In the early part of July I spent some time at a mining reclamation site. Here I learned a little bit about the process of what goes into mining reclamation and I was also able to participate in that process. I helped out by spreading seeds of grasses that are native to the area, spreading straw over those seeds, and planting sedges to help prevent soil erosion. I also had the opportunity to talk with the folks who had been on the project throughout its entirety. They described what it was like when they first got to the mining site and showed us what changes had been made to help return the site to a natural area. While we were at the site we were told that a mama black bear and her cubs were in the area. Although we didn’t see the bears we did come across an osprey tending to its nest.

I spent the later half of the month prepping for my next trip out to check on the bat detectors. Hopefully the data cards that we will be collecting will have something exciting for us!

RC