Forests

New York Forests

Sixty-three percent of New York is covered in forest, but it wasn't always this way. By the late nineteenth century, forest cover was closer to 25 percent. The maturing of our forests have provided habitat for several returning birds and mammals, from ravens to fishers, but they are also threatened by invasive species and development.

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RAMPS - tasty wild edibles, but these slow-growing natives are more sensitive to disturbance than people expect.

HEMLOCK WOOLLY ADELGIDS - These invasive insects threaten iconic hemlock forests, but there are glimmers of hope.

FLYING SQUIRRELS - Very common, but so nocturnal that few people get to see them.

RAVENS - Populations of this large corvid are rising, but the real culprit in their local disappearance may have been human persecution rather than straight habitat loss.

ACORNS - food for wildlife and even humans, if you know how to process them.

COUGARS - they have yet to return to New York, but they could establish a population in the future.

BLACK BEARS - populations are rising, and people have the power to reduce human-bear conflict.

FISHERS - a large member of the weasel family who has returned with the maturing of local forests (and reduction of hunting pressure).

GARLIC MUSTARD - everyone's favorite villain, when it comes to local invasive plants.

NATIVE SPRING WILDFLOWERS – look closely and you can find these gems in local spring forests before they disappear.