On May 7, a Madison Parks conservation crew discovered extensive damage at Meadow Ridge Conservation Park: construction of multiple bike jumps and trails, significant erosion, leaf litter disturbed and removed, and great swathes of unique native plants damaged or killed. Bicycles and motorbikes are prohibited prohibited in conservation parks, both on designated walking trails and off-trail, by Madison ordinances. Bikes and motorbikes should be ridden only on main vehicular en

More than 1000 people of all ages attended the 2026 Madison Bird & Nature Festival on April 26 at Warner Park

I think about both of my daughters taking flight as I walk Cherokee Marsh and delight in the return of the tree swallows. The birds dip and glide across blue skies, chirp and chatter in the tree knots, and make ballets in the clouds, so many that there are clouds of swallows. An iridescence of joy. A presence of happiness. Of home.

High winds, heavy rains, and hail in mid-April of 2026 brought both welcome moisture and some damage in the Parks.

Jim Mand, Paul Noeldner, Jan Axelson, and Tom Jarvis have relocated and remapped nest boxes for the bluebird nest box trail in the North Unit of the Cherokee Marsh Conservation Park. There are also bluebird trails at the South Unit of Cherokee Marsh Conservation Park, Meadow Ridge City Park, the TPC Wisconsin golf course, Yahara Heights County Park, Cherokee Marsh Natural Resource Area, Token Creek County Park, and the VFW Club on Highway CV.

The grass known as big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) is called the “king of the prairie.” It can grow taller than all of us. It has roots that can reach ten feet down. Some folks might think it’s a plain plant, a plain plant on the plains. But, it is host to the larvae of butterflies: the rare byssus skipper, the common wood nymph. The grass is a womb for colorful living origami that dances on the air.

Our volunteer team has made great progress this winter cutting and burning invasive brush. We’ve worked in the wooded areas in the Cherokee Marsh South Unit, the woods adjacent to Westport Meadows Park, and most recently, at Yahara Heights County Park / Cherokee Marsh Natural Resource Area. Volunteers cut brush with loppers and carry the cut branches to brush piles. If we get more snow, we may also burn brush piles. No experience is needed. Tools and training are provided. We

As mature oaks die, younger oaks should take their place. But if the woodland is too dense, young oaks can't get started. Trees in the North Unit of Cherokee Marsh Conservation Park on the Aspen Trail were thinned by a contractor in February 2026 to connect the open oak woodland habitat found north and south of this area. Hannah Quinlan, conservation parks supervisor at Madison Parks, commented, “Invasive shrubs (honeysuckle and buckthorn) and mesic tree species such as aspen

Look in the night sky and you can see forever—our past, our future. In centuries past, people looked up at the stars at this marsh, and in Munich, and in Mombasa, and in Machu Picchu, awed by the same moon, the same light of the Big Dipper, the same velvet blackness that cradles all.

About 35 people braved one of the coldest days in one of the coldest recent winters to attend the annual meeting of the Friends of Cherokee Marsh on Jan. 24 at the Warner Park Community Recreation Center.

It’s not yet time, on Valentine’s Day, for the marsh’s muskrats. They pair up around April. Males compete for real estate and mates. Monogamous muskrat couples establish territories that can be around 100 feet in diameter. They rarely leave their grounds. Lower-rung muskrats have to toddle off and find their own less desirable territories. Muskrat love is not always easy.

Paul Quinlan, conservation resources supervisor at Madison Parks, has (with his colleagues and input from the Friends) completed a comprehensive five-year Habitat Management Plan for the South Unit of Cherokee Marsh Conservation Park. The document updates an earlier management plan from 2018.

On behalf of the Friends of Cherokee Marsh, we wish to voice concerns over multiple developments in the upper Yahara River watershed and, specifically, the proposed QTS data center.

By Jonathan Shipley I’m writing these lines when it’s -8º outside. I just walked the marsh in the pre-dawn light. It was cold. Quite cold. Bundled up, though, I could make my way on the desolate trails: beneath the empty trees; alongside the frozen ponds; up the hillocks of prairies; down the frozen tumps; through the crystalline landscape towards the car; and back home. And, as I write this (warm now in a sweater, cozy now on the sofa), I think of how cold things can be and

Birding from dawn to dusk, the team spotted 35 species. Highlights included a Rough-legged Hawk at Cherokee Marsh North Unit at dawn, a flock of 10 Bluebirds at Hickory Island, a Harrier and a Northern Shrike far out in the Marsh, and a Kingfisher and Great Blue Heron at School Road Landing at sunset. This year's participants included Jan Axelson, Tim Baker, Marcus Mueller, Barb Noeldner, Paul Noeldner, Brian Schneider, Courtney Woods, and Jim Mand.

The Northern Lights over Cherokee Marsh are beautiful. I walk the paths, stumbling in the dark, looking up; always looking up to see that indescribable cosmic majesty.

A seasonal reminder about opportunities for winter fun in and around Cherokee Marsh: hiking, cross-country skiing, ice fishing, skating, birdwatching, and more.

The Friends of Cherokee Marsh invite all Friends members and the general public to our annual membership meeting on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, at the Warner Park Community Recreation Center. Doors open at 9 a.m, and the program will begin at 9:30 a.m. The morning will include updates from representatives of Madison Parks and Dane County Parks, the Friends’ year in review, and election of Friends board members, followed by our featured presentation on water quality issues.

A virtual meeting to update residents about the Warner Park and Cherokee Marsh Watershed Study was held in September. Madison’s Engineering Division is working to identify causes of flooding and recommend projects to reduce flooding in areas of high risk around the city.

The annual membership meeting on January 24 of the Friends of Cherokee Marsh includes election of board members. If you are interested in serving on the board, please contact board president Sheila Leary at info@cherokeemarsh.org. Board members serve for terms of two years and can be re-elected to additional terms.