From decoutdoordiscovery at lists.dec.state.ny.us Wed Nov 5 15:37:36 2008 From: decoutdoordiscovery at lists.dec.state.ny.us (decoutdoordiscovery at lists.dec.state.ny.us) Date: Wed, 5 Nov 2008 15:37:36 -0500 Subject: [Decoutdoordiscovery] November 5 Outdoor Discovery Message-ID: <4911BDC0.D567.00BD.0@gw.dec.state.ny.us> DEC Outdoor Discovery November 5, 2008 White-Tailed Deer Family Fun Upcoming DEC Events Hudson Valley - Stony Kill Farm Environmental Education Center Capital Region - Five Rivers Environmental Education Center and Albany Pine Bush Preserve Discovery Center Central New York - Rogers Environmental Education Center Western New York - Reinstein Woods Environmental Education Center Subscribe to Outdoor Discovery or change your subscription options (http://lists.dec.state.ny.us/mailman/listinfo/decoutdoordiscovery) White-Tailed Deer Despite its shy, elusive nature, the white-tailed deer is a common sight throughout much of New York State. Large animals, adult white-tails measure about 3 ? feet tall at the shoulder and average about 150 pounds, but some can weigh up to 300 pounds. They tend to be most active in the early morning and evening. White-tails are able to run 40 miles per hour, jump nine foot fences and swim 13 miles per hour. Male white-tails, called bucks, grow and shed their antlers each year. Antler size generally increases with age, although genetics, food quality and health play important roles. A buck with a number of points or tines on its antlers is generally healthy and lives in a good habitat. The female deer is called a doe and gives birth to one or two fawns in the spring. Adult white-tails are usually reddish-brown in color during the summer and grayish-brown in winter. They prefer open agricultural areas and dense brushy habitat, eating a wide variety of vegetation including grasses, trees, shrubs and crops. Deer seem to have the ability to choose the more nutritious food source available. They eat more in autumn to build up their fat reserves for winter. White-tails have four-part stomachs which allow them to eat large amounts of food at one time, and then move to a safe place to rest. During severe winters, deer will only move far enough to locate food and shelter. Hunting is among the most popular forms of wildlife recreation in New York State. Nearly 700,000 New Yorkers and over 50,000 nonresidents hunt in the Empire State. New York offers many exciting opportunities to hunt a large variety of wildlife, including big game like white-tailed deer and bear, small game, game birds and furbearers. In New York State, 14- and 15-year-olds can now hunt deer and bear with a firearm through DEC's Junior Hunter Mentoring Program. Send us an e-mail and tell us what you think about Outdoor Discovery. Let your friends know about Outdoor Discovery - forward this e-mail! Back to top Family Fun Making a Lasting Impression When you are hiking through the woods this autumn, plan to bring back some evidence of the animals that call the area home. Cut a 2" x 8" strip out of a cardboard milk carton and form it into a circle, using a paperclip to secure the ends together. Pack the cardboard, some water, a plastic container and some plaster of paris in a backpack and head outside. Look for a clear animal track in the soil or mud. Make sure that the track is both deep and clear so that you get a good impression. Place the cardboard circle around the track and gently push it into the soil. If the area is dry, carefully moisten it without destroying the track. Pour the water into the plastic container and add the plaster of paris according to the instructions on the package. Stir with a stick until it is smooth and able to pour easily (but not too runny). Pour the plaster into the mold and let it set for several hours or more. Pick up the mold and remove the cast. You can leave your impression white or paint it another color. Make sure to mark the bottom with the type of animal the track came from and where you found it. Animal Detectives Just because you don't see animals in your neighborhood doesn't mean that they aren't there. Become an animal detective and look for the clues that animals leave behind. Take a hike in the woods (kids should be with an adult) and see how many different animal signs you can identify: Deer: Deer tracks are heart-shaped. The pointed end of the track points to where the deer was going. Deer trails are narrow paths which usually connect to where a deer eats and sleeps. Deer beds are flattened areas in meadows or woodland clearings. Another common spot is under an apple tree. You can find buck rubs on areas of a tree about one-to-two feet off the ground where a buck has rubbed the bark off with its antlers. Raccoons: Look for overturned garbage and paw prints that look like tiny human hands to determine if a raccoon has been stealing a meal. (And then