On The Ground
Nerves of Stihl: On the Ground Volunteers Participate in Chainsaw Safety and Stewardship Day
Last Saturday, November 4th, 2023, MUCC’s On the Ground program partnered with Fenner Nature Center and Daisy Tree Care to host a Chainsaw Safety and Stewardship Day on FNC’s grounds. In total, 14 volunteers learned basic chainsaw maintenance and then got some hands-on experience cutting unwanted logs and trees in Fenner’s Maple Grove. The course…
Read MoreOn the Ground Volunteer Highlight: Zachary Dalton
Meet Zachary Dalton, local hunter, angler, outdoor enthusiast, and avid On the Ground (OTG) volunteer! Zachary is from Saginaw, but he has participated in six OTG volunteer events throughout Michigan during the past year. He attended his first OTG project back in October of 2022, where he worked alongside other volunteers to plant and fence…
Read MoreOn the Ground: Volunteers plant 100 mast-producing trees on public land in Kalkaska County
On Saturday, October 14, 2023, MUCC’s On the Ground program partnered once again with biologist Gib King of Land Ethic LCC to host volunteers at a mast-producing tree planting and brush pile building event in the Traverse City Forest Management Unit (Kalkaska County). In total, 23 volunteers planted one-hundred 5-6 foot trees including various crabapple,…
Read MoreOn the Ground: more than 4,000 volunteers engaged through statewide habitat improvement efforts
The final day of September marked the end of MUCC’s 2023 fiscal year. Last year’s volunteer turnout brought a lot of excitement for the On the Ground team as 771 volunteers joined us out in the field, marking the most volunteers in a single year since the program’s inception in 2013! On the Ground…
Read MoreVolunteers plant hundreds of native wildflower and grass plugs in an effort to restore one of Michigan’s most imperiled habitats
On Saturday, October 7, 2023, volunteers joined MUCC’s On the Ground program in partnership with Kent Conservation District at Cannonsburg State Game Area in Kent County to help plant native plugs in an active oak savanna restoration site. Historically, oak savannas were a dominant habitat type in the Midwestern region. Michigan has lost the majority…
Read MoreOn the Ground Junior: Students from the Mecosta-Osceola Career Center braved the rain to help improve wildlife habitat in their community
On Tuesday, October 10, 2023, high school students and instructors from the Mecosta-Osceola Career Center participated in MUCC’s On the Ground Jr. program in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to improve wildlife habitat at Haymarsh Lake State Game Area. During the morning portion of the project, students were divided into teams and…
Read MoreOn the Ground Junior: High School Students Build Brush Piles and Deploy Trail Cameras for Wildlife with MUCC and The Nature Conservancy in Luce County
On September 27, 2023, high school students and instructors from Lake Superior State University’s Career in Technical Education program participated in MUCC’s On the Ground Junior program in partnership with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to improve wildlife habitat in the Two-Hearted River Forest Preserve north of Newberry. During this stewardship project, students cut down overgrown…
Read MoreOn the Ground: Volunteers Join Conservation Partners in Enhancing Elk Habitat in the Pigeon River Country State Forest
On Saturday, September 23, 2023, a motivated group of volunteers put in some major sweat equity in the Pigeon River Country State Forest by improving habitat for elk and other wildlife. MUCC joined Michigan Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation for their Annual Fall Rendezvous and Habitat Workday in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.…
Read MoreVolunteer with On the Ground to Help Restore One of Michigan’s Most Endangered Habitats: The Oak Savanna
Habitat improvement projects are always gratifying work, especially when they benefit rare habitats such as oak savannas. We often hear about how habitat restoration efforts impact charismatic species like white-tailed deer or wild turkeys, but many lesser-known species benefit from these projects just the same. Rare insects such as the dusted skipper, grizzled skipper, monarch…
Read MoreOn the Ground: Volunteers Install a Native Pollinator Garden on Kellogg Community College Campus
On Wednesday, September 12, a group of students, faculty, staff, and alumni volunteers gathered outside the Davidson Building on Kellogg Community College’s (KCC) Battle Creek campus to join On the Ground in creating important pollinator habitat. After just a couple hours of work, volunteers planted and mulched an 80-foot garden bed just outside the entrance…
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