under the oak tree€¦ · november 3, 2011, 5:00-8:00 p.m. free. all ages. come and go as you...

VOLUME IX, ISSUE III UNDER THE OAK TREE PAGE 1 AUTUMN 2011

Thank-you, cabin rentals,

animal sponsors

2

Upcoming programs,

Calendar of Events,

Pioneer Days thank-you,

At the Park photos

3

ACORN Schedule, Who

Do You Call

4

Screech owl notice, school

program photos

5

Knap-In info, summer

program photos

6

Kid’s Corner 7

Inside this issue:

A NEWSLETTER OF THE HENRY COUNTY CONSERVATION DEPARTMENT

UNDER THE OAK TREEUNDER THE OAK TREE

Iowa State UniversityIowa State UniversityIowa State UniversityIowa State University Department of Entomology

September 20, 2011, 6:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.

Iowa State University's Insect Zoo will host two 45-55 minute hands-on

sessions of "Crawly Critters....” The 6:00 p.m. session is for K-2 grade

students. The 7:00 p.m. session is for 3-5+ grade students. Children

ages 6 and under must have a parent on hand, while children ages 7

and over may be dropped off and picked up. Since there are two back-to-

back programs, please drop off children at the front entrance of the

nature center by the waterfall and parents picking up children may do

so at the west classroom entrance. FREE. Preregistration required by

calling the office at 319-986-5067.

HENRY COUNTY CONSERVATION DEPARTMENT’S

Annual Night Hike Annual Night Hike Annual Night Hike Annual Night Hike October 3, 2011, 6:00-7:30 p.m.

This year's theme will be STAR TRACK STAR TRACK STAR TRACK STAR TRACK and

focuses on the fourth grade astronomy curriculum,

however, it is appropriate for all ages. Short hike, or

walk, begins in front of the Oakland Mills Nature

Center. Properly supervised groups welcome! A free

program open to the public. Educational and fun–not scary. Kids must be accompanied by an

adult but adults need not be accompanied by a child. Groups will depart every ten minutes,

with the last one leaving at 7:20 p.m. Reservations not necessary. Easy walk on solid surface.

Kids can register for a prize but must be present to win. There will be activities in the

Environmental Education Classroom at Oakland Mills Nature Center. In the event of

inclement weather, a rain date of October 6th is set. Listen to KILJ 105.5 F.M. for weather

notices. Note: This event will continue to be on the first Monday of October each year.

VOLUME IX, ISSUE III UNDER THE OAK TREE PAGE 2

THANKTHANKTHANKTHANK----YOU TO ALL WHO HAVE DONATEDYOU TO ALL WHO HAVE DONATEDYOU TO ALL WHO HAVE DONATEDYOU TO ALL WHO HAVE DONATED

Owl SponsorsOwl Sponsors Hy-Vee, Inc., Mt. Pleasant; Duane and Joni Maxwell, Mt. Pleasant;

Real Estate, by Waters, LLC, Mt. Pleasant; Steffensmeier Surveying, Mt. Pleasant

RECREATIONAL RENTAL CABIN RATES

Henry County Conservation Department has two

rental cabins overlooking the Skunk River.

Call at 319-986-5067 or go on-line at

www.henrycountyconservation.com for more information

and to check reservation availability.

PEAK SEASON OFF-PEAK SEASON

April 1st—October 31st November 1st—March 31st

Sunday - Thursday $55.00 per night Sunday - Thursday $50.00 per night

Friday - Saturday $75.00 per night Friday - Saturday $65.00 per night

One week (7 days) $350.00 per week One week (7 days) $325.00 per week

A sincere and heartfelt thank you goes to all of the individuals, families, groups, businesses, and organizations that have donated time, talent, money, or items to the Henry

County Conservation Department or to the Oakland Mills Nature Center.

