Recent News

New England Cottontails in NH Studied With Genetic Monitoring

April 23, 2020 — cfergus

As conservationists create hundreds of acres of young forest each year to provide food and cover for New England cottontails, it’s becoming increasingly clear that humans will need to help these native rabbits find and occupy new areas. One way to do that – and to boost numbers and health of small populations that already exist in the species’ six-state range – is to release captive-bred rabbits into habitat sites.

Burning Wood Can Be a Clean Source of Power

April 03, 2020 — cfergus

New study shows high demand for biomass power could lead to better forest management.

By Jess Shankleman for Bloomberg Green

Burning large amounts of wood from forests can cut greenhouse gas pollution—but only alongside policies that encourage new trees to quickly absorb carbon dioxide.

Ruffed Grouse Decline Linked to Loss of Young Forest

March 17, 2020 — cfergus

By Ad Crable in Bay Journal

(While this report focuses on states in the Chesapeake Bay drainage, it also applies to New England and other parts of the East. The following is a condensation of a longer article.)

The ruffed grouse, a strikingly beautiful bird that symbolizes wildness, is in trouble across its native range, including states in the Chesapeake Bay drainage.

Saving Maine’s Endangered Wildlife a “Complex Dance”

March 16, 2020 — cfergus

By Aislinn Sarnacki, Bangor Daily News

Maine is home to 51 animals that are currently listed as Endangered or Threatened by the state or federal government. On that list, you’ll find the puffin, the New England cottontail rabbit, the spotted turtle and a fish called a swamp darter — just to name a few.

Partners Review Progress in NEC Restoration

February 17, 2020 — cfergus

By Charles Fergus, in WMI’s Outdoor News Bulletin

Scientists, foresters, and communications specialists from Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and Connecticut joined with colleagues from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the Wildlife Management Institute at the annual New England Cottontail Technical Committee meeting.

A Clear-Cut Discovery in MA – Uncommon Cottontails!

February 04, 2020 — cfergus
This article is reprinted with the permission of MassWildlife magazine. At the bottom of this webpage, readers can download a PDF of the article as it appeared in the magazine.

Faces of Conservation

Jim Kelly actively manages his family’s forests and fields in Sheffield, in western Massachusette. His goal has been to improve forest habitat while providing for forest products, reducing dependence on fossil fuels, and enhancing habitat for wildlife.

How Thoughtful Forestry Can Help Birds

December 17, 2019 — cfergus

By Michael Mauri in the Greenfield Recorder

A recent study in the journal Science documented a huge decline in birds across the U.S. and Canada (the study and related materials are at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website).

According to the comprehensive study, our overall bird population has declined by nearly a third since 1970 — an estimated loss of three billion birds!

New York Birds At Risk From Climate Change

October 23, 2019 — cfergus

By Rick Karlin, Albany Times Union

Having good habitat in correct places may help wildlife resist some negative impacts of climate change

ALBANY – Hundreds of bird species face long-term extinction if their habitats continue to grow warmer, according to the National Audubon Society, which recently released a report outlining projections of global warming in future decades if no action is taken to contain it.

Young Forest on Private Lands Helps Bring Back Kirtland’s Warbler

October 23, 2019 — cfergus

From the Iosco County News-Herald

Habitat created by private landowners is key to bringing back beleaguered species such as Kirtland's warbler and New England cottontail

LANSING – Bird enthusiasts from around the world travel to northern Michigan in hopes of catching sight of a Kirtland’s warbler, a small songbird once poised on the brink of extinction.

Online Tool May Help Wildlife Population Recovery Efforts

October 08, 2019 — cfergus

By Lauren Cahoon Roberts, Cornell Chronicle

It’s a common sight in the Northeast: Flocks of wild turkeys strutting across the road, frustrating commuters. But this wasn’t always the case.

Less than a century ago, eastern wild turkeys had been nearly eliminated from the Northeast, requiring careful planning by wildlife ecologists to reestablish them in their natural habitat. The effort took decades.

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