Click below to support natural resource protection in Salmon River State Forest. It is important that the state hears from a lot of folks to let them know birds and other natural resources are important to a lot of Connecticutians. https://p2a.co/66tluTD ACTION ALERT FEBRUARY 11, 2022 A proposal to create mountain biking trails in Salmon River State Forest might be a win-win for conservation and for responsible outdoor recreation. But for that to happen, we need you to please write<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001nLLjePEt9nqlYpN7IWeHaRHxFMKaxURji0r9BFTZytwpATl0CcqA68dvjfTRpqrWk2SndgdR-j2nQev9r2ljfyjWaKG_6z5DoFEzroO_3FNQDJFJipedLaxNYu8hotYKobFFluhEUjo=&c=w-2eOynQheqwDJZ39e_hI9Ia8j-5GScTU3CNiCeyT4jKBS-2CknLRQ==&ch=IAF7NjZgVJFJNykpPXOF4QjOpEMBxdPrBqDMIrSgNxMU7PsKa9pPCg==>to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and ask that provisions be made to protect the site’s natural resources. Wetlands must be protected. Trails must be properly maintained and monitored as they are used. The Salmon River forest, east of the Connecticut River, is one of the most important forest ecosystems in the state. The river itself is the state’s standard for pristine waterways. If not properly planned, mountain biking can damage wetlands and cause erosion. It can lead to invasive plants moving in and pushing native species out. All of that would damage the habitats of birds and other wildlife. Many species of global, continental and regional conservation concern breed in the Salmon River forest. These include Wood Thrush, Eastern Whip-Poor-Will, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Worm-eating Warbler and Ovenbird. The forest is also home to numerous vulnerable plants, reptiles, amphibians, fish and other aquatic animals. Please click either of the red buttons to ask the CT DEEP to ensure that both the DEEP Forestry Division and the Wildlife Division works with the mountain bike community to protect the area’s natural resources and design trails that will increase wildlife in that area. Advocates like you have been extremely influential in enacting positive changes in Hartford. This project may offer a golden opportunity to provide an alternative form of recreation in State Forests. https://p2a.co/66tluTD Thank you! Patrick Comins Executive Director Patrick Comins, Executive Director

I got the following error message two different times after filling out the form online: \ “Uh-Oh! Trouble processing your information. Please try again later.” Hoping it gets corrected, will try again later, but maybe something is wrong on the website?\ \ Thanks, Celeste Echlin

Thanks to Patrick and Connecticut Audubon for giving birders an easy mechanism to voice our concerns on the Salmon River Trail issue. The question was presented by the CT DEEP as two options 1) convert the rogue mountain bike trails to official trails and maintained as such. This would allow for a dense network of trails in the Park. Or 2) convert some of the trail and allow for a smaller density of mountain bike trails. There is a third option that we birders should support...no trails. Yes keep the historical trails there but the rogue mountain bike trails should be brushed in so that the habitat could be restored. Trails have a negative impact on wildlife for 400 meter on either side of the trail according recent research out of New Hampshire. The situation in Salmon River State Park can set a precedent for CT DEEP Land management. Should mountain bikers be able to create rogue trails on state land and then have these trails deemed official trails later? The deadline for comments is this Thursday the 17th. -----Original Message----- From: Patrick Comins <pcomins@ctaudubon.org> Sent: Friday, February 11, 2022 5:02 PM To: CT List <ctbirds@lists.ctbirding.org> Subject: [CT Birds] Support birds and other natural resources in state forests Click below to support natural resource protection in Salmon River State Forest. It is important that the state hears from a lot of folks to let them know birds and other natural resources are important to a lot of Connecticutians. https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fp2a.co%2F66tluTD&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7C2a9cd9bf13d145d7312508d9edaa2b11%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637802137388537320%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&amp;sdata=3qAcwGkeoTub7OW%2FJi5GPn%2Btast8mM%2BDGhcwhNlaMDg%3D&amp;reserved=0 ACTION ALERT FEBRUARY 11, 2022 A proposal to create mountain biking trails in Salmon River State Forest might be a win-win for conservation and for responsible outdoor recreation. But for that to happen, we need you to please write<https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fr20.rs6.net%2Ftn.jsp%3Ff%3D001nLLjePEt9nqlYpN7IWeHaRHxFMKaxURji0r9BFTZytwpATl0CcqA68dvjfTRpqrWk2SndgdR-j2nQev9r2ljfyjWaKG_6z5DoFEzroO_3FNQDJFJipedLaxNYu8hotYKobFFluhEUjo%3D%26c%3Dw-2eOynQheqwDJZ39e_hI9Ia8j-5GScTU3CNiCeyT4jKBS-2CknLRQ%3D%3D%26ch%3DIAF7NjZgVJFJNykpPXOF4QjOpEMBxdPrBqDMIrSgNxMU7PsKa9pPCg%3D%3D&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7C2a9cd9bf13d145d7312508d9edaa2b11%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637802137388537320%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&amp;sdata=Z5ktd7BUUdA1jlMlL%2B63k4x4c1FK63mnxmIxnJbW1z0%3D&amp;reserved=0>to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and ask that provisions be made to protect the site's natural resources. Wetlands must be protected. Trails must be properly maintained and monitored as they are used. The Salmon River forest, east of the Connecticut River, is one of the most important forest ecosystems in the state. The river itself is the state's standard for pristine waterways. If not properly planned, mountain biking can damage wetlands and cause erosion. It can lead to invasive plants moving in and pushing native species out. All of that would damage the habitats of birds and other wildlife. Many species of global, continental and regional conservation concern breed in the Salmon River forest. These include Wood Thrush, Eastern Whip-Poor-Will, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Worm-eating Warbler and Ovenbird. The forest is also home to numerous vulnerable plants, reptiles, amphibians, fish and other aquatic animals. Please click either of the red buttons to ask the CT DEEP to ensure that both the DEEP Forestry Division and the Wildlife Division works with the mountain bike community to protect the area's natural resources and design trails that will increase wildlife in that area. Advocates like you have been extremely influential in enacting positive changes in Hartford. This project may offer a golden opportunity to provide an alternative form of recreation in State Forests. https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fp2a.co%2F66tluTD&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7C2a9cd9bf13d145d7312508d9edaa2b11%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637802137388537320%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&amp;sdata=3qAcwGkeoTub7OW%2FJi5GPn%2Btast8mM%2BDGhcwhNlaMDg%3D&amp;reserved=0 Thank you! Patrick Comins Executive Director Patrick Comins, Executive Director CTBirds, a service of Connecticut Ornithological Association - Bringing birders together statewide. Please support COA: https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ctbirding.org%2Fjoin-us%2F&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7C2a9cd9bf13d145d7312508d9edaa2b11%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637802137388693604%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&amp;sdata=b52wXt8%2FiiAquww75CcVcgkm51c7%2BMQ6mmC7bWT2Nxw%3D&amp;reserved=0 CTBirds is for the discussion of birds and birding in Connecticut. For list rules and subscription information visit: https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ctbirding.org%2Fbirds-birding%2Fct-birds-email-list%2F&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7C2a9cd9bf13d145d7312508d9edaa2b11%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637802137388693604%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&amp;sdata=EUBiJKVDIiVAiPsNa2tALmEA%2BdzkeRF5dWCxD3cbdgk%3D&amp;reserved=0