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The Nature Conservancy and Partner Organizations Receive State Funding to Protect Bird Habitat

Groups to evaluate the importance of prescribed fire in maintaining habitat in the Shawangunks and surrounding areas

New Paltz, NY — November 20, 2007 — Two regional conservation organizations, The Nature Conservancy and the Mohonk Preserve, both leading members of the Shawangunk Ridge Biodiversity Partnership (SRBP), have won significant funding from New York State to protect and restore bird habitat.

The organizations have collaborated in the past to develop projects to keep forests healthy ridge-wide. They have received three-year grants under the State Wildlife Grant program, which is administered by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, to ensure the survival of wildlife species threatened by the loss and degradation of natural habitat.

The Conservancy grant of nearly $99,000 will enable SRBP to evaluate the importance of prescribed fire in maintaining forests and grasslands in the Shawangunks and surrounding areas, which are home to rare and threatened birds such as upland sandpipers and Canada warblers. The SRBP prescribed fire program conducts controlled burns in order to help trees and vegetation that rely on fire to reproduce, to promote the recycling of nutrients so that soils remain fertile, and to open up spaces for native trees to grow.

"Prescribed fire is an essential natural force that helps keep many environments healthy," says Gabe Chapin, fire ecologist with The Nature Conservancy. "This grant will enable us to understand how our work supports bird populations and will serve as a statewide model for using fire to manage and protect wildlife habitat."

The Mohonk Preserve received nearly $150,000 to help restore forest vegetation in areas along the Shawangunk Ridge that have been browsed heavily by deer, which has in turn degraded the habitat of ruffed grouse, wood thrush, warblers, and other birds.

The funding will support the testing and implementation of strategies (such as deer fencing) that allow plants to grow, and to develop and provide information on the reasons behind and ecological impacts of expanding deer populations.

"This grant will help us understand and address the effects of deer browsing on forests and the birds that live here," says John Thompson, natural resource specialist with the Mohonk Preserve. "Our project is part of a broad effort to restore the natural balance in the Shawangunks."

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.

The Eastern New York Chapter stretches from the shores of Long Island Sound to the headwaters of the Delaware River up to the Adirondack Blue Line and the shores of Lake Champlain. Across this region, the chapter works with individuals, local communities and public agencies to help save the forests, wetlands, mountains, and rivers that are the threatened homes of endangered plants and animals. Visit us on the Web at nature.org/eastern.

Shawangunk Ridge Biodiversity Partnership and its members together protect over 40,000 acres. Composed of non-profit and public organizations, the Partnership uses science and land management strategies to preserve the sensitive wildlife habitat and other natural resources of the Shawangunks. Informed by field research findings, partners collaboratively manage the larger landscape, provide environmental education, and work with local communities to preserve open space on the slopes of the ridge.

The SRBP consists of the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historical Preservation, The Nature Conservancy, the Mohonk Preserve, the Open Space Institute, New York Natural Heritage Program, New York State Museum, Palisades Interstate Park Commission, Cragsmoor Association, and Friends of the Shawangunks.