Tomorrow evening, Tuesday, September 12th, 2017, the Linnaean Society of New York 2017-18 Speaker Program will feature the first two presentations of our new season.
September 12, 2017 6:00 pm Boldest and Most Beautiful: The Traprock Ridgelands of the Connecticut Valley Dr. Peter LeTourneau The ridges of basalt lava (traprock) rising high above the Connecticut Valley from New Haven to Northampton comprise the most important natural region in southern New England. The mountainous terrain forms a green corridor featuring a mosaic of unique microbiomes, including alpine sedge meadows, talus (scree) barrens, summit balds, vernal pool complexes, and many others. A diverse population of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and birds find refuge and habitat in the traprock corridor. The most important migratory route for raptors in New England, the traprock hills are again hosting resident Bald Eagles, Peregrine Falcons, and others, after nearly one hundred years of extirpation. The traprock highlands of the Connecticut Valley were also the focus of important nineteenth-century landscape artists such as Thomas Cole and Frederic Church. Dr. Peter LeTourneau, a recognized authority on the geology of the Triassic-Jurassic rift basins of the circum-North Atlantic region, will discuss current problems and progress in conservation of this special region. 7:30 pm Birding Without Borders: An Epic World Big Year Noah Strycker In 2015, bird nerd Noah Strycker of Oregon became the first person to see more than half of the planets bird species in a single, yearlong, round-the-world birding trip. Anything could have happened, and a lot did. He was scourged by blood-sucking leeches, suffered fevers and sleep deprivation, survived airline snafus and car breakdowns and mudslides and torrential floods, skirted war zones, and had the time of his life. Birding on seven continents and carrying only a pack on his back, Strycker enlisted the enthusiastic support of local birders to tick off more than 6,000 species, including Adélie Penguins in Antarctica, a Harpy Eagle in Brazil, a Spoon-billed Sandpiper in Thailand, and a Green-breasted Pitta in Uganda. He shared the adventure in real time on his daily blog, and now he reveals the inside story. This humorous and inspiring presentation about Stryckers epic World Big Year will leave you with a new appreciation for the birds and birders of the world. Both presentations are free and will be held in the Linder Theater on the first floor of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Enter at West 77th Street between Central Park West and Columbus Avenue. All welcome! Complete details of these exciting presentations and the rest of the 2016-2017 program can be found here: http://linnaeannewyork.org/calendar-programs-trips/programs2017-2018.html Richard Fried The Linnaean Society of New York -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
