How you can help with the Monarch count!

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NEWS | South Fork Nature Center

Office: 290 Main Street, Downtown Clinton | 501-745-6444

AUTUMN is just days away! Post your favorite photos of the changing season at South Fork Nature Center and tag us on INSTAGRAM @southforknaturecenter!

Trashy Photos

Our album from the cleanup on the South Fork shore

On September 9th, we met at the Choctaw Marina at 7:30 a.m., when the morning mist was still coming off the water. Volunteers lined up to register before the cleanup; each one received a ticket for a free lunch afterwards either at The Narrows or at Choctaw Recreational Park.

Special thanks to helping hands from the City of Clinton, including Jason Hayes (Chamber of Commerce), Tony Soyani (Advertising & Promotion Commission), and Philip Ellis (Chamber of Commerce & Zoning Department). These gentlemen organized the volunteer cookout held at Choctaw Park to feed our hungry cleanup crew! A turtle wished us luck as we left, and said thanks for helping to keep his home healthy!

Pictured below is just a sample of the trash our team gathered by the bagful.

Show me more!

CONNECT with SFNC

F O L L O W on F A C E B O O K (Trust us - it's pretty AWESOME!)

Instagram (Yes! It's new!)

Website

HELP THE CAUSE

From monarch butterfly conservation, to arts & crafts workshops at historic Riddle Cabin, you can help the Nature Center and contribute to the legacy of our beautiful region's natural history.

Conservation & education outreach need your support YEAR-ROUND. Please consider a tax-deductible donation.

Donate Online

Levels of Support:

Leave a lasting legacy!

Work in progress...

Up go the pillars!

Educational Pavilion nears completion

We couldn't be more delighted! The progress on the new pavilion is coming along beautifully. What a great addition to our lakeshore! We're grateful to all of the nature-loving partners who have collaborated on this project. (Thanks to Dr. Don Culwell for this latest photo!)

For more details on the step-by-step construction process, and exciting news about grants & partnerships, visit our website!

Love of Nature is without Borders!

We get excited about all the places that bring us visitors to the Nature Center! This summer, we received sign-ins from guests from New York to San Jose, CA, and many cities in between. We even had a guest from as far away as Kabul, Afghanistan!

Thumbs up for nature lovers across the globe who come to enjoy our beautiful trails. If you've paid a visit to South Fork, find us on Facebook and Instagram, and tell us about your neck of the woods! #southforknaturecenter

Get on board!

iNaturalist & the Monarch Migration

Citizen science in action

The iNaturalist network powered by the California Academy of Sciences lets you and millions of other nature lovers contribute to critical data collection about Monarchs and other endangered pollinator species! It's easy to register as a "citizen scientist" observer and log your findings, including sightings, photos, and notes as a part of a valuable observer community. This project is a great opportunity for educators to offer hands-on data collection for students.

Passionate about pollinators? If you're as concerned about pollinator conservation and the preservation of their migration habitats as we are at South Fork, then this is an excellent chance to contribute. Your observations of Monarch sightings will help grow the Arkansas Monarch Mapping Project.

iNaturalist:
Arkansas Monarch Mapping Project

What's your favorite type of wildlife watching? Find a project to join by clicking the "Read More" link! iNaturalist is also available as an app for iPhone and Android.

VIDEO: Are these butterflies the same?

And other Pollinator Puzzles!

Brush up on your butterfly knowledge with MinuteEarth!

Monthly Mystery:

Can you identify this plant? Flex your taxonomical muscles with this challenge. Watch for the answer in next month's edition!

Last Month's Mystery:

Oenethera fruticosa, or Evening Primrose, more than lives up to its colloquial name "Sundrops" thanks to the vibrant sunshine-yellow blossoms that appear through spring & summer. This medium-to low height wildflower is prevalent on roadsides and meadows along with other Oenethera subspecies, such as the beloved buttercup. The Narrowleaf evening primrose pictured is classified by the Xerxes Society as a particular favorite of native bees for pollination. They're an excellent choice for native planting and pollinator gardens.

The Nature Center's 2 miles of beautifully maintained walking trails are open year-round! Located on Bachelor Road off Hwy 330 in Choctaw, near Greers Ferry Lake.

Click the map for driving directions to our front gate.

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