What’s Going on in Your Woods? 24th Annual Northwest PA Forest Landowner Conference
24th Annual Northwest PA Forest Landowner Conference February 29th, 2020 Frank G. Pogue Student Center Edinboro University Registration Deadline: February 21st What’s going on in your woods? During this forest focused event, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute will be hosting a table to provide information about Hemlock Woolly Adelgid, the High Allegheny Hemlock Conservation Partnership and how to get involved in protecting our local forests from this unwanted pest. Landowner Conference Brochure – 2020 For more information about the event please visit...
Read MoreHemlock Woolly Adelgid Survey Tutorial
Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA) is an invasive, aphid-like insect originating from Asia which is devasting native Hemlock trees throughout the Eastern U.S. If left unnoticed, an individual tree will succumb to an infestation within a decade. Early detection of this pest is critical to preventing its spread, and RTPI has been collaborating with several partner organizations and a dedicated volunteer force to survey hemlocks throughout our region. This video – produced by Joe Gustafson Photography – provides technical information on how to survey for hemlock woolly adelgid. The stars and...
Read MoreRTPI’s Conservation Technician Attends Silviculture Workshop
Last week RTPI’s Elyse Henshaw had the opportunity to attend a training session offered by the U.S. Forest Service and Penn State Extension to learn about the ecology and silviculture of the Allegheny Hardwood forests. Within the discipline of forestry, silviculture is a standard management practice in which foresters and other natural resource managers control the establishment, growth, health and composition of a forest in order to meet a variety needs for wildlife, recreation, water quality and timber in a sustainable manner. Silviculture is used throughout New York and Pennsylvania to...
Read MoreWhite-throated Sparrow
I recently caught this White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) in the middle of a meal… …which it seemed to try to hide from me until gulping it down. Their whites and yellows are much bolder right now than those that winter with us as they conclude their spring migration. In some cases you may have White-throated Sparrows year-round with some birds that overwinter at your house and head far north into Canada for the breeding season while other individuals move in to our area from even further south and nest relatively close to us in New York, Pennsylvania, and...
Read MoreBobcat
Here’s a guest post from our friend Tyler Christensen, RTPI Affiliate Sean Graesser’s partner in running the Nicoya Peninsula Avian Research Station (NPARS) in Costa Rica and a fellow researcher. Although they are more abundant in neighboring Pennsylvania and New York, Bobcats (Lynx rufus) are endangered in my home state of New Jersey. Lately I have been putting a lot of effort into trying to photograph bobcats in the northern part of the state. To accomplish this, I converted my DSLR cameras into motion-activated camera traps. For weeks this cat avoided my cameras, but nearby...
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