Some of our Projects..
WOOD TURTLE USE OF TWO HUDSON VALLEY FARMS
In 2018, Jason Tesauro Consulting partnered with Hudsonia, Ltd. to document the interactions between the wood turtle, a New York State Species of Special Concern, and agriculture at two farms in the Hudson Valley. The data generated from this ongoing study is being used to develop wood turtle management plans that reduce farm-related turtle mortality and improve wood turtle habitat resources on non-cultivated portions of farms.
RESTORING A MIXED HARDWOOD SWAMP IN AN ALTERED PHRAGMITES WETLAND
On a private estate in Connecticut, a series of land-use impacts and unchecked beaver activity converted approximately 15 acres of mixed hardwood swamp to a near-homogenous mat of the invasive reed, Phragmites austrailis. With their strong commitment to ecological stewardship and promoting biodiversity, the landowners retained Jason Tesauro Consulting and Country Views, Inc. to resurrect the mixed hardwood swamp through a phased approach entailing 1) reducing water levels and restoring natural stream flow patterns through flood obstruction removal and humane beaver control); 2) pasturing cattle in the Phragmites stand to control new growth and crush the smothering mats of reed biomass; 3) planting native trees (red maple, eastern larch) and shrubs (shrub willows, alder, buttonbush) simultaneous with the grazing. As the woody canopy develops, the shade will eventually weaken the vigor of the Phragmites stand, relegating it to a minor component of the understory.
SOUTHEASTERN NEW YORK BOG TURTLE SURVEY
In June of 2021, Jason Tesauro Consulting was awarded a grant by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to advance recovery efforts for the federally-threatened bog turtle in southeastern New York, specifically through conducting surveys to detect bog turtle presence in insufficiently surveyed drainages and sites where bog turtles were documented historically. (This project built upon an previous grant with USFWS in which Jason Tesauro Consulting mapped and ground-truthed over 50 potential bog turtle habitats in the Hudson Valley west of the Hudson River.) In spring of 2022, rapid-assessment surveys were carried out at ten sites, yielding the discovery of one new bog turtle site and the reconfirmation of bog turtles at a historic site. Tesauro is currently facilitating the enrollment of the sites into permanent conservation easements under the USDA-NRCS Wetland Reserve easement program.