Bike trails don't support birds in state forests, do they?
Patrick, I'm confused by your message on this issue. As I understand the State's proposal (here's the link for anyone who wants to read it for themselves, which I always recommend before you sign on to anything: https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/forestry/Management_Plans/Salmon-River-SF-Blackledge-Block-FMP.pdf), they intend to CLOSE DOWN the many unauthorized, which is to say illegal, mountain bike trails that have been made by folks just riding through the habitat in this forest. Trails fragment habitat; we know that fragmentation of habitat is bad for birds, and the effects of a trail on nesting birds reaches far into the forest. The state has to balance habitat protection with access, but there are legal trails for bike riding on. It seems to me that closing these trails is the right move to make for protecting birds, yet it looks like you are asking us to write to the state asking for them to work to either create or maintain mountain bike trails. What am I missing?
Margaret Rubega
(she/her/hers)
Professor
CT State Ornithologist
Curator, Ornithology Collections
Dept Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Connecticut
margaret.rubega@uconn.edu
@profrubega
860-486-4502
Thank you, Margaret, for that link. A previous message seemed to be the middle of conversation and not making a lot of sense. As an organization that absolutely supports passive recreation where appropriate and in accordance with the Preserve Management Plan (as with equestrian, walking trails, etc.) we would support mountain biking as one of those uses, but certainly not "bandit tails" such as has seemed to happen on a number of State lands, particularly Bluff Point evidently. Looking forward to reading the actual details (and definitely before "signing on", lol!!)
Dennis S. Main, PresidentAvalonia Land Conservancy, Inc.860-823-MAIN
On Saturday, February 12, 2022, 03:44:02 PM EST, Rubega, Margaret <margaret.rubega@uconn.edu> wrote:
Patrick, I'm confused by your message on this issue. As I understand the State's proposal (here's the link for anyone who wants to read it for themselves, which I always recommend before you sign on to anything: https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/forestry/Management_Plans/Salmon-River-SF-Blackledge-Block-FMP.pdf), they intend to CLOSE DOWN the many unauthorized, which is to say illegal, mountain bike trails that have been made by folks just riding through the habitat in this forest. Trails fragment habitat; we know that fragmentation of habitat is bad for birds, and the effects of a trail on nesting birds reaches far into the forest. The state has to balance habitat protection with access, but there are legal trails for bike riding on. It seems to me that closing these trails is the right move to make for protecting birds, yet it looks like you are asking us to write to the state asking for them to work to either create or maintain mountain bike trails. What am I missing?
Margaret Rubega
(she/her/hers)
Professor
CT State Ornithologist
Curator, Ornithology Collections
Dept Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Connecticut
margaret.rubega@uconn.edu
@profrubega
860-486-4502
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