History, Natural History & the Arts
New York Almanack delivers to you each day. We receive no public funds – we’re supported only by readers like you.
We need your help! Please DONATE to keep New York Almanack publishing. [Read more…] about $2,740 To Go – Please Support New York Almanack’s Annual Fundraising Today
Some of the most important trees in your woodlot are the ones that are no longer alive. Large, standing dead or dying trees — called snags — are an important component of healthy forests and a critical habitat feature for wildlife.
They provide places for many birds and mammals to forage, den, nest, perch, and roost. Snags are particularly important for cavity nesting birds like woodpeckers, nuthatches, and chickadees; for bats that roost within cavities, crevices, and flaky bark; and for countless species that rely on the abundant insects, fungi, and lichens as a food source. [Read more…] about Deadwood: The Importance of Standing Dead Trees
A $9.3 million construction project has begun on a new Visitor Center, improved parking, and enhanced exhibits at Bayard Cutting Arboretum State Park in Suffolk County on Long Island. [Read more…] about Work Begins On Bayard Cutting Arboretum Visitors Center
Construction has begun on a marsh restoration project at Fireplace Neck Tidal Wetlands in the town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County on Long Island. In coordination with New York State Office of General Services (OGS), DEC will complete the nearly $1.7-million restoration project to help stabilize the marsh system, improve ecological functions, and create a more resilient marsh prepared for the effects of climate change and global sea level rise. [Read more…] about Fireplace Neck Tidal Wetland Area Restoration Begins
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced that its free lifeguard qualifying procedures begin Saturday, February 4th, 2023. [Read more…] about Free DEC Lifeguard Qualifying Begins in February
Stairway from Heaven
My nephew, now a noted astrophysicist,
toddled down steep, awkward cabin stairs
one extended-family Adirondack vacation,
to ask each of the adults: “Are I baby Jesus?”
Now, perhaps, his cosmic inwardness basks
amidst so-called heavens with an expansive
sense of reality suitably immense enough
to encompass whatever reality may proffer,
knowing that, despite dark matter and deaths
of stars, nothing but nothing that breathes air
is ever alone in this world.
Species start to vanish from streams during the first stages of suburban development, according to the United States Geological Service. By the time impervious surfaces had absorbed 20 percent of the terrain of some New England watersheds, for example, those streams’ aquatic invertebrate communities had shrunk by roughly 25 percent. [Read more…] about How Does A Land Trust Protect A Watershed? One Parcel At A Time
This week on The Historians Podcast, New York State Historian Devin Lander joins host Bob Cudmore. Lander previews the 250th anniversary of American independence which will be observed from 2025 through 2033.
The state has authorized a commission to oversee events, however some of the 13 appointees to a state commission have not yet been named, and the vast majority of counties in the state have taken no action to remember this important anniversary. [Read more…] about NY State, Counties Still Not Fully Engaged With American 250th Anniversary
Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation will host “The Streets Where You Live,” a virtual program highlighting the history behind the names of many streets in Saratoga Springs, set for Thursday, February 2nd. [Read more…] about Saratoga Springs Street History Program
The most-visited state park in New York City is getting a much-needed update. This project will include the renovation of all locker rooms, resurfacing the outdoor track and replacing the turf field, and upgrading the heating and ventilation system in the performing arts center at Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park in West Harlem . [Read more…] about $26M Renovation Underway At Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park
At the State Of The State Address on January 10, 2023, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul introduced an ambitious response to climate change. Largely ignored in the reporting over those efforts is a plan to switch State Parks to 100 percent renewable energy by 2030. [Read more…] about State Parks Plan To Be Energy Independent By 2030