News

Please join us for our annual meeting at
Wertheim Visitors Center November 9th @ 2 pm

Meeting Agenda:
1). Business meeting
      Election of officers for the board
      Budget for 2025
2) Acknowledgements
3) Walk  for the Wild – Judy Garbato
4) Refuge Update and visitor center project update
5) Guest Speaker- Bob McGrath, history of LI naturalists

*MEMBERS ONLY*

Join Friends of Wertheim in a Walk for the Wild and show your support by donating to our efforts. Each step and every dollar helps protect vital habitats and preserve our wildlife. We hope to see you on October 14th and October 19th for our guided walks and special events! Of course, you can take the 5K challenge anytime during National Wildlife Refuge Week of 10/13-10/19/24. Sign up now!

Click here to register

It will allow marine life to travel between lakes in the Yaphank area, fostering breeding and bolstering the local ecosystem.  Read more about it at Patch.com and WSHU or watch this short video from Newsday.

Hat tip to board member Ernie Lewis for sharing this! The visualization presents monthly global temperature anomalies between the years 1880-2021. These temperatures are based on the GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMP v4), an estimate of global surface temperature change. Anomalies are defined relative to a base period of 1951-1980.

For more on this data visualization, go to the NASA Scientific Visualization Studio.

Please welcome our new newsletter team members, Tara Murphy and Phil Rosner!

Tara Murphy is a native of Staten Island, NY but is no stranger to the beauty of Wertheim National Wildlife Refuge. In 2015, she served as a Visitor Services Intern with the Student Conservation Association (SCA) and assisted both Refuge staff and the Friends of Wertheim in educational programming and hosting International Migratory Bird Day. Tara holds a B.A. in Ecosystems & Human Impact from Stony Brook University and recently completed a Graduate Certificate in Environmental Planning from American Public University. She has applied her passions for wildlife and education to a career with NYC Parks as an Urban Park Ranger and later, as a Wildlife Field Technician monitoring urban wildlife trends for policy development. Tara has returned to Brookhaven and resides with her husband and their leopard gecko, Lenni, in Center Moriches. She looks forward to kayaking, wildlife viewing, and connecting with you!

Phil Rosner is a proposal manager for engineering firms. He brings to the team a decade of experience in graphic design and copy editing. A local resident, he is passionate about photography, with a particular interest in photographing flowers and birds, and is an avid gardener. Phil can often be found hiking with his camera at Wertheim. He holds a degree in US Environmental Policy, Institutions, and Behavior from Rutgers University.

The small house that was Maurice Wertheim’s hunting cabin and the original headquarters building for the Long Island Refuge Complex has been demolished. The Refuge put together this FAQ to explain why, prior to the demolition:

• What is the current status of the Wertheim Hunt Cabin? 

Prior to the new Headquarters building opening in 2012, refuge staff used the Wertheim Hunt Cabin as  the base of operations for the Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex. Following the opening of  the new building, the cabin has fallen into a state of disrepair and has become a frequent target of  vandalism. The Wertheim Hunt Cabin is currently scheduled for demolition on Monday, January 10^th.  The refuge is already closed on this date for the shotgun hunt. 

• Why does the Wertheim Hunt Cabin need to be demolished? 

Because the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is primarily a wildlife and habitat management agency,  any new construction on Service property must be offset with the demolition of other structures. In  exchange for the new Headquarters building, refuge management offered up several structures for  demolition: the quarters building along the west side of the Carmans, the old maintenance building/shed  and the Wertheim Hunt Cabin. 

• Did refuge staff consider any alternatives to demolition of the Wertheim Hunt Cabin? 

Refuge management approached several conservation organizations in the vicinity of the refuge to  inquire whether or not they wanted to take possession of the Wertheim Hunt Cabin and remove it from  the property. Unfortunately, none of these organizations had the interest and/or means to remove the  cabin and secure its preservation. 

• Has the refuge performed any historical analysis of the Wertheim Hunt Cabin? 

Yes. In April of 2021, historic preservation consultant Paula Sagerman performed a comprehensive  analysis of the history of the Wertheim Hunt Cabin. Although still in draft form and not yet released to  the public, this analysis includes a construction chronology of the structure and a retrospective of  Maurice Wertheim’s life and accomplishments.  

• What are the future plans for the Wertheim Hunt Cabin site? 

In the spirit of the Wertheim legacy, refuge staff hope to repurpose the site into an outdoor educational  pavilion and overlook. Opportunities for refuge visitor infrastructure along the Carmans are very limited  due to the prevalence of indigenous artifacts; but since the Wertheim Hunt Cabin footprint is already  disturbed ground, refuge staff can more easily create opportunity. Any new construction will include an  interpretive display on the importance of the site and the Wertheim legacy. The pavilion and overlook will provide structure for the thousands of school children who visit the refuge annually. Maurice  Wertheim’s legacy and love for the outdoors will be imparted upon each and every child who enjoys the  new structure.

We’re saddened by the news that Art Cooley has passed away.  Many remember Mr. Cooley from his time as a biology teacher at Bellport High School, where he founded the Students for Environmental Quality.  Under Mr. Cooley’s guidance, research by students on the Carmans River ecosystem was turned into a report for the DEC and was instrumental in getting Governor Malcolm Wilson to sign into law a bill that has protected Carmans River from development by putting it under the protection of the Wild, Scenic and Recreation Rivers Act.

Cooley also played a huge role in the environmental movement in the 1960s and 1970s. He was one of several local activists who organized to stop use of the pesticide DDT, a toxin that was threatening survival of birds including the osprey, bald eagle and peregrine falcon. The legal battle led to the banning of DDT in the United States and the formation of the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). This led to the nationwide use of science to challenge industry groups in court and helped establish the right of ordinary citizens to sue the government to protect human health and the environment, EDF said in a statement. (Another co-founder was his friend and neighbor, Dennis Puleston, who worked actively on conservation efforts on the Wertheim National Wildlife Refuge.)

Finally, as an honorary board member of Friends of Wertheim, we will miss his enthusiasm and charismatic presence.