Wisconsin Public Television

Transcript: In Wisconsin #920

Air Date: April 7, 2011

Patty Loew:

Welcome to In Wisconsin. I’m Patty Loew. This week, a trek into the north woods for an update on the state’s largest white-tailed deer study.

Man:

We’ve got a lot of hunters. Weve got over 400 now.

Patty Loew:

Plus, with the rising price of gas, a community car might be the best option.

Man:

I saved, maybe, $600 a month by switching to community car.

Patty Loew:

And it’s finally maple syrup time. For 80 years, that spring rhythm could be heard on this Athens, Wisconsin, farm. Those reports next on In Wisconsin.

Announcer:

Major funding for In Wisconsin is provided by the people of Alliant Energy, who bring safe, reliable and environmentally friendly energy to keep homes, neighborhoods and life in Wisconsin running smoothly. Alliant Energy. We’re on for you. And Animal Dentistry and Oral Surgery Specialists of Milwaukee, Oshkosh, and Minneapolis, a veterinary team working with pet owners and family veterinarians, providing care for oral disease and dental problems of small companion animals.

Patty Loew:

We begin this week with one of Wisconsin’s iconic animals. The white-tailed deer is part of our culture, commerce and community. Right now, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is in the first stages of a multimillion dollar effort to analyze the deer population by tracking big bucks and fawns.

Man:

We’ve got expanding wolf populations, and there’s evidence to suggest that our black bear population also is greater than we previously thought. We’ve got coyotes, bobcats. Were trying to better understand the impacts that all of these predators are having on survival.

Patty Loew:

And as In Wisconsin reporter Jo Garrett discovers, they’re counting on the help of citizen volunteers across the state and in Shawano County.

Camille Worthington:

There’s a line where we want to attack it.

Jo Garrett:

Camille Worthington is a researcher for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Camille Worthington:

When it’s on, we want to have three fingers width between their neck and the collar.

Jo Garrett:

Shes talking radio collars for white-tailed deer. It’s part of a massive five-year study of the states deer population. Funded by the DNR, assisted by various groups, but ultimately made possible by people like Worthingtons research assistant for the day.

Paul Dietrich:

We do the same thing with dogs.

Jo Garrett:

Paul Dietrich of Shawano. Hes a hunter, one of hundreds who have volunteered to help. Project Director Chris Jakes

Chris Jakes:

We’ve got a lot of hunters. Weve got over 400 now.

Jo Garrett:

The need is vast. The study areas are huge. There’s one in the north centered around Winter, and a second centered around Shawano.

Camille Worthington:

We need another pole.

Jo Garrett:

Given the scope of the project and the size of the DNR research staff, they need people like Paul. And the project presents an opportunity for the hunting community to see how the DNR does its work and to be part of the process.

Chris Jakes:

We should be able to yank this up some.

There’s people that don’t believe anything the DNR says. They could tell you the sun is coming up tomorrow and these people wouldn’t believe it. And this way, I think if you get people involved with it, if it comes from somebody outside the DNR, yeah, hey, I watched this, and this did this.

Jo Garrett:

After a lot of prep work, nets in place, they hunker down. The deer move in.

Man:

Net dropped.

Jo Garrett:

The crew hurries in and it’s hands-on.

Man:

You want to get them together like this.

Camille Worthington:

Okay. Tie them all four together.

Jo Garrett:

Blood is drawn. Data collected. And Dietrich, a long-time deer hunter experiences deer research up-close.

Man:

Big, big deer in there, though.

Jo Garrett:

In the northern section, the research crew wait, hoping for a buck. Knowing they must safely net an animal 150+ pounds.

Man:

It’s a buck.

Jo Garrett:

Gently, and quickly. It takes a good size crew to collect the data and control the deer. It’s a project with teeth to it.

Man:

All right, get some blood.

Jo Garrett:

They whisper. To help lower the animal’s stress level. And every piece of information adds to the overall picture of the population.

Man:

All done. That’s a good way to begin the day. Trap number one and a buck captured, so we’re happy.

Jo Garrett:

Looks so smooth, doesn’t it?

Chris Jakes:

Well done.

Jo Garrett:

That’s the magic of editing.

Chris Jakes:

Well done, guys.

Jo Garrett:

Time compression. Because capturing deer isn’t easy. Another reason why many volunteers are necessary.

Chris Jakes:

They’re hungry enough to put some tension on the wires.

Jo Garrett:

There’s probably a great reality show to be produced someday.

Man:

I just need this.

Jo Garrett:

Called Field Research.

Man:

Look at that. That’s just a thing of beauty. I like it.

Jo Garrett:

Showing the background, the nuts and bolts of the work. For example, there are many times when the deer don’t show.

Chris Jakes:

As you can see often happens, the door is down but nobody in it. We often have squirrels that will trip the trigger.

