Skyline Happenings

Submitted by Pam Peterson

The burramy, or mountain pygmy-possum, supports fragile Australian environments by dispersing seeds from mountain plum-pines across rocky alpine landscapes. 

The tiny, four-inch marsupial — which has a prehensile tail longer than its body — was long feared to be extinct until it was rediscovered in 1966 at Mount Hotham in the Victorian Alps of Australia.

In the decades since, scientists across Australia have worked to engineer a species recovery plan. 

One critical habitat scientists honed in on was a population of roughly 150 mountain pygmy-possums in Little Mount Higginbotham. But it faced a major problem: a 210-mile roadway that cut directly through its natural habitat.

“At Little Mount Higginbotham, the Great Alpine Road currently acts as a barrier for movement of possums from one side of the road to the other,” Jerry Alexander, the natural environment program officer for the Department of Environment, Land, Water, and Planning, said in a statement. 

That’s particularly an issue when it comes to mating. While female mountain pygmy-possums generally live in higher altitude habitats amid boulder fields, males tend to live further down the slope. The Great Alpine Road, Australia’s highest accessible road, makes it nearly impossible for the males and females to reach each other safely. “We are making it easier and safer for the males to travel and breed with the females by linking their habitats,” Alexander said. “By increasing breeding opportunities, habitat restoration, and predator control, we are giving this critically endangered species the best possible chance to thrive.”

VICTORIA DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE ACTION

Over two summers, researchers recorded 30 mountain pygmy-possums using the tunnel of love, often in springtime, after their mates had woken from hibernation. According to scientists, the marsupials can clear the nearly 50-foot tunnel in just 15 seconds – a rate that’s sometimes too fast for trail cameras to even capture them.

Today, fewer than 2,000 mountain pygmy-possums are believed to remain in the wild. In addition to nature-based, non-invasive methods of saving the marsupials, captive breeding programs have also proved critical to the species’ survival. 

In March, Zoos Victoria’s Healesville Sanctuary welcomed 12 tiny joeys as part of its breeding and research program. 

Mountain pygmy possums remain Australia’s only true hibernating marsupial — in the wild, they spend more than five months beneath the snow each year. 

At Healesville Sanctuary, zookeepers use special thermal cameras to check in on the little critters as they hibernate.

“When in torpor (hibernation), mountain pygmy-possums can reduce their body temperature to two degrees Celsius,” Threatened Species Keeper Amie Hindson said in a statement. “They curl their bodies into a little ball with their head tucked into their chest or abdomen. Sometimes, the females will tuck their little noses into their pouch.”

Before hibernation, the little marsupials nearly double their weight to around 2 ounces, then shrink back to nearly half that size over winter.

“We already do weekly weight checks of the possums, record their activity levels each day, and record how much food they are consuming over the hibernation period,” Hindson explained. “But it was pretty cool to see the difference on the thermal camera between an awake and torporing possum.

“Any additional monitoring of our nocturnal species that we can do without extra disturbance is something that is really important for the well-being of those species in our care.”

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Submitted by Mary Jane Francis

Submitted by Pam Peterson

Reaching Out from Within is a nonprofit that operates in correctional facilities across Kansas, North Carolina, and Missouri. In 1982, the program was founded on a central principle: Even within prison, incarcerated men and women are still members of their community.

So, this spring — when inmates at Norton Correctional Facility learned that Norton public county schools were left with approximately $6,000 of unsettled school lunch account debt — they stepped up to help. 

The debt accumulated from breakfast and lunch meals served to children whose families faced food insecurity and were unable to reconcile their child’s school lunch account. 

Within their facility, the inmates organized a fundraiser through ROFW with the intention of paying off the $6,000 tab. 

During the fundraising period, residents donated $3,810 of their personal funds to the ROFW USD 211 School Lunch Account fundraiser. 

To get them past the $4,000 mark, staff members from the Kansas Department of Corrections also pitched in an additional $457. On August 3, nearly 30 incarcerated men gathered to present Corey Roy, the USD 211 Superintendent of Schools, with a fina

The outreach successfully covered about 71% of the district’s remaining debt. 

“I was moved at how the men I spoke with wanted to make a positive impact to help others in the community,” Roy said in a statement. “I think it gave them a sense of purpose and knowledge that they made a difference for a young person they don’t even know.” 

After the ceremony, many inmates who donated told Roy that they had often gone hungry growing up, and the lack of support negatively impacted their studies.

Over 1.5 million children in the United States lost access to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits following the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act in July 2025.

Twice now, in 2023 and 2025, U.S. Senator John Fetterman has introduced bills that would have directed the U.S. Department of Agriculture to erase all household school meal debt using Commodity Credit Corporation funds.

To date, Congress has failed to pass any legislation to pay off or eliminate nationwide school lunch debt. 

Although USD 211 — the Norton, Kansas public school district — allows lunch accounts to go negative and continues serving hot meals to children, other school districts across the country have served lower-quality “alternative meals”or engaged in “lunch shaming” practices. 

“Specific examples of lunch shaming include hand stamps, stickers, or other visual markers to identify children with lunch debt,” The Education Data Initiative states on its website. “Notes sent home with the child and withheld meals may also indicate lunch debt to peers. The USDA recommends more discrete reminders, such as phone calls to parents, emails, or letters sent via post.”

According to the Education Data Initiative, school meal debt in grades K-12 grew to an estimated $271.6 million in 2025. 

“When funding and programs are cut at the end of our state and federal funding cycle, participation will decrease, and meal debt will increase,” Amanda Kinnaird, a food and nutrition professional with Washington’s North Thurston Public Schools, told the National Education Association.

NORTON CORRECTIONAL FACILITY

“Research shows that students who come to school hungry lack concentration, which impacts their ability to learn,” Kinnaird continued. “Also, food insecurity can lead to students being socially withdrawn. They will be embarrassed to admit they are hungry, and don’t want to ask for food, which clearly has a direct impact on their emotional well-being.”

On August 3, Roy said he appreciated hearing personal stories from the inmates behind the school lunch debt fundraiser. 

“I was very appreciative to have the chance to talk to them as a group, but also individually to hear how this made them feel to help someone else,” Roy said. 

“I wanted them to know that they made a difference in a positive way. In listening to them, I believe this gave them a chance to reflect and know that moving forward they can make choices that are positive for themselves and others in the community.”

Roy said, “I felt very good about the opportunity to meet with the residents and try to reinforce what the prison staff are doing to help them be directed in the right direction as they move forward in their lives.”

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Thanks to John Roper

Thanks to Bob Peterson