...for City of Southlake news, business, and community happenings.
-
- nature
Friday, April 19, 2024
Things are always wild at the Bob Jones Nature Center and Preserve, and this year’s Summer Nature Camp was outstanding!
Most communities offer summer camp programming for their young residents during the summer; however, not every municipality is fortunate enough to have miles of the Cross Timbers ecosystem right in their backyard. Every summer, dozens of young nature enthusiasts spend their days hiking at the Bob Jones Nature Center and Preserve, learning about nature, and developing a life-long passion for our local environment. Now that summer is wrapping up and school is almost back in session, we’re taking some time to remember the incredible memories our campers created over the last two months.
Here’s a quick recap of what our campers experienced:
Themed Lessons
It wouldn’t be Nature Camp without a weekly theme and lessons to go along with it! Themes this year included Forest Friends, Staying Alive, Birds of a Feather, Insect Investigators, Beneath the Surface, Welcome to the Four Seasons, Survival Skills, and the Circle of Life! Campers learned about the various creatures who call the BJNCP their home, the relationship between predators and prey, the birds over the Southlake sky, insects, and sea creatures!
Outdoor Adventures
The best part about Nature Camp is leaving the classroom behind and walking outside in nature. The Nature Center boasts over 20 miles of hiking trails! Our campers got to apply their classroom knowledge in the field, learning all sorts of valuable skills such as staying on the path, not leaving behind a trace, and spotting local wildlife. Every Friday was Field Day featuring a giant waterslide, pizza lunch, and ice cream!
Off-site Excursions
This year’s camp added extra adventures with exciting field trips every Thursday. Our campers explored the Sea Life Aquarium and Legoland, the Fort Worth Zoo, the Heard Museum, the Dallas Zoo, the Perot Museum, the Dallas Arboretum, and the Trinity River Audubon!
It was a summer to remember! Staff is already gearing up for the Fall season with our award-winning Forest Preschool and Nature Club! We look forward to seeing some familiar faces throughout Autumn!
National Trail Day is on the first Saturday in June each year and it provides a great opportunity for us to commemorate the natural wonders of Bob Jones Nature Center.
BJNCP is a wonderland of trails to explore. When you set out to the Nature Center, you’ll find three incredible trails: Bluebird Trail, White-Tailed Deer Trail, and Grapevine Lake Trail. From the moment you set foot on the well-maintained paths, you’ll be captivated by the natural beauty that Southlake has to offer.
Whether you’re an avid hiker or a leisurely stroller, the Bob Jones Trails cater to all levels of outdoor adventurers. With a range of trail options, from shorter loops such as the White-Tailed Deer Trail or longer excursions to Grapevine Lake, there’s something for everyone to explore and enjoy.
While on your hike, look out for the array of animals that call the Nature Center home. Some notable ones include singing birds, butterflies, deer, bobcats, and more! This holiday aims to advocate trail service and conservation while showing gratitude to those who help maintain our trails to enjoy.
Visit our website for a downloadable trail map. Bob Jones Nature Center Trail Map | Experience Southlake – Official Website (experiencesouthlaketexas.com)
For more information about BJNCP, visit Bob Jones Nature Center & Preserve | Experience Southlake – Official Website (experiencesouthlaketexas.com)
December is almost over, which means there are only a few days left to participate in Keep Southlake Beautiful‘s Street Tree Program.
Did you know that you can do your part to provide shade, screening, wildlife protection, and an increased sense of well-being through the Street Tree Program? This KSB initiative provides citizens with quality shade trees to be planted within the right-of-way areas of streets and corridors throughout the City.
The Community Services Department strives to keep the entire City looking clean, green, and safe, and you can help us in that mission by purchasing a street tree! Choose from one of four beautiful tree options and, the Parks Division will help you determine the planting location to fit within our specified guidelines.
These are the tree species available:
• Chinese Pistache
• Lacebark Elm
• Live Oak
• Shumard Oak
The deadline to purchase a street tree is Saturday, December 31. Don’t miss out on your opportunity to Keep Southlake Beautiful! Learn more about this program here!
The cooler weather may have taken a while to arrive, but it’s finally time to enjoy autumn outside!
Want your kiddo to develop a love for being outside while exploring our world-class parks system? Drop off your child at Liberty Park at Sheltonwood on Saturday, October 15, at 10:00 AM!
We know it can be hard to get kids excited about being outside. Our staff planned a sensational day of games and activities to keep your kiddos engaged, entertained, and safe! Lunch is included with your registration!
A life-long appreciation of the great outdoors and the importance of beautiful public park systems starts early, so don’t wait to register for this exciting program!
See you at the Park! Register today!
The Bob Jones Nature Center and Preserve is all about celebrating the gifts of our natural Cross Timbers ecosystem. Fall is the best time to come to the Nature Center and participate in the incredible monarch migration phenomenon.
The fourth-annual Monarch Butterfly Festival is happening on Saturday, September 17, 2022, and you don’t want to miss it. Join us as we release hundreds of Monarch Butterflies into the wild and interact with them first-hand! This community favorite program helps our butterfly friends as they make their epic annual journey into Mexico. Our Nature Center staff is ready to make this an event to remember!
