Audubon Community Nature Center plant exchange and sale

The Audubon Community Nature Center will hold its annual Plant Exchange and Sale this Saturday.

The event will take place from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

People are invited to trade their own potted plants in exchange for new ones or purchase plants outright. There will be a large number of native plants, as well as annuals, perennials, trees, and shrubs.

Local nurseries will be on hand selling plants, including natives, as well as a sale of gently used garden equipment and décor, tools, pots, and more.

Plants will be accepted for exchange until noon.

Audubon reserves the right to reject invasive species, unpotted plants, those in poor condition, plants in multi-species pots or ones that seem to be infested with weeds or jumping worms.

This event is outdoors and takes place rain or shine

Audubon Volunteers

Volunteers are invited to celebrate Earth Day by helping with maintenance tasks at the Audubon Community Nature Center.

Registration for the Earth Day Clean up day on Saturday, April 22 starts at 9:00 a.m., work projects start at 9:30 a.m., and lunch will be provided at noon.

Volunteers will have their choice of tasks at this family-friendly event that has opportunities for all ages and abilities.

This year’s projects include sprucing up the gardens, working on the outdoor turtle habitats, play area improvements, pulling non-native plants, and more.

Participants are encouraged to wear clothes that can get dirty, dress for the weather — the event happens rain or shine — and bring work gloves if you have them.

Walk-ins are welcome, but registration ahead of time is appreciated: Call (716) 569-2345 during business hours or visit AudubonCNC.org

Audubon Lights Hula-Hoop and LED Dancing by Bex

The Audubon Community Nature Center is adding an Audubon Lights Pop-up event tonight.

Audubon Lights features a luminary-lit path through a trail of lasers, spotlights, rain lights, and more through the woods and around the ponds. The walk ends in the backyard of the Nature Center, where refreshments will be available. Hula hooping and LED Dancing by Bex also will be provided as entertainment.

The event tonight takes place from 8:30 to 10:00 p.m.

Audubon Lights will conclude, as scheduled, on Friday, April 7 and Saturday, April 8.

The Nature Center building is open during the event so visitors can play in the indoor nature play area, visit the live animals, or shop in the Blue Heron Gift Shop. Visitors who buy a Nature Center membership at Audubon Lights receive four free items from the outdoor glow store.

Admission is $12 for adults, $9 for Nature Center members and children ages 3 to 15; and free for ages 2 and under.

The Audubon Community Nature Center will hold a guided winter hike from 10:30 a.m. until noon on Saturday, December 31.

The hike will give people an opportunity to learn how creatures adapt to the changing weather while reflecting on the past year, preparing for the future, and getting a jump start on new year’s resolutions.
The hike will conclude with hot chocolate inside the nature center. While donations are welcomed, the walk is free of charge. Participation is limited to 15.

To reserve a spot, call the Nature Center at (716) 569-2345 or go to AudubonCNC.org and click through “Programs and Events.”

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and the Department of Environmental Conservation will hold First Day Hikes at state parks, historic sites, wildlife areas, trails, and public lands across the Empire State on Sunday, January 1, 2023.

The walks and hikes are family-friendly, and typically range from one to five miles depending on the location and conditions.

The link for the list of New York State First Day Hikes, location details, format, pre-registration requirements and additional information can be found at https://parks.ny.gov/events/first-day-hikes.aspx

List of First Day Hikes near Chautauqua County:
Allegany State Park – Quaker Area, Salamanca; 716.354.9101 x.232
Boutwell Hill State Forest, Charlotte; 716.363.2052
Clear Lake Wildlife Management Area, North Collins; 718.851.7019
Evangola State Park, Irving; 716.549.1050
Zoar Valley Multiple Use Area, Collins; 440.983.0023

CWC Director of Conservation Twan Leenders is pictured in a kayak in Ashville Bay during the first pilot removal effort of starry stonewort on September 30.

Local Lake and Watershed organizations have teamed up against the invasive species, starry stonewart, in Chautauqua Lake.

Starry stonewort can easily be mistaken for an aquatic plant at first glance. It first made its way to North America in 1974 via the St. Lawrence River. Since then it has spread to lakes across the Northeast.

The algae is identified by its thin grass-like branches, which grow in whorls around a central stem. Starry stonewort can appear green or brown in color, may be crunchy to the touch, and can be mistaken for native lookalikes like muskgrass. It can form dense stands in late-summer and early-fall, and can be difficult to detect before this growing season.

If left unaddressed, this invasive has the potential to spread to new areas of the lake, impede recreation, crowd out native plants and animals, and negatively impact game fish species.

