SIGNIFICANT HABITATS AND HABITAT
COMPLEXES
OF THE NEW YORK BIGHT WATERSHED
Dutchess
County Wetlands Complex
COMPLEX #27
List of Species of Special Emphasis
I. SITE NAME: Dutchess County Wetlands Complex
II. SITE LOCATION: The Dutchess County wetlands complex is a network of five wetland complexes in the Hudson Valley, occurring east of the Hudson River in western Dutchess County from Interstate 84 north to the Dutchess-Columbia county line
TOWNS: Clinton, East Fishkill, Hyde Park, La Grange, Milan, Pine Plains, Stanford, Wappinger
COUNTY: Dutchess
STATE: New York
USGS 7.5 MIN QUADS: Poughquag, NY (41073-56), Hopewell Junction, NY (41073-57), Pleasant Valley, NY (41073-67), Poughkeepsie, NY (41073-68), Salt Point, NY (41073-77), Hyde Park, NY (41073-78), Pine Plains, NY (41073-86), Rock City, NY (41073-87),
USGS 30 x 60 MIN QUAD: Waterbury, CT-NY (41073-E1)
III. BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION AND JUSTIFICATION: The five wetland sites included within this complex are, from south to north: East Fishkill, La Grange, East Park, Milan Window, and Stissing Mountain.
The East Fishkill site boundary follows the Conrail railroad tracks from the Green Haven Correctional Facility westward almost to the hamlet of Hopewell Junction and skirts around to the north of the hamlet. It then runs southwestward to Swartoutville and southeastward from a point west of Swartoutville to Route 52, then east to Lime Kiln Road, south to I-84, east along I-84 to Mountain Top Road, then northeastward and northward to Green Haven Correctional Facility. This boundary is designed to encompass several wetlands and their watersheds and buffer zones that are biologically significant for rare turtles, plants, and other species, as well as intervening areas that contain potential habitat for these species.
The La Grange site boundary follows the Taconic State Parkway on the east, then northwest on Mountain Road, Carter Road, and Traver Road to just north of the Pleasant Valley town line. It proceeds southwest on Rombout Road to Overlook Road, east on Overlook Road, east and south following the electric transmission line to Sprout Creek, then eastward to Hillside Lake Road, northeastward to Arthursburg Road, and continues in the same direction to the Taconic Parkway. The boundaries are based principally on known rare turtle habitats and the known or presumed movement corridors connecting these habitats. In a few cases, suitable habitat close to known habitat is included, though not yet demonstrated to be used by turtles. Expansion of boundaries might be required in certain areas as more is learned about movements of the turtles, including nesting migrations and dispersal movements.
The East Park site boundary follows Route 9G on the west as far south as East Dorsey Lane, then north following hilltops that include Dennis Hill and Barnes Hill to Hollow Road, and northwest on Hollow Road to Route 9G. These boundaries are based on rare turtle occurrences, the buffer zones and corridors necessary for terrestrial activity of the turtles, and potential habitat complexes located between known habitats.
The Milan Window site boundary follows Milan Hollow Road from Bulls Head Road north and west to junction with Pond Road, then west to the fork in the electric transmission lines, and south along the western branch of the transmission lines to Fiddlers Bridge Road. It then proceeds east to Schultzville, and north along Centre Road to the Little Wappinger Creek crossing, then approximately north-northeast to the junction of Bulls Head Road and Milan Hollow Road. The site boundaries include the Silver Lake - Mud Pond - Long Pond chain of lakes and associated wetlands, the outwash plain matrix, and buffer zones to protect the lakes and to accommodate known turtle nesting areas. These boundaries encompass the portions of the Milan Window currently known to support rare native species; the boundaries may need expansion northward, possibly as far as Route 199, with continued biological surveys. Another area that should be considered as a potential addition to the site is the extensive, ledged, forested upland on the west side of the valley along with The Nature Conservancy's Zipfelberg Bog preserve on Zipfelberg Road (Frost Road) on the western edge of that upland.
