Frogwatch USA TV interview and trip to Potato Creek
Mood:  rushed
Topic: Out in the Field
Yesterday was quite a long day. We started off heading up to Elkhart for a TV interview for the program Open Studio on PBS station WNIT (channel 34 in South Bend). This was my first visit to a TV studio and it was really fascinating. My wife and kids got to up in the booth while we filmed, they had a great time. We talked about Frogwatch USA and frogs in general. Hopefully this will help increase the number of Frogwatchers in the Michiana area. The show will air on April 13th at 8pm. I am the first segment on there show dedicated to how the public can get involved in the environment. While we were up there we also stopped at the Woodlawn Nature Center. A nice center with Native American Artifacts, Mastodon fossils, many taxidermied species as well as a wildlife viewing window from which we saw black squirrels. I didn't find a website for the center but here is some info I did find online:




Woodlawn Nature Center
604 Woodlawn Ave, Elkhart, IN 46515
574-264-0525
Not all museums have to be indoors. The Woodlawn Nature Center provides an excellent opportunity to view wildlife while encouraging environmental responsibility. Located on the north edge of Elkhart, Woodlawn Nature Center is a non-profit natural history museum with approximately 10 acres of woodland trails. The center is dedicated to the preservation and conservation of flora and fauna native to Indiana through hands-on education of those with an interest in nature and the environment. The center also includes an interesting collection of Native American tools, clothing and artifacts; a seasonal working beehive; mastodon fossils that give a glimpse into the ice age; a seashell display; a wildlife viewing window; and a Wetlands Wonder Room.

The kids have never been to Michigan so we had lunch on the other side of the line in White Pigeon. We then went to explore Potato Creek State Park. It has a wonderful Nature Center with a western fox snake, a northern water snake, a Blanding’s turtle and a box turtle. They also have a live beehive with a viewing window. The park has a man made lake fed by Potato Creek. It is a great birding area for waterfowl. They also have osprey-nesting platforms. We watched a pair building their nest while serenaded by chorus frogs. A lone northern leopard frog also chimed in (the first I've heard this year). I trekked out through the briars to try to capture a picture of the calling chorus frogs, but ever step I took as I got close was like a wave of silence sweeping through the wetland. Come out, come out wherever you are! "MARCO" Thorns and dry leaves did help my stealthy approach. (Neither did big clumsy feet) After a good rain, it will be a great herping spot I'm sure, but this was not that day. Nonetheless, it was a superb visit, this was only the second time I've seen a wild osprey and to see a pair bringing in sticks for the nest was truly amazing. Potato Creek By the way, the name is from a plant Native Americans used to harvest along the creek that had roots that looked like potatoes. No river of oil with French fries floating along or building carved out of giant potatoes. We stopped at McDonald's for fries on the way home.