Representatives from the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy, the Chautauqua Lake Association, the Alliance, Chautauqua County Soil and Water Conservation District, the Chautauqua-Conewango Consortium, and Audubon joined volunteers last month to try to remove starry stonewart from Ashville Bay.

The group performed manual removal with a variety of tools including rakes, screens, and baskets. After around four hours of work, the manual removal team had gathered approximately 12 large bags of starry stonewort, or approximately 750 pounds of material to be disposed.

Following the pilot removal, stakeholders are continuing to assess their findings, consult with outside experts, and collaborate to determine the best path forward to manage starry stonewort in the lake.

For more information, contact Twan Leenders at Twan@chautauquawatershed.org.

Liberty, the Audubon Community Nature Center’s Bald Eagle

Liberty, Audubon’s non-releasable Bald Eagle, has died.

The Audubon Community Nature Center announced the sad news Tuesday afternoon.

Executive Director Leigh Rovegno said Liberty’s health had been waning recently and took a turn for the worse in the past few days. Prior to a veterinary appointment, she was discovered early on the morning of October 25 by her longtime primary caretaker Thom Armella.

Liberty came to the Audubon Center from Washington State, where a local woman found her with an injured wing. The Bald Eagle spent a year in rehabilitation at the Sarvey Wildlife Care Center, but they determined that the damage to her wing would forever compromise her flight ability and deemed her to be non-releasable. She was transported to Jamestown in 2002.

Rovegno said in a statement, “Liberty’s presence touched thousands of children, families, and adults over her two decades at the Nature Center. She brought a sense of wonder and awe to all those who came to admire her. She will be dearly missed by all.”

Rovegno added that donations in memory of Liberty can be made at AudubonCNC.org/donate.

Volunteers helping with roadside clean-up

The Audubon Community Nature Center is holding its annual Autumn Roadside Clean-up on Saturday.

The event takes place from 8:30 a.m. until noon.

Volunteers will collect trash along Route 62 and, if time permits, along Route 60.

Children and youth ages 12 to 18 are welcome and must be accompanied by an adult.

Volunteers are asked to make reservations by calling (716) 569-2345 during business hours or registering online at AudubonCNC.org. Walk-ins are welcome.

Butterflies and Brews takes place tonight from 6:00 to 800 p.m. and allows participants to learn about the life cycle and migration of the Monarch Butterfly while enjoying some food and beer.

Festivities then continue Saturday with the Monarch Butterfly Festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Participants can walk in a room filled with live butterflies, tour the Audubon’s butterfly garden, attend mini-educational programs on butterflies, and much more. The day concludes at 4 p.m. with all of the butterflies being released.

Admission for Butterflies and Brews is $35 at the door. Admission for the Monarch Butterfly Festival is $8 for adults, $6 for Nature Center members and children ages 3 to 15, and free for children ages 2 and under.

For more information, call (716) 569-2345.

Three signs relate to ACNC’s deer exclosures – areas fenced to keep deer out – and show how much impact deer browse has on the the forests. Another sign is about the ponds and the impact/threat that Water Chestnut, an aquatic invasive species, has had on ACNC’s property, and one is about the Hemlock Forest that was partially treated with a preventative spray to protect it from the invasive insect Hemlock Wooly Adelgid.

Additional signs were purchased and installed around the new wildlife habitat to introduce visitors to Audubon’s newest animal ambassador, an American Kestrel now on display named Cricket.

In 2020, Cummins funded Spatterdock Bridge repairs and an Adirondack shelter on the yellow trail. Their funding in 2021 provided materials for the new wildlife habitat structure.

Audubon has six miles of trails. The four marked and named ones range in length from Overlook’s .6 mile to Big Pond’s two miles. Spatterdock and Backwoods Trails are each about one mile.

Visit AudubonCNC.org for more information.

Liberty, the Bald Eagle, at Audubon Community Nature Center

The Audubon Community Nature Center will celebrate of 20 years of Liberty, the non-releasable Bald Eagle that makes the Audubon her home, this Saturday.

Activities at the nature center will take place from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Children can help build an eagle-sized nest, try out life-sized eagle wings, or sit on eagle eggs as they learn about Bald Eagles.

Spotting scopes and binoculars will be available for participants to use while looking out for the wild Bald Eagles that hunt on Big Pond.

Liberty was Audubon’s first Animal Ambassador. Nature Center officials say she has inspired many who visit ACNC to learn more about eagles and their incredible recovery after being listed as an endangered species in 1978 as part of the Endangered Species Act.

Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation Center will be on hand to talk about the current threats that eagles face.

The fee for Saturday’s event is $8 for adults, $6 for Nature Center members and children ages 3 to 15, and free for 2 and under. No reservations are necessary. Parking is free.