Jo Garrett:

And then there are the deer you can’t get rid of.

Chris Jakes:

What is it? Its the same buck again, from yesterday.

Jo Garrett:

Like a bad house guest that just won’t go away.

Chris Jakes:

Ready to go. That buck we captured yesterday, recaptured again.

Jo Garrett:

They call them recaptures.

Chris Jakes:

Recaptured again, so that’s what we call a trap-happy young buck. He’ll be in here again tomorrow. At this point we probably recaptured probably close to 100 animals. This particular animal knows the drill. He walks in, eats, we open the door and he runs. He’ll be back tomorrow.

Jo Garrett:

A little corn, lights out, they sleep, safe and sound.

There is, among these researchers, a great respect for the animal. They’ve experimented with a variety of netting techniques, including helicopter capture. There were mechanical problems with the chopper, but there were also concerns about a spike in deer mortality from the stress of the helicopter capture. This research element will be evaluated and may or may not be included in the coming years.

However, the use of volunteers will only increase.

Paul Dietrich:

If a guy can help solve some deer hunting issues, deer population issues, why not help?

Jo Garrett:

You can be part of something, almost like a reality show, called Field Research, and if Wisconsin in winter is a bit too real, there is a springtime option.

Woman:

I’m checking for pregnancy, and she’s pregnant.

Jo Garrett:

As part of the project, researchers are placing vaginal transmitters in pregnant does. They’ll track these deer, and when they give birth, when they drop their fawns, they’ll drop the transmitter too. The radio signal will change, and volunteers and researchers will return to these fields to find the fawns and fit them with tracking collars, just like mom. This hunter plans to be there.

Patty Loew:

The plan is to have volunteers converge on the baby and outfit it with a flexible collar shortly after it’s born. If tracking fawns in may sounds like fun, then visit our website at wpt.org/InWisconsin. There are additional interviews with Chris Jakes about the project and what hunters should do if they find a deer with a radio collar.

Our next report takes us back to the city. That’s where we met a group of people who turned their concerns about gas prices and greenhouse emissions into a community-wide solution. In Wisconsin reporter Andy Soth shows you how some drivers are going green and saving some green in Madison.

Andy Soth:

When David Tolliver moved to Madison, he drove a Ford Mustang. But now he drives this pickup, and this minivan and this Toyota Prius hybrid.

David Tolliver:

If you need to move something, you have the truck. If you want to drive a fun car, then you have the Mini Cooper.

Andy Soth:

David Tolliver doesn’t own a fleet of vehicles. In fact, he doesn’t even own a car at all anymore. Instead, he shares car use with a group of other drivers around Madison through a business called Community Car.

Sonya Newenhouse:

In October 2003, we had 20 charter members and three cars on our launch date.

Woman:

Lots of reservations this month.

Sonya Newenhouse:

And now we have over 600 members and 15 cars.

Andy Soth:

Car sharing businesses are growing along the country. The largest, called Zip Car, has locations primarily in major cities like Chicago and Boston.

Sonya Newenhouse:

I think it’s wonderful.

Andy Soth:

For Tolliver, the attraction is saving money.

David Tolliver:

I saved $600 a month by switching to Community Car. I’m only paying for transportation when I need it instead of paying for my car when it sits in the parking lot.

Andy Soth:

Community car executive director Amanda White says the program allows many users to get rid of their car.

Amanda White:

At Community Car, 57% of members are able to avoid the purchase of a car upon joining, while 22% sell or intend to sell a car upon joining.

Andy Soth:

That means fewer cars on the road and less carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere.

Sonya Newenouse:

The cars that we choose are the greener options, are hybrids, are the best in their class for gas mileage.

Andy Soth:

Community Car is a green business, providing a service to consumers that also benefits the environment.

Amanda White:

I’m proud to be part of a green business that’s doing good and sustaining itself in the community.

Andy Soth:

Community Cars’ goal is to make it easy to be green. Cars are parked throughout central Madison. Members reserve them through their website. Keys are kept in a secure lockbox nearby. Mileage and time used are recorded in a log book. There are a variety of membership plans. Gas is paid for with a Community Car charge card.

Sonya Newenhouse:

So it’s the convenience, it’s the sense of freedom. It’s a different type of freedom, but it’s very liberating to not have the hassle and inconvenience of maintaining a car.

Andy Soth:

That liberation is a theme of Community Car’s marketing. Perhaps ironic, since car advertisers have long appealed to Americans’ desire for freedom.

Sonya Newenhouse:

It’s a different type of American dream. We’re greening the American dream.

Woman:

I now pronounce the divorcees and divorcers divorced.

Andy Soth:

That spirit shows at a Community Car event, like the divorce your car party, where drivers ceremoniously like David Tolliver and five others ceremoniously ended what they saw as dysfunctional relationships with their vehicles.

