Adventures in Conservation
2006 Program Highlights
The Northern Flying Squirrel in
Pennsylvania: Our newest endangered species?
There actually are two species of flying squirrels in Pennsylvania. The southern flying squirrel is found in all forest types but the northern flying squirrel is restricted to mature, coniferous forests. In the 1930s, northern flying squirrels were found throughout the northern tier of Pennsylvania but today their distribution in the state has declined dramatically. An intensive live-trapping and nest box effort has resulted in the capture of only 25 individuals over the past 5 years. This decline has prompted the proposal that this species be classified as endangered in Pennsylvania. The reasons for the decline of northern flying squirrels are not well understood but could be due to competition with the southern flying squirrel and habitat loss.
Speaker: Dr. Carolyn Mahan is an Associate Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies at Penn State Altoona and was co-coordinator of Penn State's inter-disciplinary program in Environmental Studies. She currently co-chairs the Mammal Technical Committee of the Pennsylvania Biological Survey and is a past board member of The Wildlife Society (Pennsylvania Chapter) and The ClearWater Conservancy. She has published over 2 dozen papers on squirrel ecology and issues related to forest fragmentation. She and her colleagues have been conducting research on northern flying squirrels since 2000.
Exploring the Vernal Pools of the Scotia Barrens
State Game Lands 176, locally referred to as the Scotia Barrens, is comprised
of distinctive barrens and vernal pool habitats that host unique and significant
wildlife species and natural communities. Hundreds of frogs and salamanders
visit these vernal pools to breed and lay their eggs each spring. In April ,
ClearWater invited the public to explore the vernal pools of Scotia Barrens with
Jim Julian from the Penn State Cooperative Wetland Center and see this natural
phenomenon for themselves.
Jim Julian is a Ph.D. candidate in the Intercollege Graduate Program in Ecology at Penn State University, and has been conducting research for the U.S. Geological Survey on pond-breeding amphibians in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area for the past four years.
For more information about our environmental outreach to the community, contact Jennifer Shuey, ClearWater's Executive Director.