Nicodemus Wilderness Project -- Global Registry of Apprentice Ecologists

For my Apprentice Ecologist Project, I worked to make the rural land in Adams County, Ohio more safe for wildlife living there. The area is a poor place, with very few inhabitants. It is a natural habitat for deer, rabbits, and rare butterflies that live near the forests and streams on a certain stretch of land in Peebles, Ohio. I chose this spot because my father, a nature lover, frequently studies the deer living there and told me about the unclean water conditions and overgrown vegetation in the area. My mother, father, sister, and I all began the project by clearing out old, dead trees in the area. These trees were diseased and cluttered the nearby streams and creeks. We then proceeded to plant a large number of trees, approximately seventy-five. They were apple, pine, and blue spruce trees. We rented a bulldozer and created a runoff pond nearby to prevent flooding to our newly-constructed animal habitat. The area had been a known area for flooding. We planted wildflowers that were found to attract the rare butterflies, giving them something to eat. My father and I bought salt licks, which are treats for the deer in the area, allowing them to store fat for the cold Ohio winters. The photo shows a clear stream, one that had been full of trash and dead tree debris that we had cleaned. Because of it's uninhabited location, some people began to litter in the surrounding areas and we collected the trash.
Recently my family bought a small cabin in the area so that we could keep an eye on the beautiful deer and wildlife in the area. We continue to make sure that this is an optimal habitat for many varieties of wildlife.