Introduction
Indicator species tell something about the quality of habitat. Species may be drawn to an area because of food sources, suitable nesting or denning sites, plant communities or hydrology.Some species found on the Urban Reserve, such as raccoons and gray squirrels, are characteristic of urban ecology in the Northeast. They are generalist species that are accustomed to disturbance regimes caused by human activity. Animals such as the grey fox use the Oak-Locust-Maple Forest on the Urban Reserve as part of a larger habitat while monarchs stop at the milkweed in the open fields before continuing their migratory journey.
Below are the stories of some interesting species on the Urban Reserve followed short descriptions of what these species tells us about the site.
Mink
These mink tracks were observed along the shoreline of the Early Successional Upland Forest on the Urban Reserve. The tracks record the mink's hunting behavior as it scurried along the rocks and dove into rocky hollows looking for small vertebrates. This species is an opportunistic feeder whose oily coat protects it while in the water. | ||
| Mink tracks on the shoreline of the Urban Reserve indicate hunting behavior. Photo credit: Walter Poleman, 2013 |
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| A mink eating trout. Mink are carnivores, eating fish, frogs, rabbits, fowl and other animals. Photo credit: Lorri L Franz/Corbis |
What does the presence of mink tell us about the shoreline?
Because we observed hunting tracks of a mink along the shoreline, small vertebrates, crustaceans, and fish may be nearby. This post-industrial shoreline can play host to an vibrant littoral (shore-side) community of life that involves interplay between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.Red-winged Blackbird
Perched all around the small wetland in the Urban Reserve are charismatic male red-winged blackbirds. In April and May, the male birds perch in tall trees, flash their colors to ward off competing male birds and attract females. |
| This red-winged black bird is vying for territory against other
competitive males. The older, more dominant males have larger red patches on their shoulders. Photo credit: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. |
Females arrive later and select male breeding partners. These birds prefer "fresh and saltwater marshes, along watercourses, and wet roadsides, as well as drier meadows and old fields." The Urban Reserve is a perfect place to find them!
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| This
female red-winged black bird will stay discreet during the breeding
season and will weave elaborate nests for her young. Photo credit: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. |
What do red-winged blackbirds tell us about the wetland?
The behavior of these species also tells us something about the quality of the available habitat. For example, we observed red-winged blackbirds in the wetland, but nests in this area may not be successful because the quality of the habitat provided by the pervasive phragmites is low.Pitch Pine
Before European settlers arrived and began clearing native forests, the sandy shores of lake Champlain were populated with tall, mature pitch pine trees. Today, a group of pitch pine growing on the Urban Reserve is tucked away at the top of a steep sandy slope near the snow dump. Staring up into these unique pine giants, you can travel back in time and imagine what this sandy bluff may have looked like hundreds of years ago.Pitch pines have a maximum life span of 200 years, so these pitch pines are not the same trees that grew on these shores before European settlement. Other pitch pine populations that may have seeded this colony occur at Red Rocks and in Shelburne Bay.
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| Towering pitch
pine on the bluff overlooking the Reserve. Pitch pines have reddish
plated bark and three needles per bundle. Woodpeckers and other cavity
nesting birds can utilize their large trunks. |
What does the presence of pitch pines tell us about the soil?
Pitch pine grows well in infertile, shallow soil of primarily sand and gravel. The sandy bluffs overlooking the reserve likely once hosted a Pine-Oak-Heath Sandplain Forest.Milkweed and Monarch Butterflies
Monarch butterflies use the Urban
Reserve during the spring and summer
where they eat and lay eggs, feed, reproduce, and transform into
butterflies. Milkweed is the only food that
monarch larvae eat, but milkweed is less and less common because of
development, brush hogging, and the use of herbicides.
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This monarch butterfly is perched on a milkweed flower where they lay their eggs.
Photo credit: Monarch Watch.
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Monarchs are a unique butterfly, completing a yearly migration of nearly 2,500 miles
each year and producing four generations each year. During the spring and summer, three generations hatch from cocoons, mature, lay eggs and die in six-week cycles. The fourth generation of butterflies lives up to 8 months and
completes the migratory cycle from the US and Canada to central Mexico
and back.
Milkweed grows in areas of the Urban Reserve where there is plenty of light and recent disturbance, such as under the power lines, along the bike path and in the fields near the deep water port, dog park and along Texaco Beach.
Because these are frequently mowed, other species that might shade-out milkweed are prevented from growing, allowing the milkweed to thrive.
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| Monarch larvae munching on some milkweed, their primary food and habitat. Photo credit: Kim Bellemere, Monarch Watch. |
What does the presence of milkweed tell us about the actively managed areas?
Milkweed grows in areas of the Urban Reserve where there is plenty of light and recent disturbance, such as under the power lines, along the bike path and in the fields near the deep water port, dog park and along Texaco Beach.
Because these are frequently mowed, other species that might shade-out milkweed are prevented from growing, allowing the milkweed to thrive.
