Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Fire Island
Later in October, I met with the same faculty member from Stony Brook teaching in the department of Ecology and Evolution and set off to fire island.
While we were on our way out to sea, he said the area has been a hotspot for re-nourishment programs. The National Park Service has been dredging sand from offshore and pumping it onto the beach to make it larger. The reason for this was because the beach has been getting smaller due to various weather conditions and coastal erosion. The project was estimated to cost around 25 million dollars, which will be paid for the by residents of Fire Island through tax increases.
We fished for some striped bass with live eel as bait.
While we were on our way out to sea, he said the area has been a hotspot for re-nourishment programs. The National Park Service has been dredging sand from offshore and pumping it onto the beach to make it larger. The reason for this was because the beach has been getting smaller due to various weather conditions and coastal erosion. The project was estimated to cost around 25 million dollars, which will be paid for the by residents of Fire Island through tax increases.
We fished for some striped bass with live eel as bait.
Setauket Mill Pond
In September, I met with a faculty member at the Stony Brook University currently teaching in the department of Ecology and Evolution.
He brought me (and a few others) to the Setauket Mill Pond near the university, where he explained that the ecology of the pond was currently in a crisis. He has been monitoring the state of the pond, and in the past few months, the number of fish in the pond have been drastically decreasing. He says the causes are still unknown, but he predicts it's because people are introducing other species that are not indigenous to the area, therefore effecting the local ecology. That combined with overfishing has helped to reduce the population of the pond to an alarmingly low state. If we leave the pond alone for about two years though, he says the problems can be alleviated, but that doesn't seem likely.
We did some fishing, but we released everything for obvious reasons. We caught largemouth bass, bluegill sunfish, a frog, and some seaweed. We did see two large turtles about 4~5 feet in length. The faculty member told us he had never seen those before, and have probably come in recently.
He brought me (and a few others) to the Setauket Mill Pond near the university, where he explained that the ecology of the pond was currently in a crisis. He has been monitoring the state of the pond, and in the past few months, the number of fish in the pond have been drastically decreasing. He says the causes are still unknown, but he predicts it's because people are introducing other species that are not indigenous to the area, therefore effecting the local ecology. That combined with overfishing has helped to reduce the population of the pond to an alarmingly low state. If we leave the pond alone for about two years though, he says the problems can be alleviated, but that doesn't seem likely.
We did some fishing, but we released everything for obvious reasons. We caught largemouth bass, bluegill sunfish, a frog, and some seaweed. We did see two large turtles about 4~5 feet in length. The faculty member told us he had never seen those before, and have probably come in recently.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Hudson River from Bear Mountain
During thanksgiving break, I went over to bear mountain to check out the Hudson river.
Near the peak of the mountain, I got a good view of the river and the wildlife surrounding the
area. There weren't a lot of animals around, but there were some interesting plant life that I found.There were also a few buildings across the river which might have been either residential or military, as West Point and Fort Montgomery are nearby.
The building that was on top of the mountain is the Perkins Tower, which was completed in 1934 and dedicated to the Chairman of the Palisades Interstate Commission, George W. Perkins. It stands 40 feet tall and is made of stone.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Little Neck Bay
I live in Whitestone, near Little Neck and Bayside, so the closest waterway is the Little Neck Bay. It's also a fishery year round, but is most active in the spring to early summer. There used to be a lot of Flounder and Tommy Cod, but due to over fishing, their population has been declining. Other fish in the bay include finfish and shellfish.
The bay serves as a nursery and feeding area for stripped bass, scrup, bluefish, atlantic silversides, menhaden, winter flounder, and blackfish.
However, with the increase of public knowledge in the fact that the bay holds many wildlife, came many more boats and fishers. With the increase in fishing boats, the bay had to construct more piers, docks, bulkheads, and revetments in areas previously undisturbed by development, resulting in the loss of productivity to support the young fish and wildlife. They are currently destroying the natural beaches and salt marshes.
Locals in the area are protesting against the development of the piers and docks, but the town doesn't care because the bay brings in more money for the town.
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