raccoon-proof your garbage can with a strong bungee cord stretched over the top and attached to the handles on each side.) Skunk: While your nose will be able to tell if a skunk is nearby, so can your yard. Skunks dig holes in the lawn with their sharp claws in search of grubs and insects. Squirrels: A pile of pine cones that have been stripped clean is a sure sign that a squirrel has been dining in your yard. Squirrels, mice and chipmunks love to hide in log piles. Check out Conservationist for Kids (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/40248.html) for more information and activities! Back to top Upcoming DEC Events Hudson Valley Stony Kill Farm Environmental Education Center (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1833.html) Go Nuts! Saturday, November 8 at 2:00 PM Get acquainted with our native nut-bearing trees ? oaks and hickories, beech, and walnut. Learn how to identify them and how these hardwoods are used by people and by wildlife. Come Celebrate "New York Recycles Day" Saturday, November 15 at 2:00 PM What does and doesn't go into your blue bin recycling container? What should you do with those old cell phones and other used electronic equipment? Join Terry Laibach, DEC Regional Recycling Coordinator, to unravel the mysteries of recycling and composting. Come view different composting techniques and get your recycling and composting questions answered. More events at Stony Kill (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/2001.html#november) Capital Region Five Rivers Environmental Education Center (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1835.html) Nuts About Wildlife Saturday, November 8 at 2:00 PM Nut trees are important food sources both for wildlife and people. Since most nut trees are wind-pollinated, the "mast" crop can vary widely from year to year. Join us on this outdoor foray to monitor the mast crop and investigate the many creatures who are nuts about nuts. More events at Five Rivers (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1980.html#November) Albany Pine Bush Preserve Discovery Center (http://albanypinebush.intelliclients.com/discovery_center/directions_hours_admission.htm) An Ice Age in the Hudson Valley Thursday, November 6 from 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM Robert Titus, professor of geology at Hartwick College, will offer a slide show on the Ice Age of our region, especially the Albany Pine Bush and Albany area. Please call 518-456-0655 to register. Cost: $2.00/person, $5.00/family, children under 5 free. Oh Deer, Autumn's Here! Sunday, November 16 from 10:30 AM to Noon Would you like to learn more about the white-tail deer in the Pine Bush? We will start inside with a short program about deer anatomy and behavior and head outside for a one-mile hike looking for signs of deer in their habitat. Please call 518-456-0655 to register. Cost: $2.00/person, $5.00/family, children under 5 free. Central New York Rogers Environmental Education Center (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1831.html) Trail Trekking Saturday, November 8 at 11:00 AM Time to hit the trail! We will be searching for animal signs and keeping a careful eye out for other interesting sightings along the way. Gourd Art Creations (Ages 7 and up) Saturday, November 15 at 10:00 AM Local gourd cultivator and artist, Jane Hough, will relate her techniques for making bird feeders and bird houses out of gourds. Gourds and supplies will be provided. Please call to register: 607-674-4017. Cost: $8 for each gourd used. More events at Rogers (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/2006.html#November) Western New York Reinstein Woods Environmental Education Center (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1837.html) Advance registration is required for the following programs. Call 716-683-5959. Full Beaver Moon Walk Thursday, November 13 at 6:00 PM Beavers are now active in their preparation for winter. Join us as we try to spot our resident "busy" beavers. Leaf Hunt Saturday, November 15 at 10:30 AM Fallen leaves are a form of art. We'll search for leaves, learn how to press them and use them to make simple crafts. More events at Reinstein (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1977.html#november) Events at other Nature Centers throughout the State Visit DEC's website for more information and programs Subscribe to the Conservationist magazine? New York's award-winning publication with astonishingly beautiful photography and captivating articles. Back to top This email was sent by: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation 625 Broadway Albany, NY 12233 We respect your right to privacy - view our policy (http://www.dec.ny.gov/about/27720.html). Having problems viewing this newsletter? View it on the DEC website (http://www.dec.ny.gov/public/43355.html). -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/jpg Size: 61277 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/jpg Size: 4939 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/jpg Size: 4430 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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Name: not available Type: image/jpg Size: 12968 bytes Desc: not available URL: From decoutdoordiscovery at lists.dec.state.ny.us Wed Nov 19 10:35:31 2008 From: decoutdoordiscovery at lists.dec.state.ny.us (decoutdoordiscovery at lists.dec.state.ny.us) Date: Wed, 19 Nov 2008 10:35:31 -0500 Subject: [Decoutdoordiscovery] November 19 Outdoor Discovery Message-ID: <4923EBF3.D567.00BD.0@gw.dec.state.ny.us> DEC Outdoor Discovery November 19, 2008 Wild Turkey Family Fun Upcoming DEC Events Hudson Valley - Stony Kill Farm Environmental Education Center Capital Region - Five Rivers Environmental Education Center and Albany Pine Bush Preserve Discovery Center Central New York - Rogers Environmental Education Center Western New York - Reinstein Woods Environmental Education Center Subscribe to Outdoor Discovery or change your subscription options (http://lists.dec.state.ny.us/mailman/listinfo/decoutdoordiscovery) Wild Turkey Shy, wary birds, wild turkeys are a woodland bird that prefers mixed areas of forest and farmland. They are social creatures, usually found in flocks. With keen hearing and superb eyesight, they can cleverly hide when danger approaches. Wild turkeys are excellent fliers, able to reach speeds of 40 to 55 mph over short distances when necessary. Usually, however, they prefer to walk or run to escape danger. At dusk, turkeys fly into trees to roost and spend the night. An entire flock may roost in a single tree or in a number of nearby trees. Male turkeys are called gobblers or toms and are distinguished from females by more brightly colored feathers, long spurs that they use for fighting and beards that are 5 to 12 inches long. Wild turkeys eat a variety of food which changes with the seasons. In spring and summer, the turkey's diet consists of plants, insects, snails, grasshoppers and fruits. From late summer into the fall, turkeys eat beechnuts, acorns, grapes, corn and oats. During the winter months, they rely on what is left over from the fall. Using their sharp claws, wild turkeys are able to dig through up to six inches of snow to find food. The wild turkey disappeared from New York State in the mid-1800s due to uncontrolled hunting and clearing of forests. Today, after decades of active restoration projects, the wild turkey is one of America's greatest success stories. Nationally, wild turkey populations have increased from around 450 thousand 50 years ago to more than 3.5 million in 1990. Check out DEC's website for additional photos. Send us an e-mail and tell us what you think about Outdoor Discovery. Let your friends know about Outdoor Discovery - forward this e-mail! Back to top Family Fun Knotted Bones Calcium is the most important mineral involved in making bones hard and strong. Without calcium, bones become rubbery and flexible. To see what bones would be like without calcium, try this experiment: after your Thanksgiving meal, take some long, thin bones from the turkey carcass. Put several bones into a tall container filled with vinegar. Cover the container with plastic wrap and let it sit for three days. The vinegar will leach the calcium from the bones. Remove the bones from the vinegar and test to see if they can bend. If they are really flexible, tie the bones into a knot and let them dry. If they aren't flexible enough, replace the vinegar and let them sit a few more days before you try knotting them again. Fall Treasure Hunt During the fall, there are still plenty signs of summer and the harvest outside. Take a nature walk and see if you can find the following things before the first snow covers them up: ?Red leaf ?Brown leaf ?Orange leaf ?Pine cone ?Acorn ?Dried weed or pod ?Seed ?Bark ?Dried berries For an extra challenge, see if you can identify which type of tree each of the leaves came from. Make an autumn decoration using the items that you found. Window Dressing The oak tree is an important part of the turkey's diet?they love acorns as a favorite treat. Find a several whole oak leaves and other leaves of a variety of colors. Look for acorns under an oak tree and collect a few. You will also need an old CD (you are even recycling with this project), some orange and red felt or construction paper, craft eyes and glue. Take two or three whole oak leaves and glue them to the CD like a turkey's feathers. Crumble the other colored leaves and glue them to the front of the CD in a mosaic pattern. Glue the acorn to the front of the CD for the turkey's head and add the eyeballs. Cut out the orange and red felt to make the beak, gobble and feet and glue