Construction Work Begins

On Monday, October 29th, LJ Construction began working at the Leslie Park Golf Course. They pumped down the north pond.

They made a diversion channel to change the flow of Traver Creek while they work on the north pond.

They started stripping topsoil from the area to the west of #14 tee and stockpiling it for use later. This is an area where spoils from the pond will be moved.

New tee for #10

With the Traver Creek Project set to start at the end of October, we have begun construction of of new forward tee on #10. When Leslie Park opens back up in April, the front half of #10 fairway will be raised to eliminate drainage issues and re-sodded. Until the fairway is able to sustain play, we will use this new tee as the teeing grounds for all play on this hole. It will be around 220 yards long, but because of the creek running in front of the green, staff still thinks it will play as a par 4.

The new tee is on the right side, just after the beginning of the fairway. We stripped the sod and set it out in the parking lot while we built the tee up. The above picture shows the area after we stripped the sod and leveled out the hill that was there. We have just started to put down fill.

The workmen line up to dump the loads of topsoil.

Getting close.

This is pretty close to the final product.

The teeing surface is painted out and lined up.

Sod was taken from the fairway to lay on the tee.

The rough surrounding the tee got a little dry while in the parking lot, but should pull through.

Laying out the tee.

Now it just needs to grow in. It should be ready to go by April 1st.

Turtle Relocation - Status Update Week 3 (Oct. 1 - 5)

Week 3 - Day 1: After a disappointing week of not finding any turtles, spirits were low heading into the third week. That is why we were pleasantly surprised to find turtle tracks in the muck at the north pond. This was a good sign of what was to come. By the end of the day we had caught and relocated 4 turtles! (One large female, two males and one juvenile-all painted turtles). Interestingly enough, there were no turtles in our nets. Instead, they were spotted basking and swimming in both the north and south ponds. Special thanks goes to our super volunteer Sean Zera for wading through the muck and algae in order to rescue these turtles.

Week 3 - Day 2: The second day was almost as eventful as the first! The dynamic duo of David Mifsud and Sean Zera spotted a green frog and another juvenile painted turtle, however both herptiles managed to get away. We also heard a spring peeper calling near the south pond. But   the star of the day was a male snapping turtle that David Mifsud found in the marshy area next to the south pond.  

Week 3 - Day 3: Nothing to report today. Cooler temperatures must have scared the turtles away ...Hoping for better luck tomorrow!

Week 3 - Day 4: NAP's intern, Josh Goldman, found a female snapper in one of our traps at the south pond. Sean Zera bravely wrestled her out of the net-she was a feisty one! Her estimated age is 40 years and she weighs about 20 pounds. In addition, Sean Zera and David Mifsud rescued a beautiful female Butler's garter snake that was trying to cross Traver Road.

Turtle Relocation - Status Update Week 2 (Sept. 24 - 28)

Despite our best efforts, no turtles were found in the south pond during the second week of relocation. The weather was not as pleasant as the first week, so perhaps the turtles were seeking refuge in the muck. However, we did find a bunch of fish and a couple crayfish in our nets.

In addition to searching for turtles in the south pond, a team was sent to draw down the water level in the north pond. We were hoping that a lower water level might encourage turtles to move around more, enabling us to catch them with scoop nets, but this method proved to be unsuccessful. 

Turtle Relocation - Status Update Week 1 (Sept. 17 - 21)

Week 1 - Day 1: The relocation of turtles at Leslie Park Golf Course has been filled with it's share of challenges and as with most projects managing expectations can be one of the hardest parts. Here is a before and after shot of the first days field crew.  Not knowing what to expect in terms of numbers of turtles, the success rate of our trapping technique,  or the depth of the muck; some of us lost hope pretty early in the process.  However, we have been patient and have been able to relocate a total of nine turtles to date and will continue our effort into October. At the end of day one we had trapped one painted turtle. Little did we know what was in store     for us on day two. 

Week 1 - Day 2 : By the end of the day we had relocated 2 massive snapping turtles and one painted turtle.  Big thanks go to 'Turtle Dave' Mifsud, NAP Herpetologist,  and seasoned herp volunteer Sean Zera for their bravery and valor.  Wrestling 30 plus pound snapping turtles is no small feat. It was very exciting for our volunteers and staff.  Many had never seen or smelled (snapping turtle have musk glands on the underside of their shells) such impressive animals that close. 

Week 1 - Day 3 : Another productive relocation day totaling 2 more snapping turtles and 2 painted turtles.

Week 1 - Day 4 : Can't expect every day to be great.  No turtles...

Week 1 - Day 5 : One last painted turtle to finish the week

And one final pic of the biggin' from day two!

Week two started with moving the majority of our traps to the southern retention pond.  As of this afternoon (Week 2 - Day 3) we haven't relocated any additional turtles. We'll continue trapping efforts on both ponds into next week. For more information about Natural Area Preservation and the work that we do in the City of Ann Arbor Parks and Natural Areas you can go to our website (www.a2gov.org/NAP) or you can friend us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/ann.arbor.nap?ref=hl).  

Turtle relocation

As part of the Traver Creek Restoration Project through the City of Ann Arbor owned Leslie Park Golf Course, a permit was submitted to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ.) To satisfy the MDEQ permit of the project, turtles and other herptofauna will be relocated from the two inline detention basins (AKA ponds on holes #12 and #17) on Traver Creek in the Golf Course.  This week, barrier fencing was installed around the pond on hole number 8 at the LPGC to receive and retain relocated animals before the construction starts.

The City of Ann Arbor's Natural Area Preservation's (NAP) staff Herpetologist, David Mifsud, will coordinate the relocation efforts with assistance from NAP staff and volunteers. The hope is that we will be able to relocate the majority of the animals from the ponds well within the time needed for them to successfully overwinter in the relocated area.  NAP will document all collected animals and monitor the receiver area(s) in subsequent years to qualitatively assess the results of the relocation.

The turtles will be live trapped with hoop traps baited with sardines. There will be six of each of three different size traps for a total of 18 traps. Here are some pictures of the traps.

The smallest trap. Notice the yellow, foam swim toy (noodle) which will help keep the trap afloat.

Here is the largest size trap.

Putting the traps out.

The traps need to be staked out so they don't float away.

These nets will help direct turtles into the traps. They hit the net and follow it until they get to the trap.

Here is the set up with one of the large nets.

Another perspective of the traps in the water.

This is the pond on #8 where the turtles and other animals will be relocated.

The silt fence will keep the animals from trying to move back to the pond where we are trapping them.

If you have interest in helping with this project please contact Tina Roselle, the Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator for the City of Ann Arbor's Natural Area Preservation at troselle@a2gov.org or call NAP at (734) 794-6627. 

You can also check out the NAP website at www.a2gov.org/nap