Old-Growth Gazette: April 2022
Our mission is to create experiences which connect people with nature, motivate them to lead sustainable lives, and take action to protect wildlife and wild places. We look forward to having you join us on this journey!
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Upcoming Events
Keep Evansville Beautiful presents Arbor Day at Wesselman Woods・April 29
Free Tree Giveaway and Free Admission to Wesselman Woods!
Keep Evansville Beautiful (KEB) is continuing their tradition of giving away free trees to the community this year!
Native trees sourced from Bur Oak Tree Service and Nursery will be given away at the Wesselman Park shelter house, on the way to Wesselman Woods (WW), on Friday, April 29, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., while supplies last. This event is a partnership between KEB, WW, the Evansville Department of Urban Forestry, On the Spot Utility Resources LLC, and CenterPoint Energy. Find out more.
WESSELMAN WOODS JURIED ART EXHIBITION
Calling all artists!
In celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Wesselman Woods, we are hosting a juried community art contest. Art submitted for this contest should reflect aspects of nature within the Ohio River Valley bioregion. Our bioregion hosts a wide variety of flora and fauna as well as a variety of socio-cultural, ecological, and environmental issues; any of these topics can be represented or addressed with the artwork.
This exhibit is geared toward ages 15 and up. There are two categories, divided by age: Teens (15-19) and Adults (20+). A winner will be selected from each group.
Themes: Wildlife, nature, and environmental issues of the Ohio River Valley bioregion.
Accepted Media: 2-D (photography, painting, drawing, printmaking, graphic design) and 3-D (sculpture, fiber, and mixed media)
Going Green on the Green 2022
THANK YOU to all of the sponsors of the upcoming Going Green on the Green golf scramble benefit! These environmentally conscientious businesses are helping us "drive" the community to experience unique environmental opportunities amidst the "lungs" of Evansville⎯Wesselman Woods!
Eco-Learning
A message from the Director of Environmental Education, Kailene Goldsberry
The past 8 months with the Junior Forest League have been so fun! It's been a delightful experience to explore the forest in all four seasons with this group of kiddos. Whether it was a nice sunny day, rainy, snowy, etc. - we had a fabulous time each month! Each session was full of fun-energy and laughter, topped with some forest exploration and nature edutainment. Thank you for participating in year two of Junior Forest League - I will miss this group over the summer, but am already excited to start back up in September!
The campers also enjoyed themselves! From our post-camp survey, we learned that the children loved learning about the forest, the animal encounters, and getting to make new friends. We can’t wait to share more sessions with you all!
2022 Summer Camps
Summer Camps return to Wesselman Woods in 2022. See the themes and dates below. Register today before the seats fill up!
Forest Engineers: June 6 – June 10, Ages 6-9
Explore and discover the incredible engineers of the natural world with us at Wesselman Woods. We will spend the week marveling over spider webs, beaver dams, bird nests, plant and animal structures.
Junior Forest League - Master Naturalist: June 20 – June 24, Ages 9-12
Calling all budding naturalists! At the end of this camp week, campers will have completed the requirements needed to become a certified Junior Indiana Master Naturalist!
Camp Wesselmón: July 11 – July 15, Ages 6-10
“Gotta catch ‘em all at Wesselman Woods!” Come discover real world Pokemon through animal encounters and forest exploration. Each day has a collectible item, along with our Pokedex we will fill out every day.
Camp Creepy: July 25 - July 29, Ages 9-12
They're creepy and they're kooky, mysterious and spooky, oh the oddities of Wesselman Woods! We will explore a wide range of eerie topics, from arachnids and insects to skeletons and scary stories.
A couple of our resident Eastern box turtles
Mews News
Red Eyes
Red eyes are not uncommon in nature and not a sign of evil, no matter what cartoons and movies tell us!
When we talk about red-colored eyes, we're talking about irises with red pigments rather than albinism. Albino animals lack the pigments that produce eye color so the red/pink appearance is actually light reflecting off the eye's blood vessels.
Eyes with actual red pigments can be very helpful for a variety of animals especially birds, reptiles, and fish. Red eyes can improve vision during certain times of the day, serve as warnings to potential predators, and they can communicate health and age to others of the same species.
Mississippi Kite (Source: Audubon Society)
Periodical Cicada (Source: NWF)
Red-eye Vireo (Source: eBird)