Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area attracts both wildlife and tourists to Greene County with help of FriendsWhat was once Greene County farmland has been transformed into a wetland and upland habitat that is attracting not only wildlife and bird species but tourists.
Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area includes 8,034 acres that were purchased in October 2005 with the help of “many partners,” according to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources Web site.
Since then, efforts to restore the land to its former condition have included more than 30 miles of earthen dikes, 400 acres of tree plantings and 1,400 acres of prairie restoration. Roughly 4,000 acres of the area is flooded, providing water-filled habitat that draw waterfowl, as well as wading and shore birds, according to property manager Brad Feaster.
In addition to the marshland area, the property has prairie grassland, fallow fields and farmed fields for upland habitat, Feaster said.
Both the marsh area and the upland habitat are attracting hunters. Feaster said waterfowl and quail hunting are two of the area’s big draws.
“They’re just learning about us,” Feaster said of hunters, birders and other people who enjoy the outdoors. “The state bought the property in 2005, and each year, the kind of use and the amount of public use is increasing. You can really tell it in the waterfowl season.”
Goose Pond has a lottery each year for waterfowl hunting, and Feaster said more hunters are showing up for the draw each year. The reason for the increased interest is that Goose Pond is on the edge of the Mississippi Flyway, one of the major bird paths leading from Canada down to wintering areas.
“The Wabash River is a corridor for waterfowl and water birds,” Feaster said. Birds flying along the river can spot the 4,000-plus acres of water at Goose Pond and have begun using it as one of the “beacons” along their flight paths, he said.
That draw of birds and wildlife was the impetus for the formation of Friends of Goose Pond, which began to meet formally as a group in June 2007.
“The mission of Friends of Goose Pond is to support the goals of wildlife conservation and habitat restoration at Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area through environmental education, scientific research and recreational activities and programs. That is our mission statement,” said Grace Chapman, secretary of the Friends group.
Chapman said the group helps with the “legwork” needed to develop Goose Pond into a destination for birders, hunters and people who want to enjoy nature. The group is made up of volunteers who help with student field trips, support the youth dove hunt and are working to develop an endowment fund to eventually construct a visitors center.
“One of the problems we have is that without a visitors center, there’s no gate or entrance,” Chapman said. “We don’t know how many people are using the area.”
For now, there are three kiosks on the property where people are encouraged to fill out a form that tells when they visited and what they did while there. The problem is that a lot of people don’t know where the kiosks are, Chapman said. The kiosks also contain information, including a list of bird species that have been spotted at the property.
The Friends group has worked with the Sassafras Audubon Society to provide a community day to highlight Goose Pond, and it has sponsored two wildflower workshops so people could learn to identify the area’s native plants.
It also has partnered with the Greene County Foundation and Sassafras Audubon Society on a day to pick up trash. It also produced a brochure for the Beehunter 5 walking path for visitors so they know more about what they can see along the 2.25-mile trail.
“It’s all about community-building,” Chapman said. “We work with other groups to showcase a lot of different places where people can come and view wildlife and birds.”
This March, the Friends group will be working with DNR, Linton Rotary and Civitan groups, the Heritage Arts Center of Greene County and the city of Linton to put on Marsh Madness, a two-day festival that will highlight Greene County destinations. The festival on March 5 and 6 is scheduled to coincide with the peak of the sandhill crane and waterfowl migration, Feaster said.
“We have a more impressive migration in the spring than in the fall,” he said, explaining that there are more sandhills in the spring, and many of the waterfowl are in their fresh, bright breeding plumage then. Feaster said there will be 7,000-8,000 sandhill cranes and between 15,000 and 20,000 waterfowl migrating through in the spring.
“It’s a community-driven festival,” Feaster said of Marsh Madness. “And Friends of Goose Pond is taking the lead.”
The festival will be based at the Linton city park with various seminars, crafts and kids’ activities. There will be DNR officials from the Hardy Lake bird rehabilitation center to discuss birds of prey and show off a few. There also will be self-guided and bus tours of Goose Pond FWA, with volunteers from the Friends group helping.
“They’re a big reason why people are starting to find out about Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area,” Feaster said of the Friends group.
He cited the group’s help with workshops, bird watching days and the many student groups that have visited the property. Student groups from Eastern Greene schools visit at least twice a year, as well as classes from Linton, Sullivan and Bloomfield schools. The science club from Linton and all the first-graders in Linton schools have been to the property, courtesy of the Friends group, Feaster said. He said a Bloomington teacher wants to bring her class out sometime this spring.
“It’s great to have a group of people that interested in promoting the area,” he said.
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More on Goose Pond and its Friends
For more information on Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area, go to
www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/3094.htm.
Friends of Goose Pond has an 11-member board of directors and has about 200 people on its mailing list. There are no dues and all are welcome to attend meetings.
The group has calendars for sale and ball caps with the Friends logo on them. For more on these items, e-mail Grace Chapman at
mail@friendsofgoosepond.org.
For more about the Marsh Madness festival, go to
http://marshmadness.info. The Web site is under construction, but it will have more information on the festival soon.
Copyright: HeraldTimesOnline.com 2009
