Discovering the world around me.
Although the United States had purchased the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803, Iowa was still considered Indian Territory. Land-hungry settlers moved inexorably across the woodlands of Ohio and Indiana into the Illinois prairies up to the Mississippi River. The river was a hard boundary, remaining in the nominal possession of the Sauk and Fox […]
Continue reading Settlement Part 1: Land Rush
“There’s a dead skunk in the middle of the road, stinkin’ to high heaven.” Isn’t that a song from the 70s? This real-life skunk was probably out hunting last night, crossing the road looking for supper, when it was hit by a car. It will be surrounded by that unmistakable skunk perfume for days. It […]
Continue reading American Sable, Anyone?: Striped Skunk
The Meskwaki and Sauk people were driven from their ancestral home in northeastern Canada, through Massachusetts, to the Great Lakes, and eventually into Iowa by 1735. Until 1803, Iowa remained part of the territory claimed first by the French (1699-1762), then the Spanish (1762-1800), and then again, the French (1800-1803). In spite of what the […]
Continue reading Meskwaki Part 3: Removal and Return
Spring must be coming. The Canada geese are on the move. We’re out for the morning walk. Dave is distracted. He stands riveted—big floppy lab ears cocked, nose pointing to the south—he hears the season’s first gaggle of Canada geese (Branta canadensis) flying overhead. They may have been wintering south of here, and if so, […]
Continue reading On the Move: Canada Geese
The Meskwaki and Sauk tribes lived in Iowa during a period from about 1735 to 1845. They established villages on the Iowa and Des Moines rivers and hunted across Iowa. The eight acres that comprise Owl Acres today would have been a tiny part of the millions of acres they claimed as their hunting grounds […]
Continue reading Meskwaki Part 2: Woodland Culture
We put up a bird feeder station this year, and the Eastern Goldfinches (Spinus tristis) have decided it’s an easier way to get that 100% of their body weight serving of seeds than foraging for them in the fence rows and woods. A mixed flock of a couple dozen birds flits about, snacking, perching, fluttering […]
Continue reading Iowa State Bird: Eastern Goldfinch
The Meskwaki tribe was the last Native American tribe to live in Iowa and hunt on Owl Acres. Before they came to Iowa, though, they had a long history of conflict and migration. Their name, which translates People of the Red Earth, speaks to their origins in the St. Lawrence River Valley in northeastern Canada. […]
Continue reading Meskwaki Part 1: Last of the Natives
On a February day, there’s a fresh coat of snow on the ground. About four inches of new snow fell overnight, leaving the world bright and clean. The surface of the snow contains the records of last night’s activity. Every creature that was out and about left its tracks for us to see. Raccoons, birds, […]
Continue reading We Are Not Rodents: Eastern Cottontail Rabbits
Owl Acres formed a tiny part of the tall grass prairie that evolved after the last glaciers receded. As such, it would have seen the changes that made mammoths and other giant wildlife extinct and the rise of native hunter-gatherer groups. For over 300 years prior to European conquest, a group of tribes collectively known […]
Continue reading Namesake: The Ioways
On a frigid evening in late winter, I love to sit in my favorite chair beside a blazing fire in the fireplace. Dave lies on my feet, and I revel in the warmth, and the popping, fizzing, roaring, chuckling, murmuring of the fire. The wood we’re burning is a mix of things gathered from downed […]
Continue reading Teeming with Life: Hackberry