On Friday, UND will host two events intended to better connect the public with the natural areas around the city of Grand Forks on Friday.

First in the morning, the UND biology department will host a celebration at the Oakville Prairie Field Station. The event is titled “A New Era for the Grand Forks County Prairie” and just like it says, this event will bring change to the Oakville Prairie Field Station.

The Field Station has been open since 1958 and has served as an important hub for research and education. At 960 acres, the tallgrass prairie that lies just west of Grand Forks is one of the largest of its kind. The prairie also serves to help researchers and students understand the ecology of the Northern Plains.

“Insights gained from research at this site will help us better understand and manage North Dakota’s grassland and agricultural areas now and into the future,” Kathryn Yurkonis, UND’s grassland ecologist told the UND webpage.

The event is being held to celebrate the designation of Oakville/Fairfield Townships as an Audubon Important Bird Area. This means that the area will be protected, because of the area’s importance to the local birdlife. This is also coupled with the area’s new status as both a North Dakota Game and Fish Department Wildlife Management Area and Grand Forks County Prairie Project Grassland Management Site.

That night at dusk, The UND Department of Space Studies will hold a “Star Party,” at the new Space Studies Observatory site near Emerado, N.D.

The event will also have UND graduate students and members of the Northern Skies Astronomical Society and the Dakota Space Society will be on hand to help. There will also be telescopes available at the observatory.

Alex Berrtsch is the Editor-in-chief of The Dakota Student. He can be reached at [email protected]