‼️2022 New Catch‼️ This is a Smallmouth Flounder!
These fish can grow up to 5 inches long. Smallmouth Flounder are found in the Hudson, but none had ever been caught by CURB until this month!
CURB staff and interns caught 2 Smallmouth Flounder during a seine on November 3rd, and another one on November 4th.
Check out our other new catches for 2022 on our New Catches ‘22 highlight!
News & Events
Water Quality Data Analysis - Rainfall and Bacteria Introduction
We examine how rainstorms (or their lack of) and imperfect infrastructure systems combined cause introduction of bacteria to our waterways.
Read moreAmplifying Underrepresented Voices of the Hudson River Valley: The Myth of the Purchase of Manhattan
Curtis Zunigha shares the Lenape perspective on the 1626 purchase of the island of Manhattan.
Read moreCURB Receives $70,000 Grant for Hudson River Ecology Research with High School Students
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Today we are highlighting two of our snapping turtles here at CURB, Bruce and Eugene.Their scientific name is Chelydra Serpentina but, they are more commonly referred to as the common snapping turtle. Common snapping turtles have very strong jaws, which they use frequently as active hunters. A specific way that the common snapping turtle catches their prey is by burying themselves in mud with only their nostrils and eyes exposed. These turtles are omnivores, and they will consume anything they can swallow such as fish, frogs, invertebrates, and birds. In the wild, common snapping turtles can live up to 30 years!
Eugene has been at the center for 5 years while Bruce has been here for 7!
This year, CURB had 6 new catches, meaning we caught 6 species here for the first time!
This is a Blackcheek Tonguefish caught during a seine on September 23. Tonguefish are a rare catch in the Hudson River, and Blackcheek Tonguefish had never been caught in the Hudson before this year.
4 Blackcheek Tonguefish were caught in the Hudson this year, 2 near the Tappan Zee Bridge and 2 at CURB!!
For more info on the Blackcheek Tonguefish caught at CURB, check out the link on our story (or story highlights)!
‼️Stay tuned to see what other new catches we had at CURB this year‼️
Another year of sampling for fecal indicator bacteria on the Saw Mill River came to a close on October 27th. The sampler appreciation event brought together samplers from the Bronx, Pocantico, Hudson and Saw Mill Rivers in an evening of socializing and exploration of the @bronx_river new building space. For more information on how to become involved in this ongoing study and to sign up for our bi-weekly stakeholder report, check out this link: https://www.centerfortheurbanriver.org/research/water-quality.html.
We thank @conedison for supporting this research
Photo attached: Credit – Sharon AvRutick, Duck Pond Spillway
Irvington High School student, Riley, has begun a 2 year study of the local population of Atlantic oysters present along the shores of our Hudson River beach. Utilizing the lowest tide of the upcoming full moon, Riley searched the area for loose and detached live oysters and documented their size before adding them to the research cage. We look forward to sharing updates as we continue the study of these amazing bivalves! Thank you @billionoyster for supporting this educational research!
Last week, Dr. Michelle Hersh’s First-Year Studies Urban Ecology Course from SLC came to visit CURB. The students had a tour of the facilities and participated in our daily seine. During the seine, the Urban Ecology students caught 8 different types of species, some of which included 33 blue crabs, 33 sand shrimp, 15 grass shrimp, and 2 striped bass.
Thank you to Dr. Hersh and all the Urban Ecology students for visiting!
On Saturday, as a continuation of our Teaching the Environment program, we had a discussion with Lenape Center Director of Cultural Affairs Curtis Zunigha. Curtis spoke about the history of the Lenape, their diaspora across the U.S., and their contemporary profile. He discussed the Lenape people’s return to the original homeland, the revival of their culture and spirit, and environmental stewardship through traditional practices in the contemporary setting.
Curtis also introduced term Lenapehoking which translates to ‘Return of the Lenape to their Indigenous Homeland’
Thank you to the Lenape Center and Curtis Zuniga, the Child Development Center at Sarah Lawrence College, all the educators who participated in Friday’s discussion.
lenapecenter
@slc_childdevelopmentinstitute
Today we are highlighting two of our Red-Eared Slider Turtles here at CURB! In this double tank, we have one female and one male Red-Eared Slider. These turtles were brought to the center from a local elementary school 13 years ago!
Fun Fact: Red-Eared Sliders are named after the red streak that can be found at either side of their head!
This past Friday, for their Day of Doing Good, #RegeneronD4DG volunteers assisted in a beach/park clean up, gardening, and trail maintenance near the waterfront here at CURB. Volunteers also assisted with our daily seine! Thank you, #RegeneronD4DG volunteers for your service last week!
On Tuesday our staff participated in the Harlem River Working Group's Wilderness Inquiry Week. Several schools attended the event which included river canoeing on the Harlem River and activities led by CURB, NYS Parks, USGS and more. CURB's presentation focused on the American eel migration. #wildernessinquiry #harlemriver #bronx #environmentaleducation #americaneel