A “Herculean” effort at Hunter Brook Preserve in Norwich

Vanquished barberry roots
Root extractor in action

More than a dozen staff, interns, and volunteers converged on Hunter Brook Preserve last Wednesday as part of a longer term project aimed at enhancing wildlife habitat along a riparian area.   It wasn’t easy work, but with all the help we made great progress in improving habitat for forest birds with most of our focus on the mechanical removal of Japanese barberry and the monitoring of previously planted native shrubs.

 

Healthy sweetspire protected from deer browse
Methodical removal of invasive vegetation with patch of false hellebore in the foreground

Thus far, our combined work has freed nearly a 1/2 acre from the clutches of barberry (and some other invasives like bittersweet, burning bush, and multi-flora rose). This work will continue over the summer with the hopes of expanding the restored area to several acres along and between the brooks that run through the preserve.

These initial steps in wildlife habitat improvement are some that were recommended in a recent habitat assessment report and part of a project funded by Audubon.  To learn more about these efforts and to get involved, please contact stewardship@avalonialc.org.