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Drawings by Paul Johnsgard 54 pp. paper, $13.95 + tax + shipping Prairie Suite: A Celebration is the result of collaboration between local prairie poet Twyla Hansen and esteemed ornithologist Dr. Paul Johnsgard, both long-time supporters of Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center. In 2004, Twyla conceived a poem-drawing book: a series of shorter new poems paired with drawings in celebration of Spring Creek Prairie; Paul agreed to collaborate. He read each poem and selected one of his nature drawings to complement it, for a total of 26 poem-drawing pairs. Included in the book are cover and animal tracks drawings, and captions with the common and scientific names of plant and animal species depicted in each drawing. New drawings for Prairie Suite are the lightning bug, cicada, chorus frog, dragonfly, grasses, and monarch. The book was published through the generosity of Ron and Judy Parks, also long-time supporters. All of these contributions have come together in this amazing book, published as part of the grand opening celebration of the new education building. All proceeds from the sale of Prairie Suite help support conservation and education programs at Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center. More about the artists: Twyla Hansen is a writer and an on-going student of sustainability issues. She has served as a community volunteer for a variety of literary and environmental organizations, and is the author of four books of poetry including Potato Soup, which won the Nebraska Book Award competition for poetry in 2004. "Earth, air, and water are essentials for all life and my writing. In this project, I envision the words and drawings as equals, as one entity, to create a tallgrass synergy. It was a pleasurable and informative experience to collaborate with Paul in honor of our prairie heritage." — Twyla Hansen Paul A. Johnsgard is Foundation Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences at the University of Nebraska, and a long-time advocate for wildlife and natural resources. He is the author of more than forty books on ornithology and the natural sciences, and has received many state and national honors, including the Science award from the National Wildlife Federation in 2005. "It has been a pleasure to marry my drawings to Twyla’s words, and I hope each will be enhanced by the other. I thank Twyla and Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center for the opportunity to celebrate our wonderful prairie."— Paul Johnsgard Index of Poems and Drawing Captions Cover: Male grasshopper sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum), singing on dead stem of annual sunflower (Helianthus annuus). 1 “Evolution”: Skull of bison (Bison bison), among prickly-pear cactus (Opuntia) and dry prairie 2 “Coyote”: Coyote (Canis latrans), adult calling 3 “Earth”: Hibernating western harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis) 4 “Frog Pond”: Male striped chorus frog (Pseudacris triseriata) on yellow pond lily (Nuphar advena) 5 “Prairie-Chicken”: Male greater prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus cupido), in grama grass (Bouteloua gracilis) 6 “Lark Sparrow”: Singing male lark sparrow (Chondestes grammacus), on eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginianus) 7 “Sickle Moon”: Male luna moth (Actias luna) 8 “Meadowlark”: Singing male western meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta) 9 “Snake”: Adult plains garter snake (Thamnophis radix), 10 “Dragonfly”: Male twelve-spot dragonfly (Libellula pulchella), on cattail (Typha latifolia) 11 “Song of Silence”: Sleeping white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) 12 “Lightning Bugs”: Male lightning bug (Photinus pennsylvanicus) 13 “Eastern Screech-Owl”: Eastern screech-owl (Megascops asio), pair preening 14 “Walk on the Prairie”: Little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium, far left), big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), and Indiangrass (Sorghastrum nutans, far right) 15 “Grasshopper”: Haldeman’s grasshopper (Paradalophora haldemani), pair courting (above), and slant-faced grasshopper (Mermiria bivittata), on prairie sandreed (Calamovilfa longifolia) 16 “Monarch”: Female monarch (Danaus plexippus), having just emerged from chrysalis, with a second chrysalis also shown (above) 17 “Summer: Night, Day. Night.”: Male yellow-headed blackbird (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) on cattail (Typha latifolia) 18 “Upland Sandpiper”: Upland sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda), adult landing on a post 19 “Cicada”: Annual cicada (Tibicen linne), adult male having just emerged from nymphal exoskeleton (below) 20 “Great Blue Heron”: Great blue heron (Ardea herodias), adult in flight 21 “Prairie: Giants in the Earth”: Pasture sagewort (Artemisia frigida) 22 “Red-tailed Hawk”: Adult red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 23 “Late Fall”: American tree sparrow (Spizella arborea) on willow (Salix) twig 24 “Bobcat”: Adult bobcat (Lynx rufus) 25 “Northern Harrier”: Northern harrier (Circus cyaneus), adult male in flight 26 “This Fragile, Healing Land”: Feather of short-eared owl (Asio flammeus) Footprints of mammals commonly occurring at Spring Creek Prairie |
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Copyright 2006 by Audubon Nebraska, National Audubon Society, Inc. All rights reserved.