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While a rainy day may seem to be a good time to take it easy and stay under shelter, many critters stay quite active even though they get wet doing it. Some people may even be more likely to be out and about on a drizzly day where we can easily observe them. Early last week I decided to check out Goose Island on just such a day to see what animals still were active in the rain.
Of course it was not surprising to see a few ducks swimming around, but I also saw many robins searching for worms with water on their feathers. In fact, the wet soil was yielding a bumper crop of worms, and I stopped to photograph one robin that had a large nightcrawlers in its bill. As I snapped away at the robin with his bounty, another robin suddenly and aggressively swooped in.
I didn’t see exactly what happened next through the lens, but I caught one of the robins flying away with the worm in its mouth. I presume it was the original catcher of the worm because the picture shows it still holding the worm as the other bird flew in. Who would have thought that a robin would need to steal worms with so many around just for the picking!
Next I watched a 13-lined ground squirrel as it loped through the wet grass. Eventually it found what it was looking for — a patch of tasty chickweed. They are quite nutritious, even for people, and the rain-soaked rodent munched away on several of the little plants — stems, leaves, buds, flowers and all.
Finally, as I was heading for home, I noticed a white-tail doe wading in one of the bays. It got in a little deeper than it wanted and then turned back toward shore where it soon found some low-hanging branches. The deer seemed hungry, so she stretched and twisted her neck to feed on the leaves. Clearly she didn’t care much about getting wet either from above or below as long as food was available.
Natural legacyI usually feel a twinge of regret whenever I see a new development taking over a familiar rustic setting or another new house being built on one of our scenic bluffsides. But unfortunately that has been the pattern for much of my life and seems to have accelerated in the past few years. The scenery around the Coulee Region has changed dramatically in my lifetime. But just as I was beginning to fear that there was no stopping the trend, some signs of hope have come along.
Since 1997, for instance, the Mississippi Valley Conservancy has worked with landowners, businesses and communities in western Wisconsin to set aside areas of wetlands, streams, prairie and blufflands for preservation. Some of the more than 9,000 acres they manage have been purchased outright and others have been set aside through a voluntary agreement with the owners.
These lands represent a green legacy for the future, a guarantee that some of our natural habitats have been set aside permanently as a boon to wildlife and people who wish to enjoy the real outdoors. Some tracts, like the Fish Creek property near Rockland are best discerned with maps, while others are more obvious with parking areas and information kiosks.
I recently visited MVC’s 453-acre Mathy property, which abuts the Hixon Forest on the bluffs just east and north of the La Crosse. Several MVC members and volunteers were present that day clearing invasive brush, debris and fences from the area where Whiteway’s restaurant once stood. The old restaurant parking area is being improved and a trailhead with an information kiosk will soon be available.
The extensive property already has seen plenty of public use, but visitors had to park along Hwy. FA leading to the property. As with Hixon Forest, the Mathy property offers spectacular views, winding trails, a variety of habitats and plenty of wildlife.
I also was encouraged by the plans presented for another key natural area on the Wisconsin side of the Mississippi River — the waterfront area of downtown Onalaska. The city is developing the land abutting the Black River and the Onalaska spillway and much of the area from there to Hwy. 35.
On June 6, there was a public celebration that instead of building a motel, commercial site, condominiums or some other strictly money-making project, the community of Onalaska has chosen to leave a natural legacy for the future.
I had to miss the many activities planned for the day, but as he was helping to take down some of the displays, Jason Gilman, Onalaska’s land use and development director, showed me some of the master plan proposals. I was very encouraged by the proposed structures devoted to the display of local history, archaeology and ecology. But I was even more excited by the plans to include riverside facilities for campers, anglers, bicyclers, sightseers, hikers and nature lovers.
The waterfront area of Onalaska has long been a fishing hotspot, attracting tourists from far and wide. Many of us have also known that the Black River and its backwaters and marshes in that area have been a natural breeding and feeding place for migrating birds, pelicans, eagles, herons and a number of other fascinating forms of wildlife.
So far, it seems that the waterfront planners have taken the needs of the resident wildlife into their designs as well as public access to better viewing and appreciation of the natural treasure that is so near to the heart of Onalaska.
Jim Solberg can be reached at (608) 782-2560 or at nitefrogger@charter.net
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