Sharon Barton

Sandy Breazeale

Mark Burnstedt

DeBrito’s Baking Bistro

Richard & Elizabeth Garrels

Clark Hays

Henry County Nature Society

Bob Hoover

Linn Hunsaker

George Jaques

Bruce Krause

Allie’s on Jackson Street

Ralph & Helen See

Seminar Crowds

Barb Miller

Paulette Shappell

John Shaw

Excitement Disc Golf

Deb Vroom

Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC

Pat & Dan McCabe

Dick & Mary Beth Young

RedRed--tailed Hawk Sponsorstailed Hawk Sponsors Allie's on Jackson Street; Electronic Engineering Co.; Otto and Collette Groenewald; David

McCoid; Dan Peterson; Q P & P; Paulette Shappell; and Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC, Pat

McCabe and Dan McCabe, Financial Advisors

Robert Latta

Jerry Mabeus

Mahaska County

Conservation Board

Martin Yard Art

Merritt & Nadine Martin

Mt. Pleasant Community Schools

Wisdom Quest

Nelson Pioneer Farm

Dan Roberts

Tyler & Angela Rodgers

Gary Scott

Bobcat SponsorsBobcat Sponsors Allie’s on Jackson Street; Gary and Sharon Barton; Sam Beatty; Bruce and Bertha King;

Q P & P; Eugene and June Schutte; Deborah Fisher Vroom; Drs. Steve and Mary Wettach


Science and Book FairScience and Book FairScience and Book FairScience and Book Fair for parents and their children

November 3, 2011, 5:00-8:00 p.m.

FREE. All ages. Come and go as you please with no preregistration

necessary. Fun, hands-on science activities and experiments along

with books for sale by Usborne Books & More. Perfect gifts for

Christmas! Note: This book sale will benefit the environmental education programs of the Henry County Conservation Department.

September

5- Offices closed for Labor Day holiday

12- Board Meeting

16- ACORN trip to Amanas

20- At the Park Iowa State Entomology, kids hands-on insect program

October

3- At the Park Night Hike– Star Track

10- Board Meeting

12/13- ACORN trip to Madison Co., Bridges of Madison County

16- Camping and Oakland Mills Nature Center closes for the season

November

3- At the Park Science and Book Fair

11- Offices closed for Veteran’s Day holiday

14- Board Meeting

24/25- Offices closed for Thanksgiving holiday

December

8- ACORN annual potluck and movie

12- Board Meeting

26- Offices closed for Christmas holiday

September

Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa

1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30

October


1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22

23 24 25 26 27 28 29

30 31

November


1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

27 28 29 30

December


1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30 31

This calendar could be

subject to change.

Check our website at www.henrycountyconservation.

com for more details and full

listings on all our programs

as well as to download

necessary registration

forms.

2011 Calendar2011 Calendar2011 Calendar2011 Calendar

UPCOMING PROGRAMSUPCOMING PROGRAMSUPCOMING PROGRAMSUPCOMING PROGRAMS

At the Park PhotosAt the Park PhotosAt the Park PhotosAt the Park Photos

THANK-YOU to the following Pioneer Days

volunteers:

Tony Brown; Otis Henkle; Libby

Hoover; Lisa Louck; Erica MacBeth;

Jim MacBeth; Lori Muntz; Sue

Nicely; Dan Peterson; Mary Riley;

Meg Rose; Kay Tweedy; Kent White;

Pat White; and Jane Woodsmall

“Like Us” Henry County

Conservation Department


A.C.O.R.N. Club Adult Conservation Oriented Responsible Neighbors

Sept. 16, 2011 Amana Colonies

7:45 A.M. Depart from Oakland Mills Nature Center. Cost for bus ride: $10 per person.

Lunch on your own.

October 13, 2011 Bridges of Madison County

7:00 A.M. Depart from the Oakland Mills Nature Center. Cost for bus ride and admissions:

$40 per person. Motel and meal fees separate.

November, 2011 There will be no November program.

