Third Saturday Guided Walk

10am, April 23 at the Nature Center, off Hwy 330 by the Lake

Click here for Directions…

Everyone is welcome to attend 3rd Saturday events at the Nature Center, which are held monthly Spring through Fall. ADMISSION IS FREE!

South Fork Nature Center Spring Trail Visit

You are cordially invited to join Bob Hartmann, SFNC Docent, as he seeks out spring blossoms now showing off along the trails and particularly in the cedar-cleared areas of the glade restoration project. Orientation and the trail walk will begin at 10 AM at Riddle Cabin.

Exposed soils possessing a ‘seed burden’ of yesteryear glade flower complex is now beginning to resurrect. Come and see the plants and flowers that have been hiding. Included will be blooming trees and understory shrubs such as Red Buckeye, Deerberry and Serviceberry, among others.

Some sites will feature lichen and fungi with prospects of finding the dainty beauties, Cinnabar Red Chanterelles. Status of last year’s Monarch Butterfly project will be observed. Multiple sites of the butterfly’s favored foods, several kinds of milkweed seedlings were planted and now have automated weather stations installed at several select locations. Soil moisture and ground-level weather is being recorded to aid assessing plant survival.
Photos by Bob Hartmann

“Art in Nature”

We will reconvene at cabin at 11:30 AM, where Joyce Hartmann will have an “Art in Nature” session for those who would like to participate. She will give a brief watercolor demonstration and have materials available for participants to make their own Nature Spirit cards using watercolor paint and/or homemade Ozark Black Walnut dye.

For more information, please call 501-745-6615.

What is Field-Based Education? And why is it important?

Janet Miron, Gates Rogers Foundation

Field based learning is education that extends the walls of the classroom. Students learn from direct experience. This can be accomplished through experimental learning that involves a direct encounter with what is being studied. South Fork Nature Center’s outdoor classroom environment supplies the stage for “field based learning.” Students are immersed in the natural environment and mentored by docents, many who have career profiles in Conservation, Forestry, Fisheries, Wildlife management, and scientific education such as biology, chemistry, microbiology and botany.

Field based learning is rarely one dimensional, and almost always has a multidisciplinary approach. South Fork Nature Center consistently “crosses the curriculum” by incorporating math, language arts, and creative arts in student experiences. Observation and reflection are hard concepts to master from a text book; they are truly developed by experience. Our trails offer a huge canvas of opportunity for students to immerse themselves completely in nature. Our docents are trained to encourage student observation using all their senses and exercising their critical thinking skills to reflect on predictions and draw conclusions. Students learn firsthand that science is interconnected with all subjects in life. They leave their field based experience at SFNC knowing that science and nature influence their lives daily.

Why is Field-Based Learning important?

Outdoor nature experiences can be very dynamic. In some cases they can be life-changing. Numerous high school students are actively searching for a career direction. Many don’t have family-initiated “environmental” experiences or role models to draw from. Often times students’ classroom experiences are the foundation for their career choices. Hands-on immersion in nature, together with collaboration with docents, is sometimes the pivotal point for young “up-and-coming” environmentalists. Out-of the-classroom educational experiences in the field often increase motivation for continuing education.

If you have a student interested in an environmental career please visit the following links for more information and career profiles:
Environmental Career: Profiles →
The College Board: Careers in Environment & Science →

Educators!

Check out Enrichment Program page to start planning your field-based activities!

Field-Based Enrichment Programs →

Educators, Homeschoolers and Families,

Celebrate Earth Day at South Fork Nature Center.  Our highly qualified docents stand ready and able to show your class, organization or family an exceptionally fun and educational day at South Fork Nature Center. Contact us now to set up your field trip.

The 2016 globally coordinated Earth Day is celebrated on Friday, April 22^nd. More than 192 countries each year celebrate Earth Day. Worldwide events are held to support environmental protection.  South Fork Nature Center is committed to providing enhanced, outdoor educational opportunities on a regional basis.

