One coyote, two raccoons, one squirrel, one opposum and one muskrat. That’s my list of roadkill spotted in the past 18 hours, which is essentially my drive home last night and my travels this morning. While I’ll admit to an interest in road-killed animals – when I see a mound or lump up ahead, I always try to identify the species as I drive past – I usually don’t keep a running tally. But the coyote last night on Interstate 684 quickly followed by one of the raccoons on Interstate 84 made me start counting. The others were on Route 6 in Carmel, Route 22 in Patterson and the Saw Mill River Parkway in Bedford.

My interest, by the way, may have gotten its start years ago, when I received this as a gift.

There’s new scientific evidence out that shows a connection between PCBs – like those dumped in the Hudson River up until the 1970s – and brain problems in lab rats that are similar to defects in autistic children.
It’s a new study out of University of California San Francisco, reported in the Los Angeles Times today.
The university’s Foundation Center for Integrative Neuroscience will publish findings in this week’s online “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences� showing that lab rats exposed to low levels of polychlorinated biphenyls in the womb and during nursing showed problems in their auditory cortex.
To find out more, check out the Times’ “story”:http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-autism25apr25,0,330366.story?coll=la-home-headlines
The PCB pollution in the Hudson River is slated to be cleaned up by the General Electric Co starting in 2009, as part of an agreement with federal regulators. Construction began this week on the processing and transportation facilities for the Hudson River dredging project
For more on that cleanup effort, log on to the company’s newly created “Web site”:http://www.hudsondredging.com/

Planning to hook a summer flounder? If you are, it has to be 1.5 inches longer than last year’s size requirement, according to the state Department of Environmental Conservation. Read more after the break. Read more of this entry »

National Geographic has launched a multimedia Web site aimed at explaining how the environment works and offering tips and information on green living. The new site allows users to create tornados and tsunamis, along with catching up on “10 Easy Things You Can Do Today for Your Family’s Health and the Earth”.

Take a look at this list to see if you, your community or organization won recognition for local recycling efforts. Westchester County has announced their list of exemplaries for 2006. If you didn’t make the list, don’t dispair; there’s always next year.

The Rye Garden Club – promoting recycling and conducting educational initiatives in Rye.

Charles Fulco – promoting recycling and conducting recycling education in Port Chester schools, where he teaches science.

Heritage Management Group, led by vice president Chris Ryba – recycling 1,200 cubic yards of green waste.

Mack-Cali Realty Corp – the most improved recycling program in Westchester County’s private sector.

The City of Yonkers – first in recycling 5,403 tons of paper, making it the top municipal recycler of paper in Westchester County. Yonkers also took first place in commingled materials and in yard waste recycled.

The Town of Yorktown – recycling 34 tons of oil, making it the top municipal recycler of oil in Westchester County.

The City of White Plains – recycling 63 tons of tires, making it the top municipal recycler of tires in Westchester County.

The City of Mount Vernon – recycling 3,988 tons of bulk metal, making it the top municipal recycler of bulk metal in Westchester County.

The Village of Dobbs Ferry – recycling 45 tons of CRT electronics, making it the top recycler of electronic waste in Westchester County.

The Town of Cortlandt – producing outstanding new informational materials on recycling, earning Westchester County’s Recycling Publication Award.

The Village of Mamaroneck – producing outstanding new informational materials on recycling, earning Westchester County’s Recycling Publication Award.

The Town of Yorktown – preparing the most comprehensive annual report in recycling, earning Westchester County’s Recycling Compliance Award.

I saw a pileated woodpecker winging its way across Route 311 in Patterson yesterday. The sheer size and colors of this bird always catch my eye. This guy (or girl), said to be the inspiration for Woody Woodpecker, was flying across Route 311 near the Fair Street intersection. 

Almost hit a turkey this afternoon outside The Journal News’ office in White Plains. The bird managed to hop up on the sidewalk and wander into another parking lot unscathed.

It’s not the first time I’ve seen wild turkeys outside the office. One afternoon last year, I stood outside the building’s rear door talking on my cell phone. About 8 or ten turkeys who were strutting along and pecking at the ground paid me no mind and just parted around me. It was like a slow-motion stampede.

It’s a boy. It’s a girl. Depends on the temperature. That’s the gist of this news story, “Warming Climate Reverses Sex of Lizards.”

Back in 1998, the state spent $4 million to buy 800 acres in Kent and Patterson and turn it into Wonder Lake State Park. With no parking, no sign and no mention on the state parks department Web site, the park essentially existed for years in name only.

It’s still not on the state’s Web site but we do have a sign and parking now. The state last year added more land off Ludingtonville Road and off Mooney Hill Road – for parking and access.

Construction began late last year on a parking lot off Ludingtonville Road, pictured here.

I haven’t checked out the trails from this point, but having hiked through the park several times before, I can tell you it’s worth the trekking. Anyone venturing in can find two lakes, lots of hardwood forest and some hemlock-studded rocky ravines. (The easiest way to tell you to get there would be to take Interstate 84 to Exit 17- Ludingtonville Road. Head up Ludingtonville Road away from Route 52 and the parking lot will be on your left.)
So, if anyone goes hiking here this weekend, drop a note to The Nature of Things.

Sunday is Earth Day and that’s bringing out the green in everyone. National Geographic is inspiring “people to care about the planet” through its acquisition of “The Green Guide”, “a comprehensive Web site and bimonthly newsletter offering practical advice on how to lead a more environmentally sensitive life.”

Even Regis and Kelly are going green. In the interest of full disclosure, I don’t watch that show. But I was a captive audience when having car repairs done earlier this week. The TV was on in the waiting area . . .

An update: To catch up with an environmentalist mom, as my colleague Julie Moran Alterio call her, head over to LoHud’s Parents’ Place blog for a “Questions & Parents feature” with Patti Bressman. Bressman is on the board of the Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation in Chappaqua.