Posts by Achilles Seastrom

Despite first appearances, prairies aren’t just made of grass. There’s much more out there on the wide-open plains. Broadly, prairie vegetation falls into four categories: grasses, sedges, rushes, and forbs. So, how do you tell what’s what?

An Iowan sets out to visit every county park in the state

New Klingman Etringer WMA in Clayton County creates more public access and honors family legacy

Spring in Iowa is alive with colors! Birds migrate back and flowers begin to bloom. There’s even fish, bugs, butterflies and colorful tree blooms to find. You have a whole rainbow of colors to explore in Iowa. When you’re walking through your neighborhood, out at the playground or visiting your county and state parks, you can look out for some of these rainbow birds and flowers.

Humans like to toss all kinds of things into our yards for birds to use. Hair from a brush, freshly groomed dog fur, scrap bits of sewing projects, dryer lint. We like to help and we like to think of nestlings cozied up in a soft, warm home, but not everything is as helpful as we’d like.

Since baby birds deserve a soft, warm, and safe nest, it’s important to know what’s safe and what isn’t.

Each spring brings back birds we haven’t seen since they left Iowa last fall. April – May is a great time to watch your backyard, your favorite park or the playground at school for the return of our feathered friends.

Hannah Hageman and Jessica Paul sign on as temporary Field Assistants.

INHF is excited to introduce Tanner Bouchard — as our first Lakes Area Land Stewardship Director, Tanner will be a permanent staff presence focused on stewardship and conservation of INHF-protected lands in northwest Iowa through direct land restoration planning and management activities.

Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation is pleased to introduce Greg Schmitt as INHF’s Eastern Iowa Community Engagement Coordinator. This position will enhance INHF’s presence in the Eastern Iowa region, developing partner and community relationships.

Beavers are talented engineers — try this experiment to see how hard they work!

How nature shapes our world

You probably know about constellations, but do you know how to find them?