Winnebago County Conservation Board

05/14/2026

Our Motus Tower detected its first migrating bird! On Tuesday, a Harris's Sparrow flew within range of our tower at about 5:20 AM. It had been tagged on May 3rd in southeastern Kansas and, by Tuesday, it had made its way to Madison County, IA. That day, it was detected by 5 different towers (including ours) and eventually ended up in St. Cloud, MN, only a few hours later! We'll keep you posted on any other birds that our tower picks up!

Explore the tracks of all the animals in our database using this tool.

05/11/2026

Great news! Remember our Blandings Turtle that got hit by a car? The rehabber was able to fix his shell (as well as the other minor injuries) and determined that he would not need months of rehabilitation after all. So, we were able to pick him up and, last week, we released him near where we found him at Ambroson Park!

The rehabber said that he was a "he" and that he was at the maximum size for a Blandings Turtle in Iowa. She estimated his age to be somewhere between 30 and 50 years. We've included before and after photos of his shell here, as well as a few photos and videos of his release back into the wild. Since Blandings Turtles are officially considered a "Threatened Species" in Iowa, we hope that this big guy continues to live a long life and will, hopefully, help repopulate northern Iowa!

04/30/2026

WE GOT BIRDS! 🐦 Saturday looks to be a big migration night for birds like warblers, thrushes, sparrows, shorebirds, orioles, grosbeaks, buntings and hummingbirds!

As they're returning home to Iowa or just passing through, lend a hand (wing?) and:
Turn off unnecessary outdoor lighting from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. to help our feathered friends find their way.

Turn off unneeded indoor lights overnight and use stickers or other methods to help make windows more visible and reduce collisions.

Oh, and keep those cats inside, too.

* Migration data and map source: The Cornell Lab of Ornithology/BirdCast

04/29/2026

The Winnebago County campgrounds at Thorpe Park and Dahle Park will open for the season this Friday, May 1st!

The 13 electrical/water sites at Thorpe Park will be $12/night, while the 2 primitive tent sites will run $8/night. The campground also has a communal water pump and a porta-potty. All 8 sites at Dahle Park have electrical hookups and will be $10/night this season. There is also a water pump at Dahle Park and a pit toilet.

In addition, Thorpe Park will also have a campground host beginning sometime before the Memorial Day weekend. We hope you enjoy camping at your county parks this summer!

04/28/2026

Staff will be out of the office today, so the Hanson Nature Center will be closed. We apologize for the inconvenience.

04/25/2026

Be sure to stop by the Hanson Nature Center tomorrow (Saturday, April 25th) from 1:30-3:30 for our Spring Open House! We will have crafts for the kids and refreshments for everyone. Also, at 2:00, we will dedicate our Motus Tower! We hope to see you there!

04/24/2026

There's about a half hour left in our Arbor Day Tree Giveaway!

We're out of the Norway Spruce, but still have some Gray Dogwood, Hackberry, and Pin Oak seedlings available. Whatever is left, we will leave outside the Hanson Nature Center for people to take. But, if you come after hours, please remember to bring along a bucket or bag so that the roots of your seedling can stay wet.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by today to pick up a seedling!

04/17/2026

Unfortunately, because of the cloudy skies, we will have to cancel our Spring Stargazing Program for this evening. No new date has been scheduled.

04/16/2026

You may have noticed that the Hanson Nature Center was closed yesterday. That was because we had to take an injured Blandings Turtle to a rehabilitator in eastern Iowa. The Blandings Turtle is considered a Threatened Species here in Iowa. So, when our Natural Resource Technician Nicole Templeton found one at Ambroson Park that had apparently been hit by a car, we decided that we needed to try to save it.

The turtle was an adult and was active, which was a good sign, but it was bleeding. It had two cracks on its shell, one a relatively large one on the underside, and abrasions on its shell, its feet, and its tail. Upon contacting the rehabber, we were told that the larger shell crack would need to be repaired and that the shell would need about 6 months to fully heal.

So, the turtle is now at the rehab facility. Its shell will be repaired and the turtle will stay at the facility until the shell is healed. Since he or she probably won't be ready to be released until this fall, the rehabber will most likely keep the turtle until next spring, at which time we will release it back close to where we found it. We know that the area around Ambroson has a population of Blandings Turtles, so we want to help that population continue to grow. We'll keep you posted with updates about our little guy/gal as we get them!

In the meantime, please drive carefully and watch for turtles when driving around wetlands this spring and summer!

04/15/2026

All Hanson Nature Center employees will be out of the building most of the day, so the Center will be closed today. It will reopen tomorrow. We apologize for the inconvenience.

04/14/2026

We have a new geocache at the Hanson Nature Center! In addition to the "Winnebago County--Hanson Nature Center" geocache, we now also have the "Prairie Edge" geocache. You have to walk a little further to find it, but it's a leisurely walk through the prairie. We hope you'll stop out and look for it! Then, if the nature center is open, stop in and look around there, as well!