Stewardship Workday
World Migratory Bird Day
Mary Beth Doyle Park
Sunday, Oct. 13
9 a.m. to noon
Isn't it wonderful that you don't have to know a single thing about birds to enjoy them? Just their beautiful songs or graceful flight can brighten a dreary day. Birds – in particular migrating birds – depend on the diverse habitat at Mary Beth Doyle Park, and you can help keep it that way. Removing invasive shrubs with the staff of Natural Area Preservation (NAP) is straightforward and fun! World Migratory Bird Day is the perfect time to show your appreciation for our feathered friends who bring everyone joy.
Meet at the
parking lot at the end of Birch Hollow/Chelsea Circle (additional parking on Chelsea). Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
K-5 Forest Fridays: Squirrel Survival
Cedar Bend Nature Area
Friday, Oct. 18
4:30-6 p.m.
Did you know that Michigan has nine different species of squirrels?! Learn the types of squirrels and more about these furry friends as they prepare for winter. Participants will take a short hike in Cedar Bend Nature Area and look for squirrel food and homes, then play a fun squirrel game. Allergy warning: we will be finding tree nuts such as acorns, walnuts, and hickory nuts. Meet at
Island Park Shelter B, which is the second and largest shelter on Island Drive.
This event is for K-5 students accompanied by an adult. Please dress to be prepared for weather. Some trails at this park are unpaved and the group will briefly go off-trail.
Preregistration through VolunteerHub is required. NAP uses VolunteerHub to manage participant waivers – please create individual accounts for each child. (Adults can use their own email address for child accounts). Feel free to call NAP for assistance at 734.794.6627 or email
[email protected].
Stewardship Workday
Leslie Woods Nature Area
Saturday, Oct. 19
9 a.m. to noon
Get outside, shed the tension of the week, and give back to the local ecology! All you have to do is show up to the historically intact woodland at Leslie Woods Nature Area for a stewardship workday, where you will help tackle invasive shrubs. (You don't actually have to tackle anything!) Staff of Natural Area Preservation (NAP) will guide volunteers in identifying and cutting down shrubs and share knowledge about the beautiful landscape. (Again, no tackling involved!)
Meet at the back parking lot at Willow Tree Apartments on Plymouth Rd. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Black Pond Woods Nature Area
Saturday, Oct. 19
1 to 4 p.m.
Experience the ecological mystery of Black Pond at this stewardship workday! Just kidding, the mystery is tannins. Don't know what tannins are? You'll find out while removing invasive shrubs at Black Pond Woods Nature Area! Cutting shrubs with hand tools is a straightforward activity and Natural Area Preservation (NAP) staff will have your back the whole time. The pond and its surrounding habitats contribute to the high biodiversity in this park, and you can help keep it that way.
Meet at
the park entrance on Tibbits Ct, off Pontiac Trail. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Gallup Wet Prairie
Sunday, Oct. 20
9 a.m. to noon
Get ready for a fun and friendly challenge at this unique wetland within Gallup Park! The plants are rare, the meadow is high-quality, and the soil is saturated. The welcoming staff of Natural Area Preservation (NAP) are ready to take you off trail to cut invasive shrubs and protect biodiversity. The special plants in the Gallup Wet Prairie need space—and other resources—that invasive shrubs so easily steal. Join the fun and give back to nature!
Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Furstenberg Nature Area
Sunday, Oct. 20
1 to 4 p.m.
Do you have a special amphibian in your life? Have you been yearning to befriend a turtle? Maybe you've imagined that a majestic swan would bring you fulfillment? Natural Area Preservation (NAP) won't help you become a Disney Princess, but NAP can offer time spent in nature improving the lives of local wildlife along the Huron River. Attend this stewardship workday at Furstenberg Nature Area and learn how to cut and remove invasive shrubs—it's simple and rewarding work!
Meet at
the parking lot off Fuller Road. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Scarlett Mitchell Nature Area
Friday, Oct. 25
1 to 4 p.m.
