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A Day of Appreciation:
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Nearly 40 people attended the dedication ceremony of the Great Swamp where Jim Utter, a representative of the Great Swamp was presented with an Important Bird Areas plaque. (Left to right) Jim Utter, Friends of the Great Swamp and Bedford Audubon, John Askildsen, President Bedford Audubon, Dan Niven, National Audubon Society’s Important Bird Areas Coordinator, and Jillian Butler, Audubon New York Important Bird Areas Coordinator. |
A day full of activities was held in Putnam County on May 11th to celebrate International Migratory Bird Day and the dedication of the extraordinary Great Swamp as an Audubon Important Bird Area.
The day began at 4:30 AM with Barbara Butler and the Waterman Bird Club kicking off their Spring Bird census for Dutchess County by tracking down Whip-poor-wills and Owls. Additional morning bird walks were lead by John Askildsen of the Bedford Audubon Society and Bill Wallace Jr. of the Putnam County Land Trust. Attendants were also fortunate to partake in a bird banding demonstration lead by Dr. James Utter of Purchase College and Friends Of the Great Swamp (FrOGS) and Andrea Townsend of the Institute of Ecosystem Studies.
The Great Swamp was dedicated as an Important Bird Area because it is a high quality wetland that supports large concentrations of migrating birds, including more than 300 shorebirds and 100 wading birds, and because it provides habitat to state-listed breeding species such as the Least Bittern, American Bittern, and Red-shouldered Hawk. During the dedication ceremony, Audubon New York recognized Dr. James Utter for the tremendous effort he has put into protecting the Great Swamp. Beyond sharing this local treasure to numerous visitors by canoe and organizing events such as this one, Dr. Utter has been leading the effort to acquire funds for an approximately $3 million conservation program for the Great Swamp. Partners contributing towards this conservation effort include Bedford Audubon Society, the State of New York, Putnam County, FrOGS, Putnam County Land Trust, The Nature Conservancy, the Open Space Institute, New York City DEP, Purchase College, Oblong Land Conservancy, Trout Unlimited, and the Croton Watershed Clean Water Coalition. It is a partnership lead by a truly dedicated conservationist who is taking the steps necessary to ensure that the values of the Great Swamp are preserved. Thank you Jim.
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