We have several projects ongoing that are aimed at returning SFNC properties to its natural habitats. We are partnering with U.S. Fish and Wildlife on a glade restoration project and a monarch habitat restoration project. Our new weather station includes ground and ambient temperatures and moisture accumulation.

All of these projects and many more offer great opportunities to expose residents of Arkansas to many facets of environmental protection. We offer students the opportunity to experience the natural side of Arkansas and participate in data collection, the study of taxonomy, and to reinforce many concepts covered in the classroom such as the food chain, plant botany and reproduction, natural habitats, human impact on natural habitats, ecology and field study using instruments such as dissection scopes, magnifying glasses and field guides and measurement devices.

Field based study is an important component in the total education package and South Fork Nature Center desires to be on the cutting edge of field-based education in Arkansas.

Contact us at (501) 358-2095 or (501) 626-9914 to schedule your class or organization visit.

The links provided below are great resources for teachers and families to use during the month of April. Please share them with your child’s educators and friends. Help us get the word out about the great educational facility located in Choctaw, AR ……… in “your backyard”.

Check Out the Links!

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/earth-day-songs/ – 20 Best Rock Songs about Earth Day

http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/earth/about.htm – What did Earth Day Accomplish?

http://www.ecology.com/2012/04/17/earth-day-videos-kids/ – Earth Day Videos for kids

http://campus.ecology.com/2013/11/19/mobile-technology-enables-biological/ – Activity using “iPad” mini and a “Proscope” microscope attachment for field based study.

http://campus.ecology.com/ – Great blog post for all ecology topics from many of the most cutting edge students in today’s society.

http://www.nea.org/tools/lessons/Earth-Day-Curriculum – The National Education Association produced this resource for teachers, which features seven in-depth lesson plans, Earth Day games, and a list of outside links for students in grades K-5. There are also three entire unit plans as well. Plus, you’ll find even more resources, lesson ideas, and activities in the NEA’s blog.

https://youtu.be/8a3r-cG8Wic&w=450

Bob Hartmann, Little Red River Audubon Society President, Gates Rodgers
Foundation, VP and SFNC Docent

Have you seen your Bald Eagle(s) today? They are here year-round, but not
in the same areas all the time. After years of post-DDT recovery most
populations across North America have prospered and blossomed. Some move
seasonally to new areas where prey and other foods are more available.

Here on Greers Ferry Reservoir scattered pairs, their offspring and ‘loners’
can be commonly seen by a watchful eye. On the South Fork of the Little Red
River arm of the reservoir, in the South Fork Nature Center (SFNC) vicinity,
a nesting pair had consistently occupied a huge pine tree at the edge of a
high bluff that overlooks the water. This parent pair regularly,
successfully produced three eaglets for many years. The nest site and its
users were a popular attraction to Greers Ferry Reservoir’s South Fork arm
boaters.

About four years ago nearby home owners noticed that the female eagle was
new, a smaller bird and not as meticulous a nest keeper as the previous
parent. During that first new parent-year only two eaglets were produced;
they did not grow uniformly and may not have left the nest. During the
second year two eaglets again hatched and fledged but the last one to leave
the nest was weak and did not fully take to the air, spent an inordinate
amount of time on the ground and succumbed to predators.

The nest has since deteriorated and parts of the large pine have died and
fallen. However, Bald Eagles can still be seen in the area of the South Fork
Nature Center and nearby food sources. This time of year Bald Eagles may be
seen to congregate, with Black Vultures and Turkey Vultures, in pastures
where composted poultry parts are distributed as fertilizer.

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Learning Resources:

Bird’s Eye View! Watch a real-time nesting camera stream from Berry College in Georgia:

Berry’s Eagles: Live Video & Lesson Plans

Learner.org: Eagle’s Eye anatomy & journaling project

Eagle Habitat Photography Gallery

“Focus on Feathers: Journey North Bald Eagles” Slideshow

Multiple Lesson Plans centered around eagles (printable PDF)