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Volunteers Care For Reinstein Woods on I Love My Park Day!
More than 90 volunteers helped care for Reinstein Woods on the first Saturday in May as part of I Love My Park Day.
These volunteers:
- planted 50 trees,
- repaired 2 trails,
- collected more than 20 bags of garbage and invasive species,
- removed a “new” patch of invasives we found late last fall,
- disassembled a large survival shelter that was an attractive nuisance,
- protected a few dozen trees from beavers by repairing existing wire enclosures,
- spread woodchips on and improved the nature play area, and cleaned our outdoor turtle enclosure.
Friends of Reinstein Woods provided pizza lunch for all the participants.
We are grateful to groups from Geico, Fiserv, Excelsior Conservation Corps, Depew High School Leo Club, Boy Scout Troop 554, and Cub Scout Packs 451 and 619 who helped alongside individual volunteers. We hope to see everyone again next year!
Friends of Reinstein Woods Seeking Development Manager
Friends of Reinstein Woods is seeking a Development Manager to work closely with staff and volunteers to promote the long-term financial well-being of Friends of Reinstein. This is a flexible part-time position, 30 hours per week. Occasional weekend and evening hours related to special events required. Resumes are due April 6, 2018. For more details and how to apply see the Development Manager Job Description.
Nature Sightings
Signs of spring are present despite the lingering cold temperatures and snow. Red-winged blackbirds and grackles flock to our bird feeders upon their return. The rattle of belted kingfishers is heard around ponds with open water. Crocuses began sprouting in people’s front yards and pussy willows showed their fuzzy buds during the thaw in late February. Wooly bears were even slinking across the trails at Reinstein Woods. I was optimistic that spotted salamanders might have migrated to their breeding pools, however this cold spell has halted that migration. Photographers have seen the red-headed woodpecker excavating holes in front of the education center. Look for soaring turkey vultures on their migration north. Ring-necked ducks, pied billed grebes, hooded mergansers and green-winged teals are common waterfowl that stop off in our ponds during spring migration.
Hawk Creek Presentation at Holiday Party
Members of Friends of Reinstein Woods enjoyed lunch together with a special presentation by Hawk Creek Wildlife Center earlier this month. Guests saw animals such as a striped skunk, porcupine, opossum, red-tailed hawk, screech owl, and turkey vulture during this engaging presentation. The younger ones even got to feed the porcupine carrots on a stick! The afternoon concluded with a visit from Santa. This event is an example of the great member-only programs we offer. See a list of our upcoming Member – Only Programs here.
Photos Courtesy of Henry Ciesla and Mike Adriaansen
Job posting: Summer Camp Director
Friends of Reinstein Woods is hiring a Summer Day Camp Director for 2018. Please see the attached announcement below.
Habitat News: Beech Trees, New Wildflower, and Reeds!
1) Champion Beech
The bad news: this year we have officially declared the Champion Beech Tree dead. The tree, located along Reinstein Woods’ Beech Tree Trail, was the largest forest-grown beech tree in New York State’s Big Tree Registry. It had been in decline from natural causes for several years, and at more than 250 years old, it lived a good lifespan for an American beech tree.
The good news: In September, Boy Scout Oren Forgette of Boy Scout Troop V completed his Eagle Scout project by building a deer exclosure near the champion beech. The exclosure is protecting several young beech and maple trees from being eaten by deer. Some of the young beech trees may be offspring of the Champion beech.
2) New Wildflower Found
In other good news related to deer exclosures, a new wildflower was discovered at Reinstein Woods! Hiding in a deer exclosure in the sanctuary area of the preserve is tall rattlesnake root (Prenanthes altissima), a plant that is native to New York and is also called wild white lettuce. The particular deer exclosure it inhabits was also built several years ago by an Eagle Scout. This plant, photographed this summer while in bloom, becomes the 198th herbaceous plant species identified at Reinstein Woods!
3) Battle Against Invasive Plant Makes Progress
Friends of Reinstein had help this year as it completed its third year of controlling an invasive plant known as common reed, or Phragmites australis, that threatens habitats at Reinstein Woods.
In the spring, a crew from the Excelsior Conservation Corps planted trees and native wildflowers in areas of the sanctuary where common reed has been greatly reduced. During the summer, volunteers with the local Youth Build program and Curbell employees also helped by removing young stalks coming up in sites where the plant used to grow. Native wildflowers, including spotted Joe Pye weed, swamp milkweed, and beggar’s tick are starting to flourish at some of the sites. A donation from employees at Bond, Schoeneck and King helped supply some of the plants.
