Ben Bomlitz assembles the Bobcat for maintenance at Kitty Todd Nature Preserve in the Oak Openings.

Brian Yahn inspects collected seed. The Green Ribbon Initiative collects and prepares seeds for preservation of species and restoration of habitats.

Curly dock (Rumex crispus)

Smeared dagger moth caterpillar.

A seasonal worker practices safe tree removal, an important skill often used in the Oak Openings for the fight against invasive species such as the cottonwood.

Interagency Restoration Team (IRT) sprays herbicide on invasive species at Sylvan Prairie.

Transplanting at Blue Creek Nursery.

Lady beetle.

Pine trail on the Britton family farm in the Oak Openings. The Brittons have been working toward conservation on their property by planting native species and removing invasives to support natural habitat and wildlife growth.

Michelle Grigore gestures at a rattlesnake master plant on her property in the Oak Openings. Grigore is an ecologist by trade and has spent the majority of her life educating about and conserving the Oak Openings habitat.

A female monarch butterfly near the end of her lifespan rests on a milkweed plant. Her scales have fallen off with old age, leaving her wings almost translucent in the sunlight. Monarchs lay their eggs exclusively on milkweeds so their larvae can eat the leaves after hatching.

IRT member, Justin, prepares and mixes herbicide.

Katharin Mason-Wolf chops a gash in the bark of a cottonwood tree to apply herbicide to the more sensitive area underneath.

Katharin Mason-Wolf applies herbicide to invasive species in the Adopt a Natural Area preserve in her home of Ottawa Hills.

Katharin Mason-Wolf looks for rare or threatened plants in the Oak Openings in order to monitor species preservation.

Brian Yahn gestures at a fern while explaining plant identifications to interns.

Member of IRT, Paul, transplants a blazing star plant into a larger pot.

IRT member, Erin, fills her herbicide pack with freshly mixed herbicide.

David Bontrager smells exposed bark to identify a tree.

Seed inspection.

Transplanting young blazing star plants at Blue Creek Nursery.

Justin Siler inspects a plant at Sylvan Prairie.

David Bontrager inspects a fern.

Brian Yahn instructs volunteers on invasive species identification and removal at Kitty Todd Nature Preserve.

David Bontrager sloshes through the Sandhill Crane Wetland preserve area.

A red-headed woodpecker takes flight.