|
In This Issue:
From The President To unsubscribe to this newsletter, please email Ganay Johnson at ganay@americanprairie.org By the Numbers: 4 - number of species of grouse native to the Great Plains (sharptailed and greater sage grouse, and the greater and lesser prairie chickens). 100 - pounds - weight of a mature pallid sturgeon, a member of an ancient order of cartilaginous fishes that has survived almost unchanged for some 70 million years - these fish reach up to 6 feet long! |
A Message From The President
The Reserve is alive with activity as winter is rapidly giving way to spring on the prairie. Our partners at World Wildlife Fund (WWF) are busy preparing for another season of habitat enhancement work on prairie streams, which this year includes a survey to determine types of fish and amphibians that inhabit these critical waterways. APF Board and National Council members have been spending increasing amounts of time in and around the Reserve. Board member Clyde Aspevig and his wife Carol Guzman, both well-known artists, recently conducted a workshop and an advanced art class in the nearby town of Malta. National Council member Eric Schneider visited Hays-Lodge Pole High School to prepare teachers and students for participation in a fascinating new large-scale effort to gather comprehensive weather data across a big swath of the glaciated plains. A huge thank you to George Horse Capture Jr. for helping to make this dream a reality. Bison calves join the legion of other new arrivals this month as babies seem to be everywhere. Pronghorn, elk, foxes, badgers, cougars, grassland birds and many other species are all engaged in the rites of spring, which are focused on introducing their new little ones to the big world of life on the prairie. We hope you can visit us soon while the activity is at its peak. A huge thank you to National Council member George Horse Capture Jr. for helping to make this dream a reality. Thank you from all of us for you continued support for this project. Sincerely, John Larson Memorial Fund
American Prairie Foundation is honored to be the recipient for gifts for the John Larson Memorial. John had tremendous vision and was one of the early pioneers for our project. We extend our deep appreciation and gratitude to the Larson Family for allowing us to be part of this tribute. Please send checks payable to American Prairie Foundation: John Larson Memorial Or donate online at www.americanprairie.org What We're Reading Now
A Word Of Thanks
The First Spring Calf Has Arrived on the Reserve!
World Wildlife Fund Science Update - Prairie Stream Survey
Photo Credit: www.kestrelarial.com May On The Prairie
Babies are coming! The spring arrival of bison calves and pronghorn fawns begins this month. And to set a beautiful background, the prairie wildflowers will spread their colorful blooms throughout the prairie.
Photo Credit - Top Right: Dennis Lingohr APF and You - Clyde Aspevig & Carol Guzman Aspevig Share Their Artistic Talents with Malta Community
The next day, Clyde, a master of stunning outdoor landscapes, and Carol, noted for her still lifes and portraits, worked with 11 Malta High School advanced art students. After learning about color, shading, perspective and shapes, the students created their own oil paintings under the Aspevigs' guidance. The students were delighted to work with 'real artists', and several expressed interest in becoming artists. With their workshops, Clyde and Carol brought great joy and lasting memories to the Phillips County community. |
Dear Friends of the American Prairie Reserve,
Recently John Larson, a dear friend of American Prairie Foundation, passed away. John was an amazing man who believed in our project to build this extraordinary national wildlife reserve. To honor his memory a special fund has been set up by the Larson Family. As John's daughter Suki has stated, "APF is a group with which my father became involved over the past years and one which he believed in and enjoyed very much…Our goal is to raise $25,000 to reach 'Band of Bison' level at the APF, which means we name and adopt one of the bison that are critical to rebuilding the bison population in North America. My father adopted a bison called Sophie and is in the process of adopting one called Erin, in honor of each of his grandchildren. We would like to adopt a bison to be called John that can wander through the Montana prairie landscape with Sophie and Erin as founding members of a new population of bison."
We are delighted to announce the arrival of the first calf of the season. APF staff members Bill Willcutt and Greg Fagenstrom were fortunate to be on hand shortly after the birth, and we have Buffalo Bill to thank for these wonderful photos. The proud mother is one of APF’s first heifer calves, brought from Wind Cave in 2005.
“String of pearls” is one phrase used to describe the pattern of pools separated by dry ground in an intermittent (flowing only a portion of the year) prairie stream. When not flowing, these pools provide essential refugia for numerous native prairie fish. In Montana, prairie streams are a stronghold of native biodiversity with over 25 native fish species, 14 amphibian and reptile species, and more than 130 bird species. 
In early April, a team from World Wildlife Fund, led by Martha Kauffman, conducted an aerial survey of six streams on and near American Prairie Reserve to document the pools where fish refugia may exist. The prairie had very little snowpack this winter, and spring precipitation has yet to fall (we have received less than 1 inch of precipitation since October!), thus an aerial survey of streams in early April marks a significantly dry spell. WWF documented pools with GPS points and photographs on four of the six streams. They anticipate taking an inventory of many of these refugia to determine which fish and amphibians utilize these habitats and to improve their understanding of the role residual pools play in the life cycle and persistence of native prairie fish.
It’s time to dance! Sharp-tailed Grouse and Greater Sage Grouse males are dancing on their leks (breeding grounds) right now, strutting their stuff with a bright display of airsacs and tailfeathers as they court females watching from the wings (so to speak….). Other grassland birds are starting to breed too.
On Sunday, April 13th, APF Board Member © 2004-2008 American Prairie Foundation All Rights Reserved