The Stissing Mountain site boundary follows Route 82 on the east, Route 199 on the north, Hicks Hill Road on the west, and Cold Spring Road on the south following hilltops near Shelly Hill Road and Bulls Head Road, and then proceeds northeast to Route 82. The high-density portion of the hamlet of Pine Plains is excluded from the northeastern corner of the site. The boundary encloses a large complex of protected lands and state-regulated wetlands and known rare species occurrences.
IV. OWNERSHIP/PROTECTION/RECOGNITION: The majority of land at these sites is privately owned. At the La Grange site, the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation owns James Baird State Park, and The Nature Conservancy owns the Overlook Preserve. The Eleanor Roosevelt (Val Kill) site owned and managed by the U.S. National Park Service is at the southern end of the East Park Site. The Stissing Mountain area has a high percentage of protected sites. The National Audubon Society owns Buttercup Sanctuary on both sides of Route 82 at Attlebury Hill Road. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation owns the Stissing Mountain Multiple Use Area (also called Stissing Mountain State Forest) on the east side of Hicks Hill Road south of Miller Pond. The Nature Conservancy owns Thompson Pond Preserve. Mashomack Preserve (formerly Stockbriar and Briarcliff Farm), on the east side of Stissing Mountain between Thompson Pond Preserve and Buttercup Sanctuary, is a large private parcel owned by a sporting club. The Stissing Mountain area was designated a National Natural Landmark by the National Park Service. Wetlands are regulated in New York under the state's Freshwater Wetlands Act of 1975 and Tidal Wetlands Act of 1977; these statutes are in addition to federal regulation under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, Section 404 of the Clean Water Act of 1977, and various Executive Orders.
V. GENERAL AREA DESCRIPTION: The East Fishkill site comprises portions of a carbonate lowland at elevations of about 76 to 198 meters (250 to 650 feet) on the northern border of the New York - New Jersey Highlands, and includes Shenandoah Mountain and Hosner Mountain. Large areas are farmland or former farmland, with some suburban residential and commercial development, as well as woodlands and wetlands drained by tributaries of Fishkill Creek. The wetlands range from highly calcareous fens to very acidic bogs; there are also wooded swamps, wet meadows, shrub pools, and marshes. Penneywater Pond is a circumneutral bog lake with cattail (Typha spp.) floating mats. A wetland area at Hopewell Junction has acidic bog mats and an acidic bog lake in addition to marshes. All Angel Bog (also called Fishkill Bog) southwest of Swartoutville is an acidic bog with the only known inland (non-Hudson River) goldenclub (Orontium aqauticum) population in the Hudson Valley. There are areas of carbonate outcrop locally, e.g., southwest of Penneywater Pond and on the east side of Lime Kiln Road.
A glacial outwash plain occupies most of the La Grange site, excepting portions of the northwestern extension of the site. This outwash plain is part of the Sprout Creek-Fishkill Creek outwash system and aquifer, and is very rich in groundwater. Hoosic soils predominate on the outwash at the site. Uplands are characterized by woodlands, farmlands, a golf course (at Baird Park), and a variety of suburban residential and commercial developments. Sprout Creek, with a substantial introduced brown trout (Salmo trutta) fishery, runs through the southern half of the site, with a small perennial tributary locally known as the Fly Sprout draining southward from Baird Park, and another small perennial tributary, Jackson Creek, crossing the southern end of the site. Wetlands include some floodplain forests along Sprout Creek and the Fly Sprout, an extensive, mixed hardwood swamp bordering Jackson Creek on the northwest, and many isolated or semi-isolated shrub pools, wooded swamps, wet meadows, and impoundments. Some of the wetlands are weakly calcareous.
