History, Natural History & the Arts
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Despite frosts, there continue to be many types of bugs that remain active into late autumn around New York State.
Among these hardy invertebrates, and the ones that are quite conspicuous to anyone that spends time working in the yard, garden or on the wood pile, are the harvestmen, known to most as the daddy-longlegs. [Read more…] about Daddy Longlegs During Winter
Climate change is altering winter weather in the Northeast, leading to less snow and more ice. Northeastern forests, and the resources they provide, need snow to stay healthy. And there is evidence that ice storms – the most destructive form of winter weather – will become more frequent and severe under changing climate conditions.
The Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies is set to host a free virtual science conversation on the effects of climate change on winters, with a focus on consequences for forest ecosystems, on Wednesday, December 9th. [Read more…] about Winter Wonderland No More? Climate & Northeastern Forests
DEC Region 1 has completed the fall trout stocking of waters throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties. A total of 7,850 brown trout were released in late October and early November, according to DEC. [Read more…] about Fall Trout Stocking on Long Island Complete
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has proposed changes to black bass (smallmouth bass and largemouth bass) fishing regulations that the Department says will make them easier to understand. [Read more…] about DEC Proposes Statewide 12-Inch Black Bass Size Limit
Pictures of street hawkers with their trade shouts recorded in captions of poetry or prose are known as “Cries.” They first appeared in Paris around 1500. This early creation of an urban iconography included socially marginal people such as vagrants, beggars, prostitutes, and others.
Fifty years later, these images were established as a stylistic category across Europe. Eventually, they would make their way to New York. [Read more…] about Urban Cries: Street Hawkers’ Shouts in New York & London
The Sembrich in Bolton on Lake George has received a donation of paintbrushes and palate knives used by American Painter Johann Berthelsen.
The brushes were originally a gift to the artist from Marcella Sembrich, who originally presented them to Berthelsen at the time that he was working on a series of paintings that she commissioned. [Read more…] about Sembrich Receives Unique Donation from The Berthelsen Conservancy
Preservation Long Island has announced a call for nominations for the 2021 Endangered Historic Places Program (EHPP). Nominations are open to the public and can be submitted digitally through the EHPP 2021 portal on Preservation Long Island’s website. [Read more…] about Long Island Endangered Historic Places Nominations Sought
I can’t seem to pass a hollow tree without stopping to snoop. If there is a cavity within reach, an investigation is in order. Wear and tear around a hole, evidence of food items on the ground, or simply sounds from within tell of the tenants inside. One of my favorite tricks is to power up my camera, flash on, and poke it inside a tree cavity for a quick snap. My most memorable and rewarding discovery came while lying on my stomach at the hollow base of a huge, dead maple. [Read more…] about The Hidden Life in Hollow Trees
If you get bad news about one of your trees, kindly don’t shoot the messenger. Even if – especially if – they vandalize that very tree. It could save your life to heed their warning.
Although it’s captivating to watch a big prehistoric-looking woodpecker chisel away at a rotten snag in the forest, the same performance loses its charm when it jack-hammers a hole in your perfectly sound tree. The thing is, no matter how healthy that tree may appear, it is definitely not sound, and may in fact be quite dangerous. Your “vandal” is alerting you to this fact by installing windows in the tree trunk. [Read more…] about Pileated Woodpeckers: Miscreants or Messengers?