Monarch butterfly Tagging
On August 26 Kelsey Moe, the naturalist for Fort Ridgely, Minneopa and Flandrau State Parks, held a monarch tagging event at Fort Ridgely. About 20 people showed up to take part in this process. Kelsey showed us how to catch them with a butterfly net. The technique is to come from below when they are on a flower and turn the net quickly before they fly out the top. Catching them with a net while they are flying is more likely to damage their wings. It sounds easy but I missed many times or did not turn the net over before they flew away. Still, I caught 5 and two of those in one swipe with two on the same blazing star flower stalk. There were a number of middle school students who were much more adept at catching them than me.
We then brought the caught butterflies to Kelsey to be tagged. She showed us how to hold them without damaging their wings. Below is a picture of Kelsey gently holding the abdomen of a monarch that we caught. She also said that if we hold the wings, we should hold them between our fingers as I am in the second picture. We have less oil between our fingers than on our fingertips. If you look closely on both butterflies we have already put the small circular tags on their wings. After tagging them we put them in a cage that Kelsey had brought. This was so we didn't catch them a second time and cause more stress. Kelsey ran out of tags after 35 butterflies were caught so we stopped collecting them. She had ordered 100 tags and had done 65 at Minneopa already with a similar event there,
Kelsey Moe holding a tagged monarch butterfly by the abdomen.
Bix Baker holding a tagged monarch between his fingers .
The most fun part was letting them go. Here is a a link to my You Tube channel to watch a video I took of Kelsey letting all 35 monarchs go. My wife Becky is the one saying "Be free!" in the video.
https://youtube.com/shorts/2k74tMsU7Gg?si=Oa32Ncysb9d3FaWF
The reason we tag them is so scientists can track the migration of monarchs down to their winter nesting grounds in Mexico. This last or super generation of monarchs that are here now fly all the way down there and overwinter on trees there and fly part way back in the spring before they lay their eggs and start the first generation of monarch butterflies for next year. Some of the second or third generation make it to Minnesota next summer. I am including two maps of their migration put out by two different groups trying to conserve monarch habitat. The tags are small and light enough to not hinder their flights either way. Kelsey recorded each tag number that we put on the monarchs and also the sex of the butterfly. She is going to send any who gave their e-mails any news she gets it about people that saw the monarchs we tagged along the way down or back up. The organization that sent her the tags, and she sent the info to, keep track of any sightings of tagged butterflies. I gave her my e-mail and will put in a future update anything I hear from her about these butterflies.
Becky and I went to the Gibbon sunflower field on Labor Day. There were lots of monarchs going from flower to flower. At night monarchs often roost in trees nearby where they are feeding. During migration they are often in large groups and come down and rest in trees for the night or longer if the conditions are not right to go on. Once in a while people are privileged to see a roosting site for monarchs.
Monarchs roosting on the tree across the road from the historic site at Fort Ridgely in 2019. It was a little dark but if you zoom in you can see there were lots of them roosting. Becky and I just got back from looking at this tree and none are roosting now. In fact, there are not as many foraging on the flowers nearby as on the day of tagging. Most of the monarchs we caught were from near this tree,
This is a picture from this year by Maggie Schafer Buettner, (who wrote a blurb for this update on raising monarchs on July 20, 2020) I assume taken next to the sunflower field in Gibbon. Her family planted the sunflowers and have lots more pictures on her Facebook pages of the monarchs and the sunflower field. I also did an article on monarch migration on the September 20, 2022 update.
This picture was in the local paper this week of another roosting site,
Park improvements
"The new campground sanitation building is finally open! It's a beautiful building with two restrooms, two shower rooms, and a dish cleaning sink. The exterior stonework was planned to look similar to the CCC buildings in the park.
Our little free library was built and donated by Duane Hansel of New Ulm. He did amazing work! I'm trying to coordinate a time we can get him and someone from the Journal to come out and take pictures for the paper.
You could also point people to the DNR's fall color website - https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/fall_colors/index.html, updated weekly, if you want to.
