Current Conservation Projects

Coastal Fisheries and Aquatic Resources

2009-11-30T17:27:42Z

Coastal Fisheries and Aquatic Resources

The tributaries, salt marshes, and coastal ecosystems on and around Long Island are vital to our local well being, identity, and economy. Seatuck (in partnership with the Environmental Defense Fund) plays a leadership role in a number of research and policy initiatives focused on the protection and restoration of these aquatic resources and the fisheries they support.

Scully Wildlife Surveys

2009-09-19T23:47:22Z

Scully Wildlife Surveys
Seatuck staff and volunteers recently conducted the organization's first bird surveys of the Scully Sanctuary. These surveys are part of what will become an on-going, systematic survey of the property's flora and fauna. The quarterly bird surveys will be joined by other comprehensive surveys of the property, including plant, insect, reptile & amphibians, mammals, fungi, and others. The purpose is to assemble a biological inventory of the property so we can track changes from year to year. This data will be useful in determining the impacts of our activities on the site and in making management decisions about the property.

Volunteers are welcome to participate in all wildlife surveys at Scully. Watch the Web site for announcements about upcoming surveys. In addition, many of these projects are conducive to incorporating educational components and can include class or private group participation.

Long Island Colonial Waterbird Survey

2009-09-19T23:45:30Z

Long Island Colonial Waterbird Survey
The Long Island Colonial Waterbird Survey is an annual survey of coastal nesting birds that Seatuck started in the early 1980s in collaboration with the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. Although management of the survey is now handled by DEC, Seatuck still participates in the survey each spring. We survey several properties on the south shore, including Hecksher State Park, Tobay Beach, and Timber Point County Park. Volunteers are always welcome to assist us with this labor-intensive, but enjoyable annual survey.

American Chestnut

2009-09-19T23:43:07Z

American Chestnut
The American chestnut was once a dominant tree in the forests of the Eastern United States; in some woods accounting for one out of every two trees. But an Asian chestnut tree imported into New York in the late 1800s carried a fungus that would change everything. Although the fungus only sickened Asian chestnuts, it was fatal to most of their American cousins. The "Chestnut Blight" as it came to be known, was first noticed in the Bronx Zoo in 1904. Within fifty years, it spread across the American chestnut's entire range, from Georgia to Maine, killing as many as 4 million trees and nearly driving the tree into extinction. But the saga is not over yet. Almost since the blight started, scientists have kept the species on life support, while feverishly working to figure out a way to beat the blight. The effort, lead by the American Chestnut Foundation (ACF), includes work to foster natural resistance, extensive crossbreeding programs, even genetic bioengineering.

Seatuck manages the Long Island region of the New York Chapter of ACF and works to maintain the genetic viability of Long Island's few remaining American chestnuts. We identify and pollinate existing trees, trying to coax out a few viable nuts before the blight catches up to them. The nuts are then planted and young saplings watched until they are mature enough to flower, bear nuts and start the cycle over again. The goal is to keep this "Long Island stock" going until the scientists come up with a solution to the blight.