Bat Slideshow

It's posted! Check original blog entry date of Feb. 12. Enjoy!

Vote for BBNC!

Hi Friends!

The Montgomery Newspapers group is doing its annual Reader's Choice survey and there are a couple categories in which Briar Bush is eligible. Please take a minute to check it out and vote!

Go to the Reader's Choice website by Feb. 17 to submit your votes for:

Education: Day Camps
Kids: Kid's Birthday Party
Leisure & Sports: Bus/Motorcoach Tour (for our adult Great Escape trips)

Thanks so much and as always, we appreciate your support!

All about bats!

It's a blustery day at Briar Bush, but clinging to the branch of a small tree we found a tiny bat! The hibernating visitor was most likely an Eastern Pipistrelle, a widespread small bat in Pennsylvania. Bats hibernate for the entire winter, eating nothing at all and occasionally moving to find a stable temperature just above freezing. With the strong winds that we recently had, a large, dead tree fell on the side of the Briar Bush property and it's possible that this small bat had been hibernating in a crevice of the tree. Thanks to Craig, our Naturalist Assistant, the bat is now safely inside a bat box to spend the rest of the winter.

Grounds Days

BBNC Senior Naturalist Mark Fallon hosts volunteer Grounds Days for you to help with plantings, weeding, trail maintenance and any other outdoor work to be done at BBNC.

Here are the upcoming dates for this spring:
Thursday, February 19 ~ 3-5 p.m.
Tuesday, March 3 ~ 10 a.m.-noon
Thursday, March 5 ~ 3-5 p.m.
Tuesday, March 31 ~ 10 a.m.-noon
Thursday, April 2 ~ 3-5 p.m.
Monday, April 6 ~ 3-5 p.m.
Tuesday, April 7 ~ 10 a.m.-noon
Friday, April 17 ~ 3-5 p.m.
Tuesday, May 5 ~ 10 a.m.-noon
Thursday, May 7 ~ 3-5 p.m.

Please dress for the weather, wear comfortable shoes and bring your water bottle.
For more information or to RSVP, please call the Center at 215.588.5077

2009 Lecture Series

Pennsylvania Association of Environmental Educators presents:

Connecting Today's Kids with Nature - A Policy Plan
Eliza Russell - National Wildlife Federation Director of Education Programming

Tuesday, March 10 @ 7 p.m.
Linderman Library Room 200 @ Lehigh University - Bethlehem, PA
Light Refreshments & Free Admission

"The phrase 'go outside and play' sums up the summer experiences that many adult Americans fondly remember. But today's kids rarely hear these four words. The sad reality is that American childhood has moved indoors. Meanwhile, our kids face an epidemic of childhood obesity and a troubling disconnect with nature."

Eliza Russell will share solution to connect our children to nature, and ourselves at the same time. She will offer encouragement for parents to take action within our communities, at the state level, and at the national Level. - Kevin Coyle, Vice President for Education at NWF

Information: Gail Hill at ghill@co.bucks.pa.us or 215.345.7860

Snow Day Activities

With all this snow outside, don't think nature is hiding! Winter is still an exciting time outdoors, and there is plenty to do and see.

• Take a walk through your yard or a local park to look for animal tracks in the snow. Draw a picture of them. Can you identify what animal left the tracks? What direction was in going? What does that animal eat? Was it chasing another animal?
• To attract birds, make your own feeder. Tie a string to the top of a pine cone, and roll smear the cone with Crisco or peanut butter. Then roll the pine cone in bird seed. Hang it from a tree in your yard and watch the birds as they come to feed!
• From outdoors or indoors, do a little bird watching. Even though it's chilly, the birds are still out, especially if you have feeders to attract them in your yard (like the pine cone feeder!). How many different types of birds did you see? What sizes were they? What color feathers did they have? Can you identify them?
• With all that snow on the ground, there is plenty of building materials! Forget about the traditional snowman - make some imaginary creates! Create your own world in the snow.
• Take a nature walk to look for animal habitats. Without leaves in the trees, it is much easier to see nests. Did you know birds aren't the only animals to makes nests in trees? Squirrels do too! How many nests did you see? How big were they? Were they up high or low in the tree branches? Do you know what kind of trees the nests were in?
• Play a game of explorer outside! What are some really cold places? What do people do in those places? What kinds of animals live there? Pretend you are exploring one of these cold places.
• Whatever you decide to do on these cold days, have fun!