Environmental Interpretive Center at University of Michigan-Dearborn

09/03/2026

What does EIC staff do during a Tornado Warning? Bathroom Wordle, anyone?
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08/28/2026

TONIGHT! 7:30-9:00, we'll be exploring the trails with an ear out for singing insects, migrating birds, and other evening happenings!

📅 🦗 🎵 Join us this Friday from 7:30–9:00 PM for a FREE event at the Interpretive Trails for our Summer Insect Concert. Enjoy an evening walk and the distinctive sounds of crickets, katydids, and more. Bug repellent is recommended. Kindly RSVP at https://bit.ly/4qBMO5x

08/25/2026

It may have "officially" started last Friday, but you can feel the change in the air this morning. After the passage of this weekend's cold front, the season of migration has begun! Whether you're observing, or making your own migration back to campus to join us for the semester, keep an eye and ear out! You may observe a different cast of characters visiting your favorite natural spaces over the next few weeks, especially after shifts in the weather!

08/24/2026

It's always good to keep current on best practices to combat invasive species, and to increase climate resilience! I'll be sticking this one on my calendar!

🎉 Registration is Now Open!

Join the North American Invasive Species Management Association (NAISMA) and the Regional Invasive Species & Climate Change (RISCC) Management Network for the 3rd Annual International Invasive Species and Climate Change Conference (IISCCC), a free virtual event taking place December 1–2, 2026.

This year's conference theme, Redefining Invasive Species Management in a Changing World, will bring together researchers, practitioners, Indigenous leaders, land managers, policymakers, educators, and community organizations to explore how climate change is reshaping invasive species management.

Conference sessions will include:
🌊 Marine ecosystems
🌾 Food security
🌪️ Extreme events
🌱 Lessons from management
🩺 Disease & One Health

👉 Registration is free! Learn more and register through the NAISMA event page: https://bit.ly/3TQ36Lu

We look forward to seeing you online this December!

08/24/2026

📅 🦗 🎵 Join us this Friday from 7:30–9:00 PM for a FREE event at the Interpretive Trails for our Summer Insect Concert. Enjoy an evening walk and the distinctive sounds of crickets, katydids, and more. Bug repellent is recommended. Kindly RSVP at https://bit.ly/4qBMO5x

08/20/2026

This week, it was time for EIC staff to hop in the pond and evaluate how our bio-dredging treatment has been working! We've been treating the pond for the last month with MacroZyme, a mixture of beneficial, naturally-occurring bacteria and enzymes, to break down the deoxygenated "muck" at the bottom.

This week, we also began to clear out invasive Cattail (Typha sp.) that has taken up residence in the nutrient-rich goop. Cattails are an amazing plant, true specialists of aquatic, low-oxygen habitat. Their rhizomes can spread multiple feet underwater, and the feathery roots trap sediment to create a dense, floating mat. The native cattail species, Typha latifolia, grows slowly and with spaces between it that allow other wetland plants to grow. The invasive species- Typha Angustifolia, and the even more aggressive hybrid, Typha x glauca, grow too densely for other plants to get established, and crowd them out.

Every year, cattail plants die back completely to the surface of the water, and the stems and leaves fall to the bottom of the pond. This plant material, in addition to leaves and branches that fall in from the surrounding trees, accumulates at the bottom and breaks down slowly, depleting oxygen levels in the water. Wednesday, we removed about a thousand pounds of plant material! Removing the plants prevent them from becoming part of the "muck", to create literal "breathing room" in the pond to support diverse plant and animal species. We then placed the pile of cattails in the woods to decompose naturally, releasing their stored nutrients into the soil, instead of the pond!

08/20/2026

The Rose Garden pond is receiving some much-needed attention this summer!

08/14/2026

This very hungry little caterpillar has a secret, it hasn't been munching on leaves. Instead, it's a parasite!

The larva of the Planthopper Parasite Moth (Fulgoracea exigua) feeds by attaching to an insect called a planthopper. Once attached, the caterpillar sustains itself by drinking hemolymph, basically the planthopper's blood. When the caterpillar has had its fill, it drops down on a line of silk to find a safe place to build its spiky, crown-shaped cocoon.

We've been seeing a lot of planthoppers this summer, and these small cocoons are on a variety of different plants. Parasites help to keep other insect populations healthy, by thinning out weak or unhealthy individuals.

Keep an eye out for these intricately shaped cocoons along the trail. It pays to slow down and look close!

07/26/2026

As summer goes on, many insects are reaching adulthood! Right now is a great time to "bee" on the lookout for pollinators in action! Take a stroll past the rain gardens, the pollinator garden, and maybe even set out on the Interpretive Trails! We're still taking entries for our Pollinator Photo Contest...