Protecting Birds of the Cayuga Lake Watershed
Lilly Glidden, Freeville, NY
1st Place, High School Category
TST BOCES New Visions
Cayuga Lake is a fundamental part of our community. Whenever I drive
down Route Thirteen into Ithaca I admire the frozen expanse of the
lake, but tend to take it for granted. In the summer I assume that
at anytime I can join my friends for a refreshing swim or boat ride.
I can not image anything but clean, safe, lake water and being surrounded
by nature on these outings. Residents of the Cayuga watershed have
always enjoyed the birds and wildlife present because of the Lake
and it’s bountiful ecosystems. It is essential that the community
continue to protect our valuable resources and maintain the habitats
of familiar wildlife.
There are preserves and parks throughout the Cayuga Watershed that
are essential to the survival of certain bird species. The Baldwin
Preserve is one of the rare local habitats for prairie warblers,
as well as other warblers, indigo buntings, ravens, and a variety
of other birds as well as a hot spot for local birders and general
nature observers. Other local areas including Meyers point, Sapsucker
Woods, Reynolds Game Farm, Dryden Lake and Stewart Park also contain
a variety of bird wildlife. Observable species in the Cayuga Watershed
include many varieties of warblers, water thrushes, sparrows, loons,
grebes, mergansers, ducks, teals, scoters, wrens, sandpipers, kinglets,
thrashers, egrets, plovers, herons, cormorants, brants, grosbeaks,
woodpeckers, scarlet tanagers, gulls, kingfishers, swallows, and
endless others. Birds of prey include red tailed hawks, ospreys,
rough legged hawks, screech owls, northern harriers, sharp shinned
and coopers hawks, and merlins, barn, horned, and barred owls. If
you are not seeing these birds you may simply be not paying attention,
but you may also be observing the struggle local birds contend with
daily to survive in this area. If you wish to view some beautiful
birds, visitors to Stewart Park are treated to the occasional views
of bald eagles and peregrine falcons. These two birds are very rare
and are both considered endangered. Bald eagles a have successfully
made a comeback and it is very important to their continued existence
that we preserve their habitat and resources. Bald eagles often
migrate through the Cayuga Watershed and need clean water and areas
to feed and rest. It is amazing and inspiring to view these magnificent
birds and everyone need to do their part to preserve expanses for
them.
It is essential to keep our water clean. In theory, everyone wants
to minimize pollution and damage to the environment. But in practice,
very few implement ideas to help our planet. However, it is very
simple for individuals to conserve and preserve the quality of our
local water. One way to help is to use your yard to filter water
and runoff. Arrange gutters and downspouts so the water they collect
and transport gathers in porous areas where it can soak into the
soil. Many ornamental plants and herbs can be grown in these wet
areas, like bee balm, mints, and the flowers astibles. When making
paths around your home, you should avoid pavement and instead use
porous materials like gravel and bricks spaced apart. You can help
our watershed by simply picking up after your pet, and avoiding
dumping hazardous waste and liquids on the ground or storm drains.
Simply being aware of the consequences of your actions can help
protect our wildlife. Avoid wasting water and throwing any garbage,
liquid or solid, on the land. Try to prevent erosion on your land
by not removing native plants, especially on slopes; or in wetlands,
which are essential areas for watersheds, as well as unique ecosystems
and habitats.
There are additional effortless things you can do to further keep
chemicals out of our watershed and protect our numerous local birds.
Avoid cleaning your oven more then necessary. Look for cleaning
products that do not contain toxic ingredients or phosphorous. Use
fewer pesticides; most households use more then necessary as is,
and pests can be discouraged by other methods, such as encouraging
natural predators and plugging access to your house from the outdoors.
Keep surfaces in your house dry to prevent bacteria, mold, and mildew,
and reduce the need for disinfectants. When available, buy products
that are unscented, and dispose of your wastes responsibly. Most
labels tell you how to properly discard of their contents.
Air pollution effects not only wildlife, but local populations of
humans as well. Allergies, asthma, and other respiratory illnesses
are on the rise throughout the country. You can take several straightforward
steps to reduce emissions, save gas money, and help our planet.
Keep your tires properly inflated to improve fuel efficiency by
up to ten percent. Maintain your car and engine, and drive with
the aim to minimize gas use, avoiding sudden stops and starts, as
well as excessive air conditioning. Purchase cars that produce fewer
emissions and are more efficient. Whenever possible carpool or use
public transportation. This will save money, resources, and benefit
our own species as well as the many others we share this planet
with.
The birds of the Cayuga Lake Watershed are a beautiful reminder
of the health of our environment. As long as we preserve clean resources
and wild land to ensure the survival of our feathered companions
we can be sure that we are also helping ourselves. If we do not
all take individual steps to help keep our environment pristine
we will lose first the sensitive indicators such as bald eagles
and peregrine falcons, and then realize our lake is not the clean,
beautiful water we used to swim in.
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