Weaver Dunes Field Station

Director: Steve Freedberg, Professor of Biology
freedber@stolaf.edu
507-786-3102

In 2008 St. Olaf College initiated a unique partnership with The Nature Conservancy that has allowed St. Olaf to establish a field station at the Weaver Dunes Preserve in Kellogg, MN. The fieldstation now serves as a place to house students and faculty for field research and class trips. In collaboration with the Nature Conservancy, St. Olaf researchers will design and carry out studies that will be used directly in the development of conservation programs.

Located on nearly 600 acres of sand prairie dunes, Weaver Dunes is one of Minnesota’s most unique and valuable natural environments. The Nature Conservancy acquired the Weaver Dunes Preserve in 1980, and two years later, the Kellogg Weaver Dunes Scientific and Natural Area was established a half-mile north of the preserve by the Department of Natural Resources. In addition to the rolling 30 foot tall sand dunes, the site is sprinkled with oak savannas and is bordered by the Weaver Bottoms, a pristine backwater wetland of the Mississippi River that provides habitat for a diverse array of wildlife.