DNA

Bobolink: The Grassland Bird in a Reverse Tuxedo

May 22, 2026 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

If you live near a large meadow, hayfield, or grassland, you may have recently noticed some bubbly robotic noises emanating from those areas. It might sound like an overexcited android, but the real source is a medium-sized songbird, the bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus).

One of the few avian grassland specialists in the Northeast, bobolinks have recently returned from their wintering grounds in southern South America and are now fully engaged in breeding activity. [Read more…] about Bobolink: The Grassland Bird in a Reverse Tuxedo

State Museum Confirms Wild Gray Wolf in New York

December 9, 2025 by Editorial Staff 2 Comments

Scientists from the New York State Museum, in collaboration with researchers from Princeton University and the Northeast Ecological Recovery Society, have confirmed the first documented case of a wild gray wolf south of the St. Lawrence River in decades.

The confirmation is based on analysis of a canid shot by a hunter outside Cooperstown in Cherry Valley, Otsego County in December 2021. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced its confirmation the animal was a wolf in 2022. [Read more…] about State Museum Confirms Wild Gray Wolf in New York

Bill Would Provide Better Protection to Wolves in New York

May 20, 2025 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

Wolves, a species protected under both state and federal law, once roamed widely throughout New York but were driven to extinction in the early 1900s due to deliberate extermination. As apex predators, wolves play a critical ecological role in maintaining balanced and healthy ecosystems. Given adequate protections, they are capable of traveling hundreds of miles to reclaim their historic range. [Read more…] about Bill Would Provide Better Protection to Wolves in New York

Long Island’s Eugenics Record Office

January 22, 2025 by Chris Kretz 1 Comment

The science of genetics took a wrong turn in the early 20th century and it ran through Cold Spring Harbor, Long Island. Here overlooking a former whaling port, Charles Benedict Davenport, PhD, created the Eugenics Record Office and served as director of the Carnegie Institution’s Station for Experimental Evolution.

From these posts he promoted and pushed the Eugenics Movement in the US, in Nazi Germany, and throughout the world. [Read more…] about Long Island’s Eugenics Record Office

New Bill Introduced to Protect Wolves in New York

April 6, 2024 by Editorial Staff 2 Comments

If passed, new legislation (S.7927A/A.08295A), sponsored by Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Assembly Member Robert Carroll, would direct the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to collect data about canids which have specified characteristics (coyotes and wolves for example) and are killed by hunters and trappers in New York. [Read more…] about New Bill Introduced to Protect Wolves in New York

DNA for Native American Genealogy

December 19, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

While it’s very common for white Americans to claim Native American ancestry, it’s estimated that only about 10 million people do, about 3% of the United States population.

DNA for Native American Genealogy (Genealogical Publishing Company, 2021) by Roberta Estes is believed to be the first book to offer detailed information and advice specifically aimed at family historians interested in fleshing out their Native American family tree through DNA testing. [Read more…] about DNA for Native American Genealogy

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