Sonya Newenhouse:

Its no fun to be green if youre not having fun and feeling free.

Andy Soth:

While these divorcees may be having fun and feeling free, Community Car is probably not for everyone, such as people who live or work far from the central Madison locations, or simply love their cars too much.

Sonya Newenhouse:

We’re not trying to be an organization for everyone. You know, we realize that we have a limited audience. But that limited audience is the key to our success.

Patty Loew:

There is a membership fee to join Community Car, and then several payment plans that fit your lifestyle. There are more than 1300 members of Community Car in the Madison area sharing 18 vehicles, which are either hybrids or highly fuel efficient.

You might be dreaming of driving with the wind in your hair. Warmer weather is on the way in more ways than one. New research at the University of Wisconsin reveals by the year 2055 our climate may look more like Missouri’s. But at what cost economically and environmentally? That’s part of our Quest Environmental reporting project, reporter Art Hackett shows you what’s being done to prepare for climate change in Wisconsin.

Art Hackett:

While arguments over climate change continue, scientists from universities across the Midwest have been at work trying to figure out what climate change will mean to Wisconsin’s economy and its landscape.

Alex Ireland:

There are less so out here, but as we get closer to the pond, there are lenses of water and soupy peat material.

Art Hackett:

In the Northern Highlands American Legion State Forest, Alex Ireland is mapping the shores and bottoms of wetlands to figure out what they were like centuries ago during a warmer past.

Alex Ireland:

And as we go down core towards the point, we see seeds of aquatic plants and slightly less organic matter.

Art Hackett:

Ireland is from Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, part of a team headed by this UW-Madison botany professor Sarah Hotchkiss.

Sarah Hotchkiss:

Their back gets exposed to the sun sometimes. We’re studying how the level of the lakes has responded to past climate changes. Recently, lake levels have been very low up there. And we want to put that in perspective.

Art Hackett:

The scientists are trying to predict what the area will be like in a warmer future. If the area changed from a lake to a bog in a warmer past, will it change back again?

Chris Kucharik:

You know, with the changes we’ve seen historically have been on the cold end of the temperature scale. I always joke that Wisconsin hasn’t necessarily been getting hotter, we’ve been getting less cold, and that really means that really during winter and springtime is where we’ve seen the greatest warming of our temperatures. We’ve seen a lengthening of the growing season by up to two or three or four weeks in the central part of our state.

Art Hackett:

Chris Kucharik is a UW-Madison agronomist overseeing research to see how corn and other crops commonly grown in Wisconsin will respond to warmer temperatures.

Chris Kucharik:

We might benefit from some of those changes. Extensions in the growing season undoubtedly are going to help us. We might be able to plant crops earlier. You can’t go too early. I don’t see us planting corn in February at some point in time. Then we’re out of sync with radiation coming from the sun.

Art Hackett:

But that’s only one part of this project. Researchers here are studying new cropping patterns for a different reason. What if by growing something differently farmers could help climate change less rapidly? Kuchariks license plate reads FIXCO2. He’s working with plants which can fix carbon dioxide, taking it out of the atmosphere and storing it as plant matter. These densely planted poplar trees are an example.

Chris Kucharik:

Because it’s fast-growing and can accumulate a lot of woody biomass in a short period of time, we can take a lot of CO out of the atmosphere, soak it up into that biomass, turn it into wood chips, pulp, things like that, that can be used as a biofuel or feedstock for liquid biofuels.

Art Hackett:

Other test plots contain other crops also suitable for conversion to fuels such as ethanol. Miscanthus is a tropical grass native to Africa which can grow more than ten feet high. Chris Kucharik says Wisconsin may be too cold for it, at least right now. There’s also switchgrass. Kucharik says it incidentally served as an indicator of change. By august it was starting to turn brown.

Chris Kucharik:

It seems to have reached its point where it’s decided it’s going to be mature and it’s going through its natural process that we normally might not see until mid-September.

Art Hackett:

Climate researchers point out that weather and climate are two different things.

Michael Notaro:

A lot of times the general public thinks about what’s been happening recently. For example, what’s happened in the last few weeks, last few months or even a year. And they think of that more as climate change. But the problem with that is climate change and the warming that we’ve been noting really is about long-term changes over the course of decades.

Art Hackett:

But the winter of 2009-2010 fit the warming pattern.

December was a little cooler than normal in 2009, but look at the other months. Temperatures were above average nearly every month thereafter. The University Ridge Golf Course opened three weeks earlier than ever. Is this climate change? We don’t know yet. Over the past year, there was a back and forth in the media over whether global warming was something scientists cooked up or not.

Sarah Hotchkiss:

It’s one of the most thoroughly vetted scientific consensuses ever put together, but of course humans are humans, and there are some glitches and oversight could be better. It’s such a rock solid consensus, but people generally smiled a bit at the news cycle.