It's a Friday afternoon volunteer opportunity! Straightforward work, outdoors, with friendly folks—it's just what you didn't know you were hoping for this week. The wetlands and woodlands at Scarlett Mitchell Nature Area are quality habitat for native flora and fauna, where volunteer efforts have a direct impact. But wait, there's more! Natural Area Preservation (NAP) staff will be standing by to help identify invasive shrubs and how to remove them. Register now for a weekday afternoon of rewarding work supporting native habitat!
Meet at the
park entrance off Turnberry Lane (look for the City of Ann Arbor truck). Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
K-5 Nature Crafts: Build a Bat
Gallup Park
Saturday, October 26
5-6:30 p.m.
Get ready for spooky season by learning all about Michigan's bats! Bet you know some cool bat facts already, but be prepared to learn even more at this early evening nature activity. The group will take a short walk and use found natural materials to Build a Bat! Meet at the
Gallup Park Meeting Room. Additional parking can be found at the
Gallup Park Boat Launch, which is just east of the livery. You would then walk the paved trail about 5 minutes west from the boat launch to the livery.
This event is for K-5 students accompanied by an adult. Please dress to be prepared for all weather. Some trails at this park are unpaved and the group will briefly go off-trail.
Preregistration through VolunteerHub is required. NAP uses VolunteerHub to manage participant waivers – please create individual accounts for each child. (Adults can use their own email address for child accounts). Feel free to call NAP for assistance at 734.794.6627 or email
[email protected].
Stewardship Workday
Braun Nature Area
Sunday, Oct. 27
9 a.m. to noon
Escape into one of Ann Arbor's unique urban green spaces and give back to nature! Stretch your limbs and enrich your knowledge while helping remove invasive shrubs to support the local ecosystem. The friendly staff of Natural Area Preservation (NAP) will meet you at Braun Nature Area to show you which shrubs to cut and how to do it effectively and safely. You'll also learn about how this work will impact the plants and animals nearby as well as the watershed shared by our greater community.
Meet at the
park entrance on Chalmers Dr. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Mary Beth Doyle Park
Sunday, Oct. 27
1 to 4 p.m.
Make way for ducklings! Make way for goslings! Give a flap up to some flappers and some pipers and some peeps! Those little squawkers and those squeakers need your help, yes it's true, just like the eaglets and the eyas need help from someone just like you. It doesn't matter if you've never seen an owlet or never heard a squab, it will help them all the same if you just show up and do the job. You can stop invasive shrubs from junking up their place. It's easy! And it's fun! And you can work at your own pace.
Meet at the
parking lot at the end of Birch Hollow/Chelsea Circle (additional parking on Chelsea). Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
November 2024
Stewardship Workday
Folkstone Park
Sunday, Nov. 3
9 a.m. to noon
Come to Folkstone to see one of the most underrated native shrubs in our landscape – bladdernut. This tall shrub with striped bark likes it shady and moist. In spring, bladdernut blossoms with hanging clusters of white tubular flowers that smell a little like vanilla custard. Then the “bladders" appear as green, papery, inflated seed capsules which mature over the summer and persist into winter. Let's remove invasive shrubs to keep the habitat healthy at Folkstone—for the bladdernut shrubs and all the organisms that depend on them.
Meet at the
park entrance at the north end of Folkstone Ct. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
K-5 Nature Crafts: Build an Owl
Mary Beth Doyle Park
Tuesday, Nov. 5
2-3:30 p.m.
If you're looking for something fun to do on your day off school this Election Day, say, “hoot!" Owls are the ninjas of the woods: quiet, fierce, and wise. Learn about these brilliant birds, take a short hike in the woods of Mary Beth Doyle Park, and use found natural materials to craft one of your own! Meet at the
parking lot at the end of Birch Hollow Dr. (aka the Disc Golf Course parking lot).
This event is for K-5 students accompanied by an adult. Please dress to be prepared for all weather. Some trails at this park are unpaved and the group will briefly go off-trail.
Preregistration through VolunteerHub is required. NAP uses VolunteerHub to manage participant waivers – please create individual accounts for each child. (Adults can use their own email address for child accounts). Feel free to call NAP for assistance at 734.794.6627 or email
[email protected].
K-5 Forest Fridays: Hibernation Homes
Dolph Nature Area
Friday, Nov. 8
4-5:30 p.m.
