At a Sept. 27 event, members spoke about the progress made and took people on tours of the preserve where they got to help spread seeds of native plants and learn about the history and ecology of the area while seeing for themselves what the stewards have done.
“The whole neighborhood has really embraced us,” said Nate Fuller, co-founder of the organization and conservation stewardship director for Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy. “It’s even inspired people to pull (exotic species) from their own yards.”
Twice a month volunteers gather to work in the preserve. They meet at Kazoo School, 1401 Cherry St., because the trailhead is located behind the school. Fuller said between six and two dozen people show up, ready to work but also socialize with people who share interests.
A dozen students with Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency’s Youth Opportunities Unlimited program also came out to help this past summer.
They placed logs in strategic places to prevent erosion and pulling exotic species, said Cari DeLong, Western Michigan University’s manager for nature preserves.
<table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"
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<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(223, 233, 201); margin: 12px; padding: 7px 7px 5px; background-color: rgb(232, 232, 232);" valign="top"><font size="2">For a schedule of events and to learn more about the preserve, visit www.stewardsofkleinstuck.org.<br /></font><font size="2"><br /> <br /></font></td></tr></tbody></table>Fuller said the exotic species make their way into foreign habitats, like Kleinstuck, via bird droppings and because they have no natural enemies in their new home, they often take over and end up choking out native species.
For example, the Norway maple tree, as opposed to our native sugar maple, has thicker and longer lasting leaves, which block sunlight from the forest floor and kill off native grasses that have deeper root systems to prevent erosion, Fuller said.
Erosion is a big problem in Kleinstuck because the whole area slopes down toward a marsh, leaving the marsh vulnerable to sediments and exotic seeds that wash into it when it rains.
In addition, Fuller said the exotic plants are a “Burger King” for the local birds.
“They’re plentiful, they’re easy to get, but not necessarily nutritious,” Fuller said.
During the tour, Fuller pointed out the largest Cyprus tree in Michigan, standing tall and strong and clearly inhabited by a large colony of ants that have left behind a pile of sawdust from their burrowing. Kristine Pioch 9/29/09 (Kathy – not implying the ants are bad, don’t know if they are, but just wanted to throw in a descriptor so people can find it.)
Not far from the Cyprus, Fuller showed the group a cheery tree that has been choked out by a very thick, winding bittersweet vine — an exotic species that the stewards have targeted.
Fuller’s expertise became more and more evident during the tour as he seemed to be able to identify and talk about nearly every species in the preserve. He talked about the natural spring that feeds into the marsh and demonstrated plants like the Touch Me Not, which shoots a seed out of its pod when touched, and the Doll’s Eye, which looked like a small plastic eyeball.
But the success is the result of a team effort; the project has been a partnership between the volunteers and WMU. Paul MacNellis, WMU property manager, and DeLong work closely with the group because a large portion of the property is owned by WMU. Stewards of Kleinstuck co-founders Liga Dindonis and Jacquelyn Taylor also are heavily involved and dedicated to spreading the word about the group.
The group, soon to be officially established as a nonprofit organization, will be honored with a Keep Michigan Beautiful award this fall, Bill Strong, board of directors member, announced on Sept. 27.
In addition to bimonthly work groups, the organization also has fun educational events, like bird-watching walks with the Audubon Society of Kalamazoo.