Most everyone loves the taste of delicious, golden maple syrup drizzled over pancakes, French toast, ice cream and other favorite foods. How would you like to learn to make this sweet treat on your own – from selecting and tapping the perfect tree to canning the fresh, final product? Sign up now for an upcoming class, and you can!

Offered by the DNR Outdoor Skills Academy, the Maple Syrup Clinic is conducted in two parts:

• 9 to 11 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 13 (video/virtual): Start with a video you can watch on your own at home, where we discuss the tools you need, where you can find them and how they’re used. Next, enjoy virtual instruction from a Michigan forester and other experts who will cover tree identification, tapping a live tree, and sap collection and storage. (The Zoom portion of this class will be recorded, so anyone who misses this but still wants to participate March 6 can contact Ed Shaw via the contact info below.)

• 12:30-4:30 p.m. Sunday, March 6 (in person): Head to the Carl T. Johnson Hunting and Fishing Center (in Mitchell State Park, 6087 E. M-115, Cadillac), where you and the rest of the class will go through the steps of processing the sap, canning the syrup, making maple sugar and more.

“Most people don’t know it, but our state usually ranks in the top 10 in the nation for the amount of maple syrup produced,” said DNR park interpreter Ed Shaw, who also coordinates Outdoor Skills Academy offerings. “For some Michigan families, this is a fun winter tradition passed down through the generations, and anyone can learn to do it. This class will give people a terrific primer on starting their own tasty tradition.”

Interested? Don’t wait to sign up; class size is limited to 50 people. The class is $25 per person (that fee covers both dates), and you can get registration and other information at Michigan.gov/OutdoorSkills. Please note that a Recreation Passport is required for entry to Mitchell State Park.

Questions? Contact Ed Shaw at 231-779-1321.

Two new commissioners will be in attendance, and both the fisheries and wildlife subcommittees will convene at the next meeting of the Michigan Natural Resources Commission, scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 10.

Agenda items include the DNR Wildlife Division annual report, furbearer regulations, migratory game bird hunting seasons and managed waterfowl area regulations. Presentations also include a Partners in Conservation award and a DNR Law Enforcement Division Lifesaving award.

​The meeting will start at 9 a.m. in West Campus Rooms M119-121 at Lansing Community College, 5708 Cornerstone Drive, in Lansing. See the meeting's full draft agenda at Michigan.gov/NRC. (Please note that LCC's COVID policies include an indoor mask requirement for students, staff, visitors and event attendees.)

For more information or to request time to speak at the meeting, contact Victoria Lischalk at 517-599-1067 or NRC@Michigan.gov.

Michigan conservation officers do a lot of important things to help protect the state's fish and wildlife and outdoor places, but there's one aspect of their work you may be less familiar with: the battle to prevent the spread of invasive species (like red swamp crayfish, shown here).

Whether it’s tracking invasive species imports or making sure boaters “Clean, Drain and Dry” their boats and gear, conservation officers play a key role in Michigan’s Invasive Species Program. In case you missed it, next week Cpl. Nick Torsky, with the DNR Law Enforcement Division’s Great Lakes Enforcement Unit, will discuss the unit’s role in fighting aquatic invasive species, including:

• The enforcement of boating and bait-related regulations.
• Oversight of Michigan’s "organisms-in-trade" – live animals and plants brought to Michigan, both through the internet and traditional stores, for uses such as landscaping, pond beautification, bait, consumption, as pets, or even in classrooms and laboratories.
• Interagency cooperation across the Great Lakes basin.
• Recent investigations that highlight the DNR's enforcement efforts.

It's part of the state's NotMiSpecies webinar series – "The AIS-Team: Conservation officers on a mission to prevent invasive species" is a free webinar, open to everyone, 9 to 10 a.m. (EST) Wednesday, Feb. 16.

Sign up for the webinar and follow Michigan.gov/Invasives for program news, updates and opportunities to help.  

Questions? Contact Joanne Foreman at 517-284-5814.