The East Park site is a rural landscape that is suburbanizing rapidly along Route 9G, especially southwards. The site is drained, north to south, by Crum Elbow Creek, the Maritje Kill, and the Fall Kill, all small Hudson River tributaries. Bedrock is interbedded shale and sandstone (graywacke); the bedrock is somewhat calcareous, at least locally. Soils are derived from till and outwash, with a belt of outwash following Route 9G. The topography is gentle on the outwash, but on the till is quite ledged and broken in many areas. Local relief is not great, often only 6 to 12 meters (20 to 40 feet), and elevations range from around 61 to 152 meters (200 to 500 feet). Many small wetlands lie in poorly-drained depressions between low bedrock ridges; other, sometimes larger, wetlands follow the streams. There are several old, silted millponds on the streams. Large areas are forested, principally with oaks and other hardwoods; there are also active and former farmlands. A commercial strip has developed along substantial portions of Route 9G.
The Milan Window is so named because the younger bedrock of the valley floor is surrounded by older bedrock uplands. The valley is carbonate rock (dolostone and limestone) overlain by glacial outwash. The surrounding hills are mostly slate overlain by till. Soils in the valley include carbonate-derived and slate-derived types. Four lakes lie in the valley, from north to south: an unnamed lake, Silver Lake, Twin Island Lake (Mud Pond), and Long Pond. The lakes are circumneutral bog lakes with a variety of wetlands -- wooded swamps, cattail and swamp loosestrife (Lysimachia terrestris) on floating mats, tussocky marshes, and acidic shrub bogs -- in coves and behind islands. There are also areas of waterlilies (Nymphaea spp. and Nuphar spp.) and submerged vegetation. Private residences, institutions, and a recreational vehicle campground border the lakes. There are also wetlands that are isolated from the lakes; these include buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)-dominated vernal pools, red maple (Acer rubrum) swamps, and a fen-like meadow. Hardwood swamps border Little Wappinger Creek in places. Uplands include hardwood forests, old fields, and farmland.
Stissing Mountain and Little Stissing Mountain comprise an 8-kilometer (5-mile) long, forested, "floating" block of Precambrian gneiss underlain by younger rock. (For additional detail, see physiographic settings chapter, p. 15.) The east side of Stissing and the southeast side of Little Stissing are very steep; slopes are somewhat less steep to the west and south. Elevations range from about 140 meters (450 feet) in the lowlands to 425 meters (1,400 feet) at the summit of Stissing. The low elevation areas are underlain by slate on the west of the mountain, and on the east side by carbonates. Much of the land east of the mountain is farmland, wetland, and lake, with localized outcrops of carbonate rock (dolostone and limestone). There are small areas of quartzite on Stissing Mountain near the southwest corner of Thompson Pond and on the southwest flank of the mountain at Cold Spring. The lowlands east of Stissing comprise an outwash plain drained by the upper end of Wappinger Creek.
The uplands of gneiss and quartzite (Stissing Mountain and Little Stissing Mountain) are forested with plant communities that are generally characteristic of the southern Taconic Mountains or the New York - New Jersey Highlands east of the Hudson River. Red and chestnut oak (Quercus rubra and Q. prinus) are abundant among a variety of other woody species. There is a great amount of exposed rock in ledges, slabs, and talus in some areas, notably on the eastern slopes of Stissing. This area has very extensive, relatively stabilized, gneiss talus that is thinly forested. Areas on and near the summit of Stissing have gentle topography, with numerous intermittent woodland pools and small swamps dominated by deciduous trees and shrubs. A small grass and shrub meadow is located on the north end of Stissing at an elevation of about 410 meters (1,350 feet); this lies north of the burned ruins of the fire lookout cabin and north of the fire tower. Extensive slab rock characterizes the quartzite areas. Thompson Pond, Stissing Lake, and Twin Island Lake are circumneutral bog lakes with peripheral floating mats dominated by cattail, and in some areas by alder (Alnus spp.) and peat moss (Sphagnum spp.). A small, floating, black spruce (Picea mariana) bog lies 365 meters (1,200 feet) east of the northern part of Thompson Pond. South of Thompson Pond, wetlands include a variety of hardwood swamps, cattail marshes, and other calcareous wetland types. Halcyon Lake (Buttermilk Pond) is a marl lake that was damaged by mining and is now largely dominated by the invasive common reed (Phragmites australis). The southwestern corner of the site is a complex of farms and former farms containing a number of small to medium-size wetlands (wet meadows, intermittent woodland pools, limestone pools, shrub pools, and wooded swamps). This area is partly underlain by carbonate bedrock.
