Barn Island Wildlife Management Area Expanded

Additional acres provide opportunities for recreation, climate change adaptation

MIDDLETOWN, CONNECTICUT — February 20, 2009 — Working in partnership with The Nature Conservancy, the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) expanded the Barn Island Wildlife Management Area to more than 1,060 contiguous acres of coastal forest, tidal marsh, and grassland habitats.

To accomplish this, DEP purchased from The Nature Conservancy a 48-acre property abutting the Wildlife Management Area’s (WMA) current boundary. The Conservancy had acquired the land in 2008 from the Crowley family, who generously agreed to a charitable bargain sale in order to prevent future development.

“Barn Island is one of the most ecologically significant coastal areas in Connecticut,” said conservation program director Adam Whelchel, who spoke at an event celebrating the expansion. “Not only does this acquisition offer people more opportunities for recreation, it permanently protects key habitat for dozens of bird and wildlife species.”

The largest coastal wildlife management area in the state, Barn Island supports a wide variety of waterfowl and other birds and wildlife, and is an important academic research site. The island has been home to more than 30 research projects over the past 60 years. It is also an inaugural Long Island Sound Stewardship site. LISS is a federally funded program providing incentives for landowners to preserve environmental quality and improve public access within the Sound.

The new acreage includes the last remaining unprotected saltmarsh within Barn Island’s tidal wetland complex. Often called “nature’s levees,” healthy and functioning salt marshes and their sediments provide a a natural buffer to storm damage and floods, and deliver nutrients to native vegetation, fish and wildlife. By expanding the WMA, partners are creating a refuge site where marshes can migrate in response to climate change.

“As sea levels rise, the Barn Island marsh system may be displaced,” continued Whelchel. “Expanding the Wildlife Management Area to include areas further inland gives this important habitat an opportunity to adapt to the impacts of climate change.”

For more on The Nature Conservancy’s work in Connecticut, visit www.nature.org/connecticut.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Conservancy and its more than 1 million members have protected nearly 120 million acres worldwide. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.