Next spring Reinstein Woods will be training volunteers to be part of a “Strike Force” that will monitor areas where common reed was removed and try to stop any reinfestation.
There’s an App for That: Fun with Plum!
“Plum’s Creaturizer” lets you design a creature, then sends you on a mission to take a photo of your creature outside. For example, on my latest mission, I was sent to find a place where my creature (a happy animal with a turtle shell, alligator snout and its own lightbulb on its bird-shaped head) could use its lightbulb to help it hunt for food. Pretty challenging! The app is available for iPhone and Android operating systems.
Naturalist Intern Program Turns 10 Years Old!
In Fall 2007, DEC started a Naturalist Intern Program at Reinstein Woods, a paid internship program that provides training and experience to college students or recent graduates interested in environmental education. Since then, 63 people, ranging in age from 20 to 40+, have experienced what it’s like to teach and learn at Reinstein Woods.
Information about applying to the Naturalist Intern Program can be found on DEC’s website.
Where Have Reinstein Woods Naturalist Interns Gone?
Adirondack Mountain Club; AmeriCorps/SCA; Buffalo Museum of Science; Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper; Buffalo Zoo; Earth Spirit Educational Services; Erie County Park Rangers; Five Rivers Environmental Education Center; Friends of Reinstein Woods; General Motors; Girl Scouts; Heritage Education Program; Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (NH); Mendacino Woodlands (CA); The Nature Conservancy (PA); NYS Department of Environmental Conservation; NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (Evangola State Park & Taconic Outdoor Education Center); Parks & People Foundation (MD); Pigeon Key Marine Science Center (FL); Pinellas County Park Rangers (FL); Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PA); Praxair (TX); Rochester Museum & Science Center; Rogers Environmental Education Center; Tetra Tech; Tifft Nature Preserve; Town of Amherst; US Fish & Wildlife Service; Virginia Department of Emergency Management; Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources; Western New York PRISM.
Green Your Office for the Holidays with a Dish Library!
As the holidays approach, here’s a great idea to make your office parties more sustainable: establish a Dish Library! Ask office mates to donate reusable plates, bowls, cups, forks, knives, and spoons that can be stored in a central office location (a file cabinet or kitchenette cupboard works well). The dishes can be borrowed for meetings, birthdays, lunches etc. that otherwise might involve buying disposable products. You can have a formal sign-out system, or opt to let people use them as needed.
It’s a great way to reduce waste and save money! So put that old “I Love My Dog” mug sitting in your cupboard to use, get rid of the giant “I Love Vegas” stein that your buddy gave you after his last trip, and add your grown daughter’s My Little Pony dish set to the library!
Thanks to the DEC Sustainability Committee for this idea. For more ideas to make your holidays sustainable, visit DEC’s Sustainable Holidays webpage.
Winter Message from the President
Dear Friends,
Although winter does not officially arrive until December 21, once November and the holidays fire up we can picture that beautiful white stuff falling so delicately to the ground! Ok, so I haven’t painted one of your favorite pictures, but hey, it’s Buffalo and it snows, so we have to make the most of it.
Just think of Reinstein Wood’s snowy trails as you softly snowshoe or glide along on cross-country skis, watching the snow falling slowly around you! It’s a fact that walking (or x-skiing) outdoors has many benefits for your well being. It is a major stress reliever as well as great exercise, more of which doctors say Americans both young and old sorely need!
Are you thinking: I could never walk in snowshoes, let alone put on a pair of cross-country skis! Trust me, if you can walk, you can definitely snowshoe, and you can join a “Learn to Ski” session (my personal favorite) at Reinstein Woods. So make a commitment to get out on the trails this winter and experience the beauty of snow transforming the landscape. You won’t be disappointed.
Remember, Friends of Reinstein members get one free snowshoe or ski rental, and a discount on additional rentals. If I’m around, I’d be glad to help you get started! Beyond snowshoes and skis, Reinstein Woods offers other seasonal educational programs that can help you get through the winter doldrums. I hope to see all of you at the Friends of Reinstein holiday party on Saturday, December 2. New members are welcome!
Terrence Boyle, President
