Lancaster Conservancy Events

April 2021

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May 2021

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lancasterconservancy

Providing wild and forested lands and clean waterways for our community, forever.
📍 47 nature preserves located in Lancaster & York Counties, PA.

Lancaster Water Week returns for its FIFTH YEAR wi

Lancaster Water Week returns for its FIFTH YEAR with over 20 events that CELEBRATE our unique waterways and EDUCATE our community to TAKE ACTION for cleaner streams and rivers!

💧 Join us June 4-12 for guided hikes, virtual lectures, and volunteer opportunities like the Conestoga Clean Up! Dive in and sign up for events at the link in our bio or at https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/water-week/

#lancasterwaterweek

🌳 Protecting our forests is key to mitigating c

🌳 Protecting our forests is key to mitigating climate change.

"The burgeoning level of investment in new technologies around energy production and efficiency as well as direct carbon capture are exciting. They give me great hope that in the long run we will outpace the challenge of climate change. But even with the increase of investment and innovation dramatically quickening, getting new technologies to operate at the scale we need to move the needle is years, if not decades, in the future.

While we may have to wait for those solutions to come online, we already have access to critical technology that is working right now and at scale. After millions of years of evolution, it operates with an unmatched level of efficiency and provides more than one life sustaining product. It’s called a forest." - Larry Selzer, President and CEO, The Conservation Fund

Read the full article "Tackling Climate Change Begins With Investing in Our Forests" from Our Planet Daily at the link in our bio.

📸 by @michellejohnsenphotography of the forest that is protected forever at Shenks Ferry Wildflower Preserve.

#landtrust #climatechange #lancasterconservancy #forests #protectnature #nature

🌸WILDFLOWER WATCH 2021🌸 Shenks Ferry Wildfl

🌸WILDFLOWER WATCH 2021🌸
Shenks Ferry Wildflower Preserve
Observations from Tuesday, April 6

🌸In Bloom:
Dutchmens breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)
Squirrel corn (Dicentra canadensis)
Susquehanna trillium (Trillium felxipes)
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)
Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum)
Yellow Trout Lilly (Erythronium Americanum)
Virginia Bluebell (Mertensia virginica)
Spring beauty (Claytonia virginica)
Smooth yellow violet (Viola pubescens)
Cutleaf toothwort (Cardamine concatenate)

🌸Coming Soon:
Blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)

Let us know what wildflowers you spot!

🗺Learn more about visiting Shenks Ferry and get your trail map and guide at: https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/a-guide-to-visiting-shenks-ferry-wildflower-preserve/
📸by @michellejohnsenphotography of Dutchmens breeches

If you you could forest bathe through photos - the

If you you could forest bathe through photos - these would be those photos. 🧘‍♀️🌳

Thank you to @summercrowphotos (𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐥𝐢𝐧 𝐎'𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧) for sharing these meditative shots from a hike at our Otter Creek Nature Preserve last month.

Share your #momentsofzen on our nature preserves with us.
#forestbathing #lancasterconservancy #hikelancaster #hikeyork

Our native pussy willow (Salix discolor) is one of

Our native pussy willow (Salix discolor) is one of the many harbingers of spring.
The opening buds of female plants are not nearly as furry as those on male plants. Early spring pollinators feast on this plant's little furry flowers and the leaves are the larval host for the mourning cloak and viceroy butterflies.

Be careful if you go to the nursery to purchase a pussy willow as there are several non-native species with the same common name. Always have the Latin name with you when purchasing a native species.

📸 Photo & Information from Linda Ferich, Community Wildlife Habitat Volunteer
🐝 Learn how you can help create habitat for wildlife: www.lancasterconservancy.org/habitat
#plantoftheweek #nativeplants #createhabitat #lancasterconservancy

🏆Turkey Tail is the winner of the Conservancy’s Mushroom March Madness! Thank you for voting and learning about the fascinating world of fungi along with us!! Now get out on our over 40 miles of trails and find some Turkey Tail to congratulate! #lancasterconservancy #mushrooms #fungi

📸 by Kerry Givens

🐸 Future frogs found in the forests of our Trou

🐸 Future frogs found in the forests of our Trout Run Nature Preserve.