VI. ECOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE/UNIQUENESS OF SITE: The Dutchess county wetlands support 36 species of special emphasis, including the following federally and state-listed species. (Living resources and their habitats are dynamic; therefore, the ecological significance and species information presented here may not be complete or up-to-date. State and federal environmental agencies [see Appendix III for office contacts] should be consulted for additional information.)
Federal candidate
bog turtle (Clemmys muhlenbergii)
Federal species of concern(1)
Blanding's turtle (Emydoidea blandingii)
1Species of special concern listed here include former Category 2 candidates.
State-listed endangered
golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)
State-listed threatened
northern cricket frog (Acris c. crepitans)
American bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus)
red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus)
Rocky Mountain sedge (Carex backii)
swamp cottonwood (Populus heterophylla)
State-listed special concern animals
blue-spotted salamander (Ambystoma laterale)
spotted turtle (Clemmys guttata)
wood turtle (Clemmys insculpta)
State-listed rare plants
Bicknell's sedge (Carex bicknellii)
Bush's sedge (Carex bushii)
weak stellate sedge (Carex seorsa)
Willdenow's sedge (Carex willdenowii)
red-rooted flatsedge (Cyperus erythrorhizos)
smartweed dodder (Cuscuta polygonorum)
swamp agrimony (Agrimonia parviflora)
This complex of wetlands in Dutchess County is the only known location for Blanding's turtle in the New York Bight study area, and one of the few sites in the Northeast. There are about ten known, extant, local populations at these five sites, though this count of ten is somewhat arbitrary, depending on how the population boundaries are drawn. Additional populations will almost certainly be discovered in the general area. The known populations appear to be small, probably on the order of 8 to 50 adults each. Blanding's turtle is found in one other region of New York, along the upper St. Lawrence River corridor and the adjoining portion of the Lake Ontario plain. While its main geographic range runs from Ohio westward, there is, in addition to these populations, a disjunct population in northeastern Massachusetts, extreme southeastern New Hampshire, and extreme southeastern Maine; there is also a small disjunct population in southern Nova Scotia.
Blanding's turtles in Dutchess County are associated with several different bedrock formations, including carbonates, graywacke with shale, and slate. Nine of the ten sites here are associated with Hoosic gravelly loam, an acidic, well-drained soil derived from glacial outwash. The principal wetlands (vernal pools) inhabited by the turtles have organic surface sediments, and often occur in glacial kettles. These pools, which occur in clusters at Blanding's turtle sites, vary in size from 0.03 to 7.2 hectares (0.7 to 17.8 acres). The pools tend to have a well-developed fringe of trees but little or no tree shade in the interior, and substantial cover by tall shrubs, most often buttonbush, low cover by graminoids, and a variety of living and dead plant material on the water surface. Pool water is deep in spring (0.3 to 1.2 meters [1 to 4 feet]) and may either be permanent or may dry up in summer or early fall. Inlet and outlet streams are absent or tiny, i.e., there is little throughflow. The turtle's seasonal requirements (warmth in spring and cool refuges in summer) are satisfied by the vernal pools. In addition to vernal pools, Blanding's turtle sites have drought refuges, usually a spring-fed pond, lake, or wetland pool less than 1 meter (3.3 feet) deep and upland nesting areas on well-drained, sparsely vegetated soil with good sun exposure. Overwintering evidently occurs in vernal pools or drought refuge ponds. Hatchling and juvenile habitats are essentially unknown. Blanding's turtles have been found not only in a variety of open ponds, but also in intermittent woodland pools (typical mole salamander breeding pools), acidic shrub bogs, cattail-dominated deep marsh, and flooded red maple swamp near shrubby pools. The nesting habitat may be as far as 1,000 meters (3,281 feet) or more from the vernal pools. Nesting occurs in habitats modified by human activities such as residential subdivisions, house yards and gardens, utility transmission rights-of-way, and other disturbed areas such as soil pockets on rock outcrops, in addition to natural habitats.
