I encouraged the Northern Montezuma WMA folks to send me information about the great work that they do up there in the FRIENDS’ “North Country”. In all honesty, I felt guilty that I knew so little about the details of their work and couldn’t share much on the website. However, even though they are boots on the ground, working hard to manage thousands of acres, Felicia sent me the following information:

  On the first day of 2023, NYSDEC Bureau of Wildlife staff and a group of excited participants started the new year on the right foot with a hike around the Montezuma Audubon Center. Led by Wildlife Technicians Felicia Paradise and Danielle Meyers, we meandered through the woodlots, grasslands, and impounded wetlands on the Warbler Walk trail and identified birds, animal sign, and plants along the way. Many good questions were asked, and great discussions were had regarding the ecological values of native plants, the negative impacts of invasive plant species, and the various types of habitat management we do at Northern Montezuma WMA. Some highlights included seeing an adult and immature bald eagle, male northern harrier, and red fox. Additionally, folks really seemed to enjoy the wonderful scents of sassafras and spicebush, the unique buds and flowers of tulip trees, and the amazingly gross explanation of how foxes use scat to communicate with each other. Overall it was a great experience for all of us, and we’re hoping to see their smiling faces again when they come back to enjoy all the great recreational opportunities we have here at the Montezuma Wetlands Complex.

  When I read about the hike, I emailed her and asked her to help me identify a sassafras tree.  This is what she sent me:

  Sassafras (Sassafras albidium) is super unique! The bark is a slate grey color, with the pattern being a mix between eastern cottonwood and an ash with deep fissures broken up into large blocks and upside-down v-shaped fissures. If you think you’re looking at a sassafras, just flake off a little bit of the bark—if it’s bright orange underneath and smells vaguely like rootbeer, that’s it! They also have really distinct winter buds, with the new growth almost always green and the terminal bud at the end of the twig being large and orangish brown. Additionally, sassafras have three different leaf shapes—one known as a “mitten”, an un-lobed, and tri-lobed leaf. When you’re trying to identify trees in winter and find yourself stumped (pun intended), I always recommend looking at the leaf litter below the tree as one more clue!

(photo credits: bark – Wildlife Leadership Academy; bud – Native Plant Trust; leaves – Glen Arboretum)

THANK YOU, Felicia and all the NYSDEC Bureau of Wildlife staff!!