Catch up on the Byway Buzz

by Jeanie Hau, Byway Coordinator

It's been a busy few months for the byway program! We've got a new report, new videos, updates to maps and apps, and plenty of upcoming events. Find out where we've been on the byway and what we've been up to.

Pollinator of the Month:

Crane Flies (family Tipulidae)

by Katelyn Rinicker, Pollinator Conservation Specialist

Crane flies may be large, but they are absolutely harmless! Their long, thin legs and slender bodies with wings make them look like mosquitoes, but they cannot bite or sting you. They are usually a grey or tan color with intricate patterns on their wings. Their wingspan is usually between ½ and 2 ½ inches. Adults only live for a week or two, so they are focused on mating and feed on nectar and water minimally. They typically lay eggs in marshes, springs, decaying wood, leaf litter, really anywhere close to the ground that they can get to! (We catch the ugly-looking larvae in streams too! -Dan) The larvae will eat decaying plant matter and microbes.

More Bees, Please! Creating a Pollinator-Friendly Ames

Guest post by Lisa Kuehl

An introduction to the City of Ames' Pollinator Friendly 10 year plan and why you should join the effort.

Report on 2024 Monitoring Season in Story County

by Dan Haug, Water Quality Specialist

Highlights include:

• Volunteers entered over 900 data sheets into the Clean Water Hub
• Many streams had high nitrate or low dissolved oxygen, but chloride was not a concern
• Same-day lab testing shows how runoff, tile drainage, snowmelt and wastewater can influence water quality
• One of two beaches but none of our rivers met standards for E. coli bacteria
• Long-term nitrate trends are probably weather-related, but we're seeing differences between sites as a result of conservation practices
• We've identified and ranked sources of error and will be working to improve the accuracy of our data

Story County Water Quality Updates

by Dan Haug, Water Quality Specialist

Nitrate reached 30 mg/L on May 21 following heavy rains! Next time I'll share photos and additional results from a busy week that also included testing by volunteers and high school students as part of a coordinated water quality snapshot.