Extant bog turtle populations are known at two sites in the East Fishkill complex. These populations do not appear to be connected to other populations in the Harlem Valley or the Highlands. The northern cricket frog occurs at the Milan Window site, and is the only known occurrence of this species east of the Hudson River. Other regionally rare amphibian and reptile species include blue-spotted salamander, marbled salamander (Ambystoma opacum), four-toed salamander (Hemidactylium scutatum), spotted turtle, wood turtle, and eastern box turtle (Terrapene c. carolina).
The Stissing Mountain site has forested, rocky uplands and talus and extensive calcareous wetlands and ponds/lakes with many habitats that are unusual or scarce in the region. The only documented consistent wintering by golden eagle in the New York Bight study area occurs on Stissing Mountain. Although golden eagles built nests here one year, there has been no documented breeding yet at this site. A small great blue heron (Ardea herodias) heronry has occurred at a swamp at the Stissing Mountain site. A good example of a calcareous cliff community, with an occurrence of Bush's sedge, is located at the Attlebury Marshes at the eastern edge of the Stissing site. Several other rare sedge species occur in the woods and openings on Little Stissing and Stissing Mountain, including hay sedge (Carex argyrantha), Rocky Mountain sedge, Bicknell's sedge, Bush's sedge, weak stellate sedge, and Willdenow's sedge. This is the only known extant occurrence of the Rocky Mountain sedge in the New York Bight study area. Many other regionally rare species are also present, including red-bellied snake (Storeria occipitomaculata), eastern ribbon snake (Thamnophis s. sauritus), and prairie sedge (Carex prairea). Thompson Pond contains one of the region's largest softstem bulrush-hardstem bulrush (Scirpus tabernaemontani and S. acutus) communities. The state-listed rare smartweed dodder occurs in the cattail marsh at Thompson Pond.
VII. THREATS AND SPECIAL PROBLEMS: Intensive residential and commercial development continues to eliminate and degrade wetlands, their upland buffer zones, and other habitats, and fragment remaining habitats. The increasing fragmentation of habitat by roads, and the increase in traffic on these roads, threatens the bog turtle, Blanding's turtle, wood turtle, and other wildlife attempting to cross them. Blanding's turtles move widely in the area and may also be threatened by mowing of fields in spring and even summer. Water pollution, including nutrient loading, is a problem, as is dumping in wetlands. Soil mining and forest clearing are impinging on wetlands in Hopewell Junction and probably other areas. Golden club decline in All Angel Bog, part of the East Fishkill site, may be the result of natural succession of sediments and vegetation, and/or caused by external nutrient loading from houses at the edge of wetlands. A closed municipal landfill in former wetlands in the La Grange site is a potential threat from the leaching of contaminants. Pesticide runoff may also be a problem. Development around Stissing Pond and Twin Island Lake is impinging on wetlands, through wetland fill and probable sewage inputs, and a large residential subdivision is proposed in the southwestern corner of the site.
Boating use, including motorized boats, in the Milan Window site is moderate to heavy and may be disturbing birds and aquatic plants. Weed harvesting is practiced on Silver Lake to maintain boating lanes; this does not seem harmful at the current level, but would be deleterious if extended to large areas of the lake. Sterile grass carp have been introduced to Long Pond under state permit to control weeds, despite the presence of state-listed species. The long-term effects of repeated introductions of grass carp on the ecological community of circumneutral bog lakes is unknown. Many of the lakeside homes, businesses, and institutions have old infrastructure, and sewage treatment is probably not adequate to keep excess nutrients out of the lakes. A large residential subdivision has been proposed for the west side of Silver Lake, and a small subdivision is active on Twin Island Lake. Roadside dumps, which have been in intermittent use for at least 25 years, on the west side of Silver Lake could be polluting the lake. A small soil mine adjoining one lake may have a negative impact. Clearing of trees around some of the wetlands and lakeshores may eventually cause deterioration of habitat for Blanding's turtle. Invasion by exotic species, especially purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), is a problem in many Dutchess County wetlands.
