Summer Survey, Saturday, July 13

The Survey will be an all day affair. We will head out in teams to survey sand roads for animal tracks, then come back in to share our discoveries with one another. Each team will be led by an experienced wildlife tracker. Here is the schedule for the day:

8:30am    Team Leads & Assistants Meet to Create Survey Routes

9:00am    Gathering & Welcome at Lindman Center

9:30am    Tracking teams leave for the field

  --Lunch in the field--

~3:30pm  Return from the field for mapping, debriefing and sharing

5:00pm    Complete

Want to Carpool?

We have a new tool to help coordinate carpooling. If you would like to share the trip to Cedar Creek, you can use our Group Carpool webpage to offer or request a ride.

Bring Your Questions

In recent surveys, our teams have identified the tracks of about 20 species including black bear, fisher, mink, red fox and grey wolf. We have been noting the behavior of deer, coyote and fox in relation to the shifting wolf population, and seeing some of our wolf track sightings verified by Cedar Creek's new network of trail cameras. A lot has been changing every season and we are looking forward to what we will find this summer. Some of the questions that came up after our spring survey include:

What questions do you have about the landscape, the animals and their behavior? We will take some time to share questions before we head out into the field.

About Cedar Creek

Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve is a 5,400 acre experimental ecological reserve operated by the University of Minnesota. It is located about 35 miles north of Minneapolis and St. Paul, just east of Bethel.

Cedar Creek lies at the boundary between prairie and forest. It is a mosaic of uplands dominated by oak savanna, prairie, hardwood forest, pine forests, and abandoned agricultural fields and of lowlands comprised of ash and cedar swamps, acid bogs, marshes, and sedge meadows. The area was first set aside in the early 1940s to be kept in its natural condition for scientific and educational purposes. Much of the land remains pristine, and has never been developed for agriculture. You can learn more at www.cedarcreek.umn.edu

The diverse, pristine habitat supports a wide variety of mammals. Species seen on the property over the Reserve's 75 year history include white-tailed jackrabbits, badger, fisher, fox squirrels, porcupine & spotted skunks. Reserve staff and scientists are looking for our help to update their index of mammals. If you are a beginner, the surveys will offer an overview of the diversity of Minnesota Mammals. For the advanced tracker, you might get to try your hand at distinguishing fisher from otter; fox squirrel from grey squirrel; and a variety of tiny mammal tracks. You can take a look at some of what our tracking teams have found on our iNaturalist Project Page

The property includes 25 miles of sand roads, which catch tracks beautifully. The roads will be grated shortly before our surveys, offering optimal tracking conditions for us to locate and identify a rich diversity of species.

Public access to the Reserve is limited. The Cedar Creek Wildlife Survey program offers you the rare opportunity to explore this exceptional landscape.


Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve
2660 Fawn Lake Dr NE
Bethel, Minnesota 55005


For a map & directions to Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve, click here

9:00 - 1:00 
For a map & directions click here

We will gather at 9:00 the Visitor Center. We will head out on the trail by about 9:20 and return to the Visitor Center before 1:00pm to wrap up. If you need to reach us the day of the outing, please call Jon's cell phone at 612-388-4700. Note that cell reception may be spotty in the park.

In our May Tracking Club, we will place an emphasis on asking questions and following our curiosity as we find tracks. Come explore how this focus on questions helps us find our edge and keep growing - as individual trackers and as a community. With the water levels finally receding, we will explore one of the most track-rich spots we have found along the Minnesota River.

*Our original plan was to park under the Cedar Ave Bridge, but that parking lot is flooded. We will instead park at the Old Cedar Ave Bridge Trailhead and approach the river from the north, instead of the south.*

We will gather at 9:00 in the parking lot at the Old Cedar Ave Bridge Trailhead. We will head out on the trail by about 9:20 and return to the parking lot before 1:00pm to wrap up. If you need to reach us the day of the outing, please call Jon's cell phone at 612-388-4700.

This May marks five years that the Minnesota Wildlife Tracking Project has been hosting our Bird Language Gathering at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. Come join us this Cinco de Mayo as we celebrate in the best way we know how--by sitting on the slopes of the Minnesota River Valley to get a glimpse into the lives of the area's avian residents. And there might even be cake.