While the essence of conservation is noble, perhaps there’s a layer of harmony yet to be explored. Could it be that in our structured efforts to restore, we might overlook the unstructured beauty of letting nature reclaim its own rhythm?
Thank you for your heartfelt work and dedication. Your story illuminates a path forward, encouraging us all to find our place within the natural world. Your passion is truly inspiring.
You are welcome. I really enjoyed working on this project and seeing the subtle ways that nature worked on people over time. The most profound changes were often subtle. A softer tone and more affectionate language emerged. Once we brought birders and farmers together they reinforced each others love of birds and nature. That engaged a positive feedback loop as people felt seen, heard, and part of something larger than themselves.
This is brilliant and brings me great joy to hear the enthusiasm of creating wetlands. A native of central Illinois a decade back, I could envision these dotting the miles of flat boring fields. I remembered driving I55 in the cooler season and the massive migration of geese in the sky. Going to check out your film. Just wonderful to read this!
Very informative Bill. I use Cornell lab’s Merlin Bird ID almost daily. Your post showed me the importance of having an account and signing in to eBird to allow my sitings to be recorded . Your photography, especially the way you captured the grace of the Northern Pintail. Wonderful as usual.
“Water will flow through our consciousness and change us. People will start making choices that favor nature…”
Bill, this post should be published to reach a wider audience .
Thank you. I would love to publish essays like this for a broader audience. I have several versions of this essay and I tried publishing with Ducks Unlimited and other outlets, but the challenge seems to be that the hunting and birding publications are not comfortable with this narrative. I think that the birders and hunters are the people that would benefit from this story, but I may have to start with a different publication that is open to this approach. If you or anyone else has ideas about publications that might be interested please let me know.
I understand the dilemma. The disconnect between the Birdwatchers and the sportsman .While I do not understand the shooting of wetland birds, I know quite a few hunters who relish the silence and observations of a duck blind, and articulate a deep respect for wildlife.
I live in Vt, but grew up in NY. Spending many years hiking in the ADK mountains of NY. I subscribe to a magazine
called Conservationist.
This is a NY state mag. put out by the DEC of NY.
This mag. has articles about both the sportsmanship , fishing , as well as birding. I know, you’re not in NY. I thought you may want to review their website; Conservationist , to see if you can find some ideas that could connect you to Illinois.
Maybe contact the Conservationist , as some people are just happy to help when it comes to achieving goals in nature preservation even though it is a different state. They may have connections to nationwide
publications. You never know where a great idea could be born.
Bill, it was wonderful to see what you and the team have accomplished with the wetland restoration! I watched Fluddles several times and appreciated the logical and science backed approach as well as seeing the birds in their natural (fluddle) habitat . There is so much to be done, but this project gives me hope that we can come together some day (dare I hope world wide) to intelligently support the needs of birds and all life by giving back and rebalancing. Everyone working together is def the key...... Thanks so much.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching the film. I’m glad to hear that you appreciated it. Hopefully, I will have more updates to share in the future as we restore wetlands.
Another really special post. (It’s inspiring to see that long-term barriers can be broken down and that rigid believers of opposing views can find a place to meet.) Plus the photos are glorious, as always. Thanks so much.
I enjoyed the history of this piece. It is my hope the younger generations will have more compassion and common sense than the short sighted generations that came before them.
Change is truly a constant, and even though I’m in my seventh decade, I embrace any change that is for leaving the next generations to come a better earth..
We do need more compassion and common sense. Farmers tend to have a great abundance of common sense. As soon as they feel comfortable with openly caring for nature, they will apply that common sense to restoring habitat.
Yes. the tiles are often mapped out and it is pretty straightforward to find them and remove them. Old clay tile lines it can be harder to find, but even in those cases they can usually be found and broken up.
As noted above : this post - "Fluddles " - brings wetlands ( puddles ) to the forefront. Hugely important. Marshes are sponges that absorb " bad " and create " good ". The sponge analogy was in an article about the state of Florida purchasing southern sugar cane lands from corporations and re-wilding.
Beautiful photos as always. I especially love the pintail ♥️ I'm looking forward to watching the film. I live close to Braddock Bay and we love hiking the trails. There are always red wings, swans and a few raptors to watch. My sister was lucky enough to see a mother and her cygnets over the weekend.
While the essence of conservation is noble, perhaps there’s a layer of harmony yet to be explored. Could it be that in our structured efforts to restore, we might overlook the unstructured beauty of letting nature reclaim its own rhythm?
Thank you for your heartfelt work and dedication. Your story illuminates a path forward, encouraging us all to find our place within the natural world. Your passion is truly inspiring.
