Glory – Bald Eagle
In memory of James J. Schlax Mary Beth Gardner
V. Frederick Nast, Jr. John and Betty Ames Beth Chapman Jeanne Gaenslen Maria Jarvi Susan and William LeFeber Dorothy Dickens Mestier Lora and James Murphy John and Kathy Nelson Thomas Wilson Jean Pagel Nell Schneider Ellen M. Ragan Zaldo Sherry Huhn
Join us on social media! Admission
FREE admission to Members Adults: $8 | Youth $5 (ages 3 — 17)
Hours
Open 7 days a week 9:00am - 5:00pm
1111 East Brown Deer Road | Milwaukee, WI 414-352-2880 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
Credits for Panorama | Winter 2017 Marketing Manager Nancy Quinn Design | Illustration | Photography Zoe Finney Editing | Select Writing Ed Makowski
Winter 2017 | www.schlitzaudubon.org
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Schlitz Audubon Nature Center 1111 East Brown Deer Road Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53217
U.S. Postage
PAID
Milwaukee, WI Permit No. 4168
LAKE MICHIGAN PANORAMA
Nature Center
Activities Include: Lake Michigan Hikes Kohl’s Wild Theater Horse-drawn Sleigh Rides Campfire S’mores and more! Check website for parking details.