Hello, friend of the KU Field Station!

May has been a busy and exciting month as field season enters full swing. We welcomed many visitors ready to learn and explore, prepared for the upcoming Ecosystems of Kansas Summer Institute, and made plans to connect with colleagues at The Virtual Field year-end meeting at the Raystown Field Station in Pennsylvania. Field crews are back in action, bringing energy and enthusiasm to ongoing research projects, and we broke ground on a new public trail at Baldwin Woods Forest Preserve. 

As we move toward the official start of summer, the field station is buzzing with life. We’re grateful for the continued support from our community and are looking forward to the month ahead.

Best,
Wendy

Friday, June 20 | 7 p.m. – sunset | 1865 E 1600 Rd, Lawrence, KS 66044

Join the Douglas County Extension Master Gardeners, KU faculty, staff and students for our annual summer solstice celebration at the Native Medicinal Plant Research Garden. Kelly Kindscher, Kansas Biological Survey & Center for Ecological Research scientist and professor in the KU Environmental Studies Program, will give an overview of the research gardens and highlight important species. We will explore the garden and see the work of the Douglas County Extension Master Gardeners. 

What to bring: Comfortable shoes, a water bottle, a lawn chair if you want to sit and watch the sunset.

No RSVP is required. For weather updates closer to the event, check the Douglas County Master Gardeners Facebook page.

Questions? Contact Kelly Kindscher at kindsche@ku.edu.

Saturday, June 21 | 7:30 P.M. | here-ing at the KU Field Station

Celebrate the changing seasons with us in 2025! Join for the second of a series of seasonal walks, each marking an equinox or solstice. Together, we will walk the here-ing labyrinth, welcoming each new season with intention and connection to the land. 

Visiting the same place throughout the year offers an opportunity to observe change: subtle shifts in color, new growth emerging, the arrival and departure of different animals, the way light moves through the landscape. By grounding ourselves and following the path, we can take this time to notice the beauty of the world around us and embrace the transition of the seasons, quietly and in community.

Every place has its own seasonal rhythm, and after fall and spring burns, this year is the perfect time to begin learning the unique rhythm of the here-ing landscape together. We will watch plants reawaken, grow, and transform as the year unfolds.

With the arrival of summer, wildflowers bring bursts of color to the here-ing landscape, drawing in pollinators and other wildlife whose movements and sounds create a vibrant hum of seasonal activity.

Come walk with us!

What to expect: The here-ing labyrinth is a narrow, dirt path created and sustained by footsteps. It is approximately one mile (one way) long and takes about an hour to walk in and out. Elevation change is minimal. Click here to learn more about here-ing.

What to bring: Closed-toed shoes, long pants, water bottle. 

Where: Roth Trailhead, 2055 E 1600 Road, Lawrence, Kansas 66044 (Google Maps)

To register, please email Wendy (wendyholman@ku.edu).

This program is weather permitting, so please make sure to register to receive updates from Wendy in case of changes due to the forecast.

Sunday, June 22 | 2:00 p.m. | Armitage Education Center, KU Field Station

June Topic: When Lakes Turn Toxic: Understanding and Predicting Harmful Algal Blooms

Toxic blue-green algal blooms are appearing in lakes across Kansas, posing risks to people, pets, and wildlife. Understanding these harmful algal blooms (HABs) is essential to protecting our water, our health, and the ecosystems we rely on. But what exactly are blue-green algae, why do these blooms occur, and how can we predict them before they happen?

Join Ted Harris, Associate Research Professor with the Kansas Biological Survey and Center for Ecological Research, for an inside look at the science behind HABs. Ted and the Lake Assessment team conduct large-scale experiments in replicated ponds and tanks at the KU Field Station and study algal blooms in reservoirs across Kansas. Their work focuses on identifying the environmental conditions that trigger blooms, understanding why some are more toxic than others, and finding ways to better predict and mitigate their impact. Come learn why this research matters to everyone who depends on clean, safe water!

Where: KU Field Station, Armitage Education Center, 350 Wild Horse Road, Lawrence, Kansas 66044

What to bring: A mug for tea/coffee to help us reduce waste.

Please RSVP to Wendy (wendyholman@ku.edu) as space is limited. It also helps us plan for seating and snacks!

Science Sundays is a monthly series of talks covering a variety of science topics, including research happening at the KU Field Station. These free talks are open to everyone but may not interest younger audiences. You don't have to be a scientist to attend, just curious about the natural world!

When life gives you blackberries, make something delicious!

The stubborn blackberry patch at Rockefeller Prairie is gearing up for a bumper crop, and we’re planning to make the most of it. Whether you turn them into jam, pie, cobbler, smoothies, or eat them fresh off the stem, we invite you to join us for a pop-up blackberry picking party later this month!

Blackberries are tasty, but they’re also aggressive growers and can crowd out prairie plants. By picking berries, you’ll help remove the seeds and support the prairie’s health. And it's just fun! Keep an eye on the KU Field Station Instagram and Facebook for the date and details, and start thinking about all the delicious things you’ll make with your haul! 

It’s almost Hackberry Emperor butterfly time!

Each year in late May and early June, thousands of Hackberry Emperor butterflies (Asterocampa celtis) gather along E1600 Road near the entrance to the Fitch Natural History Reservation. These butterflies, whose caterpillars feed exclusively on hackberry leaves, often appear in impressive numbers, but only for a brief time.

Emergence from their chrysalises should begin any day now. We will share an update on the KU Field Station Instagram and Facebook if activity picks up so you can plan a visit. If you go, be sure to take a few minutes to stand still near the metal gates at the entrance. Many butterfly species engage in a behavior called puddling, where they seek minerals from mud, rotting fruit, or animal poop. Hackberry Emperors are among the few species that regularly puddle on people to sip salt from sweat. They are known to be especially “affectionate” puddlers, and you could quickly find yourself enjoying a real-life Disney princess moment, covered in fluttering butterflies.

