Hey Bucks and Bows

[LittleM]

You have thanked me for the volunteer work I do with NJ's threatened and endangered species several times over my last few posts.  In reality, the work I do is to try and determine habitat that needs protection and that which needs restoration/modification BUT the stream restoration you do makes the environment better for all species, directly and indirectly.  So the thanks really goes to you.

[Bucksnbows]

We are kindred spirits that care enough to spend time stewarding our natural resources so others can enjoy them like we do one day.  I would love to take a rattlesnake walk with you one of these days.  I was in Norvin Green SF earlier today looking at a heritage brook trout stream restoration project and all I could think about was what great rattlesnake habitat it was.    

 

I feel very blessed to work with talented folks that work for or volunteer for the Division and others like yourself to determine the effectiveness (or lack thereof) of our river channel restoration on a variety of species.  While I tend to approach our project through the lens of the native brook trout, I am finding a direct correlation to so many plant and animal species that benefit from that type of habitat restoration work.  I am more humbled than you would know to have a seat at the table as it were on the Division's Wildlife Action Plan Executive Committee and the NRCS's State Technical Committee where instead of focusing on nearly 400 individual animal species that are of special concern, threatened or endangered, we now look at critical habitat types and focus on those instead.  I think habitat needs are far more critical for a plethora of species over trying to focus on the needs of nearly 400 individual species.  Instead, we should be focusing on things like coldwater habitat, eel grass habitat, vernal pool habitat, early successional forest habitat, etc. and not trying to be everything to every species imperiled by man's intrusions on the natural world.  We can and we will turn the tide on past damage to our natural environment while maintaining our lifestyles and bringing back so many of those species whose numbers have dropped precipitously while we try to figure out our various impacts on habitat.  And I think we're becoming enlightened to past mistakes and learning well those lessons as well as how to minimize our impacts moving forward.  Exciting times we are living in!  One hundred years ago, conservationists were stocking fish and birds because we knew then that we could never reverse our damages to the environment based on human needs to exploit those resources.  We've come a long ways in a relatively short time....       

[LittleM]

The time for finding snakes with any reliability is fast coming to an end, if it hasn't already.  But we can talk in the springtime and make a plan.