It's a good day for David Hague when he sees an eagle fly over the property he owns with his wife, Tammy Miller. For more than 20 years, the couple has worked to restore their land to how it was before human development. For Hague, seeing an eagle overhead is proof that the restoration is working.
Learn and grow
David Hague
A vernal pool at Coyote Run
Hague and Miller started out buying a 96-acre parcel of woodlands in 2005, which evolved into a more than 900-acre property.
“Loving nature without really having a direction got us to this first property,” says Hague. “When we found that it was rare to find a 50-acre parcel close to Columbus that hadn’t really been messed with too much, we realized it was worth saving.”
They took on the challenge to restore the land, learning about invasive species from professors and officials from the Fairfield County Soil and Water Conservation District and taking actions to combat them on the Coyote Run property. As their restoration efforts grew, they bought more land.
David Hague
In 2021, Hague and Miller dedicated 230 acres of Coyote Run as a State Nature Preserve. Though the couple still owns and takes care of the property, the designation has furthered a relationship with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) and provided additional safeguards toward restoration and preservation. ODNR has also provided additional advice and information on new invasive species, aided in prescribed burns and been involved with educational programming.
Over the years, Hague and Miller allowed various organizations to host events, programs and studies on the property. Just as the property was a learning opportunity for themselves, they share they want it to also be a learning opportunity for the public.
“We all suffer from ignorance in any number of topics, and a lot of people are ignorant of nature and how people affect nature and vice versa. The programs give you a chance to talk about that, and they can also see it for themselves,” says Hague. “That can contribute to a better understanding of our role in nature, which is what we’re all about.”
David Hague
Projects with the public
David Hague
OSU Conservation Class
Over the years, a range of public events, including tree identification and a bird census, have been hosted on the property by organizations such as Fairfield County Parks, City of Pickerington Parks & Recreation, Pickerington Public Library and ODNR.
Earlier this year, Coyote Run hosted a capstone project for three students from The Ohio State University. The project consisted of creating two 12-by-12 meter fenced-off squares to study vegetation and assess predation of deer and rabbits on the forest’s plant life. Hague and Miller hope this will become a long-term study that improves tree regeneration efforts.
David Hague
OSU Capstone Project
Coyote Run is no stranger to an undergraduate study, as it previously hosted an OSU project where students assessed various areas of the property and made conservation recommendations based on their findings.
The property hosts other educational field trips for Pickerington High Schools, as well as student groups brought by Westerville-based ecological consultants MAD Scientist Associates for a seminar on wetland delineation.
Scouts BSA and Girl Scouts are frequent visitors and volunteers at Coyote Run, helping plant trees and hosting camp outs.
“Getting folks who think everything that’s green is good and then they realize invasives are green and not good, they’re on the same trajectory that we were when we started learning about nature and helping,” says Hague.
Future forests
David Hague
Spotted salamander at Coyote Run
Moving forward, Hague and Miller have some larger restoration projects that will continue to balance public access and education with habitat and species protection. They share that the critters come first and that humans are merely visitors.
One upcoming project includes creating a tree nursery on the property in an effort to re-forest the two-thirds of Coyote Run that are open agricultural fields. As they continue learning restoration methods, Hague hopes to create a pre-canopy that matches historical levels and an environment where trees can regenerate. This will mean negating the effects of more than a hundred years of farming.
“It’s not so much that the project has evolved as it is that Tammy and I have,” says Hague. “We came into this very novice, just wanting some woods. Then we realized there are invasives and all sorts of pressure from development. All of that has sculpted us a bit, and we’re still learning.”
Abby Van Voorhis is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
