Guidance Available for Landowners Interested in Habitat Restoration on Their Property

CONTACT:
Tom Brightman: (603) 271-5860
Josh Megyesy: (603) 271-1125
November 18, 2019

CONCORD, NH – New Hampshire landowners who are contemplating habitat restoration on their property are encouraged to contact biologists from the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Program for guidance on establishing young forest and shrubland habitats as well as protecting fragile wetland systems. These types of ecosystems are significant to both common wildlife as well as a number of threatened and endangered species here in the Granite State. Nongame Program biologists are also excited to share opportunities for citizen-science project participation.

The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Program participated in the first-ever Monadnock Region Natural History Conference this past Saturday. The day-long event was sponsored by the Harris Center for Conservation Education, and featured 22 presentations led by scientists and land managers that focused on conservation research, ecological restoration, and natural resource management in Southwest New Hampshire. Nongame biologists now want to make their expertise available to landowners throughout the state following the successful regional conference.

Tom Brightman, Melissa Doperalski, and Josh Megyesy presented Monadnock Region landowners with a variety of ideas about how to establish wildlife habitat on their property, focusing on those species that require young forest, shrubland, or wetland habitats to survive. The team also shared options for technical assistance and financial support for landowner projects, as well as ways in which property owners can engage in citizen science efforts to help the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department collect important data about many species.

“Young, early-successional forests and shrublands are crucial to a variety of birds, mammals, and reptiles in New Hampshire, many whose populations have declined greatly,” explained Tom Brightman, Wildlife Habitat Biologist with the Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Program. “In preparing for the Monadnock Region Natural History Conference, we realized that our message could be easily adapted for, and shared with, landowners in various regions of the state.”

“Participating in this conference was great because it allowed us to convey to landowners how important the wetlands, vernal pools, and streams on their property really are,” continued Josh Megyesy, a biologist with the Nongame Program. “These habitats are fragile, but they are imperative to the lifecycles of most reptiles and amphibians including Blanding’s, spotted, and wood turtles as well as the Northern leopard frog—all species of greatest concern here in New Hampshire.”

Landowners interested in establishing young forest habitats or protecting wetland systems on their property should contact Tom Brightman at thomas.brightman@wildlife.nh.gov or Josh Megyesy at joshua.megyesy@wildlife.nh.gov. In many cases, depending on your location in the state, both individuals are available to provide free technical assistance to private landowners contemplating wildlife habitat restoration.

New Hampshire’s Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Program works with state and private partners to protect more than 400 wildlife species in New Hampshire. The program relies on private donations, federal wildlife grants, a portion of Moose License Plate dollars, and a state matching grant from the State of New Hampshire. To learn more about the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Program visit www.wildnh.com/nongame.
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