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In This Issue

Cabot Students Visit Big Creek Natural Area and Learn About Water Quality

Jason Throneberry, Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission (ANHC) Aquatic Species Biologist, recently gave a hands-on water quality sampling presentation at Big Creek Natural Area to a group of Cabot High School 11th and 12th grade science students. Science teacher, Mrs. Carmen Tharp, and her classes have been collecting basic water quality samples at Big Creek NA since 2001, measuring for temperature, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, pH, and other factors.

Throneberry demonstrated his water quality sampling regime, as well as his methods for macroinvertebrate and fish collection. Twice a year, he collects macroinvertebrates and once a year, he collects fish. Throneberry works closely with the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, who analyzes his samples in their lab. In addition to the analyses of the chemical components of the water, the biotic components (macroinvertebrates and fish) provide biologists with insight into overall stream health. 

Throneberry identified the macroinvertebrates and fish the students had collected and explained animals specialized roles of the animals within the entire stream ecosystem. He also spoke about the role of water quality and quantity.

Living Close to Nature Is Good For You

Many Arkansans who choose to live in sparsely populated areas outside the limits of  a city enjoy the aesthetic benefits of living near undeveloped green spaces. One study found that those who live next door to nature may be healthier than those who live in a city neighborhood.

A 2010 article in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health documented a study in which the medical charts of 345,000 people in Holland were correlated to the person’s address and how close it was to a park, natural area, or other green space. People living near these areas had lower rates of 15 out of 24 diseases, including asthma, diabetes, intestinal complaints, and back and neck problems.  

The strongest correlation was found between lack of green space and higher rates of depression and anxiety. People whose environment was 90 percent green were significantly less likely to have an anxiety disorder than those living where it was only 10 percent green (18 out of 1,000 versus 26 out of 1,000). This is the first large-scale study that relied on medical data rather than individuals’ perceptions to make a correlation between nature and health.

If you want to improve your health, but feel you must live in an urban area, take heart.  A study conducted by Exeter Medical School and published this month in the journal Environmental Science & Technology tracked 1,064 participants over a five-year period, following participants who were moving to an urban area with more green spaces (such as parks and gardens) and participants who were moving to an urban area with fewer green spaces.  Researchers found that those moving to an urban area with more green spaces experienced improvements in their mental health after their move. 

The study assigned mental health scores based on answers to a General Health Questionnaire which included questions about a diagnosis of mental health disorders (such as depression and anxiety). Participants were still experiencing mental health benefits three years after their initial move. 


Groundhog Day Fun Facts

Groundhog Day is celebrated in Canada and the United States on February 2 each year. It has its roots in European traditions marking the midpoint of winter. When German settlers arrived in the United States in the 1700s, they brought a tradition known as Candlemas Day that came at the midpoint between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. Celestially speaking, February 2 is that day. Superstition told that if the weather was nice on that day, the second half of winter would be stormy and cold.  

In Europe, it was a hedgehog that was watched with hope that he would not see his shadow.  When settlers arrived in America, there were no hedgehogs to be found, so they adopted the groundhog as the new world's weather forecaster.  The groundhog may have been chosen because it wintered underground like the hedgehog and because the Native Americans in the region respected the animal greatly, considering it to be a wise and sensible animal.

Read more about groundhogs on the Natural Features section of our website. 


Beatrix Potter: Well-Known Author and Mycologist

Helen Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is so well known for her children's books (with characters such as Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle-Duck) that the cover of the book Les Champignons may be surprising to most readers. What does Beatrix Potter have to do with champignons (various edible mushrooms)?

For some years of her life Potter was a careful observer of fungi and lichens and Les Champignons reproduces about 65 of her fungal paintings. 

Visit the Natural Features section of our website to learn more about Beatrix Potter’s scientific work.

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