Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.
As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”
The news that the Red Knot has been put on New Jersey’s Endangered list got me wondering what else was on the list, which of course got me thinking about the region. Here then are the tri-state area’s separate lists:
There’s also a federal listing of endangered species, which can be searched by state. Here’s New York.
Thanks for posting links to updated lists. Just analyzed birds on all three state lists. A lot can be learned about changes in habitat from these lists. Almost all on list are either birds of prey, colonial waterbirds, birds of saltmarshes, birds of barrier beaches, or birds of “low growth”, i.e. meadows, savannas, and shrublands. Birds of low growth make up about 50% of birds on list in Connecticut, about 55% in New Jersey and a little under 50% in New York. An analysis of listed butterflies seems like it would yield a similar result, maybe even more low growth species as a percentage of total. This says a lot about what our land protection and management priorities should be in the region.
There are fascinating lists, aren’t they? I’m sure the politicking behind them is also fascinating; I had no idea Conn.’s version is called “Energy and Environmental Protection.” Another thing I noted, those wonderfully named freshwater mussel species, as well as the amphibians, tell of the state of our streams and rivers.
Yes, listings are very political. Connecticut’s agency is now called “Dept of Energy and Environmental Protection. I believe this is a recent change, but I could be wrong. They just happen to be the agency that puts out their list. Red knot is actually an anomaly, the only non breeding migratory shorebird in trouble in the area (eskimo curlew almost certainly extinct). (Buff-breasted sandpiper may also be in trouble, not sure on latest stats. Arctic breeder, it is a bird dependent in migration on very short grass and ag fields, like potato fields on L.I. and Rhode Island.) Protection of knots opposed by fisherman who are wiping out horse shoe crabs, eggs of which are critical food in May for knots and other migrants. Delaware Bay is the battle ground, and Delaware fisherman have used pressure to continue their permission to overharvest. NJ only controls half the bay.
I’ve never seen a Red Knot.
I’ve written about the marvel that is the horseshoe crab here (https://matthewwills.com/2010/05/13/horseshoe-crabs/) and here (https://matthewwills.com/2010/05/22/horseshoe-crabs-2/). As well as being a keystone species in their habitat, they are the source of Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL), used for four decades now to detect endotoxins by the medical industries. They have been bled, literally, for the benefit of all of us, and in return we’ve allowed a small fishing industry to slaughter them for bait.
Backyard and Beyond 
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