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.

As our busiest seasons come to a close, we're shifting gears to focus on projects that took a back seat over the spring, summer, and fall. With a busy conference schedule ahead and the holidays just around the corner, we’re pausing public programs to concentrate on other parts of our work, including private programs, conference presentations, and ongoing projects. Keep an eye on our social media, just in case we can't resist hosting a pop-up program or two!

We are so grateful for the community growing around the KU Field Station and look forward to reconnecting with you in person in the new year. Watch for a December newsletter in your inbox; we’ll share a glimpse of what’s ahead, along with updates on projects we’re working on behind the scenes. Science Sundays will return to kick off the new year in January.

Thank you for your continued support, curiosity, and enthusiasm!

~ KU Field Station Staff

October was a special month at the KU Field Station, in large part because we hosted what seems to have been the very first public Visitors' Day in our 75-year history! Community members were invited to tour research-only areas, chat with researchers, and learn more about the field station. Despite unseasonably warm temperatures, over 170 people attended, including first-time visitors, program regulars, researchers, volunteers, and staff. We will host another Visitors' Day in the fall of 2026, and we’re already excited for it!

Each year, a crew gathers on 10,000 acres of privately owned shortgrass prairie in Western Kansas to survey for one of North America’s most endangered mammals, the Black-footed Ferret. Wendy Holman (KU Field Station) joined the survey team again this year. Timed around the full moon, the surveys run from sunset to sunrise to match the nocturnal hunting habits of these elusive creatures. This place, which supports Kansas' largest prairie dog colony, is among the most wildlife-rich in Western Kansas and is a prime example of how cattle ranching and wildlife conservation can coexist successfully. This site is one of 30 designated locations for the reintroduction of Black-footed Ferrets across their historic range. It is among the most successful due to the absence of sylvatic plague, a disease that devastates prairie dog and ferret populations, posing a significant challenge to their recovery.

Over four nights, twelve teams in trucks equipped with bright spotlights surveyed the ranch, spotting 29 different ferrets, and successfully capturing 14. Each captured ferret was vaccinated against distemper and sylvatic plague, treated for fleas and ticks, and scanned for a microchip. Any ferret without a microchip is wild born and has not been caught in previous surveys. Wild born ferrets are especially exciting, because they are evidence that captive-born ferrets released from the National Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center are surviving and thriving. Eight of the captured ferrets were wild-born juveniles from six different areas, representing at least six different litters. This year’s survey results confirm that ferrets at this site are reproducing, surviving year to year, and are well-distributed across the available habitat, positive signs that this continues to be a successful reintroduction site.

One ferret in particular was a very special capture for Wendy and her crew (pictured top right). On the second night of the survey, Wendy’s team caught an unchipped ferret and brought her to the vet trailer for vaccinations and microchipping. Initially, they thought she was a large, wild-born juvenile, but upon closer examination, they quickly realized she was much older. Black-footed Ferrets are serious predators who rarely live longer than three to four years in the wild. Her teeth showed significant wear, and some were cracked or broken, indicating that she was at least three years old. What makes her even more special is that she had been nursing a litter. This resilient female managed to elude capture in previous surveys and has thrived in the wild, raising new generations of wild ferrets. Despite her worn teeth and the demands of motherhood, she was healthy and strong. If there’s a testament to the recovery efforts’ success, it is this ferret, who embodies hope that Black-footed Ferrets can not only survive, but thrive in the wild, just as nature intended.

We hosted a Community Burn Workshop that brought together students, local residents, and tribal community members to learn about fire culture. This learning community included participants with a wide range of fire stewardship experience, from first-timers to seasoned practitioners.

The workshop began in the classroom, where participants learned foundational principles for using fire to improve ecosystem health. After lunch, we moved outdoors to apply this knowledge to the landscape. Participants had the chance to burn two 0.1-acre test plots, giving them hands-on experience with different tools and roles along the fire line.

This Saturday, weather permitting, we will hold the second part of the workshop, featuring a larger 5-acre Cultural Fire Demonstration at the here-ing labyrinth in the Suzanne Ecke McColl Nature Preserve.

This two-part series was supported by the Douglas County Heritage Conservation Council and resulted from a collaborative, cross-campus effort between Sheena Parsons (KU Field Station), Melinda Adams (Department of Geography & Atmospheric Science; Indigenous Studies), and Keith Van de Riet (School of Architecture and Design).

