Science and Nature

Relationships in Nature at Long Lake: A Conversation with Dave McMillan

KAXE | By John Latimer,

Published November 4, 2022 at 1:27 PM CDT

A doe and her fawn visiting a fallen family member

This week, Morning Show hosts Heidi and John chatted with Dave McMillan, manager of the Long Lake Conservation Center in Palisade. Dave tells the touching story of a doe and her two fawns. One fawn was struck and killed on a road, and Dave dragged it into the woods and set up a trail camera by the body. He expected to see a variety of predators, which he did: an unexpected discovery, however, was that the fawn's mother and sibling came back to visit the body every day. It's a touching story, and well worth a listen: they also discuss Long Lake's mission, the value of sitting quietly in the woods, and how time in nature can be a life-changing experience! Please enjoy, and you can visit Long Lake's website here.

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John Latimer

As a mail carrier in rural Grand Rapids, Minn., for 35 years, John Latimer put his own stamp on a career that delivered more than letters. Indeed, while driving the hundred-mile round-trip daily route, he passed the time by observing and recording seasonal changes in nature, learning everything he could about the area’s weather, plants and animals, and becoming the go-to guy who could answer customers’ questions about what they were seeing in the environment.

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Heidi Holtan

Heidi Holtan is KAXE's Director of Content and Public Affairs where she manages producers and is the local host of Morning Edition from NPR. Heidi is a regional correspondent for WDSE/WRPT's Duluth Public Television’s Almanac North.

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Charlie Mitchell

Charlie Mitchell (she/they) joined KAXE in February of 2022. Charlie creates the Season Watch Newsletter, produces the Phenology Talkbacks show, coordinates the Phenology in the Classroom program, and writes nature-related stories for KAXE's website. Essentailly, Charlie is John Latimer's faithful sidekick and makes sure all of KAXE's nature/phenology programs find a second life online and in podcast form.

With a background in ecology and evolutionary biology, Charlie enjoys learning a little bit about everything, whether it's plants, mushrooms, or the star-nosed mole. (Fun fact: Moles store fat in their tails, so they don't outgrow their tunnels every time conditions are good.)

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