The Flying Checkerboard and Fire
Conrad Station Savanna Nature Preserve, located on the north end of Kankakee Sands, is an ideal place for a springtime walk. Not only will you be delighted by spring wildflowers, you will likely also get to see a flying checkerboard!
Though many birds migrate back to Indiana in the spring, red-headed woodpeckers (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) are year-round residents here in Newton County. These red, black and white feathered birds, thus affectionately called checkerboards, are especially easy to see before the trees leaf out, zipping between tree trunks in search of insects to eat, or perched on tree trunks in search of nesting cavities.
Check out the new visitor improvements!
Visit Kankakee Sands!Watch for the bright red feathers on their head, which provide a stark contrast to their black wings and white underbelly and tail. Both male and female red-headed woodpeckers have these color markings, and they want to be seen!
The healthy open savannas and woodlands of Conrad Station Savanna—in which red-headed woodpeckers can feed, find safety and raise their young—are their preferred habitat. This habitat is greatly enhanced by the use of prescribed fire. The science shows that there is a strong positive correlation of red-headed woodpeckers with burned areas.
Prescribed fire is a critical component of keeping grasslands and woodlands healthy and thriving. These systems evolved with fire: the plants depend on it, as well as the insects and animals of those habitats. Healthy ecosystems are ones that can resist decline, adapt to change and be sustained over time. TNC and Department of Natural Resources staff regularly conduct prescribed burns here in Newton County and, in fact, all over the United States.
TNC is an international organization, and we conduct prescribed fire all over the world! In fact, Indiana Kankakee Sands staff member Olivia Schouten (Indiana TNC) and Rob Littiken (Illinois TNC) recently returned from a week-long workshop in the country of Belize in Central America, where they were involved in an education exchange on prescribed burning. Olivia attended the fire workshop for the first time to grow her experience specifically on the topic of Wildfire Response. Rob returned this year to assist with the planning and presentation.
Quote: Alyssa Nyberg
The Nature Conservancy is an international organization and conducts prescribed fire all over the world!
Our very own Indiana TNC staff are featured in this 5-minute video to help familiarize people all across the globe about the benefits of prescribed fire.
Interested in possibly joining our prescribed fire team of staff and volunteers? Great! There is a free online course through the National Wildfire Coordination group, which takes about 40 hours to complete, and a mandatory instructor-led field day. Once you are certified as a Firefighter Type 2, you can help keep natural areas healthy and home to the stunning red-headed woodpeckers and so many other grassland and savanna species. Reach out to us at indiana@tnc.org to find out more.
This spring, as you walk among the ruins of the old town of Conrad in Conrad Station Savanna Nature Preserve, let the red-headed woodpeckers remind you that this special place, like so many other natural areas in Indiana, are thriving thanks to the dedication of many trained staff and volunteers and a robust fire program.
Nature Notes for March
That's Golden!
A golden eagle (Aquila chysaetos) was recently spotted soaring over the Kankakee Sands prairie, to which we say, “That’s Golden!” It’s awesome news because it reaffirms everything that we want Kankakee Sands to be: a home for those species who spend their whole lives here on the prairies and savannas, as well as a seasonal home for those species—like the golden eagle—who might overwinter in Indiana rather than in the frozen tundra to the north.
Over the last 10-20 years, golden eagles have been seen on occasion in Newton County. It’s a very memorable experience to see the large golden eagle—it stands 2.5 feet tall and has a wing span of nearly 6.5 feet!
Check out the new visitor improvements!
Visit Kankakee Sands!Though golden eagles are a large bird, they are notorious for being fast and agile in flight. They have been clocked at nearly 200 miles per hour! For such a large, fast, nimble creature, it has a sweet call that sounds to me like I imagine a seagull in love might sound.
While exciting, it can also be a little confusing. Due to their size, they are often confused from afar with bald eagles and turkey vultures. And so identifying the golden eagle requires an eagle eye for detail.
The golden eagle is named for the golden feathers at the nape of its neck which look radiant in the correct light. However, on overcast days, those same identifying feathers can look tawny brown and rather lackluster. So, look instead for its large, hooked beak. This beak is used for eating small mammals such as rabbits and ground squirrels. And don’t let their plumage fool you. Like many birds, golden eagles have plumage variations depending on age. Juvenile golden eagles will have white wing patches and a white tail band when viewed from below. Older golden eagles lack the white feathers and have darker plumage covering their entire body.
