Nature Notes: House-hunting Ospreys by Rob Bierregaard The decade of the 1980s was a buyers’ market for househunting Ospreys. Two decades before, our widespread application of DDT on coastal marshes caused Osprey population numbers to plummet. New England Ospreys were decimated (literally) to about 10% of their pre-DDT levels because breeding Ospreys couldn’t raise
The term ‘predator’ may bring to mind images of a muscled mountain lion ready to pounce in an isolated gully or a muddied crocodile lying in wait at a quiet Saharan watering hole. Fishers Island hosts its own murderer’s row of predators, no less fascinating though decidedly less threatening (to humans, at least), and they each have a vital role in keeping the island’s ecosystem healthy, diverse and robust.
The Coalition’s focus this spring and summer will be on reaching out to the island community and off-island stakeholder groups for feedback on proposed seagrass management areas.
The Land Trust has acquired two significant parcels of undeveloped land, partnered with the New York Natural Heritage Program to prepare a “wall-to-wall ecological community map” of our sanctuary areas, worked with the conservation class at the Fishers Island School on vairous projects as well as continued ongoing projects to restore wetland plants and maintain our nature trails.
Perhaps this year more than ever, I feel as if I’m coming out of hibernation after a long winter’s nap. Spring and optimism are in the air and I am looking forward to another summer on Fishers Island.
ISLAND HISTORY Fishers Island in the Revolutionary War by Pierce Rafferty “Genl. Howe Evacuating Boston,” engraving by J. Godfrey, circa 1861. Museum Collection. The first rumblings of the American Revolution reached our shores in late May 1773, some six months before the Boston Tea Party. According to an account published in a
NATURE NOTES “Sleuthing for Rare Plants on Fishers Island, Suffolk County, N.Y.” Edwin H. Horning outside the second Museum building. Photograph by Ethan Kibbe, circa 1997. Mr. Horning (1919-2008) was the curator of the HLFM from 1970 until 2002. by the late Edwin H. Horning, former curator, Henry L. Ferguson Museum Originally
Island Archaeology New booklet examines life for the Native Americans on Fishers Island before John Winthrop, Jr., arrived… Native Americans on Fishers Island is a booklet that explores how archaeological discoveries on Fishers Island illuminate the lives of the people who lived here hundreds and even thousands of years ago. The document is a
Nature Notes Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) by Terry McNamara Muskrat swimming. Photo by Justine Kibbe. The muskrat may be the most common semi-aquatic mammal on Fishers Island, yet it is rarely observed. The first reaction you may have when encountering a muskrat is to identify it as a large rat. A well-fed mature
Fishers Island Seagrass Management Coalition Update Spring 2020 Connor Jones, FISM Coordinator, in the HLFM Sanctuary, April 2020. The Fishers Island Seagrass Management (FISM) Coalition is getting ready to go into its fourth summer of activities. Even during these challenging times, we are still committed to the efforts required to protect our
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F.I. Sketchbook 2005