Thank you to @thesparklingpeachphotography for capturing this sign of spring! What signs of spring have you witnessed in the woods? #LancasterConservancy #HikeLancaster

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | 🏆 Championship Ga

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | 🏆 Championship Game
Turkey Tail [Trametes versicolor] vs Purple Laccaria [Laccaria ochropurpurea]

We’re here – the final game of Mushroom March Madness! It comes down to these two stunners – Turkey Tail and Purple Laccaria! Who will come out ahead as the most beloved fungus among-us? Turkey Tail, with its distinct striated coloring, or Purple Laccaria, with its striking purple gills and white cap? It’s up to YOU to decide! Vote in our Instagram stories!

Follow along by downloading our bracket: https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/mushroom-march-madness/

📷 by Kerry Givens

Explore our interactive 2020 Annual Report, which

Explore our interactive 2020 Annual Report, which is filled with maps, photos, and videos that tell the story of what the Conservancy was able to accomplish (in a year like no other) thanks to the generous support of our members, supporters, volunteers, sponsors, and partners! Thank you for all that you do for nature and our community!

View our 2020 Annual Report at the link in our bio or at www.lancasterconservancy.org/2020annualreport/

"Even with the challenges presented to all of us during 2020, we are pleased to say this report is no exception. Our organization grew stronger in the face of adversity, and the community support we received increased as people found escape into nature so critical to their mental and physical well-being." - Phil Wenger, Lancaster Conservancy President

Illustration by Bailey Watro

#LancasterConservancy #LandTrust #HikeLancaster #HikeYork #susquehannariverlands #lancasterpa #yorkpa

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Final Four | Round 3

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Final Four | Round 3, Game 2

Polypore vs Purple Laccaria [Laccaria ochropurpurea]

Polypore impresses in the first half, making a two-hand jam as it plays an important role in wood decay, contributing significantly to nutrient cycling and CO2 production in forests, but Purple Laccaria puts up a good fight, making field goal after field goal as it may play a role in helping previously de-forested areas return to a more “mature” ecosystem.

Which fungi makes it to the next round? YOU decide! Vote in our Instagram stories!

Follow along by downloading our bracket: https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/mushroom-march-madness/

📷 by Kerry Givens

Note: Due to a landslide win on Instagram Story, Purple Laccaria beat out Earthball in the Sweet Sixteen.

Providing wild and forested lands and clean waterw

Providing wild and forested lands and clean waterways for our community. Forever.

#lancasterconservancy #missionstatement #landtrust #hikelancaster #hikeyork
📸 @get.outside.lancaster
📍 Pinnacle Overlook looking out at the Susquehanna Riverlands - a viewshed which the Conservancy has protected with Otter Creek (to the left) and House Rock, Reed Run and Tucquan Glen & Pyfer Nature Preserves (to the right). Peice by peice we will continue to protect the land along this river for our community. Forever.

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Final Four | Round 3

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Final Four | Round 3, Game 1
Green Stain Fungus [Chlorociboria aeruginascens] vs Turkey Tail [Trametes versicolor]

Green Stain Fungus has demonstrated great endurance in this tournament, with the fungus itself not seen as often as the green stain it leaves behind on the wood it’s infected. It’s going to take some real stamina, though, to outlast the presumed tourney favorite, Turkey Tail!

Which fungi makes it to the next round? YOU decide! Vote via our Instagram stories!

Follow along by downloading our bracket via the link in our bio or at https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/mushroom-march-madness/

📷 by Kerry Givens

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Elite Eight | Round

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Elite Eight | Round 2, Game 4
Purple Laccaria [Laccaria ochropurpurea] vs Earthball [Scleroderma]

Purple Laccaria’s dominance on the court comes from the distinct contrast of its striking purple gills and bright white cap. But the versatile scoring and multi-faceted attack of Earthball when it releases its spores through multiple openings as opposed to one, like the similar puffball, will give it a competitive edge!

Which fungi makes it to the next round? YOU decide! Cast your vote in our Instagram stories!

Follow along by downloading our bracket via the link in our bio or at https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/mushroom-march-madness/

📷 by Kerry Givens

Have you bumped into a member of our stewardship t

Have you bumped into a member of our stewardship team out in the woods recently? There is a good chance that if you did, you ran into them while they were conducting an annual monitoring visit of each of the Conservancy's 47 nature preserves and 71 conservation easements.

