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Discovering nature on Oakton's campus through new eyes

Things tend to slow down at Oakton Community College during the summer, but this year swarms of folks are walking through the Des Plaines campus, hanging out by the lake, walking along the forest preserve's edge, observing the wetland and gathering around the outdoor sculptures.

Perhaps it has something to do with the 15 Pokestops on campus, or the two gyms, recently held by yellow and red, with some fluctuation.

Pokemon hunters who have downloaded "Pokemon Go" have plenty of opportunities to explore, capture, and refuel while seeking common urban Pokemon like Pidgey and Rattata, or Horsea and Magikarp down by the water, or rarer individuals in 147 acres that includes woods, prairie restoration sites and gardens.

Oakton's Green Committee is sharing the details of "Pokemon Go" because a big part of being green is getting out and experiencing nature, appreciating the diversity of plants and animals, the variety of ecosystems and environments that provide shelter to wildlife, the trees that generate the air we breathe.

Oakton's staff naturalist, grounds crew, facilities and sustainability staff, students in Environmental Science and in Ecology Club restore, preserve and enhance these spaces.

At Oakton, students can go out searching for Rhyhorn and end up discovering white-tailed deer, monarch butterflies, cormorants, gold finches, hummingbirds and other creatures.

Oakton does warn to watch out for motorists, obey signs, use paths and lawn spaces instead of walking through native and decorative plantings, and, in more wooded areas, watch out for poison ivy and do a tick check afterward.

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