Chris Kucharik:

I would rather go out and talk about climate change and say, no, we don’t have to worry about it. I would much rather give that picture to the public. I would be not doing my job in a credible manner, and it would be ethically wrong for me to basically lie about the facts.

Patty Loew:

Climate change could have a significant impact on Wisconsin’s maple syrup production. Wisconsin is currently the number four maple syrup-producing state. The best conditions? Cool nights, just below freezing, and warm days, in the upper 40s. One of our Quest partners is Finn Ryan with the Educational Communications Board. This week, he shows you the maple syrup connection to a love affair between Tony Schultz and Kat Becker in their own words.

Kat Becker:

Tony makes pancakes almost 300 days a year. Really. That’s not a joke.

Tony Schultz:

She told me she day dreamed about having a farm. I said, well, I have a farm. And so the romantic family farm became all the more romantic. It’s a third generation family farm located in Athens, Wisconsin. We’ve tapped trees for between 75 and 80 years, since my grandfather homesteaded this place. And we’ve always tapped in the maple grove.

Kat Becker:

Maple syrup season really only takes between five to seven weeks total, but it’s something that ushers in the beginning of farming season for us.

Tony Schultz:

I love the tradition. It’s this right of seasonal passage. And it’s the advent of the coming of spring.

Kat Becker:

Maple syrup season takes place because the trees are starting to break dormancy, and in that process, they’re taking up water through their roots and then stored sugar from the winter in their root system. What’s ideal is that the tree is starting to bring the sugars from the roots up, but it doesn’t get all of those sugars all the way up the tree. If the temperature drops at night, the liquid falls back down, and the sugars fall back down. I’m still amazed that sugar can come out of there. It’s kind of a dance. That’s one of the nicest thing about maple syrup season, is both tapping and collecting, that you have usually three to five people, if not a few more, working together. And eventually after shouting at each other and trying to figure out where everyone’s supposed to go, you kind of recognize the pattern that everybody’s walking through in the woods, and you take your own little areas and move as an independent person, but kind of coordinated with these people to collect sap.

Tony Schultz:

We call it boiling down or cooking down. And the boil-down takes place after we bring all the sap to the shack. We fire up a big stove and keep a constant, hot fire going for many hours at a time and cook down the sap. It takes about 40 gallons of sap to produce one gallon of maple syrup. This year, it may end up being the worst maple syrup season we’ve ever had in the history of us making maple syrup, because of the dramatic temperature change, and dramatic warmup that has taken place in the last week. Weather is the key part of the process. The changing of the season, trees coming out of dormancy and how weather signals them to do that. The daily fluctuation of temperature from 20 or 25 at night to 45 to 50 during the day is why maple syrup season happens. I love it for the same reason that I love my family farm. It’s because it’s my home. It’s what we’ve always done. And I love sweet things.

Patty Loew:

University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers predict sugar maples will become more stressed and prone to insect damage if average winter temperatures continue to increase. We invite you to check out additional reports and research at QuestWisconsin.org. The site showcases our multimedia approach to environmental reporting.

On the next edition of In Wisconsin, two icons with strong connections to Wisconsin’s conservation movement.

Man:

I have a love affair with this place.

Patty Loew:

It’s a place john Muir’s family farmed in Wisconsin.

Man:

I think Muir is alive and well here. His spirit is very strong yet.

Jo Garrett:

I’m Jo Garrett, here at the University of Wisconsin-Madison arboretum and we’re tracking Kathy.

Kathy:

So, the first since robins singing, cardinals singing, sandhill cranes singing.

Jo Garrett:

Find out what the connection is between Kathys little purple book and Wisconsin conservation hero, Aldo Leopold.

Patty Loew:

Plus, it’s the tune of the special place in the heart of Wisconsin. But it could have been a Minnesota fan favorite. We’ll have a preview of the UW Spring Band Concert. We’ll strike up the band next Thursday at 7:30 right here on In Wisconsin.

We leave you now with a quiet get-away in the woods. Located near Leland in Sauk County, this pine hollow features a narrow, heavily wooded gorge cut into the Baraboo hills. The pine hollow is owned by the Wisconsin Nature Conservancy and was designated a State Natural Area in 1966. Have a great week in Wisconsin.

Announcer:

Major funding for In Wisconsin is provided by the people of Alliant Energy, who bring safe, reliable and environmentally friendly energy to keep homes, neighborhoods and life in Wisconsin running smoothly. Alliant Energy. We’re on for you. And Animal Dentistry and Oral Surgery Specialists of Milwaukee, Oshkosh, and Minneapolis, a veterinary team working with pet owners and family veterinarians, providing care for oral disease and dental problems of small companion animals.