Liberty Memorial Central Middle School’s 7th grade wrapped up the school year with a field trip to the KU Field Station. On the hottest day of the year so far, five classes hiked a 2-mile trail loop and rotated through five curriculum-linked stations focused on prairies, ponds, forests, and connecting to place. A young Virginia Opossum surprised students at the start of the day, setting the stage for a fun day of outdoor learning. Students became cartographers, naturalists, artists, and more as they caught frogs, calculated prairie plant ratios, estimated tree heights, wrote poetry, and mapped the Kaw River Valley.

One student was overheard saying “When you take away my phone and my iPad, it turns out that I actually like nature and stuff.” We'll call that a win!

Thank you to everyone who volunteered to help support these young learners!

Exciting changes are underway at the Rice Woodland, part of the Baldwin Woods Forest Preserve! On May 5, we broke ground on a new public trail that will wind through the 80 acre tract, including the area where prescribed fire was reintroduced in 2023. We hope that this new trail will expand opportunities for research, education, and community exploration. To support safe access for all, including school buses and larger vehicles, a stand of Eastern Redcedar is being cleared to make space for a dedicated parking area.

While construction is underway, Baldwin Woods remains open for research and guided visits only. Public events are coming this fall and spring, and once the trail is complete, it will be open daily from dawn to dusk.

This project is funded in part by the Douglas County Heritage Conservation Council through a federal Open Spaces grant. Stay tuned for updates and opportunities to connect with the land, KU researchers, and community partners as the project unfolds!

It has been a pleasure to watch students with the Phoenix Collective grow over the school year as they deepened their understanding and appreciation of the natural world. From making observations and asking questions to collecting data and sharing discoveries, they brought openness and curiosity to every experience. They consistently showed up with respect for the plants, animals, and each other, and with a willingness to support and learn from one another.

We can't wait to see what next year brings. Happy summer, y'all!

A new field crew of undergrad and grad students has kicked off their summer work with the Bever/Schultz lab on the long-running New Roots for Restoration project. This project aims to answer questions related to how soil microbes influence prairie communities, climate change resilience of prairies, soil carbon sequestration, and more. Over the coming months, the crew will tend to experimental plots, collect data, and gain hands-on experience in ecological research. Whether it’s their first season in the field or they’re returning for their second (or third!) season, we’re glad to have their energy and enthusiasm at the field station!

At the end of May, the KU Biodiversity Institute & Natural History Museum hosted the Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections annual meeting. A group of nature-loving attendees from the US, UK, and India spent a soggy but fun day at our field station for a pre-conference field trip. We started at here-ing, walking the labyrinth and “grazing” Johnsongrass, then headed to Rockefeller Prairie with Helen Alexander for a guided walk, learning about the history of the area and enjoying a rare Mead’s Milkweed in full bloom.

After a lunch-and-learn focused on the importance of field stations, participants learned about several ongoing research projects with presentations from KU Mammalogy, New Roots for Restoration, NEON, and the Lake Assessment Lab. With attendees visiting from around the world, it was fun to introduce some of them to prairie ecosystems for the very first time. Along the way, we were lucky to find several snake species, including two Timber Rattlesnakes, which was especially exciting for those who had never seen a rattlesnake before.

Thank you to everyone who shared their research and helped highlight what makes our field station so great!

Not on social media? No problem.

Here are a few of our favorites from the past month. 

☀️ Just vibin'. 😎

🐸 Two physically identical species of Gray Treefrog (𝘋𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘺𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘳𝘺𝘴𝘰𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘴/𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘳) live in Kansas. The Cope's Gray Treefrog (𝘋𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘺𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘳𝘺𝘴𝘰𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘴) is the more common species in our area. It has long been thought that the two species can only be distinguished by their calls or genetics, but recent studies suggest that it may be a little more complicated than that.

🐸 Individual Gray Treefrogs can completely change their color from green to mottled gray to camouflage with their surroundings.

🐍☀️ Summer means field season, and KU’s Field Herpetology students are learning in the best way! ☀️🐍

At the KU Field Station, longtime home of renowned herpetologist Henry Fitch, students explored his old stomping grounds while searching for snakes and getting hands-on field experience. The day didn’t disappoint, with finds including the Eastern Copperhead, North American Racer, Western Wormsnake, Eastern Milksnake, and more!

Researchers from the Missouri Botanical Garden are back this season, working to better understand the evolutionary and ecological causes and consequences of rarity in endangered plant species, like this Mead's Milkweed. 🌿🐝🔍

Tiny markers on the flowers help them monitor pollination by tracking how many pollinaria, which are specialized pollen structures that stick to visiting pollinators, have been removed. This gives researchers a clearer picture of how successfully this rare milkweed reproduces.

Us too, kid. Us too. 🐸🐞💜

Milkweed season is here! 🌸🦋

🌿 Mead’s Milkweed (𝘈𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘱𝘪𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘪)
💜 Purple Milkweed (𝘈𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘱𝘪𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘴)
🕷️ Spider Milkweed (𝘈𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘱𝘪𝘢𝘴 𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘴)

Which one is your favorite?

This is the monthly newsletter for the University of Kansas Field Station community. Each month, we share details about upcoming public programs, volunteer opportunities, and highlights from the month before. 

To read previous issues, please visit our newsletter archives.

If you have questions, please feel free to reach out to Wendy at wendyholman@ku.edu.

University of Kansas Field Station Mission: 

   To foster scholarly research, environmental education and science-based stewardship of natural resources.

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