December 8, 2011 “Paving the Way” Movie Presentation and Annual December potluck

10:00 A.M. Oakland Mills Nature Center Classroom for presentation, basement meeting room

at the conservation office for the meal

January, 2012 There will be no January program.

Who Do You Call? By: Cari Griffin, Naturalist

Our department gets several calls a week concerning some wild animal that got in a person’s

yard. Or is in their attic. Or is living in their shed or under a porch. Bottom line to all of these

calls is that the homeowner wants these creatures GONE. Up until recently, the answer given

wasn’t usually the one they were wanting to hear. Henry County now has a Nuisance Wildlife

Control Operator that is experienced in removing or relocating unwanted wildlife. His name is

Syd Millard and he is certified by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to help residents

of Henry County in these situations. You can reach him on his cell phone at 319-931-9958.

There is a fee involved if he comes to your residence, so please anticipate that in advance.

Also, Henry County Conservation Department does not accept or rehabilitate wild animals that

are injured. Currently, our county does not have a certified wildlife rehabilitator. All calls

concerning injured wild animals need to be directed to our county’s Iowa Department of

Natural Resources Conservation Officer, Dan Henderson, at 319-653-1636.


SCHOOL PROGRAMSSCHOOL PROGRAMSSCHOOL PROGRAMSSCHOOL PROGRAMS Screech Owls By: Cari Griffin, Naturalist

An unfortunate event happened this

past spring. An unidentified animal,

presumably a weasel, got into the cage

of our resident screech owls and killed

both of them. It was a horrible

incident and one this department has

taken steps to rectify.

First, we tried to trap the creature

that got in, but had no luck. After this,

we reinforced the cage with three feet

of wire buried well below the ground

around the inside perimeter to

discourage digging creatures. The

wire is small enough to prevent small

mammals – like weasels – from

getting in the cage again.

We have taken steps to procure

replacements as well as to add to our

raptor collection. We are hoping to

obtain a member of the falcon family

and possibly get a pair of great horned

owls or maybe even a pair of barred

owls. With the resident red-tailed

hawks we already have, these

additions will give our department a

nice variety of common raptors found

in our county.

We would like to thank the sponsors

of the screech owls for their past

support and hope each one will

continue to support our replacements:

Hy-Vee, Inc.; Duane and Joni

Maxwell; Real Estate, by Waters,

LLC; and Steffensmeier Surveying, all

of Mt. Pleasant.


SUMMER CAMPS AND SUMMER CAMPS AND SUMMER CAMPS AND SUMMER CAMPS AND

PROGRAMSPROGRAMSPROGRAMSPROGRAMS

Skunk River KnapSkunk River KnapSkunk River KnapSkunk River Knap----inininin

PRIMITIVE ARTS & SKILLS

GATHERING COME JOIN IN THE ANCIENT ART

OF STONE TOOLMAKING!

LOCATED AT WATERWORKS PARK

SOUTH OF MT. PLEASANT, IOWA

OCTOBER 7-9, 2011 SETUP AS EARLY AS THE 6th

Facebook link: “Skunk River Knap-in” for more info

MODERN STONE TOOLS, CRAFTS, ART, JEWELRY,

FLINTKNAPPING SUPPLIES AND STOCK

Target range will be set up to show off your

atlatl or primitive bow skills! Auction of donated goods to be held Saturday at: 3:00pm

ALL FLINTKNAPPERS

AND PRIMITIVE

CRAFTSMEN

ARE WELCOME TO

SHOW AND

SELL THEIR CRAFTS

……………..

DEMONSTRATIONS HELD THROUGHOUT THE EVENT


Kid’s CornerKid’s CornerKid’s CornerKid’s Corner

As its name suggests, the common house spider is the most often seen

spider in homes in the United States. They like to build webs in hidden areas of

the home such as attics, basements, and sheds. Most webs are in the corners of

rooms and are easy to miss.

The common house spider is small - less than a 1/4 of an inch long.

