Blog
Browse this page for blog postings related to middle- and high-school-teacher Adventure Learning workshops taking place across Idaho. Use the widgets to the right (or at bottom of this page, for smaller devices) to filter blog posts.
Birds as Stakeholders
The first place we stopped today was the IBO below Lucky Peak on the Boise River. It was amazing and very heartwarming to see the volunteers and the number of kids that were there helping or just seeing what they do there. As Heidi explained what they were trying to see with their research and banding activities involved how many birds were nesting in the area and how many came back the next year after they migrated back to the area. I don't think that it was any coinsedence that the study are was along the Boise River. Water provides everything for the birds around that area. The insects... more
Bird Banding
Today was an amazing day! We started off our day with observing and participating in bird banding near Lucky Peak Reservoir. I didn't even know such a program existed that invites the public and informs people about the bird population and migration here in Idaho. This project is done through Intermountain Bird Observatory at Boise State. There are a couple of sites near lucky peak that set up nets during certain dates and times and then band the netted birds. The process was very intriguing and the data recieved about the birds in the area... more
Perspective of a Stakeholder & 4 Tours
What another great, adventure packed day! Throughout the day, we ended up doing 4 different tours and I am exhausted, so I am sorry if my thoughts are a bit more scrambled then normal. Today we started off at the bird observatory, then went to the Suez clean drinking water plant, then over to the Roosevelt Elementary gardens for a pollination lesson & activity, then finally ALL over Boise to learn about Cottonwood Creek. We started up at the path that leads to Robbie Creek, followed in back down through the North End, saw the original flumes built in the 1800s (extremely impressive... more
Water Purifying in the Parking Lots
I learned today that every new development, commercial or residential, has to create a collection method for the surface water. This means that surface water can't go into the water drains without having gone through a cleaning process. We toured SUEZ drinking water plant today and Cindy pointed out a "swale" of vegetation that was planted in the parking lot. To the inexpericenced, such as myself, it looked like a jumble of plants but in reality they were are indigenous to Idaho, specifically to this area. The water collected from the parking lot is directed to this swale which gives... more
It's Not Me, It's You
We spent our morning at the Suez water treatment facility. I learned that its a privately owned water distribution facility that not only incorporates the treatment facility but also a number of wells around Boise that provide water for nearly the entirety of Boise. I learned about the complex process of water treatment and then the surprising fact that during the summer months, 70% of the water they treat is used to irrigate lawns. Most Boise residents are not in an irrigation district and are forced to use treated water that either comes from the Auquifer, Boise river or the New York... more
Yellow Warbler Habitats
Today we visited a location along the Boise river where Intermountain Bird Observatory is conducting various ornithology research projects. Talking with a past participant who worked specifically with yellow warblers he mentioned that the birds who nested near the river had greater fat content than those who lived near lucky peak and how the riparian zone was a more preferred habitat by the warblers. This made me wonder if those living in the less preferred montaine zone were there due to competition/limited habitat and if so, how much of that has to do with man.