Fall Colors
Over the past couple of days the trees have been changing quickly from their bright greens to golden yellows, oranges and brilliant reds. Could this weekend be the peak for fall foliage in Western New York? With cool temperatures and lots of sunshine predicted, it looks like it will be a beautiful weekend for leaf peeping! Elyse Henshaw Conservation Technician
Read MoreLyme Disease
I have Lyme disease. Thankfully most people have now heard of Lyme disease, but for those who have not, Lyme borreliosis is an infectious disease caused by bacteria of the Borrelia type and transmitted to humans (or pets!) by a black-legged/deer tick bite and subsequent feeding by the parasite. It typically takes 24 or maybe 36-48 hours of feeding for the disease to be transmitted if the tick is a carrier, though this is not a guarantee either direction. Lyme disease can cause flu-like symptoms nearly immediately, and if untreated they can be followed by severe headaches, joint and muscle...
Read MoreDeer Tick
Whether it is a warm and sunny day or a cool, cloudy one you can now expect to find some ticks outdoors, especially in edge habitats. The photo shows a tick I recently pulled off of my dog on an inch ruler. In western New York this is rarely a problem, and only a handful of sites have any ticks to be found. However, in places like Connecticut the population is robust, booming, and filled with diseases. Any time that you or your dog goes outdoors this spring, and throughout the year really, you should be mindful of ticks. The best way to protect yourself is to stay covered, change your...
Read MoreHelp Museums
Are you a local friend in Chautauqua County or Western New York who wants to support the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History and similar museums? Please consider emailing our New York State Senator Cathy Young and New York State Assemblyman Andy Goodell asking for their support on the Museum Education Act. Why? Currently, New York museums are the only chartered entities that receive no direct funding from the Education Department that charters them. This bill would help museums continue and expand their curriculum-based educational programming and also help school districts and...
Read MoreThe Migratory Connection
Join us at RTPI on Thursday, June 11 at 7:00PM for a free public event – The Migratory Connection: RTPI’s Tropical Conservation and Education Programs by RTPI President Twan Leenders. Find out where your favorite warblers and hummingbirds hang out when they are not in your backyard and be amazed by the other tropical birds they share their wintering grounds with. Meet some of the rarest frogs on our planet and see what RTPI is doing to help save them from extinction. Explore the exotic wildlife that calls the jungles of Costa Rica and Panama home – and see how some of it visits us on a...
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