Students and staff from the Lyle Torrant and Kit Young Centers here in Jackson came out to Dahlem today to not only enjoy the outdoors and take a turn around our Nature for All Trail, but to also attend a nature program led by one of our naturalists, Carrie Benham, who was assisted by three of our very dedicated volunteers.

Today’s program was Who Lives There, which introduces students to some of the many animals that share our woods and fields.  They learn about the places these animals call home, like a mud and grass nest for robins, a ball-shaped gall on a goldenrod stem for a fly, a cocoon for a moth, and a hollow tree for a squirrel or racoon.  Then they look for “animals” (taxidermied specimens) we have placed along the trail.

We really lucked out with the weather!  The rain held off and it was pleasantly cool, with just enough breeze to keep the insects at bay.

After lunch some of the group revisited the trail on their own before heading back to school.

We are so glad we were able to host them – for many it was their first trip out to Dahlem.   Other groups from Lyle Torrant and Kit Young will be coming out later this summer, and we look forward to sharing the wonders of nature with them, too.