Update September 13th, 2018: Thank you! You did it! You helped us raise $66,000 quickly to protect an active heron rookery and key addition to the Biodiversity Preserve! You can still give to help us save more land and water forever and you can get our monthly newsletter to hear about new conservation projects.
* * *
An active heron rookery on a kettle pond. A diverse wetland habitat. Nine critical acres contiguous with an existing preserve… the Finger Lakes Land Trust has acted swiftly to protect these!
You can give anytime to support our ongoing land and water conservation efforts.
The Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve in West Danby, NY, features miles of trails, ponds, grasslands, and woods. We have moved on an opportunity to expand this 537-acre flagship preserve by protecting a key parcel located in the heart of the property.
Photo: Chris Ray
-
- Photo: Andy Zepp
-
- Photo: Chris Ray
The Land Trust has been strategically expanding the Biodiversity Preserve, which was established in 1995 as the world’s first temperate zone reserve for bioprospecting – the investigation of naturally occurring plant and animal compounds for their medicinal value. FLLT originally partnered with Cornell University and Schering-Plough Pharmaceuticals to create the preserve, and this latest acquisition represents our 13th expansion at the site. Although modest in size, this critical nine-acre addition protects an active Great Blue Heron rookery and part of a kettle pond, and falls within a Tompkins County Unique Natural Area. Completion of the project will secure important wildlife habitat, help maintain water quality, and offer people of all abilities the opportunity to view a heron rookery.
Lindsay-Parsons has become a popular destination for hikers, birdwatchers, and others who enjoy nature. The site is particularly diverse, featuring extensive frontage on the Cayuga Inlet and more than 60 acres of wetlands and ponds. The property borders a privately-owned parcel secured through a conservation easement and is immediately adjacent to Danby State Forest. It is part of a larger connected landscape that hosts wide ranging mammals such as black bear and fisher.
Photo: Jeff Katris
-
- Photo: Jeff Katris
-
- Photo: Chris Ray
The Land Trust is developing a management plan for the new site which will likely include: seasonal mowing to maintain grassland habitat for nesting birds; planting trees and shrubs and removing non-native, invasives to enhance the wetland buffer; creating a formal, universally-accessible, wetland overlook; using the existing small barn for storage of tools and lumber.
The Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve falls within the Land Trust’s Emerald Necklace Project—an ambitious effort to link 50,000 acres of existing public conservation lands that extend in an arc around Ithaca from Finger Lakes National Forest in the west to Hammond Hill and Yellow Barn State Forests in the east. A priority project recognized within New York State’s open space plan, these lands host 78 miles of the Finger Lakes Trail, two Audubon-designated Important Bird Areas, and several dozen Tompkins County-designated Unique Natural Areas.
You can give anytime to support our ongoing land and water conservation efforts.
Photo: Chris Ray
-
- Photo: Chris Ray
-
- Photo: Chris Ray
See the press release on the Lindsay-Parsons expansion. Please contact us with questions about this exciting project and how you can help save land in the Finger Lakes region.
The Land Trust is working with Tompkins County’s Natural Infrastructure Program to secure a grant toward this addition. Please help us complete the project and protect the land forever!
You can give anytime to support our ongoing land and water conservation efforts.
