Joshua’s Trust Program – “Surviving Winter”

Windham, CT

As part of the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department’s outreach efforts at the University of Connecticut, we graduate students took part in “Surviving Winter,” a family-friendly event hosted at Joshua’s Trust’s Allanach-Wolf Woodlands in December 2012. The goal? To help our local community appreciate the wonders of the winter forest and how its wild inhabitants make it through the cold season.

The event featured hands-on exhibits and live demonstrations showcasing how animals from the surrounding woodlands and ponds survive the harsh New England winter. I was in charge of the mammal station, where we explored how beavers build insulating dams, what “hibernation” really means, and shared other fascinating winter survival strategies used by mammals.

Despite the chilly December air, children of all ages bundled up and joined us for a day full of curiosity and learning. It was heartening to see their excitement as they touched animal pelts, asked thoughtful questions, and made connections between the science and the natural world around them.