Insufficient survey work has been done at these sites for Blanding's turtle and other rare species. Critical habitats are likely threatened and disappearing before they can be properly identified and protected.
VIII. CONSERVATION RECOMMENDATIONS: Further study of the distribution, population status, habitat use, and movement patterns of the bog and Blanding's turtles, and other species, is needed. Protection of wetlands and their buffer zones, as well as of the movement corridors and road crossings connecting wetlands, is the highest priority. Predator guards should be placed over nests where appropriate. Posted speed limits and Wildlife Crossing or Turtle Crossing signs are needed locally. It is especially important to determine, protect, and maintain buffer zones and corridors between and among populations or metapopulations of bog and Blanding's turtles. The Nature Conservancy has been experimenting with protection and management of Blanding's turtle habitat by creating artificial nesting habitat. These experiments should continue and, if successful, be applied to other areas where natural nesting habitat or migratory corridors have been destroyed. Habitat conservation for the Blanding's turtle needs more attention in the state and local environmental decision-making process. Better local planning and better enforcement of wetlands laws are needed; effective and fair enforcement of state and federal wetlands laws would be helpful in protecting rare habitats and the species that depend on them. Development and agriculture around lakes needs be regulated to protect wetlands and water quality; this might be accomplished through some form of local cooperation rather than external regulation. Halcyon Lake should be studied for the potential to restore native plant communities, as marl lakes are extremely rare in the region. Trails on Stissing Mountain need maintenance to curb erosion. Impacts of hikers on the reproductive success of golden eagle on Stissing Mountain need to be investigated.
Additional land areas need to be protected via conservation easements or other means. The Dutchess Land Conservancy is working to acquire conservation easements. This venture should be assisted in any way possible, with priority attached to known habitats of the rare native biota. It is not necessarily best, nor possible, for government agencies or conservation organizations always to acquire all the lands needed to protect a rare community type or important habitat. Various approaches and strategies exist for protecting valuable wildlife habitats; each provides different degrees of protection and requires different levels of commitment by regulatory agencies, conservation organizations, and landowners. These techniques include combined public and private financing, land exchanges, conservation easements, cooperative management agreements, mutual covenants, purchase of development rights, comprehensive planning, zoning and land-use regulations, enforcement of existing local, state, and federal regulations, and fee simple acquisition. Techniques can be combined to develop a strategy for land protection that is tailored to a specific site. Partnerships among individual landowners within habitat complexes offer an exciting, practical, and innovative approach to the large, landscape-scale habitats recognized here. Education and cooperative agreements with land owners may be useful in reducing the impacts of agriculture and landscaping on Blanding's turtle.
Lake Drive should be closed to through traffic, and needs Wildlife Crossing or Turtle Crossing signs. Similar signs are needed where Slate Quarry Road-Bulls Head Road crosses between Silver Lake and Twin Island Pond. All subdivisions should be designed and permitted with full consideration for the rare native biota. Septic system upgrades or central sewerage with tertiary treatment may be needed to reduce nutrient loading of the lakes. Grass carp, which are often used as a remedy to the impacts of eutrophication, should only be introduced into lakes if strict point and nonpoint source discharge controls have been implemented throughout each pond's drainage and fail to correct the eutrophication problem. Grass carp should not be introduced in ponds containing rare species. It may be appropriate to limit or ban gasoline boat motors.
IX. REFERENCES:
Busch, P.S. (ed.). 1976. The ecology of Thompson Pond in Dutchess County, New York. The Nature Conservancy, Boston, MA.
Fisher, D. W. and A. S. Warthin, Jr. 1976. Stratigraphic and structural geology in western Dutchess County, New York. In J.H. Johnsen (ed.) Field guide book. New York State Geological Association, 48th annual meeting, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY.
Kiviat, E. Unpublished data and observations; unpublished reports filed with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany, NY.