Females tend to be a little larger than males. The legs of males have an orange

tint, while the legs of females look yellow. One of the most noticeable

characteristics of the common house spider is the dark rings on the legs.

Common house spiders usually spin one part of their web thicker than the other. The spider sits

on this thicker portion. A leaf or two may be added to the web so they can hide behind them.

When looking for common house spider webs, you might see multiple webs close together or a

web with more than one spider. If house spiders find a good spot with plenty of food, they do not mind if

another spider produces a web nearby. However if the webs are too close, spiders might attack each

other. For a short period of time, males and females can live on the same web during breeding season.

When people find common house spiders, they oftentimes destroy the web and kill the spider.

This is misguided. Remember: Spiders eat insects including flies and mosquitoes!

Fun Fact: A female common house spider can produce several egg sacs in a year. The time to

spot an egg sac is in the summer. They are very small, papery, brown sacs that hang from the web and

can have over 400 spider eggs inside.

SPIDER WEB MAZE

Help the fly escape the spider!

What you'll need:

Black paint Paintbrush

Egg carton Scissors

Black pipe cleaners Glue

Wire cutters Wiggle eyes

Awl or small Phillips head screwdriver

How to make it:

1. Cut the egg carton apart into little cups/sections.

2. Using the awl or screwdriver, make eight holes in the bottom edge of each section for the legs.

3. Paint the egg carton section black. Let dry.

4. Cut the pipe cleaners in half.

5. Push the pipe cleaner in through one side of the section and out the opposite side. Bend down the

legs.

6. Repeat for each of the legs. Glue on wiggle eyes.

EGG CARTON SPIDER

Common House Spider


Henry County Conservation Department

2593 Nature Center Drive

Mt. Pleasant, IA 52641

If you would like to make a monetary donation to the

Henry County Conservation Department, please fill out the

form below and mail it along with your donation to:



Mt. Pleasant, IA 52641-8250

Name: ______________________________________

Please give us your name so that we may thank you in our

newsletter, or you may leave this blank if you wish to remain

anonymous. Thank you for your generosity!

I would like my donation to be used for:

_____ The Oakland Mills Nature Center

_____ Environmental Education

_____ Wildlife Habitat

_____ Park Improvements/Facilities

_____ Wherever is needed the most

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID PERMIT # 410

MT. PLEASANT, IA 52641

Henry County Conservation

Board of Directors

John Klopfenstein, President

Sarah Borders, Vice-president

Lori Muntz, Member

George Jaques, Member

James Onorato, Member

WE ARE ON THE WEB

www.henrycountyconservation.com

Phone: 319-986-5067

Fax: 319-986-5469

E-mail: [email protected]

A NEWSLETTER OF THE HENRY COUNTY

CONSERVATION DEPARTM ENT

HCCD Staff

John Pullis, Executive Director

Tony Millard, Operations Supervisor

Marcie Givans, Office Manager

Cari Griffin, Naturalist

Drew Scarff, Summer Maintenance

Tune to KILJ 105.5 FM on your radio on the first and third

Thursday of each month at 8:20 a.m. to hear updates from

the Henry County Conservation Department!

This newsletter is printed

on recycled paper.

If you would like to receive this newsletter via e-mail, we

can make that happen! You may submit your e-mail

address by calling our office at (319) 986-5067; e-mailing

our office at [email protected]; or by

postal mail to:



Mt. Pleasant, IA 52641-8250

Name: _________________________________________

E-mail:________________________________________

Please give us your mailing address so we can remove you

from our newsletter mailing list. Thank you!

Address: _______________________________________

City:________________________ State:_____________

Zip Code: __________________-____________

Hours are Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.

through October 16, 2011

Open weekdays by appointment only.

Call 319-986-5067. Live animal display is open year-round.

under the oak tree€¦ · november 3, 2011, 5:00-8:00 p.m. free. all ages. come and go as you...

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