Note: Our Spring “Nature Tech” series for kids was so popular that we’ve decided to occasionally post about a useful nature app for your smartphone or tablet. 

As a public location, trash is something we are very aware of at Reinstein Woods. We are fortunate that despite lots of visitors, our trails remain relatively trash free. However, the same can’t be said of most public roads and especially the ocean.

Now there’s an app that lets citizens help scientists work toward a trash-free future: Litterati.

Available for Apple and Android devices, the app is simple: snap a photo of a piece of litter and tag it with keywords (e.g. #cigarette #Marlboro). The app adds a “geotag” with location information. According to litterati.org, “Geotags provide insight into problem areas, while keywords identify the most commonly found brands and products. This data will be used to work with companies and organizations to find more sustainable solutions.”

Best of all, you don’t have to use your phone’s data – you can wait to upload the photos to Litterati until you are in a place that has Wifi. Ideally, you will pick up the litter and either recycle it or place it in the trash. The app shows your “impact” by tracking how many pieces of litter you collect, and the website even has an interactive map showing where trash has been picked up across the globe.

There’s even a guide for teachers who want to use the app in their curriculum. So before you pick up that abandoned pop can on your next nature hike, snap a photo with the Litterati app. You could be helping to build a trash-free future!

Reinstein Woods is grateful to all the donors and new members who contributed this winter or spring to Friends of Reinstein Woods. You make it possible for students, teachers and adults to Share in Nature’s Harmony!

Donors:

• Cinderella Isle Garden Club
• Employees of Bond, Schoeneck & King’s Buffalo Office
• Vinod and Constance Suchak – Kids in the Woods Camp Sponsorship
• Ed Swiatek – For Beehive and Butterflies
• Amazon Smile Foundation, The Benevity Community Impact Fund, Microsoft Matching Gift Program, Yourcause.com

Earth Day Appeal:

Irene Benbenek, Scott & Meaghan Boice-Green, Terry & Linda Boyle, Jacqueline Brodfuehrer, Michael Campanella, William Cookfair, Jerry & Maureen Cournyea, Ronald Dekanski, Rita Ecker, Jade Feeney, Mike & Carol Gettings, Donald Gordon, David & Jessie Green, Barbara Guancial, Kevin & Lisa Hanna, Lawrence Herrmann, Dennis & Rebecca Kaniecki, David & Carolyn Karb, David Kennedy, Edward Kowalski, Tom & Sue Lawson, Kalista Lehrer, Gary & Maria Michalski, Jeanne Moog, Tom & Andrea Mudd Sr., Jim & Marcia Nixon, Don & Jane Ogilvie, Edward Okon, Patricia Perry, Rita Puccio, Richard & Cheryl Radomski, Brigitte Schick, Leane Schultz, Scot & Karen Smith, Tom Stoll, Diana Strablow, Vinod & Constance Suchak, Katherine Weber, Ellen Welker

Memorial Gifts:

• • Dorothy Fairhead in memory of Elizabeth Cobb
  • Donna & Art Soyk in memory of Tom Quincy Rowan

Spring It On! Donors:

Gasper Aronica, Sue Bancich, Kathleen Boice, Meaghan Boice-Green, Matt Boyle, Terry Boyle, Peter Braun, Cheryl Buechi, Daniel Carlson, Esther Clabeaux, Maureen Cournyea, Stefanie Ecker, Mike & Carol Gettings, Elizabeth Grady, Andrew Jaskowiak, Libby Kershner, Mary Losi, Ann Murphy, Jeremy Oczek, Seeta Persaud, Gerald Phillips, Charles Rauch, Helen Roche, Kristen Rosenburg, Larry Snider, Katherine Spengler, Vinod Suchak, Microsoft Matching Gift Program (K. Spengler)

United Way Donor Choice Program 2016:

Linda Arndt, Franklin Collins, Dr. Richard Hershberger, Amanda Megan, Andrew Moon, Karen Smith, Lori Stilwell, Vinod Suchak, Sandra Sywak, Jill Thurston

Welcome New Members:

• Miriam Abramovich
• Cassie Austin
• Vicki Bauer
• Kellie Breeden
• Debra Easton-Dawson
• Christine Derby-Cuadrado
• Nicole Ehrle
• Jill Emmons
• Audrey Friedrich
• Susan Gonsiorek
• Jessica Harrell
• Robin Hjembo
• Jen Kielbasa
• Elisa Kirby
• Kawthar Kotob-Ibrahim
• Ryan Lohr
• Stephanie Macchiavoli
• Melissa Milch-Klein
• Christen Mueller
• Lana Penfold
• Nancy Richert
• Patrick & Sheelagh Ryan
• Jerome Schley
• Brad Schutt
• Angel Swan
• John Tooley
• Mary Yager
• Kelly Zimmerman

