On a recent hike up Eagle Mountain in Milton, Vermont, we climbed to a ledge overlooking Lake Champlain. Turkey vultures soared overhead, tilting back and forth on the breeze. A sheer cliff dropped to the forest below us, a lush variety of plants clinging to its face. Cliffs are defined as areas of exposed bedrock with a slope greater than 60 degrees. We tend to think of cliffs as solely geological features. But they also host distinct natural communities of plants and animals. [Read more…] about Cliffs Host Varied Flora and Fauna
raptors
Recent Wildlife Rescues & Encounters: Rattler, Owl, Eagle, Turtle & Rabid Fox
In 1880, the first eight Game Protectors began serving to protect the natural resources of New York State. In 2022, Environmental Conservation Police Officers (ECOs) and Investigators across the state responded to more than 25,600 calls. What follows are recently reported incidents involving wildlife rescues: [Read more…] about Recent Wildlife Rescues & Encounters: Rattler, Owl, Eagle, Turtle & Rabid Fox
Injured Bald Eagles Found in Upstate New York
New York State Environmental Conservation Officers (ECOs) responded to two cases involving injured bald eagles in early July. On July 5, ECO Scalisi responded to the town of Newfield in Tompkins County to assist New York State Police Trooper Hugg with an injured eagle that was unable to fly. [Read more…] about Injured Bald Eagles Found in Upstate New York
Lead Research Hopes to Improve Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle Conservation Efforts
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is seeking hunters to participate in a multi-year study of non-lead ammunition impacts on the State’s eagle conservation efforts. DEC is partnering with the New York Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at Cornell University, U.S. Geological Survey, and Conservation Science Global on the study to determine the reduction in bald eagle and golden eagle deaths that can be achieved from increased use of non-lead ammunition for deer hunting. [Read more…] about Lead Research Hopes to Improve Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle Conservation Efforts
Sharing Cliffs with Peregrine Falcons
The stunning cliffs of the Adirondacks are home to billion-year-old rocks, a wide variety of outdoor enthusiasts, and a fragile but growing population of the endangered peregrine falcon. For Adirondack rock climbers, this means sharing cliffs with the birds that build their nests high on a wall. [Read more…] about Sharing Cliffs with Peregrine Falcons
Young Eagle in Distress Rescued From Chenango River White Pine
On June 22, NYS Environmental Conservation Officer Wing responded to a report of an eaglet stuck in a tree just below its nest in the town of Fenton, Broome County. [Read more…] about Young Eagle in Distress Rescued From Chenango River White Pine
Watchable Wildlife: Braddock Bay (Monroe County)
Braddock Bay Wildlife Management Area is an expanse of grasslands, marshes, and open water, just west of Rochester on the south shore of Lake Ontario. [Read more…] about Watchable Wildlife: Braddock Bay (Monroe County)
Owls Are On Their Nests
Among the very earliest signs of spring are the strange caterwauls of the barred owls that haunt our woods: “Who cooks for you? who cooks for you all?”
Their hooted conversations, thrown back and forth through forests all over the Northeast, signal the territory disputes, nest-site advertisement, and pair bonding that begin the breeding season. That these predators of the nighttime are especially vocal now, with snow still covering the ground, seems odd. But owls do everything on their own timeline. [Read more…] about Owls Are On Their Nests
Study: Climate Change Has Altered Human-Raptor Relationships
Bald Eagles and dairy farmers exist in a mutually beneficial relationship in parts of northwestern Washington State. According to a new study, this “win-win” relationship has been a more recent development, driven by the impact of climate change on eagles’ traditional winter diet of salmon carcasses, as well as by increased eagle abundance following decades of conservation efforts. The research is published in the journal Ecosphere. [Read more…] about Study: Climate Change Has Altered Human-Raptor Relationships
The Return of the Ospreys
On my commute to the Northern Woodlands offices in Lyme, New Hampshire, I pass a long-established osprey nest, perched atop a very tall electric tower next to Route 302. This location offers the ospreys a view of their surroundings – and provides me with a view of the ospreys from the road.
My early morning drive is brighter now, on the season’s edge, than it was in the heart of winter, and I have been craning my neck lately to get a look at the nest – and hoping to see a raptor or two perched on its edge or soaring nearby. [Read more…] about The Return of the Ospreys