Bethpage State Park Ecology

With the start of a brand new school year, Bethpage State Park decided to do something extra special for Central Boulevard Elementary... that is, host a STEM day field trip! For those that might not know the abbreviation, STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering  and Mathematics . This refers  to a c urriculum  that focuses on these four disciplines collectively, instead of separately-- and what b etter way to explore real world examples of STEM than by visiting a living, breathing golf course habitat ?   Luckily for us, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) provides multiple STEM lesson plans and resources as part of their First Green program ( http://www.thefirstgreen.org/ ). GCSAA's site makes it super easy for golf course superintendents and staff to pick and  chose the kind of activities that work best for their course.  Through this First Green program, we were able to turn our Green Course into a creative...

Last month, Mrs. Wright, a local elementary school teacher, contacted me asking if Bethpage State Park was a suitable location for Painted Lady butterflies. Without hesitation, I replied "IT SURE IS!" One area I made sure to mention was our massive, public pollinator garden. Extending along the entire length of our picnic area, this habitat was created by staff and volunteers with the sole purpose of providing forage and shelter for pollinators! Of these species we aim to protect, is of course, the native Painted Lady butterfly.  I guess this had been the answer Mrs. Wright was hoping for because just like that, we began organizing a field trip for eighty students (with a specific mission in mind). Up until now, students had been rearing Painted Lady Butterflies in their classrooms. Having just witnessed  the emergence from the pupal stage, these new butterflies needed to be set free in a natural environment. What better location than at Bethpage State Park? ...

This month, Bethpage State Park proudly participated in a collaborative tree planting event! This was a wonderful opportunity made possible by Lexmark International, the printing supplier of the PGA Championship.  Lexmark reached out to our Director of Agronomy, Andrew Wilson, explaining that their company wished to offset some of their PGA printing and paper-use. Their suggestion? A donation of trees to be planted somewhere suitable on our golf courses! We gratefully accepted this offer, knowing that this sustainability effort would be the perfect way to kick off PGA week...we are NEVER too busy for planting trees! After some thought and discussion, our horticulturist and park ecologist selected eastern redbuds to be the tree of choice. This beautiful flowering species is native to the northeast, and already a deciduous favorite (growing in other locations around our golf courses and polo field). Blooming at the start of spring, these trees are a valuable resource, pr...

Did you know that this past Saturday, April 13th, was Citizen Science Day? If you are wondering what "citizen science" means, you are probably not alone. As a term, it is fairly new...however, as a practice, it has been around forever! Citizen science (also called community science) is the concept that members of the general public (non-scientists) can become more active and collectively aid the improvement of scientific knowledge and advancement! You might be thinking...well, how does that work? The answer is simple; when paired with the right tools and resources (many of which can be downloaded as an app on your smartphone!), anyone with an interest in science can collect and share data with the press of a button. If enough people get involved, this data can be analyzed and as a whole, provide more information than perhaps any one professional would be able to collect on their own. In this way, you become a contributor who can now consider themselves a valuable...

What does a PGA championship and a raptor nesting season have in common? You are probably thinking... not much right? Well this year they are both happening on our Black Course! What an exciting time here at Bethpage State Park! While our maintenance crew urgently prepares the courses for the tournament, our ecology staff is also up in the bucket truck, making sure our great horned owls are carrying on with nesting season as per usual. This year I am excited to announce we have two great horned owl pairs! One pair resides in the same tree as it has in previous years; this is on #7 of the Black Course, where an artificial nest was constructed and installed by part-time employee/biologist Jim Jones.  The second great horned owl pair is actually on the other side of the park, on our Yellow Course. This specific location is behind the 8th green and to the right of the 9th tee. Here the owl pair have adopted an old red-tailed hawk nest (as you might have already concl...