Sciences of present and distant past

LAKE WALLENPAUPACK — Penn State University professor Dr. Dave Byman will discuss the impact of white-tailed deer browse on small mammal communities on Saturday, August 16 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon at Lacawac Sanctuary’s 100-year-old Carriage House.

After meeting, participants will walk to the forest “exclosures,” areas that have been fenced to exclude deer from browsing. Since 1995, Byman has studied the effect deer populations have on small mammals like shrews, moles, voles and chipmunks as well as how they have recovered when deer browsing is limited.

Also, Frank J. Pazzaglia, geologist and associate professor at Lehigh University, will present “Rivers, Mountains, and Ice: The Making of the Pocono landscape,” on Wednesday, August 20 at 7:30 p.m. at the Carriage House.

The Poconos are a topographic plateau underlain by sedimentary rocks 350 million years old. These rocks, made of sandstone, tell of a time when massive rivers eroded the landscape and carried sediment to a vast, now extinct, ocean in the northwest. The mountains, where the rivers began, were located over what is now Philadelphia, and were the size and grandeur of the Andes.

Both erosion and the opening of the Atlantic Ocean destroyed the mountains, and the Pocono Plateau was left behind, its topography most recently shaped by the great sheets of ice that flowed southward from Canada over the past two million years.

This program will reconstruct these geologic events and provide some hands-on samples of the different types of rocks underlying the Pocono Plateau.

Admission for both events is $3. For more information call 570/689-9494 or visit lacawac.org.

Catskill Forest Association
to hold annual meeting

ARKVILLE, NY — The Catskill Forest Association will hold its annual meeting on Saturday, August 23 at the Longhouse Lodge of Belleayre Mountain Ski Area.

This year’s presentations will include mammals of the Catskills, invasive plants of the Catskills and forest insects of the Catskills.

The mammal presentation will introduce all the furry critters of the region, along with tips on their identification and signs of their presence.

Invasive plants are a topic of growing concern from cities to forested areas. Improve the biodiversity and habitat of your property by learning how to control invasive plants.

Insects that can affect forest health have earned the attention of landowners and foresters for many years. Learn to identify the insect pests that are effecting or may soon affect your property.

There will be a BBQ lunch, free chairlift ride, raffle items and an auction. For more information call 845/586-3054.

Class tackles fishing at Hawley Library

HAWLEY, PA — Catching a fish is tricky business. Mark Strasser from the Wallenpaupack Sport Shop will teach the tricks of the trade to all ages on Thursday, August 21 at 1:00 p.m. at the Hawley Public Library, 103 Main Avenue.

Strasser will display fishing poles, tackle and bait as well as describe different types of fish, where to find them and how to catch them.

To register call 570/226-4620.

Tusten youth river trip approaches

NARROWSBURG, NY — Registration is still available for the Tusten Youth Commission raft trip on Sunday, August 17. The program is funded in part by a grant from the New York State Office of Children and Family Services, through sponsorship by the Sullivan County Youth Bureau.

For more information call 845/252-6668.