Field Trips, Evening Programs and More

Each summer Madeline Island Wilderness Preserve sponsors free field trips and evening programs, open to both youth and adults, featuring the natural history of the Apostle Islands area, and highlighting issues important to the area's protection and preservation. The field trips are held in The Preserve or at other locations on Madeline Island. The evening programs are usually held at the Madeline Island Museum. Our Annual Meeting, held on Memorial Day Weekend, features a speaker on a timely environmental topic, and our 4th of July Parade entry highlights an important environmental issue. View our Events pages to explore our programs and events, and our 4th of July Parade page to enjoy our previous parade entries.

We also feature an educational article in our annual newsletters. Below are some of those articles:

I knew there were going to be some spongy moths on the island this summer because I did a survey for spongy moth egg masses this past spring that was included in the MIWP 2022 newsletter (See the May 12th article in Education & Advocacy). The intent of the survey was to get some idea of the number of egg masses in the area, and thus the potential for defoliation in 2022. Working with guidance from Wisconsin DNR forest health specialists, I selected areas to survey that were at high risk of spongy moth introduction based on public use, especially by summer visitors. These included campsites and parking lots at the Town and State Parks, and trailheads throughout the island.

Except for a couple of sites within the parks I did not see many egg masses. So, I was completely taken aback at the widespread occurrence of spongy moth caterpillars and the extent of their defoliation on the island this summer. I had been completely unaware of egg masses in other areas of the island—areas that I had not viewed as high risk for introduction!

There are things you can do to protect high value trees in a yard or small woodlot. See this article for more info…

REMEMBER: Human movement of infected items is the main way spongy moth is introduced to new locations. Before leaving the island and before coming to the island, inspect and destroy all forms of spongy moth (egg mass, caterpillar, pupa, or moth) on any items you are carrying, including firewood and your vehicle.

By Kathy Kromroy, 2022
Toward the end of August last year, I noticed pale brown fuzzy blotches, about the size of an oblong quarter, on a few oak and birch trunks on our island property on North Shore Road. I recognized these fuzzy blotches as egg masses that had been deposited by female spongy moths Lymantria dispar, formerly called gypsy moths. In September I found a few egg masses on scattered trees and the sign at the Burroughs Trailhead, and in October I saw several trees with at least one egg mass during an hour of looking around the Town Park parking lot…

I had not seen any traps for spongy moth on the island for several years, so I contacted several forest health professionals to request guidance for what we should do in 2022, given the egg masses I had seen.