With the recent surge in rainfall, water levels in the ponds are very high. Spring has sprung and many of the trees are leafing out. You may catch a glimpse of trout lily flowering in the older patches of forest. May apples will soon be flowering too. In wetter areas, cuckoo flower is showing its blossoms. The Baltimore orioles have returned, and you can often hear their melodious call in the feeder area. Soon they will be weaving their hanging sack nests. Palm, yellow-rumped, and black-throated green warblers have been spotted filtering through the preserve. They will soon vanish under the cover of larger leaves. Rose-breasted grosbeaks have also been seen at our feeders. Fern fiddle heads are unfurling. Mourning cloak butterflies have left their tree cavity retreats to rest on sunlit leaves. Red admiral butterflies and green darner dragonflies have migrated north to the preserve. American toad trills have already quieted, but listen for spring peepers peeping and the “gunk” of green frogs on your next visit. May the Fourth be with You.

As temperatures warm and days grow longer, Reinstein Woods has begun to pop with color. Red maple flowers polka dot the trails while the long yellow catkins of cottonwoods dance in the breeze. The true stars of the parade into spring are the wildflowers that reveal their beauty for a few short weeks before the greenwash is complete.

Early wildflowers are often referred to as “spring ephemerals” due to their short blooming period. These flowers appear before the emerging forest canopy blocks the majority of the sun from reaching the forest floor. In a few weeks these flowers grow, produce seeds and disappear. Each species has developed a unique set of tools to ensure the survival of their offspring. We’ve highlighted four native wildflowers that you can find on the trail this week.

Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum)

Where to find it: Beech Tree Trail, Lower Pond Trail

Trout lilies are easily identified by two mottled leaves covered in brown splotches with a flower rising out of a single stalk. The flower has six yellow tepals- three petals and three sepals- that curve backward exposing a cluster of stamens. It takes a trout lily up to seven years to develop a flower—if it does at all—and large parts of the forest floor at Reinstein are covered in colonies of immature plants marked by their singular mottled leaf. Underground, the plant spends years adding to a bulb of stored food. If a flower grows, the resulting seeds have a fatty deposit, or elaiosome, that attract ants who disperse the seed throughout the forest. This symbiotic relationship, called myrmecochory, is common among many spring wildflowers.

Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica)

Where to find it: Beech Tree Trail

Hidden among a trout lily patch at Reinstein Woods is the delicate spring beauty flower. This white flower is streaked with brilliant pink and sits among grass-like leaves. These lines guide pollinators to the center of the plant. Spring ephemerals are an important source of food for many pollinating insects who find nectar and pollen scarce in the early spring.

Violets (Viola)

Where to find it: Lily Pond Loop, Beech Tree Trail

Many of our trails are lined with blue and yellow violets, flowers with five delicate petals and heart shaped leaves. Like the trout lily, these plants also attract ants to their seeds with fatty elaiosomes, but ensure a wide range of travel with an exploding seed pod that shoots seeds up to ten feet away.

Two-leaf Toothwort (Cardamine diphylla)

Where to find it: Lower Pond Trail

This member of the mustard family can be identified by its four white petals and two opposite leaves divided into three leaflets.

See if you can spot all four of these wildflowers on your next visit to Reinstein Woods!

What do you do when it approaches 70 degrees Fahrenheit in February? Many people get outside to soak up the sun and warmth. Many animals are doing the same. There are already painted turtles that are basking on pond logs in the preserve. The mild weather and rains have likely awakened spotted salamanders which will soon make their journey to our vernal pools. Most of the year these salamanders are underground. Spring peeper frogs are peeping along the perimeter of ponds and marshes. Red-winged blackbirds, an early migrant, sing in the cattail marshes. Next time you are on a highway, look for turkey vultures soaring on updrafts during on their migration North. Black-capped chickadees have turned to their “fee bee” call. Local sugar maple trees are being tapped early for sap to make maple syrup. Soon, spring ephemeral flowers will be carpeting the forest and frog choruses will echo through the preserve.

More than 50 members of the Friends of Reinstein Woods attended our Holiday Party. Friends enjoyed Soup, Chili, salad, and an assortment of appetizers and desserts. Earth Spirit gave a great presentation focused on live animals. Visitors were able to see a chinchilla, tree frogs, hissing cockroaches, a bearded dragon, and other animals up close during this presentation. There was even a visit from Santa, who posed for pictures holding Earth Spirit’s corn snake!

Bearded Dragon

Tree Frogs

Santa

Santa Visit

Santa and Corn snake

Santa and Corn Snake

Holiday Party

Hissing Cockroaches

Enjoying Food

Visitors holding Corn Snake

Corn Snake

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), in partnership with Friends of Reinstein Woods, invites the public to celebrate “Winter Wonderland in the Woods” on Saturday, February 11 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve.

