Night of the Swimming Dead

We have zombie fish at MKNC!

In reality, these are steelhead which have traveled from Hell's Canyon to the ocean and back. They are battered and bruised, but they are HUGE! In the last two weeks, we have had a rash of problems that have made the fish look even worse. Thankfully, everything is clearing up and they are looking healthy again.

First, spawning season brought all of our trout and steelhead to shallow water where they can be attacked by predators. Mink, heron, osprey, raccoons, and more take advantage of spawning to feed on our fish. As a result, many fish have large open wounds. The wounds are bad enough, but they look even worse when coupled with the second problem.

The second problem is fungus. Fish fungus grows into a white, wispy coating on the wounds of the fish. It is always in the water, but if there are no injuries, there is nowhere for the fungus to take hold. The spawning and migration injuries are perfect locations for the fungus to grow, so all of the wounds became covered in a white fuzz.

Both of these problems get better as wounds heal and the fungus fades. Unfortunately, the third problem is more serious and harder to treat. This is a parasite infection from a small crustacean called gill lice (Salmincola californiensis). This gets into the gills and mouth and makes it hard for the fish to breathe. This problem has to be treated with an oral medication given to each individual fish, so it likely will have to run its course also. The animation below shows an infected fish. The small white flexible objects in and around the mouth are the gill lice.

For the last few weeks, all of my attention has been focused on school. I was finishing up my master's project and preparing to present my research and graduate. I drove the Boise-Moscow-Boise loop twice on snowy roads two weekends in a row. Although the Salmon river canyon is beautiful, I hope I don't have to go through it again for a few months. My research was on technology that can be used to monitor plant function remotely. I try to make presentations a little different and this one was no exception. It features an Elvis impersonation and audience participation. There are two versions of the video if you want to see them. They both have the same audio, but one is the slides and the other is the presentation video.

P.S. I passed!

This place is for the birds! (and the deer, and the fish, and the....)

One of the coolest things about the nature center is the presence of animals that people can get up close and personal with. The habitat here draws wild animals which are sheltered enough that they sit still for people to observe. The exception is our raptors which are all rescue animals that can't survive in the wild so they are in aviaries. I love getting kids up close and teaching them that stepping quietly can lead to some cool encounters.

Meeting deer on the path is a common occurrence. Some of these fawns were actually born in the nature center.

Sassy crayfish.

Fiona, our one-eyed american kestrel

Mother and fawn watching from the safety of the trees.

This squirrel ate a bit too much and had to be rescued from the bird feeder.

Whoots! has a broken wing that never healed.

Wilson is a peregrine falcon with a broken left wing.

Hawk Stalking

I like to go out into the Nature Center and look for opportunities to educate people on-the-spot. Today I saw a man taking a picture of this Copper's Hawk. After we were done, I started stalking the bird around the Nature Center and eventually got him taking a bath.

SWEET!

Today I put antibiotic on a falcon's face!

Nature art on the banks of the Boise River.

One of my favorite things to do with kids outside is nature art. It allows them to be creative and constructive while learning at the same time. They get to see the textures and colors of nature and learn that getting their hands dirty can be a lot of fun. We spent last week on the Boise Greenbelt with ALL of the K-3 students from Riverside Elementary. I had around 400 nature artists join me on the beach. We talked about art as a form of communication, the history of art, and the difference between vandalism and artwork. These photos are just a portion of the pieces they made.

Bear face

Sea turtle

Big grin!

The artist didn't give a title, but I think it looks like an Ewok.

Tell me about your art. "It's a puppy!"

This future forester built a model forest.

She liked the red berries.

One entire group of kindergartners wanted to  make a piece together to they created a row of stacked rocks as a team.

It's another puppy.

This is, "a crazy-haired person."

Some kids would do something completely new and novel. This girl made her art vertical. (See next photo)

Smile!

Mixed-media rock/pine cone tower.

One of my students made a portrait of me.

This girl's friend had blonde hair so she made a portrait of her using straw.

Teamwork!

Dog faces were popular.

This pair ended up with a butterfly.

The first rock cairn. I think it looks like a frog.

A flower.

It's a frog house!

No title, she just thought it was pretty.

Future trail blazer practicing her rock towers.

Building together on the stairs.

Their art project was to throw rocks.

Swearing-In, AmeriCorps Style!

This is my second AmeriCorps term and I didn't participate in a group swearing-in event. I just did it over the phone. This time, however, our local AC family got together and made a video. We also went to the Idaho capitol building and swore in with other members from around Boise.

Even highschoolers can have fun while learning!

Unfortunately, we don't get the opportunity to present lessons to high school students in the field. This is mostly due to the logistics of the high school schedule. Teachers simply do not have the time to get kids on a bus, out into the field, and back. Today, we were lucky enough to have a visit all the way from Caldwell high school. their "Exploring Idaho" class came to our center today and we were able to take them out into the Boise River to hunt for macros. They had some success with macros, but were more excited about catching crawdads and sculpin. I think they would have liked more time outside.

Into the creek!

Today I got to take a group into the river which is one of my favorite activities. We found tracks from raccoon and deer, scat from deer and geese, duck feathers, beaver chews, and spider webs. We also searched for macro invertebrates and found tons of them including some metamorphosed stone flies that never hatched! One cool thing that happened was watching deer cross the river just downstream of us.

Ready to go again!

After a year of learning about environmental education at the University of Idaho McCall Outdoor Science School, I am back in Boise with a new set of skills and a new confidence.

I am getting ready to serve again, this time at the MK Nature Center in Boise. The center is owned and operated by Idaho Fish and Game and funded by federal conservation fees brought in by the sale of hunting gear and ammunition. The center features indoor and outdoor space, and the highlight is the stream walk, a path which winds through a scale model of a watershed and features glass windows which allow students to view fish in the habitat.

This will be a new experience and I can't wait to get started!