Red-winged Blackbirds through scope The snow thankfully cleared just in time for students and staff to travel to Northern California this month for our field course “Raptors & Waterfowl of Lower Klamath Lake,” the culmination of a special partnership created between SFI and the Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Thanks to the refuge’s generous collaboration and … Read more
Students gathered at the Siskiyou Field Institute on a cool spring day to learn from long-time SFI instructor John Roth during “In Search of Serpentine’s Sister: Uniting Indigenous and Natural Histories.” As a student of many natural sciences and a local resident of the Illinois Valley, John is passionate about how much there is to … Read more
Hello, Rose here!
Like your lichens? When I arrived at SFI, I knew zilch about lichens. Before I left SFI, I learned how important lichens are to the ecosystems surrounding us.
Lichens absorb and retain pollutants, providing us with a way to measure stored chemicals and air quality. These pollutants are absorbed through lichens’ surfaces, which are called cortexes. Something else to consider: lichens provide food for large animals and small animals and shelter for tiny creatures, including insects. Within our ecosystems, lichens are telling us a story. We should listen!
“Introduction to Lichens” in April 2018 was well balanced with classroom education plus labs, along with field experiences. The basic chemistry needed to test and identify lichens was explained in an easy-to-understand way.
I have take several classes at SFI; they always find a way to accommodate all students. Discovering lichens was an all-around good experience.
“If you don’t know, you will learn.
If you do know, you will learn more.”
Rose Kilpatrick
Rose Kilpatrick
Photos and Text by Vivian Toll “There is still somewhere deep within you a beast shouting that the earth is exactly what it wanted” – Mary Oliver A healing and rejuvenating force, wilderness has the power to bring out an individual’s true nature, fostering honest connection with self, others and the earth. The nine-day, July … Read more
This past weekend, Dave and I taught a 2-day workshop on “Dragonflies in the State of Jefferson” offered through Siskiyou Field Institute in Selma, Josephine County, Oregon. Day 1 was our usual Introduction to Dragonflies, and Day 2 was our only “Intermediate” level class. In the Intermediate class, we go to rivers and a high … Read more
SFI’s Siskiyou Mountains and Streams class started with a moderate 6 mile hike of about 600 ft. elevation gain and a 360 degree view once we reached the top of Mt. Elijah. We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day and a more stimulating and diverse experience. The class involved birding, botanizing and stream-and-fish … Read more
Introduction to State of Jefferson Dragonflies We taught a 2 day workshop at the Siskiyou Field Institute in Selma, OR. The first day we teach a ‘beginner’s’ class and take the folks to Lake Selmac to see the Skimmers, a few darners and some pond damsels. This lake is Ode-intense….I’ve NEVER seen more Widow Skimmers … Read more
Botanizing Whetstone Butte with botanist Cecile Shohet was my first class at the Siskiyou Field Institute. She was assisted by special guest field guide, geologist John Roth, who held the back end of our hefty class of 25 along the single trails. Though we had two expert leaders, I was also impressed by how much … Read more
By Kathy Mechling, M.D., SFI Board President We were peering into the old horse trough to see how the tadpoles were progressing. We saw no tads, they had probably metamorphosed and jumped out, but there was a lovely sinuous worm. She was very thin, like spaghettini, tan colored; about 8 inches long with no obvious … Read more
