The second week for Missouri Master Naturalist Core Training focused on ecosystems and populations…particularly water and streams (and riparian zones). The class session started with a gathering outside to play a web-of-life game (note the string). The light was beginning to wane by the time we finished!

The field trip was to a place along Bull Creek south of Springfield. We organized carpools since the road should not be attempted by low clearance cars!

I enjoyed some quiet time after the flurry of activity getting everyone organized into groups and out to their first rotation.

Then I went on a short hike into the woods with one of the groups.

During the last rotation time – another quiet time for me, I noticed some yellow and orange butterflies in a sun filled area and went over to investigate. Sleepy orange butterflies!

I looked around…and almost stepped on the senna – which is the food plant for their caterpillars!

When the gear was brought back from the creek – there was a container with a large dragonfly larva….a great finale for my field trip pictures!

My second lecture session at the Missouri Master Naturalist state conference was Brian Waldrop’s Benefits of Riparian Corridor. Most of the material was not new to me, but it was thought provoking.

There was a chart about different types of riparian corridors: forest, grassland, mixed, and wetland. I realized that the one I was most familiar with was forest (most of the time in an urban environment where the corridor was damaged by intermittent intrusion of heavy runoff that often undermined the trees. A stream in a tropical forest was shown with vegetation hanging well over the stream surface.

The wider the buffer, the greater the benefit - starting with bank stabilization and progressing to water quality, flood control, and wildlife habitat. In urban/suburban areas, we often think it is great if we can achieve bank stabilization!

It seemed logical that the type of plants found in riparian zones should be native, flood-tolerant, deep-rooted, and shade-providing. I realized that I don’t know these things about individual plant species. I tend to draw on memories of trees seen frequently along rivers in Maryland and in Missouri – like American sycamores!

The talk ended with some charts about good reverences. I am putting them on my list of books to browse online!

Conservation Planning Tools for Missouri Communities: A Reference Manual (from MDC)

Native Plants for Stormwater Management Projects (from Grow Native!)

Stormwater Smart Outreach Tools (US EPA)