The Monarch Festival is split into three one-and-a-half-hour sessions. Each session has the same activities, including crafts, monarch-related games, snacks, a butterfly house, and more! Please arrive on time for your registered session (8:30 am, 10:15 am, 12:00 pm). Stick around after your session to enjoy the beautiful miles of hiking trails at the Preserve!
Please note that if you are later than 30 minutes to your check-in time, we cannot guarantee a butterfly will still be waiting for you to release.
Registration is required for all participants ages three and up. All ages are welcome! Children ages two and under are free (registration is not required).
We’re so excited to celebrate the magnificent Monarch Butterflies with you and your family!
The Bob Jones Nature Center and Preserve is not just a hub for children to learn about the great outdoors. Did you know that there are multiple opportunities for adults to learn more about nature as well?
The Bob Jones Nature Center and Preserve Adult Education classes will teach you easy ways to make a big difference in your life and our ecosystem. Thanks to our partnership with Tarrant Regional Water District and local Master Gardeners, all classes will be virtual this summer. Not only that, but all courses are 100% FREE!
There are multiple fantastic opportunities to learn more about improving your garden while helping our ecosystem this summer.
June is all about Tough Texas Plants. With an often unpredictable climate, it’s crucial to choose the right type of plants to thrive in Texas. This three-part series will teach you about low-maintenance landscape design, tough Texas perennials and annuals, and tough Texas trees, bushes, and vines. Registration for June classes is now open! Learn how to register here.
Things will get prickly in July with cacti and succulents taking center stage. Learn the hottest tips and tricks to maintaining these increasingly popular plants. Registration will be available soon.
Finish out the summer with a month of shade gardening knowledge in August. These classes will teach you what plants grow best in the shadier areas of your yard. Be on the lookout when registration for these classes becomes available.
When it comes to having the sturdiest yard in Texas, knowledge is power. Take advantage of our free Adult Outdoor Education program and become the envy of the neighborhood!
The Bob Jones Nature Center hosted the City of Southlake’s 2nd annual Monarch Butterfly Festival on the morning of Saturday, September 26. 280 guests of all ages joined in the release of 400 monarch butterflies to celebrate the monarch migration.
The Perennial Garden Society (PGS) sponsored the butterfly purchase with a $1,500 donation. Master Gardeners from the Tarrant and Denton County chapters spent the entire summer working hard to prepare the garden beds around the Nature Center for butterfly and human visitors alike. Their hard work paid off, too, because the grounds are absolutely stunning.
With help from PGS, all 400 butterflies were “tagged” with a small sticker on their outer wing printed with a unique identification number. All butterflies released are registered with Monarch Watch, a University of Kansas research project focusing on the migration and well-being of the monarch population. Any citizen who finds a tagged butterfly can contact Monarch Watch, report the identification number, and assist researchers in tracking this year’s migration.
The monarch migration continues to be one of the most intriguing events in natural history that inspires and amazes scientists, naturalists, and onlookers alike. “Being able to partner with the Perennial Garden Society to be a part of this research project is so important for us,” said Nature Programs Coordinator Hannah Nyquist. “Southlake’s position along the migration path gives residents the opportunity to observe and aid monarchs as they make their journey. Having a combination of nectar plants and milkweed (a host plant for caterpillars) available is incredibly important for the success of the monarch population.”
This year, the COVID-19 outbreak posed a unique challenge for the event’s organizers considering the event has seen hundreds of attendees in years past. However, the Southlake Community Services team was able to successfully recreate the structure of the event in order to keep attendants safe while still hosting a beautiful and educational celebration of the amazing monarch butterfly. “At first we weren’t sure we were going to be able to have the event,” says Special Events Coordinator, Sarah Binion. “But this event is important for the community and we were determined to find a way to make the festival happen. It brings so much joy to the people who come and we didn’t want our residents to miss out. Especially in a year when so much has already been taken away, we wanted to be able to give the community this special day.”
Instead of one large gathering and a scheduled release of all butterflies at once as is typical for the festival, the event was divided into pre-registered sessions to maintain smaller numbers. Each family group was escorted to a private station where they were instructed about how to release their butterflies. This new setup inadvertently created a much more intimate and personalized setting for each group to move at their own pace, making this year’s event a truly unique experience.
For more information on how to help monarchs year-round, please visit monarchwatch.org.
The Southlake Chamber of Commerce Leadership Class of 2013 and the Bob Jones Nature Center Organization (BJNCO) and have partnered with the City of Southlake through the SPDC matching funds program to design and install educational signage along the Bluebird Trail at the Bob Jones Nature Center & Preserve.
On Friday, September 25 at 8:00 AM, BJNC will hold a Ceremony and Ribbon Cutting to commemorate the completion of the signage installation. Light refreshments will be served. After the ceremony, there will be guided trail hikes available during the day.
Throughout the weekend, BJNC will celebrate with other events and activities to celebrate the debut of the signs. Please visit www.BJNC.com for additional information or call 817.491.6333.