The AYLUS Great Neck branch participated in an event at Caumsett State Historic Park for the Caumsett Foundation Mini Seminar and Ice Cream Social. The Caumsett Foundation is the “friends” group associated with the park. These groups are non-profits that work to enhance their respective parks through environmental stewardship and the restoration of historic aspects of the park.
Sue Feustel, a long-time Saturday volunteer and the Conservation Chair of the Caumsett Foundation, hires several interns each year to work on environmental projects in the park. This Saturday, the interns gave a presentation about their work. They explained that the Baltimore checkerspot butterflies, which hadn’t been seen in the environment for a few decades, were found in this park, and they have been taking great care of them. Due to the prevalence of invasive plants, they are working on restoring the land to provide food for these butterflies. Pollinators are very important for the environment.
After the presentation, the interns led us on a short field trip to their series of pollinator gardens, many of which we had worked on during our Saturday projects. Afterwards, they treated us to an ice cream social, which was a delightful way to end the day.
Reported by: Fanxi Xia
Volunteers who participated(2hrs): Fanxi Xia, Zoe Xia, Tiffany Zhang, Jason Zhang, Qifeng Han, Qishen Han, Raymond Li, Yingxiang Liu, Felicia Liu, Yuya Liu, Xuanyao Jiang, Catherine Tao, Adena Yang, Alijah Yang, Alisha Yang, xinyue(syro) Tan, Shiyue Zhang, Kevin Zhang, Carrie Zhang