Where do Michigan animals go in the winter? Come explore Dolph Nature Area and learn about hibernation, hibernacula, and more at this after school program. If you like building forts, this is the program for you! Meet at the
intersection of Parklake Ave and Lakewood Dr on the east side of the park (look for a City of Ann Arbor vehicle).
This event is for K-5 students accompanied by an adult. Please dress to be prepared for all weather. Some trails at this park are unpaved and the group will briefly go off-trail.
Preregistration through VolunteerHub is required. NAP uses VolunteerHub to manage participant waivers – please create individual accounts for each child. (Adults can use their own email address for child accounts). Feel free to call NAP for assistance at 734.794.6627 or email
[email protected].
Stewardship Workday
Stapp Nature Area
Saturday, Nov. 9
9 a.m. to noon
In just one afternoon, you can change the landscape for native pollinators, migrating birds, and all the creatures who depend on the Huron River watershed! Stapp Nature Area is a beautiful place to match a fraction of the enjoyment and peace you receive from nature with a little bit of effort to support native habitat. Cutting invasive shrubs with Natural Area Preservation (NAP) is straightforward and rewarding – and staff will be with you every step of the way to help identify the right shrubs, how to use the tools effectively, and explain the significance of your work.
Meet at the
park entrance on Traverwood Dr., south of the library. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Foxfire West Nature Area
Saturday, Nov. 9
1 to 4 p.m.
Wilderness can be found in Ann Arbor! Explore and help restore Foxfire West Nature Area, one of the city's wild, off-trail spaces. Not wild as in uncultivated, feral as in untamed. Jokes aside, it takes a lot of work and expertise to keep urban green spaces in a “natural" state. Natural Area Preservation (NAP) staff know how to keep it wild and want to teach you the easy part - how to identify and remove invasive shrubs – and why your effort is so important.
Meet at
the corner of Hickory Point Dr. and Indian Creek Cir. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Sylvan Park
Sunday, Nov. 10
1 to 4 p.m.
Three hours of your weekend, plus five acres of oak-hickory forest, comes out to priceless ecological impact. How do the staff of Natural Area Preservation (NAP) know this? More than thirty years of experience managing Ann Arbor's natural areas with the help of volunteers and the community. So many of the natural spaces in Ann Arbor Parks are beautiful native habitat where flora flourish and fauna frolic. This is because thousands of volunteers come out for three hours at a time, remove invasive shrubs and perform other stewardship activities. Cut shrubs with NAP – you really can see the difference!
Meet at the
north end of Burton Rd. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Veterans Day Stewardship Workday
Marshall Nature Area
Monday, Nov. 11
1 to 4 p.m.
Head in (…to the forest) on your day off! This Veterans Day at Marshall Nature Area, give some time and effort with Natural Area Preservation (NAP). The staff are enthusiastic about preserving native habitat and look forward to welcoming anyone who wants to take a short hike and cut down some invasive shrubs. The gently rolling terrain winds through woodlands and prairie pockets. It may be a little hilly at Marshall, but those same hills buffer the sights and sounds of the nearby roadways and play an important role in providing the resources needed by the diverse natural communities here.
Meet at
the parking lot off Dixboro Rd. (additional parking on Church St, across Dixboro). Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Argo Nature Area
Saturday, Nov. 16
9 a.m. to noon
Join other Argonauts in their quest to remove invasive shrubs from Argo Nature Area; when Argo is returned to its natural state, only then can Jason set out for the golden fleece. Myths notwithstanding, where Argo's trails and vistas are adorned with wildflowers—and not obscured by woody thickets—the efforts of volunteers like you are apparent. Come out and make way for more scenic walks and native plants.
Meet on
Longshore Dr at Amherst Ave. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Cedar Bend Nature Area
Saturday, Nov. 16
1 to 4 p.m.
You can see the whole city from up here! And the view is only possible because of volunteers like you! When the maple, hickory, dogwood, and black cherry trees (among others) drop their leaves in the fall, the top of Cedar Bend Nature Area gives a breathtaking view of the bend in the Huron River and quite a bit of the central part of town. Invasive shrubs once dominated the understory, shading out shorter native plants and obscuring the view entirely. Volunteers have contributed hundreds of hours (maybe more!) working toward restoring the landscape to the spacious and open park it was meant to be.
