Kids learn about wildlife at SFM

Seattle, a young visitor from Utah, and her twin sister Ellie enjoyed Sisters Farmers Market last Sunday. Ellie liked “the music and the dogs” best.

The most delicious part of Seattle’s market day? She said it was her popsicle, a strawberry-pineapple iced treat from Rawmona’s Kitchen.

The most fun part was making prints, according to Seattle. The nonprofit group Friends and Neighbors of the Deschutes Canyon, a.k.a. FANs, brought synthetic feet made from real animal footprints.

Kids and adults alike could learn about the wildlife, compare the size of their prints, and use an ink-pad to make their own prints on paper. Holding up an eagle’s claw to a bear’s paw print or that of a cougar, market-goers could imagine how big the animals would seem up close.

In Sisters Country, folks are accustomed to beautiful landscapes, forests, and rivers, along with trails and abundant wildlife. However, all that nature has been affected by decades of settler activity, from mining to logging, from home-building to agriculture.

Restoring local areas takes hard work, which is where FANs comes in. Members of the organization work to preserve and restore the wild landscapes of the Middle Deschutes River, Lower Crooked River, and Lower Whychus Creek.

Friends and Neighbors of the Deschutes Canyon projects include wildlife monitoring, invasive weed reduction, providing access to wildlands, and helping Monarch butterflies. More information is available at www.fansofdeschutes.org.