by John Besser, Nature Areas Chair

 Nature Area Activities – Summer 2024

• At Columbia Audubon Nature Sanctuary, Area Manager, Bill Mees continued to work on invasive species control. The abundant rains have encouraged Common Mullein and Sericea Lespedeza and increased the need for mowing around the CANS parking lot, areas bordering yards of two neighbors and over 2 miles natural surface trails.
• Deer browsing is changing the composition of the vegetative landscape at CANS. Zach Nikin from the Columbia Parksand Recreation Department invited Columbia Audubon to talk to participants in the special archery deer hunt, and Allison Vaughn developed a few slides to present to archery hunters.  CAS is encouraging the hunters to harvest does, which may have a greater effect on the deer population.
• Wild Haven Nature Area Manager, David Neely, has mostly been busy elsewhere this summer, but he plans to work on control of Autumn Olive in areas bordering hiking trails and O’Rear Road.
• The new outhouse has been getting a lot of use, but not enough clean-up by users. We are considering options for encouraging responsible use, such as a lock with combination shared among chapter members.

 Nature Areas Planning

• The Nature Areas Committee met several times this summer to discuss the status of the CAS Nature Areas. These meetings identified both successes and challenges, and suggested approaches for moving forward.
• We had discussions with Stephen Bybee of the Missouri Conservation Corps about organizing collaborative workdays for invasive species control. These workdays are intended to attract volunteers from both MCC and CAS. These workdays are scheduled on October 6 at Garth Nature Area [location TBD] and  October 12 at Bonnie View Nature Sanctuary. Look for more details soon on the CAS Events listing!
• In addition to workdays We are also looking into recruiting volunteers to make regular visits to CANS and Wild Haven to help Managers keep up with maintenance of these areas. We hope that these visits will help keep the areas safe and attractive and will help give more members greater familiarity and a greater sense of ‘ownership’ of these areas. For more information, read on:

Help Wanted at CAS Nature Areas

CAS owns two nature areas that are open for public visits: Columbia Audubon Nature Sanctuary and Wild Haven Nature Area. It takes a lot of work to maintain and restore high-quality native habitats and to keep the areas safe and attractive for public use. Many CAS members have contributed to these goals by participating in workdays and donating to fund-raising activities. However, much of the work at the nature areas falls on the shoulders of a few volunteers who contribute a lot of time and labor at these areas.

We are reaching out to CAS members who might be willing volunteer their time at one of the nature areas. This could mean simple tasks like picking up litter or submitting an eBird checklist, or more difficult tasks like monitoring bluebird houses or controlling invasive plants. Volunteer reports can help managers nip problems in the bud or they  may identify bigger problems that require workdays with more volunteers. At a minimum, volunteers can be valuable ’eyes and ears’ at these areas on a regular basis.

I encourage you to contact John Besser, CAS Nature Areas Chair (jbesser1@gmail.com), or one of our area managers, Bill Mees (CANS; jandbmees@mchsi.com) or David Neely (Wild Haven; dustandwood@gmail.com), if you are interested in becoming part of the Nature Areas team. We can help you find a job that fits your abilities and the time you have available. If something comes up that is beyond your expertise or abilities, you can reach out to the area managers (or your fellow volunteers) for advice and assistance. We hope that you, like us, will find, like us, that spending time at the Nature Areas is very rewarding. It’s a great way to contribute to the mission of Columbia Audubon Society!

Here is a (preliminary) list of jobs for volunteers at CAS nature areas

Task                                                       Description                                        

Mowing                                               Mow common-use areas and accessible trails

Trail maintenance                             Maintain clear paths and trail markers; re-supply maps

Litter removal                                     Entrance; parking and picnic areas; outhouse

Invasive plant control                     Identify areas needing rigorous control methods

eBird checklist                                    Establish list of common birds using area seasonally.

Field trip                                               Explores features of nature areas with members and guests