Meet us at
the Island Park parking lot, at the end of Island Drive. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Riverwood Nature Area
Sunday, Nov. 17
9 a.m. to noon
The flowering dogwoods at Riverwood need your help to stay healthy and vibrant! For centuries, flowering dogwood trees have been a boon for humans and wildlife alike. They are a larval host for butterflies, and they offer birds and other animals beautiful red fruits (or drupes) for food. The bark has been used as a traditional medicine to treat fevers, and the roots and bark can be harvested to make red dyes. Come remove exotic shrubs from the park and help the dogwoods with Natural Area Preservation.
Meet at the
park sign on Riverwood Dr, just west of Newport Rd. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Bird Hills Nature Area
Sunday, Nov. 17
1 to 4 p.m.
Fresh air and giving back can set the stage for a great week. Turn your Sunday Scaries into Monday Mindfulness! Cut down some invasive shrubs with Natural Area Preservation (NAP) to work the tension and anxiety out, and invite the calming effects of nature in. Bird Hills is full of hilly bird habitat (and bat habitat, and insect habitat, and more!) where diverse natural communities contain towering trees and rare wildflower species. Staff will lead you along the unpaved trails and give you all the guidance you'll need to identify and remove the shrubs and offer insight into how your work helps keep Bird Hills thriving. Then go get some good rest and start your week off right!
Meet at
the Newport Rd parking lot entrance, just north of M-14. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Sunset Brooks Nature Area
Friday, Nov. 22
1 to 4 p.m.
Time spent in nature, physical activity, and volunteering all release the “happy hormones" that have a measurable effect on our mental health. The stewardship activities at Natural Area Preservation (NAP) workdays are the perfect mix to give you a boost of dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins. The work at this event is straightforward and will be led by welcoming staff. The setting of this event—Sunset Brooks Nature Area—has the biodiversity and quality habitat that make it easy to appreciate nature. As if that's not enough, the group of volunteers will also surely be fun and friendly!
Meet at
the park entrance on Sunset Rd, at the end of Brooks St. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
Stewardship Workday
Arbor Hills Nature Area
Sunday, Nov. 24
1 to 4 p.m.
Where are all the Fall Fans at this weekend? Outside! Autumnal Afficionados make the best volunteers for nature! Showing support through seasonal stewardship activities makes future falls fabulous. Just a short trip to the north side of Ann Arbor will bring you to the splendid woods and wetlands of Arbor Hills Nature Area. Meet up with Natural Area Preservation (NAP) staff to learn how to easily identify and safely cut down troublesome shrubs, and what kinds of wildlife will be grateful for the help.
Meet at
the park entrance at the end of Ashburnam Rd. Volunteers will use hand tools to cut small-to-medium shrubs. Workday sites have unpaved trails and require going off-trail.
Preregister through VolunteerHub so NAP can plan on enough staff and supplies for a safe and successful event. For your safety, wear long pants, tall socks, and closed-toe shoes. All minors should be accompanied by a guardian. More information: How to prepare for a NAP workday (PDF).
K-5 Forest Fridays: #OptOutside Fire-Building
Bandemer Park
Friday, Nov. 29
1-2:30 p.m.
#OptOutside this Black Friday and learn how to safely build a fire with local materials. Participants will use the fire circle at Bandemer Park, which is a short hike from the parking lot. Each family group will be able to build their own fire, then everyone will put them all together and enjoy some vegan s'mores! Meet at the
north parking lot off at the end of Whitmore Lake Rd (aka Bandemer Disc Golf parking lot).
This event is for K-5 students accompanied by an adult. Please dress to be prepared for all weather. Some trails at this park are unpaved and the group will briefly go off-trail.
Preregistration through VolunteerHub is required. NAP uses VolunteerHub to manage participant waivers – please create individual accounts for each child. (Adults can use their own email address for child accounts). Feel free to call NAP for assistance at 734.794.6627 or email
[email protected].
December 2024