Quote: Alyssa Nyberg
It’s a very memorable experience to see a large golden eagle—it stands 2.5 feet tall and has a wing span of nearly 6.5 feet!
That’s the amazing thing about nature: we can experience that feeling of awe and admiration and also be challenged to learn more about everything we’re seeing and hearing. Asking questions is how we learn!
Let Nature Take Root in Your Inbox
Get the latest news, photos and opportunities near you, delivered monthly. Check out a sample Nature News email.
Golden eagles can be found all across the northern hemisphere of the globe in areas of large open grassland habitat. Here in North America, golden eagles inhabit Alaska, Canada, northern Mexico and much of the United States, including right here at Kankakee Sands in Newton County, Indiana!
As winter draws to a close, stop by Kankakee Sands to try to spot a golden eagle before they return to their summer breeding grounds in Canada and Alaska. If you catch sight of one, consider yourself extremely fortunate and enjoy the priceless view!
For more information on this gorgeous, iconic national bird of Albania, Austria, Germany, Kazakhstan and Mexico and winter-time visitor to Kankakee Sands, check out the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service webpage on golden eagles.
Nature Notes for February
Heading South for the Spring
Now that it’s February, we will be moving the Kankakee Sands bison herd from the north grazing pasture to the southern grazing pasture. At approximately 400 acres, the northern pasture provides adequate forage for several months, and then it is time to move our bison to the larger 800-acre pasture for the spring, summer and early fall.
The smaller northern pasture affords wonderful views of our bison herd, especially from the two new viewing platforms. The larger southern pasture provides more habitat for grazing and places for protection, which is so important when bison cows are giving birth to calves in late spring.
Check out the new visitor improvements!
Visit Kankakee Sands!At one time, majestic herds of bison roamed much of north America from western Canada through the Great Plains and Midwest to Mexico. Those herds moved with a wisdom inherited from generation to generation, in time with the seasons and the needs of the herd. They were 30-60 million strong—a powerful keystone species of the prairie, able to sustain themselves through time. Imagine seeing so many bison across the landscape!
Much changed for the bison as they were nearly exterminated in the late 1800s, as documented in Ken Burns' 2024 film The American Buffalo. Then came the fences and the isolation of the bison herds. Bison know what they need, but now, due to the inability to roam, bison can no longer follow the instincts that would have kept them healthy and strong.
But that dark time is illuminated by the many people who have come together to assist with nurturing and caring for the bison by diligently collaborating over the last 100 years to support bison conservation and a return of bison to cultures and landscapes. Together, people have assisted in bringing back bison from just a few hundred to 500,000 across North America!
Quote: Alyssa Nyberg
Together, people have assisted in bringing back bison from just a few hundred to 500,000 across North America!
At Kankakee Sands, we have some of those very individuals right here on our staff and in our volunteer network!
TNC staffpersons Olivia Schouten and Trevor Edmonson recently traveled to Denver to attend the National Bison Association’s winter conference. Olivia and Trevor networked alongside 600 other bison managers from private, public, Tribal lands and academic institutions, sharing knowledge about how to keep bison healthy and safe and how also to keep the people who work with bison healthy and safe.
Our Kankakee Sands Bison Rangers are volunteers working alongside TNC staff to raise awareness of bison and prairies to preserve visitors. Our Bison Rangers attend trainings and workshops so that they are equipped with the information and confidence to welcome people of all ages and abilities to Kankakee Sands. Bison Rangers answer questions and inspire visitors to take action in their own lives for the good of the natural world, and they facilitate people falling in love with the bison. And we all know that we protect the things we love!
Interested in joining our team of staff and volunteers who support our Kankakee Sands Bison Program by becoming a Bison Ranger? Reach out to our Indiana Volunteer Specialist, Esmé Barniskis, to learn more.
As you enjoy watching the bison herd quietly grazing the prairies of the south pasture, know that there are many TNC staff and volunteers who are learning, sharing and caring for these magnificent animals here in Indiana and all across North America.
Read More
Weird Nature: An Owl That Uses Dung Tools
Read how the burrowing owl utilizes animal dung to make hunting easier.
Kankakee Sands
Our Kankakee Sands restoration project is rejuvenating a prairie landscape and providing vital habitat for butterflies, amphibians and birds.
Midwest Pollinators
The Nature Conservancy is protecting the habitats that pollinators need to thrive, so we can enjoy the crucial benefits that they provide.
