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Beanblossom Creek Wildlife Camera Project

Sycamore Land Trust wants to know more about the wildlife communities that live on the land we protect. In 2021, we set up 15 motion-triggered wildlife cameras at Beanblossom Bottoms Nature Preserve and other preserves along Beanblossom Creek in Monroe County to help guide our land stewardship efforts.

Sycamore Land Trust wants to know more about the wildlife communities that depend on the land we protect. In 2021, we set up 15 motion-triggered wildlife cameras at Beanblossom Bottoms Nature Preserve and other preserves along Beanblossom Creek in Monroe County. We chose locations we know are frequented by animals – game trails, creeks, a fallen log used to cross a meadow, a beaver dam that creates a natural bridge, and more. Our Dam Cam, Beaver Lodge Cam, Squirrel Log Cam, and many other motion-triggered wildlife cameras provide a window into the world of southern Indiana wildlife. So far we’ve recorded footage of more than 50 animal species and we are keeping an inventory of what we see. This will give us a baseline to measure the success of our large-scale wetland restoration and native planting projects taking place in this area. It will also help guide our stewardship plans for these nature preserves to benefit threatened and endangered species.

“Beanblossom Creek Wildlife Camera Project”

Our “Beanblossom Creek Wildlife Camera Project” video features one hour of the best 2022 footage captured by our motion-triggered wildlife cameras set up on our nature preserves in the Beanblossom Creek Conservation Area north of Bloomington. Organized into five chapters, this educational video shares the incredible stories we captured on these cameras to educate about 40 species of local wildlife and the habitat they rely on in southern Indiana.

Chapter 1: Beanblossom Creek Wildlife Camera Project
Learn about our Beanblossom Creek Conservation Area and why we protect it.

Chapter 2: Beanblossom Bottoms: The Importance of Wetlands
At Beanblossom Bottoms Nature Preserve, a beaver dam is helping return new areas of the preserve to thriving wetland habitat. See new footage from our “Dam Cam” and “Beaver Lodge Cam” at their home nearby.
Part 1: Dam Cam
Part 2: Beaver Lodge Cam
Part 3: Through the Seasons

Chapter 3: Shaping an Ecosystem: The Story of the Shine Beaver Dam
Watch beavers build a new dam at Sam Shine Foundation Preserve and see how the dam has reshaped an ecosystem.
Part 1: The Story of the Shine Beaver Dam
Part 2: The Snack Shack
Part 3: The Shine Beaver Lodge

Chapter 4: Animal Trails
Cameras set up at game trails and other popular animal crossings helps us observe interactions between animals living in our Beanblossom Creek Conservation Area.
Part 1: Crossing Cam
Part 2: Squirrel Log Cam
Part 3: Rock Den Cam
Part 4: Deer Trail Cam
Part 5: Pond Cam

Chapter 5: First Flights
On our Bird Box Cam at Sam Shine Foundation Preserve, we watch a new generation of native tree swallows and eastern bluebirds take flight.
Part 1: Tree Swallows
Part 2: Bluebirds

Credits: Story by Ellen Bergan and Kate Hammel. Edited by Kate Hammel. “First Flights: Part 2” by Madeleine Thompson. Music by Adam Hurt. Wildlife Camera Project team: Chris Fox, Ellen Bergan, Madeleine Thompson, Ben Sebastian, Brianna Crawley, Leah Hagemeier, Sophie Hall, Kate Hammel

To receive a study guide and educational materials for your classroom, email kate@sycamorelandtrust.org.