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Our facility is open Monday through Friday, 9am to 4pm, and from 10am to 2pm on weekends.

Visit us. Everyday, our trails are free and open from dawn until dusk.

Our facility will be closed on Friday, July 4th in celebration of the Fourth of July.

Our building will reopen to the public at 10am on Saturday, July 5th.

Everyday, our trails are free and open from dawn until dusk.

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Olbrich Park

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3527 Atwood Avenue
Madison, WI 53703 United States

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Save the date for fall program registration before

Save the date for fall program registration before the new school year!
Registration opens at noon on August 1st for fall Baby Bugs and Wonder Bugs, as well as Nature Club and Vacation Days for the 2024/25 school year.
Baby Bugs and Wonder Bugs are caregiver-child programs that meet once a week and are designed to empower families with young children to explore nature together. Each week features a new theme explored through hikes, outdoor adventures, music, stories, and more.
After-School Nature Club meets on Monday afternoons and is a drop-off program for children in grades K-3. It’s specially designed to align with Monday early release days.
Vacation Days are essentially one-day versions of summer camp, offered on days when local school districts (MGSD and MMSD) are off. Designed for ages 5-10, these full-day programs give children a chance to explore the nature center grounds and deepen their connection with one another and the outdoors.
Keep your child learning and engaged with nature throughout the changing seasons!
🌿 Find your program and register here: https://aldoleopoldnaturecenter.org/programs/ or use the Linktr.ee in our bio.
#WonderBugs #BabyBugs #AfterSchoolNatureClub #VacationDay #WIEnviroEd #NatureIsEverywhere #NatureIsForEveryone #EveryBodyOutside

The Wonder Bugs were on a roll! They searched hig

The Wonder Bugs were on a roll!
They searched high and low for roly-polies and other crawling creatures. After reading about where roly-polies live, each Wonder Bug grabbed a magnifying glass and set off to see what they could find. They looked on stumps, in the cracks of logs, and under rocks.
Luckily, the creepy crawlies weren't too hard to find! The Wonder Bugs discovered millipedes, sowbugs, daddy longlegs, and, of course, roly-polies. Magnifying glasses gave the children an up close look at each creature. Some of the brave Wonder Bugs even let the roly-polies and millipedes crawl on their hands.
What an adventurous week for the Wonder Bugs!
Photos: Kira Breitlow, Aldo Leopold Nature Center
#WonderBugs #RollyPoly #WIEnviroEd #NatureIsEverywhere #NatureIsForEveryone #EveryBodyOutside

Have you caught any fireflies this summer? Firefl

Have you caught any fireflies this summer?
Fireflies light up the darkness and evoke a sense of enchantment and wonder but what are they doing when they flash? Are they sending a message?
Oftentimes, firefly species use their ‘flash’ to seek mates and communicate. The messages are unique to each species with distinctive patterns and colors. Male fireflies fly around and flash signals, while females rest on vegetation and will choose to answer back, if the message fancies them. In this way, females choose their mates because without response, males cannot find them in the dark…
There are some exceptions, however, to this language of love. Flashes are sometimes used as a death trap. The females of one group of fireflies, called “Photuris”, have learned to mimic the flash patterns used by “Photinus” females to lure males from this other species close enough to eat them. These predatory fireflies are unable to make their own defensive chemicals and by consuming other fireflies, they hijack the prey species toxins and gain protection from predators.
Fireflies are also called “lightning bugs.” However you call them, neither name is very accurate because fireflies are neither flies nor bugs. They are actually beetles and in North America there are over 150 species. It is important to note that not all species are capable of bioluminescence. Many species from the western U.S. are diurnal (active in the daytime) and use pheromones to communicate.
What signs of summer do you see? Visit us for a hike or take a walk around your neighborhood looking for cyclical events influenced by seasonal changes.
Photo: FranciscoJavierCoradoR, Pixabay
#PhenologyFriday #Fireflies #WIEnviroEd #NatureIsEverywhere #NatureIsForEveryone #EveryBodyOutside

Aldo Leopold Nature Center

5 hours ago

Save the date for fall program registration before the new school year!Registration opens at noon on August 1st for fall Baby Bugs and Wonder Bugs, as well as Nature Club and Vacation Days for the 2024/25 school year.Baby Bugs and Wonder Bugs are caregiver-child programs that meet once a week and are designed to empower families with young children to explore nature together. Each week features a new theme explored through hikes, outdoor adventures, music, stories, and more.After-School Nature Club meets on Monday afternoons and is a drop-off program for children in grades K-3. It’s specially designed to align with Monday early release days.Vacation Days are essentially one-day versions of summer camp, offered on days when local school districts (MGSD and MMSD) are off. Designed for ages 5-10, these full-day programs give children a chance to explore the nature center grounds and deepen their connection with one another and the outdoors.Keep your child learning and engaged with nature throughout the changing seasons!🌿 Find your program and register here: aldoleopoldnaturecenter.org/programs/ or use the Linktr.ee in our bio.#WonderBugs #BabyBugs #AfterSchoolNatureClub #VacationDay #WIEnviroEd #NatureIsEverywhere #NatureIsForEveryone #EveryBodyOutside ...

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Aldo Leopold Nature Center

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330 Femrite Drive
Monona, WI 53716

Phone: (608) 221-0404
Fax: (608) 709-1611

alnc@aldoleopoldnaturecenter.org

EIN 39-1786897

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Monday through Friday: 9am to 4pm
Saturday and Sunday: 10am to 2pm

Hiking Trails

Open daily from dawn until dusk!

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