Owl You Need is Love!!!

“A wise old owl sat on an oak; The more he saw the less he spoke;
The less he spoke the more he heard; Why aren't we like that wise old bird?”

This Valentine's Day, treat your family and loved ones to a fun-filled afternoon to celebrate Wisconsin’s true winter romantics--owls at ALNC's Owl You Need is Love program at our Black Earth Campus (just 20 minutes from the West side of Madison), next Sunday, February 13th from 1:00 - 3:00 pm!

Owls court through the cold, dark winter evenings and by Valentine’s Day, they are often sitting on a nest of eggs!  Celebrate these winter romantics at this exciting program for all ages where we'll:

• Hike the snow-covered trails with binoculars to see Wisconsin's other winter bird residents!
• Learn to recognize different owl calls!
• Meet a live owl from the Henry Vilas Zoo!
• Make an owl craft to take home and much more!

The event is $6/person or $20/family for ALNC Members and $7/person or $25/family for Non-Members.

Space is limited, so please pre-register by Thursday, February 10. Click Here or call 608-221-0404 ext. 1 to register today!

Let it Snow!!

We're about to get hit with a huge blizzard, but this isn't the first time for us Wisconsinites! Our state's blustery history includes storms with snow drifts up to 20 feet tall! That's the equivalent of six White-Tailed Deer, our state's official Wildlife Animal, stacked up high! Click here to see photos of some of WI's biggest blizzards!
 

Portage circa 1875

Here are some of Wisconsin’s Top Historic Blizzards (courtesy of the National Weather Service):

1. March 2-4, 1881: Southern/Central – Blizzard – 2 to 4 feet of snow. Drifts to 20 feet.
2. January 15, 1887: Southern/Central – Snowstorm – 2 feet of snow. Huge drifts.
3. December 27-28, 1904: Southern/Central – Heavy snow/ice. 26 inches of snow at Neillsville in Clark County still stands as the 24-hour state record.    
4. January 28-30, 1947 - Southern / Central - Blizzard - 10 to 27 inches. Drifts to 15 feet. Roads blocked.
5. March 4-5, 1976 - South / East - One of the worst natural disasters to hit Wisconsin in history. This incredible ice storm completely snapped hundreds of utility poles, downed thousands of power and telephone lines and totally destroyed many trees. Some ice accumulations ranged up to a phenomenal five inches in diameter on wires and limbs of trees. The excessive ice accumulations were in part caused by thunderstorms that rapidly built up the ice with high winds gusting to 60 mph

Racine circa 1910

 Pretty amazing! Wishing you all a safe and happy (anticipated!) snowday! 


P.S. If anyone has any impressive snow photos to share, post them here or email them to me at devcomm@naturenet.com.