“The annual monitoring visits provide Conservancy staff with an opportunity to reach the more far flung corners of our preserves which may not always receive the same attention as areas such as trail corridors, restoration sites, or road corridors. These visits are essential to ensuring the continued protection and preservation of our lands by allowing us to take yearly snapshots to identify and address issues that may otherwise go unnoticed.” - Eric Roper, Lancaster Conservancy Forester

#LancasterConservancy #landtrust #stewardship
📸 by Nick Gould of Eric Roper at Fishing Creek Nature Preserve in 2020

🌸 WILDFLOWER WATCH 2021🌸 Shenks Ferry Wild

🌸 WILDFLOWER WATCH 2021🌸

Shenks Ferry Wildflower Preserve
Observations from Saturday, March 27

🌸In Bloom:
Dutchman's Breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)
Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica)
Squirrel Corn (Dicentra canadensis)

🌸Coming Soon:
Virginia Blue Bells (Mertensia virginica) - see photo
Yellow Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum) - only leaves sighted

Let us know what wildflowers you spotted this past weekend!

Our stewardship team and volunteer land stewards have been hard at work getting this preserve ready for peak bloom by caring for the trails and pulling out invasive species like garlic mustard!

🗺️Learn more about visiting Shenks Ferry and get your trail map and guide at: https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/a-guide-to-visiting-shenks-ferry-wildflower-preserve/

📸 by Fritz Schroeder of Virginia Bluebells

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Elite Eight | Round

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Elite Eight | Round 2, Game 3
Eyelash cup fungus [Scutellinia scutellate] vs Polypore

Eyelash cup fungus controls the game on both ends of the court, being the most common and widespread of the species Scutellinia, and having been recorded on every continent. But look for an upset from the sleeper team Polypore, which is often used as an indicator species of healthy natural forests, and good indicators of invertebrate diversity on dead wood.

Which fungi makes it to the next round? YOU decide! Cast your vote in our Instagram stories!

Follow along by downloading our bracket via the link in our bio or at https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/mushroom-march-madness/

📷 by Kerry Givens

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Elite Eight | Round

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Elite Eight | Round 2, Game 2
Green Stain Fungus [Chlorociboria aeruginascens]vs Oyster [Pleurotus ostreatus]

Greeen Stain Fungus makes a surprise appearance in our Elite Eight, prevailing in the first round with the buzzer beater of creating green-stained wood that is prized by woodworkers. Oyster mushrooms proved their dominance on the court when they were first cultivated in Germany as a subsistence measure during WWI.

Which fungi makes it to the next round? YOU decide! Cast your vote in our Instagram stories!

Follow along by downloading our bracket via the link in our bio or at https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/mushroom-march-madness/

📷 by Kerry Givens

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Elite Eight | Round

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Elite Eight | Round 2, Game 1
Turkey Tail [Trametes versicolor] vs Witch’s Hat [Hygrocybe conica]

Hats or Tails? It’s toss-up for the first game of our Elite Eight! Turkey Tail's easily identifiable zonate coloring is on full display as well as their strong zone defense. And even though it usually max’s out at 5 cm, don’t count out Witch’s Hat and its 3-pointer prowess!

Which fungi makes it to the next round? YOU decide!

Follow along by downloading our bracket: https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/mushroom-march-madness/

📷 by Kerry Givens

Ephemeral is an interesting term for these beings,

Ephemeral is an interesting term for these beings, conjuring up a fleeting frailty, and from our human perspective, they are – but only just as we are fleetingly frail when our specks of lives are viewed from a geologic perspective. While we may only see them during their short rush for sun, in the window between snow cover and canopy leaf out, the reality of these plants is very different from our imposed assumptions.

Community Engagement Coordinator, Keith Williams, explores the world of spring ephemerals at the link in our bio or at https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/spring-ephemerals-a-closer-look/

📸 @michellejohnsenphotography of a Trout Lily

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Sweet Sixteen | Roun

🍄 Mushroom March Madness | Sweet Sixteen | Round 1, Game 8
Earthball [Scleroderma citrinum] vs Yellow Ceasar [Amanita banningiana]

It's a climactic last game of our sweet sixteen round! Yellow Caesar gets an assist from oak and beech trees thanks to their mycorrhizal and symbiotic relationship and makes a shot and scores from downtown! But watch out for Earthball's defensive double team technique to turn the tide on this game since it is the only fungi that plays host to the rare, parasitic mushroom, Pseudoboletus parasiticus.

Which fungi makes it to the next round? YOU decide! Cast your vote in our Instagram stories!

Follow along by downloading our bracket via the link in our bio or at https://www.lancasterconservancy.org/news/mushroom-march-madness/

📷 by Kerry Givens

***The information shared throughout Mushroom March Madness is not intended to be used for the identification of mushrooms, nor does it make recommendations on what is edible or poisonous.

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