BIGFORK — It's officially spring break in the Flathead, and while the weather hasn't been very spring-like, kids are still getting outside.
Thanks to a program with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP), kids got to explore Bigfork's Wayfarers State Park and create a special project.
“It'll help bring all of our native plants back and all of our native bugs and it'll help them thrive and enjoy. They'll be safe and cozy snug as a bug,“ said FWP Interpretive Naturalist Mikayla Itrich.
FWP hosted a kid's bug hotel-making class at Wayfarers State Park in Bigfork. The event started with a small hike to collect materials to go inside the bug hotels and some education about what bugs are like along the way.
“That's perfect. These bugs, they like moisture and that stuff holds moisture,” said Itrich.
Bug hotels or bug boxes are small wooden boxes stuffed with natural elements such as leaves, grass, sticks, and whatever other natural things that can be found in the woods.
“Bug boxes are really just a way to kind of get the natural environment shoved into an even smaller space essentially and creating your own mini ecosystem for these bugs to thrive. With these bug boxes, it's going into like considering food, shelter, space, water, all the things that any living thing needs and it's just kind of putting a kid's twist on it,” said Itrich.
Once the materials were collected, kids got to work stuffing their bug boxes.
“We were making some bug hotels just to kind of help promote the native area, especially our native plant garden and promote the natural bugs and stuff that are in our area to come and enjoy and to try and get kids outside of their comfort zone,” said Itrich.
Along with helping promote healthy native plants, kids learned about what bugs we have in our region.
“So, what kind of bugs do you think are gonna live in your bug boxes? Caterpillar roly polies ladybugs?” asked Itrich.
While there was some education involved in this event, it was about getting kids outside during spring break.
“Just bug hotels and getting dirty, going for a walk and having fun.”