Also also, all campgrounds and outdoor spigots will be shut down for the season on October 22. The chalet is rentable year-round, however."
Above is a quote from Joanne Svendsen, from the park staff.
South end of the new sanitation building. The door on the left is to a shower and bathroom. The right door is to a bathroom. The north end also has 2 similar rooms.
New little free library by the bathrooms. Donated and built by Duane Hansel of New Ulm.
In.side one of the bathrooms
Changing table on opposite wall and entrance of bathroom.
Shower and sink in the other room on the south side. There is another toilet next to the sink.
Both the changing table and seat for the shower fold up along the wall for more space when not in use in the shower room.
The east side of the sanitation building.
Closeup of the dishwashing sink on the east side.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation has been working on the east side of the park along highway 4 and in several creek beds below into the park. It is meant to be erosion control for the road on the hill down into the Minnesota river valley. They are scheduled to complete their work by September 21 according to Joanne. Here are some pictures of the results of their work along the east trail that runs parallel to the highway 4.
Rip rap put recently into the creek bed of the first creek encountered on the trail after ascending down the trail from the overlook that is reached from the prairie trail that goes south from airplane hill.
A close up of the rip rap in the creek bed just east of the trail.
A culvert was installed under the trail for the water to flow through. A small wooden bridge used to be here but its condition had worsened so that it had benn pushed to the side.
The other side of the culvert flows into a gully that has gotten deep in the last few years. The rip rap stops just on the other side of the culvert.
A new culvert was put under highway 4 and comes out at a high point in the trail.
The trail that had been messed up by their work in the spring is now widened and has wood mulch put on it in places by the DOT.
The southernmost creek that flows into a small swamp next to the south bridge across Fort Ridgely Creekwas also changed, So far rhey have only put rip rap along highway 4 (see the guard rails above) and wher 2 culverts come under the road.
I am not sure if there is a spring coming from the hill here but this water flowing by the swamp on the left does not come from the two culverts under the highway.
Upcoming Interpretive Programming
Stories of the Night Sky: Campfire Program
September 29, 2023 at 7pm
Have you ever wondered why some of the stars have their own names and constellations? Or how stars and constellations are formed and what role they play in the galaxy and larger universe? Join a park naturalist (Kelsey Moe) to discover everything there is to know about the stars and constellations and hear some of their stories as these lights in the dark sky travel above us each and every night.
If interested, please meet at the Picnic Shelter in the Campground at 7pm.
A Minnesota State Park Vehicle Permit is required to attend this event.
Cell Phones in Nature- September 30, 2023 from 2:00 - 3:00 pm Technology, like cell phones, can be used to help you appreciate the natural things at Fort Ridgely. Meet Bix Baker, volunteer naturalist for Fort Ridgely, in the upper picnic shelter to download a few apps onto your cell phones and take them out to help you identify birds (by their song or a picture), plants, insects, mushrooms and animals. Good information about each item is often there on the app to give you new insights into how they fit into the beautiful ecosystem we live in.
Glow Hike Event- September 30, 2023 from 6:00 - 9:00pm Enjoy the thrill of hiking at night on an illuminated trail to greet the passing of the Harvest Moon at Flandrau State Park. There will be a park naturalist-led program, warm refreshments, a campfire to warm your hands, and plenty of opportunities to get outside and have fun with friends and family.
The trail is a one-mile loop that is flat and suitable for people of all ages. Because the path is not paved, please wear sturdy and comfortable shoes. To be as bright as the moon, we recommend bringing glow sticks or wearing glow-in-the-dark paint.
Please meet at the Beach House to join the fun. A valid Minnesota State Park Vehicle Permit is required to attend this free event. A daily permit may be purchased for $7 or an annual for $35. Parking is available in the Beach House parking lot.
As a final note I went for a walk along the trail affected by the MNDOT work and noticed that they had seeded and covered with a straw covering in many of the places.
Here is an example of the seeding and covering at the first creek on the trail after coming down from the south overlook. My wife Becky is on the trail and you can see the culvert at the left that goes under the trail.