We are lucky to learn in community with all of you to support land stewards in caring for the land. If you missed this workshop, don’t worry! We plan to offer more burn workshops in the future.

We were so happy that it was such beautiful day for the Baldwin Woods Fall Tour. After both last year’s spring and fall tours were canceled due to weather, it was especially rewarding to enjoy this magical place with so many curious people. Our tour leaders brought a wide range of expertise, covering topics from ecosystems and land use history to mosses, lichens, and everything in between. It’s always wonderful to see people slow down, observe closely, and let their curiosity take over.

Not on social media? No problem.

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

🥰 Practicing respect and appreciation for local wildlife. 🐍

These warm fall days have snakes moving to their overwintering locations, and we're always happy to adjust our plans to learn about the ones that cross our paths. Every encounter is an opportunity to be curious and better understand the roles of these shy animals in our shared ecosystems.

Featuring: Western Ratsnake [𝘗𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘣𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘶𝘴] and Ring-necked Snake [𝘋𝘪𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴]

Restoration work is important and rewarding, but it can also be frustrating and overwhelming, especially when you're up against a fast-growing invasive like Johnsongrass. Once established, it is hard to remove, and efforts can feel futile at times. Habitat restoration doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a long, gradual process that can take years. But it's worth it. 🌻🌱🌾

People often share before and after photos of restorations, but it’s important to talk about what happens in between, too. Progress isn’t always obvious, or pretty, and that can be discouraging. We want to share the effort, emotions, and struggles involved during restorations like these with other land stewards, especially those just starting out, to normalize this part of the process.

Humans want quick results, but restoration requires patience and commitment. Grant funding, if there is any, might only last a year or two, but restoration takes much longer. Excitement fades, momentum slows, but it is important to not give up!

Yesterday, we were reminded to trust the process and that progress ✨IS✨ happening, even if it’s hard to see at first. Amid this sea of Johnsongrass, small signs of hope are hiding: Sideoats Grama, spread as seeds by volunteers this spring, are now producing seeds of their own; Yarrows are pushing out their little feathery leaves; tiny Coreopsis blooms are adding splashes of color to the green; baby Illinois Bundleflowers are taking root; and Grayhead Coneflowers are growing the leaves they’ll use to get energy to flower next year. For these native species, and all of the others that are still hiding below, we keep working, because they deserve it.

This field is part of here-ing, an environmentally embedded artwork by Janine Antoni. Restoration efforts rely on help from volunteers and partners. We’ll be calling for volunteers again soon because we need your help, and so do the native species trying to regain their foothold here. Every little bit makes a difference. 💚

🌿✨ Community Spotlight: Meet a Creature! ✨🌿
 
This gentle "giant" is a common sight at the KU Field Station, especially around this time of year when they’re on the move for important millipede reasons. The Giant American Millipede (Narceus americanus) is a detritivore, feeding mostly on decaying leaf litter and wood and playing a key role in breaking down forest debris and cycling nutrients.

While their maximum lifespan is unknown, some individuals have been documented to live up to 11 years! 🤯

Unlike other millipedes that lay hundreds of eggs, female Giant American Millipedes lay just one egg in a nest made of chewed-up leaves. The mother curls around the egg to protect it until it hatches several weeks later. Baby millipedes hatch with seven body segments and three pairs of legs, and are ready to venture off on their own. They add more body segments and legs each time they molt for the next couple of years until they reach their adult size of around 4" with 300-400 legs. 

The Giant American Millipede is harmless and tolerant of gentle handling, but they can release a smelly, irritating fluid if they feel threatened. Next time you see one, take a moment to appreciate their long lives, great parenting skills, and the important role they play in the ecosystem! 𓆨𓆨𓆨

💙🌾 Best classroom on campus 🌾❤️

Featuring: Field Ecology [EVRN 460]

#ThrowbackThursday to the 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦-𝘪𝘯𝘨 documentary screening earlier this month! 🎬✨

It was such a fun experience, with the sounds of the natural world blending perfectly with the film's audio track as the sky darkened around us. 🦉🦗

Should we plan another outdoor movie night, maybe with a full-length film? Let us know! 🎥 🌕

University of Kansas Field Station Mission: 

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

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