Thank you to Dave Kramer, wildlife scientist, for teaching us on May 12 how NYS DEC learns more about the animals here. He described how they determine the abundance of animals through collaring, aerial surveys, density heat maps, hunter/public sightings, hunter harvesting/trapping, and pelt selling. Through his “M and M method,” scientists take the numbers they know and extrapolate the total count of animals in a given area. Dave Kramer specifically talked about camera tracking and a DEC – Cornell University collaborative program called SnapshotNY, www.snapshotny.org. With a phone, computer, and trail camera (which you may be able to borrow from DEC), citizens can help contribute to this body of knowledge. Each citizen scientist works with a specific 30 x 30 km cell of land, either their own or public. They are focusing on bobcats, otters, fishers, and martens. Dave confirmed that they do not think there are any mountain lions in New York. Dave, who clearly has this presentation down to a science, also regaled us with a few “dad jokes.” My favorite was, “What do you get when you cross an elephant and a rhinoceros?” The answer is, “Elephino.” (Say it aloud).
