Young Naturalist Programs

We had some good luck fishing this summer with the young naturalist students. Bullheads mostly, but they are great fun and typically eager to bite. One girl caught over 20 in the hour or so that we fished.

It’s always especially rewarding to help kids catch their first ever fish. I had two students this summer in that situation.

In the stream wading classes, we had a few unique events. In one stream, we had a muskrat swim around us underwater. It was a clear shallow stream and it was very interesting to watch the little guy swim. He went back and forth a few times before finally heading to shore where he climbed up the bank and disappeared in the grass.

In the causal survey of life in the streams, I found caddisflys which indicate good water quality, but less species of minnows than normal. I also found abundant clams, again good water quality indicators, but less numbers of species. So, a mixed review at best.