You are welcome. I really enjoyed working on this project and seeing the subtle ways that nature worked on people over time. The most profound changes were often subtle. A softer tone and more affectionate language emerged. Once we brought birders and farmers together they reinforced each others love of birds and nature. That engaged a positive feedback loop as people felt seen, heard, and part of something larger than themselves.
"A softer tone and more affectionate language emerged" sometimes a softer tone can create stronger bonds.
I think you are right. A soft tone is a delicate and ephemeral thing. It emerges over time as people start to feel more comfortable and connected.
This is brilliant and brings me great joy to hear the enthusiasm of creating wetlands. A native of central Illinois a decade back, I could envision these dotting the miles of flat boring fields. I remembered driving I55 in the cooler season and the massive migration of geese in the sky. Going to check out your film. Just wonderful to read this!
Thank you. I am glad you can envision wetlands in the fields. We are bringing them back.
Very informative Bill. I use Cornell lab’s Merlin Bird ID almost daily. Your post showed me the importance of having an account and signing in to eBird to allow my sitings to be recorded . Your photography, especially the way you captured the grace of the Northern Pintail. Wonderful as usual.
“Water will flow through our consciousness and change us. People will start making choices that favor nature…”
Bill, this post should be published to reach a wider audience .
Thank you. I would love to publish essays like this for a broader audience. I have several versions of this essay and I tried publishing with Ducks Unlimited and other outlets, but the challenge seems to be that the hunting and birding publications are not comfortable with this narrative. I think that the birders and hunters are the people that would benefit from this story, but I may have to start with a different publication that is open to this approach. If you or anyone else has ideas about publications that might be interested please let me know.
I understand the dilemma. The disconnect between the Birdwatchers and the sportsman .While I do not understand the shooting of wetland birds, I know quite a few hunters who relish the silence and observations of a duck blind, and articulate a deep respect for wildlife.
I live in Vt, but grew up in NY. Spending many years hiking in the ADK mountains of NY. I subscribe to a magazine
called Conservationist.
This is a NY state mag. put out by the DEC of NY.
This mag. has articles about both the sportsmanship , fishing , as well as birding. I know, you’re not in NY. I thought you may want to review their website; Conservationist , to see if you can find some ideas that could connect you to Illinois.
Maybe contact the Conservationist , as some people are just happy to help when it comes to achieving goals in nature preservation even though it is a different state. They may have connections to nationwide
publications. You never know where a great idea could be born.
Thank you. I am reaching out to different organizations now, and I will look into Conservationist magazine.
Bill, it was wonderful to see what you and the team have accomplished with the wetland restoration! I watched Fluddles several times and appreciated the logical and science backed approach as well as seeing the birds in their natural (fluddle) habitat . There is so much to be done, but this project gives me hope that we can come together some day (dare I hope world wide) to intelligently support the needs of birds and all life by giving back and rebalancing. Everyone working together is def the key...... Thanks so much.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching the film. I’m glad to hear that you appreciated it. Hopefully, I will have more updates to share in the future as we restore wetlands.
Another really special post. (It’s inspiring to see that long-term barriers can be broken down and that rigid believers of opposing views can find a place to meet.) Plus the photos are glorious, as always. Thanks so much.
What an inspiring post. Thanks for making the film for wetland lovers like me and those about to become like us.
Yes. There are a lot of young people who will be the landowners and farmers of the future that share our values.
I enjoyed the history of this piece. It is my hope the younger generations will have more compassion and common sense than the short sighted generations that came before them.
Change is truly a constant, and even though I’m in my seventh decade, I embrace any change that is for leaving the next generations to come a better earth..
We do need more compassion and common sense. Farmers tend to have a great abundance of common sense. As soon as they feel comfortable with openly caring for nature, they will apply that common sense to restoring habitat.
This is hopeful. Thank you.
Very Interesting. Is there an existing technique to locate and remove the old drain tiles?
Yes. the tiles are often mapped out and it is pretty straightforward to find them and remove them. Old clay tile lines it can be harder to find, but even in those cases they can usually be found and broken up.
As noted above : this post - "Fluddles " - brings wetlands ( puddles ) to the forefront. Hugely important. Marshes are sponges that absorb " bad " and create " good ". The sponge analogy was in an article about the state of Florida purchasing southern sugar cane lands from corporations and re-wilding.
Swamps are sponges. Let'm be. Reap the benefits.
Beautiful photos as always. I especially love the pintail ♥️ I'm looking forward to watching the film. I live close to Braddock Bay and we love hiking the trails. There are always red wings, swans and a few raptors to watch. My sister was lucky enough to see a mother and her cygnets over the weekend.
🕊️🕊️🕊️