Visitors can discover a variety of outdoor pursuits during the event. Ice-fishing demonstrations will take place throughout the afternoon and visitors will be able to try snowshoes and cross-county skis in a demonstration area (weather permitting). Snowshoe rentals will also be available for those who wish to explore the trails of the preserve.

Children will be able to try snowshoeing regardless of the weather and enjoy winter challenges including a snowball target toss and Wildlife Spotters Challenge trail. Kids can also express their creative side in the snow art area and make crafts indoors.

The Niagara Frontier Search and Rescue Team will be on hand to talk about winter rescue and will provide a compass navigation course for participants looking to test their navigation skills. The DEC Forest Rangers will demonstrate flat ice rescue techniques and DEC’s Environmental Conservation Officers will exhibit confiscated furs and discuss illegal hunting. Visitors can learn about the late-winter activity of maple sugaring with Earth Spirit Education Services.

After enjoying outdoor activities at the “Winter Wonderland in the Woods,” families can warm up inside the education center with hot drinks and snacks sold by Friends of Reinstein Woods. The SPCA Wildlife Department will present informative talks on wild animal rehabilitation at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. There will be door prizes, costumed characters, exhibits and more.

Visitors can bring used alkaline batteries for recycling by the Coalition for Positively Charged People and Friends of Reinstein Woods. The event happens regardless of snow conditions, and additional activities like the Winter Wildlife Olympics will be added in case of warm weather.

Registration is not required for this event. There is no entry fee, but donations to Friends of Reinstein Woods are always welcome. Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve is located at 93 Honorine Drive, off of Como Park Boulevard in Cheektowaga. For more information, contact Reinstein Woods at 683-5959, or visit the event page.

It’s that time of year when bird feeders become busy with winter flocks. I recently added a bird feeder to my backyard, and it is amazing how fast birds find them. Within two hours, a black-capped chickadee curiously perched on the feeder and flew off with a seed in its beak. Moments later another chickadee joined it. Soon a white – breasted nuthatch was gathering seeds and hiding them in the bark crevices of a cottonwood tree. Later in the morning a pair of downy woodpeckers were pecking at suet and small flock of Dark-eyed juncos were hopping around on the ground searching for seeds. Blue jays also came in to see what all the activity was about, and were probably disappointed they couldn’t feed from the squirrel-proof feeder. Next time you are at Reinstein Woods, check out our bird feeders and enjoy the colorful visitors at our feeders.

If you would like information about attracting birds, please visit birds & blooms or Project Feederwatch.

By Michael Adriaansen

In summer and early fall, members of Girl Scout Troop 30491 added some extra beauty to the library and a nearby trail as part of their Silver Award project. Cadettes Judine Lynch, Kylie Simkins and Elizabeth Rusinski led the project, adding natural decorations to the library and a storage area in the rear of the structure. They also painted designs on benches built as part of the Eagle Scout project, adding a colorful touch to the seating area. 

Meanwhile, Troop members Nicole Reichert, Brooke Seifert and Kayla Cieslikowski worked on improving the Stone Marker Trail, a short trail that leads from the History Trail to a stone believed to have been placed in the woods  more than 100 years ago to mark the property boundary of one of the area’s first settlers. The girls cleared the overgrown trail, lined it with large logs, and added a bridge over a wet area along the trail. They also added a sign and log seating at the entrance to the trail. 

The Cheektowaga Bee wrote a story about the Girl Scout’s efforts. Congratulations to all the scouts involved for their achievements!   

By Jill Zerkowski, Naturalist Intern

On September 29, more than 300 students, teachers and volunteers arrived on the shores of the Buffalo River and its tributaries. Equipped with tools such as nets, tubes, clipboards and data sheets, students from six schools from across western New York were ready to explore the complex relationships that are found in the Buffalo River. The fourth annual Day in the Life of the Buffalo River found students ankle deep in water, giving them a unique hands-on experience.

In addition to the students, teachers and volunteers, several partner organizations were on-site to help with the event. Representatives from the Erie County Park Rangers, Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation’s Great Lakes Program, and US Fish & Wildlife Service’s Lower Great Lakes Fish & Wildlife Conservation Office worked with students at ten different sites to collect data about water quality, biodiversity, create maps, as well as to share the history of the Buffalo River.

All of the data collected by the students will be posted on the web and shared between the participating classes.

Reinstein Woods gave students and educators a day they most likely won’t forget. Learning to do real science, like measuring turbidity (the cloudiness in the water), is one benefit of the program.  “The turbidity tube was awesome! We poured the water in (the tube), and the secchi disk actually disappeared! It was so cool when we let the water out and could see the disk again,” said one student.

Brittany Rowan, Friends of Reinstein Woods environmental educator, said, “This event is a great opportunity for students to investigate this local water resource and take real-world data. It’s exciting for them to become scientists for a day.”

Special thanks to the local offices of Ingram Micro and Northrop Grumman for providing funding to support this STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) program. The Julia B. Reinstein Trust also provides financial support that makes this program possible.