The first time I saw Itasca was in the late 1970s. It was fall and the colors were glorious. I had a very good feeling driving onto the campus. The rustic lab buildings reflected the station’s long academic history. I knew that generations of biologists had been drawn to Itasca to learn about Minnesota’s ecosystems.
There was something haunting about the landscape itself. I remember standing on the dock and looking across the lake to Schoolcraft Island, down towards the headwaters, and realizing that this was a very unique part of the geography that defines Minnesota and the middle of the North American continent.
Itasca is special because it’s the source of the Mississippi River and because the State of Minnesota had the vision early on (1891) to preserve it as a state park. So it looks the same today as it did hundreds of years ago. It’s also notable that the three major North American biomes come together within the park or nearby: boreal forest, deciduous hardwoods and prairie. At Itasca, you can study Minnesota’s natural history from a broad perspective, but you can also explore small, rare ecosystems such as the Iron Springs Bog, which interrupts business as usual in the boreal forest with a totally different population of flora and fauna.
There’s no place quite like Itasca for observing biology. But rustic charm simply isn’t enough when it comes to cutting-edge science. It’s been 30 years since my first visit. When I visit Itasca now, its buildings—a generation older—are quaint reminders of another era. They increasingly limit our efforts to offer quality educational programs and conduct meaningful research. We are grateful for our donors and friends who have helped us make incremental improvements. As we celebrate the field station’s centennial, we look forward to working with the University and the State to make the substantive renovations that will enable Itasca to thrive for another hundred years.
As you will read in the cover story beginning on page 10, the University has developed a master plan for renovating Itasca and included it in the six-year capital plan. Funds for the first phase of construction will be part of the 2010 legislative request.
The price of getting the field station ready for its second century of use is an estimated $25 million. That’s a lot of money, but it’s a small fraction of Itasca’s value as a living museum and a resource for ecology education and research.
Robert Elde, Dean
College of Biological Sciences
elde@umn.edu
