Getting Started with Project Wild America
Although I’ve lived in Jamestown for a number of years, last Tuesday was the first time I’d seen a spiny softshell turtle up close. It was just basking in the sun with a shiny shell and body that sort of resembled a large gray pancake. I was pretty excited to see this goofy-looking turtle in the Chadakoin over by the Gateway Center. Spiny Softshell turtles are just one unique species that lives along the Chadakoin River here in Jamestown, and this species of turtle is one of several species that will be monitored by the Roger Tory Peterson Institute’s Project Wild America program this...
Read MoreReturning to the Chadakoin
Passing through the center of Jamestown, the Chadakoin river has always been the focal point of the city. No matter how much the city continues to change and develop around it, the steady flow of water from Chautauqua Lake has remained constant. To help conserve this valuable natural resource, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute will soon select eight of the brightest high school students in the area to become Project Wild America Youth Ambassadors. Along with their two crew leaders (myself and Heather Zimba) they will spend the summer studying the Chadakoin River Corridor, and encouraging the...
Read MoreProject Wild America Youth Ambassadors 2016
Hi all! It’s been a while since I last wrote…there has been so much going on! First, let me catch you up a bit on what is coming up for this summer. I’m admittedly sharing things a bit out of order, as I have lots to tell you about our how well our hemlock woolly adelgid surveys went, the wrap up of our snowmobile cell phone tour, another recent publication, winter raptor surveys and a great winter season with some fantastic interns. I’ll be writing about all of these things shortly, so please stay tuned! Spring is upon us now, and we are looking ahead and setting goals for our summer...
Read MoreProject Wild America Youth Ambassadors: Chadakoin River
During 2015, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute launched its Project Wild America Youth Ambassadors program employing six high school students and two college aged students. Throughout the course of the summer months, the PWA students worked alongside RTPI conservation staff to evaluate the Chadakoin River Corridor in the City of Jamestown. This urban river was found to be recovering from its long history of factory pollutants, channelization and overuse. It hosts a variety of flora and fauna including some that are quite rare within the state of New York. Species such as the Spiny Softshell...
Read MoreCliff Swallow Nests
These Cliff Swallow nests are empty after a successful summer breeding season. They are often colony nesting birds, and these are actually on the underside of the Washington Street bridge right here in Jamestown, New York. This is a good example of a species that utilizes the urban environment we have created. Peregrine Falcons are another bird that would have been found on open cliffs that now nests on the ledges of our skyscrapers. While they would be hunting pigeons, starlings and sparrows, the Cliff Swallows can be found feeding on insects in the Chadakoin River habitat below the bridge...
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