An Introduction to Sands Point Preserve and its Changing Ecosystems

As a child growing up, I often visited the ice lake at Sands Point Preserve on the north shore of Long Island. The visible beauty of the lake was as a window into the wonderful mystery of the ever-invisible spirits lurking in shrouded fog. The Great Blue Heron and Green Heron lived in this mystery. These large, colorful, reclusive birds with crooked necks stand under vegetative cover, motionless, on one leg, in wait of any unlucky fish that falls under their lance. To stalk a heron, one requires similar patience: one must stand low under cover and motionless in wait of the sunlight to pierce the heron through the bush.

Sands Point Preserve is a 216 acre preserve in Port Washington with a great lawn, forests, honeysuckle dominated shrub-forests, a sea shore, sand cliffs, and a lake. The lake of almost an acre was built at the turn of the last century to provide water for cattle and to harvest ice in winter. The elliptically shaped lake is circled by trails on every side.

Last year, a dense layer of vegetation was cut down and now almost the entire east side and much of the north side of the lake are exposed to human traffic. In the place of this cutting, a pioneering crop of invasive species formed monocultures, especially the sprawling vine mile-a-minute (Persicaria perfoliata). I became concerned about these invasive species, and two other local ecologists, Herb Mills and Seth Erlich, voiced similar concerns.

I have developed a scientific study to see whatever birds may visit the lake, particularly Great Blue and Green Herons. Starting January 14th, 2012, I have walked around the lake almost every day, frequently twice a day, to observe and record the birds I hear or see.

Beginning this study provided sustenance for a new chapter of nature discovery in my life. Returning to a place every day and making observations on the flora, fauna, and aquatic ecosystem raises many questions. There is an ever-flowing fire hydrant, but where does the water come from and where does it go? (Later this spring I am going to study the chemistry of the water that flows out of this hydrant and into the lake.) Who walked on the lake last night? What do the birds eat and of what sing? What flowers bloom today? Where do the fox footprints lead? Who cut down the trees? Questions recycle anew on a daily basis.

On my visits to the lake I have observed something unexpected. Sitting at this newly cut meadow on a cold cloudy January day, I see an aggregate of birds fill the sky above in the form of a turbulent stream of White-Throated Sparrows, Cedar Waxwings, Goldfinches and Cardinals. The newly cut meadow on the southeast side of the lake has the highest diversity, abundance, and frequency of bird visitors. Now I am uncertain whether this change was for good or for bad.

To get academic credit for a study to determine if herons no longer visit the lake, I consulted my adviser Dr. Chabora, a specialist in ecology. He advised me that my study, to determine if herons no longer visit the lake, is called a null hypothesis, and that it has no water to wade in, because I have no baseline study of past heron activity on the lake. Dr. Chabora said that “one could just as well say that there are no barracudas in the lake.” He then suggested that I proceed reading the greatest classics in the literature of natural history and to read them “for their beauty”: White’s 1789 Natural History of Selbourne, Thoreau’s 1854 Walden, and Aldo Leopold’s 1949 A Sand County Almanac. Next week we decided that I should write an inspired Natural History of Sands Point Preserve in the same vein.

In addition to this work on the Natural History of Sands Point Preserve, I am continuing a baseline study of the birds that visit the lake and surrounding habitats every day. My goal is to guide future management of the lake, if I can find the voice to optimally balance human and wildlife needs. Attached hereis my record of observations regarding species seen and associated data on their locations, habits, dates, times, weather conditions and lake conditions: Record of Observed Birds, Sands Point Preserve.

Today I found out why the trees around the lake have been cut. The ecosystem of the lake is in the process of being turned inside out. My future blog will take this new direction. All in the next installment.
Thank you for reading,

David Jakim