Congratulations to newlyweds Ben and Laura Young, longtime New Canaan Public Schools teachers who tied the knot July 27 at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Stamford followed by a ceremony at Waveny. Laura, a first-grade teacher at South School, and Ben, a seventh-grade Language Arts teacher at Saxe Middle School who also is the New Canaan High School boys varsity tennis coach, have been NCPS teachers for nine and 12 years, respectively. They honeymooned in Venice and Santorini. “We feel lucky and blessed to call NCPS our home, and we are excited for this next chapter in our lives,” the newlyweds said.
A large crowd gathered Thursday evening to witness the release of two rehabilitated red foxes on a New Canaan Land Trust nature preserve off of Davenport Ridge Road. The young foxes, one male and one female, had been orphaned earlier this year, according to Dara Reid, director of Wildlife in Crisis, a Weston-based nonprofit organization that has been caring for the pair. “Both families were killed,” Reid said from the Colhoun Preserve, a 21-acre parcel acquired by the Land Trust in 1974. “One by cars and one by rodenticide—rat and mouse poison.”
Now about six months old, the foxes were in “very poor” condition when they were brought in, Reid said. “We had to give them fluids and a lot of rest when they first came to us but they have fully recovered and grown at this point,” she said.
When the cages were opened in a clearing away from the road, one of the foxes was eager for freedom, hesitating only momentarily before bounding into the bushes.
Join Wildlife in Crisis and the New Canaan Land Trust as we reintroduce two red foxes back to nature. Both foxes were brought to Wildlife in Crisis, Inc. in critical condition, where they were nursed back to health. Now, they are ready for a second chance at life. The release will happen at NCLT’s Colhoun Preserve (newcanaanlandtrust.org/colhoun/) along Davenport Ridge Road. The parking area is located directly across from 203 Davenport Ridge Road, through a wooden gate.
Last Wednesday I had the pleasure to deliver a lecture on local firefly species and firefly conservation to nearly 100 enthusiastic naturalists at the New Canaan Library. The invitation to speak was organized by Board Members of the New Canaan Land Trust, and was followed by a wonderful evening visit to the Land Trust’s Firefly Sanctuary. I have traveled the world studying fireflies for over 20 years, and while the United States boasts many beautiful nature preserves where fireflies can be observed, New Canaan’s is the first dedicated Firefly Sanctuary I have encountered in the United States. The firefly show was magical that evening, and included at least three different species of fireflies. I congratulate your community for the farsightedness of preserving habitat for the beautiful, bioluminescent courtship displays of adult firefly species and their glowworm larvae that serve as an important apex predator of the woodlands and meadow soils. I encourage anyone who wants to learn more about these efforts and opportunities to get involved to visit the New Canaan Land Trust website, and for more on other ways to get involved in protecting fireflies, please consider joining the Firefly Watch Project sponsored by Mass Audubon.
Of all the ways to protect ourselves against Lyme disease, planting “this” instead of “that” isn’t usually part of the conversation. And yet, knowing which plants attract disease-carrying ticks can make a difference. Japanese barberry, a non-native ornamental shrub that’s popular for its deer resistance, became established on New England’s post-agricultural lands in the early 1900s. It has invaded our forests, stifling native tree and wildflower regeneration and altering soil chemistry. Extensive research has revealed there is a link between Japanese barberry infestations and blacklegged (aka “deer”) ticks and the causal agent of Lyme disease with which they are infected.
