Douglas County students explore science at Walnut Point State Park
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Pictured is Tuscola East Prairie student Greyson Lough at Walnut Point State Park.
180 kids from Arcola, Shiloh, Oakland, Tuscola and Villa Grove attend
The 31st annual Douglas County Environmental Stewardship Day was held on Thursday, Sept. 12, at Walnut Point State Park.
Several students enjoyed the chance to see and touch fish that came from Walnut Point Lake. Staff from the Illinois Natural History Survey, Kaskaskia Biological Station, secured several fish from the lake for observation. Examples included red ear, bass and catfish. These fish were kept in aerated tanks for viewing and then later released back into the lake. Other forms of aquatic life were in specimen trays for students to examine closely.
Another exhibit this year was the Illinois Natural History Survey Traveling Science Center. This is an enclosed trailer that serves as a mobile education center. The colorful displays inside include exhibits on biodiversity and natural resources. Students are tasked with a scavenger hunt where they must find the answers on the displays.
This event is for sixth-grade students. The seven schools attending were Arcola, Shiloh, Oakland, Tuscola, and Villa Grove, for a total of over 180 students.
Other stations included soils, recycling relay, fish, amphibians, butterflies, bees, trees and seed dispersal, and native plants. Speakers were from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, University of Illinois Master Naturalists, Natural History Survey of the University of Illinois, University of Illinois Extension, Douglas Hart Nature Center, and Natural Resources Conservation Service. Volunteers from Tuscola Rotary, Tuscola Kiwanis, and the Douglas County Ag in the Classroom advisory council provided volunteers to lead student groups to each station.