them onto the turkey. Put some red or gold ribbon through the hole in the CD and tie in a knot to hang from a window. The CD turkey will sparkle in the sun, the same way a turkey's feathers show different colors when the sun shines on them. Check out Conservationist for Kids (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/40248.html) for more information and activities! Back to top Upcoming DEC Events Hudson Valley Stony Kill Farm Environmental Education Center (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1833.html) Leave It to Beaver Saturday, November 22 at 2:00 PM Join a Stony Kill naturalist on a walk to our active beaver colony and beyond to investigate the signs beaver leave behind and how they get ready for winter. Wild Turkeys! Saturday, November 29 at 2:00 PM Visit our barn and meet the turkeys that made it past Thanksgiving! Learn how domestic turkeys compare to their wild relatives, and about the adaptations wild turkeys need to survive the coming winter. More events at Stony Kill (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/2001.html#november) Capital Region Five Rivers Environmental Education Center (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1835.html) Reptiles in Winter Saturday, November 22 at 2:00 PM Meet some live animals up close as we discuss how reptiles and amphibians deal with the cold and stress of winter. More events at Five Rivers (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1980.html#November) Albany Pine Bush Preserve Discovery Center (http://albanypinebush.intelliclients.com/discovery_center/directions_hours_admission.htm) Turkey Time Thursday, November 20 from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM It's that time of year when our thoughts turn to turkeys. DEC Wildlife Biologist Michael Schiavone will teach us about the natural history and habits of the wild turkey. At the end of the program, each participant can make a turkey call to take home. Cost: $2 per person/$5 per family. Please call 518-456-0655 to register. Gifts from Nature Friday, November 28 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM Stop by the Discovery Center for an afternoon of craft making using items found in nature. We will be making twig posters, pine cone picture frames and leaf prints. Cost: $2 per person/$5 per family. Please call 518-456-0655 to register. Central New York Rogers Environmental Education Center (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1831.html) Porcupines at Cush Hill Saturday, November 22 at 10:00 AM Find traces of the elusive porcupine in its habitat at Cush Hill. You will have the opportunity to learn about its remarkable system of defense and life history. Please call to register: 607-674-4017. Meet in the main parking lot. Blue Bird and Bat Boxes Saturday, November 29 at 11:00 AM Put a roof over the head of a bat or bluebird by building a box for the animal of your choice. A whole variety of other creatures may call these boxes home, such as house wrens, tree swallows, chickadees or possibly even mice! Please bring a hammer. There is an $8.00 fee for each box that you take home. More events at Rogers (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/2006.html#November) Western New York Reinstein Woods Environmental Education Center (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1837.html) Advance registration is required for the following programs. Call 716-683-5959. In the Rut Saturday, November 22 at 3:30 PM Learn about the white-tailed deer of Reinstein Woods and see the behavior patterns of bucks and does during the breeding season. For adults and children ages ten and older only. Getting Ready for Winter Saturday, November 29 at 10:30 AM Mammals have three strategies for surviving winter: migrate, hibernate, or stay active. Learn how our local mammals cope with the cold. More events at Reinstein (http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/1977.html#november) Events at other Nature Centers throughout the State Visit DEC's website for more information and programs Subscribe to the Conservationist magazine? New York's award-winning publication with astonishingly beautiful photography and captivating articles. Back to top This email was sent by: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation 625 Broadway Albany, NY 12233 We respect your right to privacy - view our policy (http://www.dec.ny.gov/about/27720.html). Having problems viewing this newsletter? View it on the DEC website (http://www.dec.ny.gov/public/43355.html). To unsubscribe (http://lists.dec.state.ny.us/mailman/listinfo/decoutdoordiscovery) -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/jpg Size: 61277 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/jpg Size: 4939 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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