Updates and Articles

Check out our conservation blog!

Endangered species, fishers, fields of monarchs — FMR ecologists encounter them all at our 37 habitat restoration sites.  

On our new conservation blog, learn more about what our ecologists see in the field, the special places we're working to protect and how we restore habitat. >>

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Endangered speces at FMR sites
The rusty patched bumblebee: What’s all the buzz about?

A lone male rusty patched bumblebee found in August at an FMR-restored savanna represents 0.2 percent of the known population worldwide. Necessary not only for native wildflower reproduction, but also for creating seeds and fruits that feed wildlife as diverse as songbirds and bears, our state bee could use your help. >>

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FMR presents an evening with American Routes' Nick Spitzer and WCCO's Jearlyn Steele October 2019

An Evening Celebrating the Mississippi River on October 3 will feature public radio’s producer of "American Routes" Nick Spitzer who will take us on a journey from the headwaters down south to the mouth through music and storytelling. WCCO's Jearlyn Steele returns to the stage as our emcee.  >>

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An Evening Celebrating the Mississippi River featuring Nick Spitzer and Jearlyn Steel
FMR graduates its first Youth Empowerment Program participants

Through canoe trips, guest speakers, pollinator surveys and more this summer, we worked with high-school aged youth from the metro area to explore career possibilities and build skills in the environmental field. Learn more about our new Youth Empowerment Program and see these leaders' capstone projects (which included monarchs, jars of river water, and even a baby painted turtle).  >>

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One of the program participants removes invasive species on a rainy day at Trout Brook Nature Sanctuary
It's monarch migration season!

Fall brings chances to spot monarch roosts — dozens of butterflies gathering together on their migration south. FMR ecologist Karen Schik found hundreds earlier this week and sent these videos back from a visit to our prairie restoration at Pine Bend Bluffs in Inver Grove Heights. >>

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FMR's ecologists investigate how to suppress buckthorn

As anyone who's joined FMR at a restoration volunteer event knows, buckthorn is particularly difficult to eradicate. This invasive plant often thwarts restoration efforts by returning to sites where it's been pulled and hauled away. What if we could find a way to suppress its regrowth?  >>

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UN: Global warming is splintering our food supply

Agriculture is a major driver of climate change, but it can also be a big part of the solution. The future of the planet relies on shifting to sustainable practices more rapidly than ever before.  >>

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"Workhorse" Minnesota River needs our help

The Star Tribune recently highlighted the state's $360 million plan to turn things around for the Minnesota River and cut the river's sediment levels in half. Will it be enough?  >>

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Meet the loggerhead shrike, the rare butcher bird of FMR-restored prairies
This small, striking songbird is a fearsome prairie predator. Sadly, it's considered endangered in Minnesota. Read more
A loggerhead shrike perched on the tip of a bare branch, with a grassy field in the background.
Can we just talk about this UHT concert stadium?

Minneapolis city leaders are proceeding as if the concert stadium at Upper Harbor Terminal is a done deal, but it's not. Rather than debating venue names, we need to discuss public subsidies, living-wage jobs, and how the community will benefit from this or any development at this important mile-long riverfront site. >>

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Upcoming Events

Tuesday, September 29, 2026 - 5:00pm to 7:00pm
Along the Vermillion River, Hastings
Apply now for spring through summer program
Sites in Elk River, Hastings or Inver Grove Heights
Wednesday, September 30, 2026 - 5:00pm to 7:00pm
Grey Cloud Dunes Scientific and Natural Area, Cottage Grove

Take Me to the River 

Celebrate the Mississippi River and choose your own adventure while supporting FMR at our reimagined fall fundraiser on Thursday, Sept. 24.