Events

Families who have never had experience shooting .22 rifles are invited to participate in an instructor led, live fire session learning safety and the proper techniques of shooting .22 rim fire rifles. Firearms, ammunition, and safety equipment will be provided

Visitors to Burr Oak Woods Conservation Nature Center may select a seedling (witch hazel or paw paw) to plant in their own yard to celebrate Earth Day. One tree per family or group available, while supplies last.

Join us to discover the basics of responsible handgun ownership and the joys of shooting. We will cover safety, handgun nomenclature, sight picture, sight alignment, breath control, trigger squeeze, and much more. During the live fire portion, .22 handguns and ammunition will be provided. If you plan to use your own, bring a minimum of 50 rounds of new ammunition for your firearm. Make sure all firearms are unloaded before arriving at the range. There should be no live ammunition, or uncased firearms inside the classroom. Please leave all firearms in the vehicle until the class is dismissed including all concealed carry handguns and magazines.

The nature center is partnering with the Cape Girardeau Parks & Recreation Department to clean up Cape LaCroix Creek during their annual Friends of the Park Day. Gather your friends, family, or organization to help bring the beauty back to the creek between Walden Park and Shawnee Sports Complex. We’ll meet at the nature center to distribute supplies and assign locations. If you register prior to April 5 at 5 pm, lunch and T-shirts will be provided at Capaha Park. Youth and adult groups welcome.

Red, blue, white, and green; what beautiful colors appear in spring! Learn about the beautiful blooms in spring and participate in some fun and flowery sensory activities and crafts. Babes in the Woods programs are designed to empower parents to introduce babies and toddlers ages 0–2 years to the sights, sounds, and textures of nature.

Walk-in (all ages) The Missouri Prairie Foundation (MPF) is on site for a spring native plant sale. Grow Native! vendors will be on hand with a wide selection of native flowers, grasses, sedges, shrubs and trees for a variety of growing conditions. Vendors will contribute a percentage of plant sale proceeds to benefit MPF's prairie conservation in Missouri. Visit www.moprairie.org for participating vendors and information about pre-ordering. If accommodations are needed, please e-mail the instructor at least one week prior to the program.

With spring in full swing MO amphibians are starting to come out. People misidentify frogs and toads often this time of year. Learn the key differences between them and meet a few of the frogs and toads we have in the nature center.

What has feathers and is truly fantastic? Birds! Let’s investigate all the wonderful things that feathers do for birds using hands-on demonstrations and activities. Registration required. Ages 7-12

Naturescaping is simply utilizing native flowers, vines, shrubs, and other plants that share our environment for our landscaping needs. They may be as manicured as a formal garden or have a little wild space in a backyard corner. The benefits of a purposeful flowerbed or landscape will be covered from the roots up, including starting with a new space to rehabbing an existing flowerbed. The design and plant components of a butterfly garden, hummingbird haven, and more ideas to entice wanted wildlife will be included. The program is geared for all interested adults including educators developing rain gardens and planning outdoor classrooms.

(Presented by Jeff Cantrell, MO Stream Team Biologist and member of GROW NATIVE).