OLD LYME—On March 18, the Rockfall Foundation presented the Town of Old Lyme (OL) with a grant for $1,700 to support a “Coastal Forest and Marshland Conservation and Education” program on the town’s Horseneck Creek Landing. The program will be administered by the OL Open Space Commission.
Martha Shoemaker, OL First Selectwoman, and other town officials accepted a check from Rockfall Foundation representatives prior to the 3/18 OL Board of Selectman meeting.
The three-acre property offers excellent examples of coastal forest and salt marsh, both under serious threat. Horseneck Creek’s forest includes black, red and white oak, highbush blueberry, northern bayberry, black huckleberry, eastern red cedar, big-tooth aspen and big-leaf marsh elder, among other trees.
Saltmarsh habitats are described as “blue carbon” for their ability to capture significant amounts carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and to store it in grasses and soils, mitigating climate change.
Horseneck Creek Landing also offers wonderful opportunities to see osprey, egrets, cormorants, and great blue herons during the summer, and in colder months, brant and various ducks, including brightly colored hooded mergansers. Bald eagles may also be spotted, and the State of Connecticut reports that seaside sparrow and saltmarsh sharp-tailed sparrows, state-listed birds, may be in the area.
The grant program will complement the existing trail with a virtual guide. A botanist or biologist will collaborate to highlight featured flora. In addition, an interpretative weather and vandal-proof color sign will be produced and installed for visitor information.
Offsite conservation will include sponsorship of a local lecture on coastal forests and salt marshes to encourage their protection. A simple fact sheet will memorialize the message and be physically distributed and be posted for download.
A split-rail barrier fence has been constructed to preserve marshland. While the fence is not within the project scope, it will be part of the program’s friendly message explaining that simply walking on fragile flora can be damaging.
The Open Space Commission looks forward to partnering with Audubon to promote the property as a birding site. Visitors will be introduced to birding apps such as Merlin ID, and an eBird Hotspot has been created.
Greg Futoma, Open Space Commission Chair, added, “As the Harbor Management Commission works to establish a kayak/canoe launch on site, Open Space looks forward to working cooperatively with its fellow commission to make this beautiful property a treasure for residents and visitors.”
The Rockfall Foundation is one of Connecticut’s oldest non-profit organizations committed to promoting natural resource conservation, sustainable development and environmental education in the Lower Connecticut River Valley.