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Environment/Ecology/Nature

July Adds Up to Cold, Dry

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Temperatures in the Quetico Superior region were colder than normal in July, with International Falls breaking a record for lowest average temperature for the month. July was also a dry month across the region.

Fire Danger Low, but Area Firefighters Active

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Forest fire danger in northern Minnesota and western Ontario is low, but that doesn’t mean area firefighters are keeping busy. Wild-land fire fighters from the Quetico-Superior region are helping fight fires currently burning in British Columbia.

Sturgeon the Subject of Voyageurs Talk

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Lake sturgeon, a fish species that has lived in its present form for some 100 million years, will be the topic of tomorrow evening’s program at Voyageurs National Park.

Wildflowers of the Boundary Waters Reviewed

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Betty vos Hemstad’s new book “Wildflowers of the Boundary Waters: Hking Through the Seasons” is more than just a lovely coffee table book, according to one reviewer who found the book to be “an invaluable resource.”

Mayflies Inundate Lake Vermillion

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This year’s mayfly hatch on Lake Vermillion was one of epic proportions. Hatches of the short-lived native species are normal in mid-summer, but this year’s hatch of the insects called for extra measures to remove the piles of dead creatures.

Remembering the Blowdown of 1999

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Tomorrow marks the 10th anniversary of the famed Boundary Waters Blowdown. On July 4, 1999 a huge storm packing 90-mile-per-hour winds ripped through the BWCA, uprooting trees, blocking portages, and stranding campers. In all 370,000 acres in the BWCA were affected by the storm.

Cross-Border Study Examines Cormorants

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An on-going study of cormorants on Rainy Lake will include increased attention on birds dwelling on the Canadian side of the international water-body this summer. Cormorants have been a lightening-rod species among some anglers who fear the birds are impacting game-fish populations

Island Life Author to Speak at Voyageurs

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Ted Gostomski, the co-author of Island Life: An Isle Royale Nature Guide and a Biologist/Science Writer at the Great Lakes Inventory and Monitoring Program of the National Park Service, will speak on Friday at Voyaguers National Park in International Falls.

Weather Hampers Voyageurs Burn Efforts

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Rainy weather has confounded Voyageurs National Park’s efforts to conduct four prescribed burns this spring to further pine and oak regeneration in the International Falls-area park. While the window for spring burning may have passed, burning during the summer months is still a possibility.

New Book Spotlights BWCA Wildflowers

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Betty Vos Hemstad’s new book spotlights Boundary Waters area wildflowers in a new way. “Wildflowers of the Boundary Waters: Hiking Through the Seasons” depicts northern Minnesota’s wildflowers in various stages of development — from bud, to flower, to seed.

Minnesota DNR Looking for Loon Counters

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The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is looking for volunteers to count loons on lakes in Cook and Lake county. The one-day count by volunteers is part of the Minnesota Loon Monitoring Survey, now in its 15th year.

Namakan Sturgeon Study Enters Third Year

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A study examining the health of the Namakan Reservoir’s sturgeon population has entered its third year. The study, which could have an impact on proposed hydroelectric projects on Ontario’s Namakan River, seeks to establish baseline information on health of the species of “special concern” in both Minnesota and Ontario.

State Wolf Population Declassified

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The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has assumed management responsibilities for the state’s gray wolf population following the delisting of the wolf as a threatened species.

Gunflint Green Up Sprouts New Life In Forest – And Community

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Hundreds of people descended upon the Gunflint Trail outside of Grand Marais last weekend to plant thousands of pine seedlings and green up the fire impacted forest. Wilderness News Online caught up with Quetico Superior Foundation board member and Gunflint Trail property owner Dyke Williams, who had the opportunity to join the annual event. Read our Q&A.

Gunflint Green Up 2009

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Third annual Gunflint Green Up is gearing up to plant thousands of white pine and coniferous seedlings in areas of Superior National Forest impacted by the Ham Lake Fire of 2007. Register now for a spring weekend of outdoor work and great fun! May 1-3, 2009.

Moose Population Steady in Voyageurs National Park

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According to a Voyageurs National Park press release, a recent survey of the park’s moose population revealted that it is holding steady. The aerial survey sited 45 moose–a pleasant surprise for park officials given the decline of other moose populations acrosss northeastern Minnesota and southern Ontario.