Field Notes: The Spawn

The month of March brings the snow melt and the warm rains to the Mississippi River Watershed.  The melt from the Rockies in Wyoming feed the Bighorn and Tongue Rivers, while entering the Yellowstone River in Montana. The Grand and Cheyenne Rivers in South Dakota, the...

Mardi Gras Pass

How did Mardi Gras Pass get Such a Name? Strange things happen on Mardi Gras day. People transform. Hair suddenly grows, turns blue or pink, and trumpets blare. Wild sides bust loose from places that we never knew existed.   On a chilly Mardi Gras day two years...

Destroying Wetlands is Like Poking a Bear

In February’s River Citizen newsletter we started a discussion about the importance of wetlands to the health of the Mississippi River. The health and safety of the people, wildlife, land and water are more dependent on wetlands than most of us realize.  That’s right,...

Wetlands breathe, too

Let’s face it: we rely pretty heavily on the Mississippi River. It’s a pathway for all kinds of beings, big and small, to get where they’re going. The River’s a flyway for birds and we’ve turned it into a waterway for barges. We’ve also turned the Mississippi into a...