Kiviat, E. 1987. Blanding's turtle survey of the proposed Maybrook Highway route in the Town of East Fishkill, Dutchess County, New York. Report to Rudikoff and Rohde (in Appendix E, Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Dutchess County Route 11 (Maybrook Railbed Highway) Dutchess County, NY).
Kiviat, E. 1993. Blanding's turtle habitat assessment at the Playhouse Square development site, Hyde Park, New York. Unpublished report to DLC Management Corporation and Matthew D. Rudikoff Associates. Hudsonia Ltd., Annandale, NY.
Kiviat, E. 1990. Stissing Mountain area critical environmental area recommendations. Unpublished report to Town of Stanford Conservation Advisory Council. Hudsonia Ltd., Annandale, NY.
Kiviat, E., M.W. Klemens, G. Stevens, and J.L. Behler. 1993. Southeastern New York bog turtle survey. Report to New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Hudsonia Ltd., and the IUCN/SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group. 67 p. [Confidential; filed with NYSDEC.]
Kiviat, E., P. Groffman, G. Stevens, S. Nyman, and G. Hansen. In prep. Characterization of reference wetlands in eastern New York. Unpublished report to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, New York, NY, Hudsonia Ltd., and the Institute of Ecosystem Studies.
Klemens, M.W. 1993. Amphibians and reptiles of Connecticut and adjacent regions. State Geological and Natural History Survey of Connecticut, Bulletin No. 112.
Klemens, M.W., R.P. Cook, and D.J. Hayes. 1992. Herpetofauna of Roosevelt-Vanderbilt National Historic Sites Hyde Park, New York, with emphasis on Blanding's turtle (Emydoidea blandingii). U.S. National Park Service Technical Report NPS/NAROSS/NRTR-92-08. 34 p.
Nyman, S. and E. Kiviat. 1987. Bog turtle survey, proposed Maybrook Highway route, Dutchess County, New York. Report to Rudikoff and Rohde (in Appendix E, Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Dutchess County Route 11 (Maybrook Railbed Highway) Dutchess County, New York).
Nyman, S. & E. Kiviat. 1987. Bog turtle habitat assessment of the Lime Kiln Road development property. Unpublished report to Environmental Systems Planning. Hudsonia Ltd., Annandale, NY.
Nyman, S. 1987. Survey for rare flora along the proposed Maybrook Highway route, Dutchess County, New York. Report to Rudikoff and Rohde (in Appendix E, Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Dutchess County Route 11 (Maybrook Railbed Highway) Dutchess County, New York).
Roberts, E.A. and H.W. Reynolds. 1938. The role of plant life in the history of Dutchess County. Published by the authors, 44 p. + maps in pockets.
Schmidt, R.E., E. Kiviat, and D. R. Roeder. 1986. An ecological assessment of Crum Elbow Creek. Unpublished report to Hyde Park Fire and Water District. Hudsonia Ltd., Annandale, NY.
Schmidt, R.E. and E. Kiviat. 1986. Environmental quality of the Fishkill Creek drainage, a Hudson River tributary. Unpublished report to the Hudson River Fishermen's Association and the Open Space Institute. Hudsonia Ltd., Annandale, NY.
Stevens, G., R.E. Schmidt, D.R. Roeder, J.S. Tashiro, and E. Kiviat. 1994. Baseline assessment of tributaries to the Hudson (BATH): water quality, fishes, macroinvertebrates, and diatoms in Fishkill Creek, Quassaic Creek, and Moodna Creek. Report to the Hudson River Improvement Fund, 2 vols. Hudsonia Ltd., Annandale, NY.
Stevens, G. and E. Kiviat. 1991. Wetland PV-53 boundary reconnaissance, Town of La Grange, Dutchess County, New York. Unpublished report to town of La Grange Conservation Advisory Council and town of East Fishkill Conservation Advisory Council.
Stevens, G. and E. Kiviat. 1990. Turtle habitat assessment, Salisbury Landing development site, town of Hyde Park, Dutchess County, New York. Unpublished report to East Coast Land Partners, Inc. Hudsonia Ltd., Annandale, NY.
List of Species of Special Emphasis
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