New York State Parks to Begin Removal of Insect-Damaged Trees at Napeague State Park

November 01, 2024

Dan Keefe | (518) 486-1868 | [email protected]

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) will continue work this winter to address the substantial impacts from recent outbreaks of the invasive insect Southern Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis) at Napeague State Park in Suffolk County.

Napeague is home to a critically imperiled Maritime Pitch Pine Dune Woodland natural community and the state and federally endangered Northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis). The most recent outbreak of Southern Pine Beetle has caused mass decline and death of pitch pine trees in Napeague and across Long Island. The increase of dead trees has resulted in more fuel in the event of a wildfire and has potentially decreased access for responders. Pitch pine systems are fire dependent, and sometimes wildfires naturally occur.

In a continued effort to increase access for emergency responders in the case of a wildfire, enhance safety along trails, and prepare for anticipated future actions to reduce fuel loads, the following work is scheduled to begin in December 2024:

· Dead trees will be removed primarily along the heavily used Paumanok Path and Promised Land Trail - with the goal of increasing emergency responder access to the park interior and decreasing potential hazards to hikers. Work crews will mostly be on foot using chainsaws to help protect sensitive habitats. · All shrubby vegetation within approximately 250ft of the south side of the fuel break near Bayview Ave. will be cut to the ground. This will greatly increase visibility and access for emergency responders, decrease the intensity of potential fires, and benefit the overall health of the habitat. Work crews will primarily be using forestry mulchers.

OPRHP has been working closely with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to limit the impact to the federally and state endangered Northern long-eared bat and stay in compliance with the Endangered Species Act. Any necessary tree cutting will occur between December 1, 2024, and February 28, 2025, while the bats are hibernating in their overwintering roosts off-site. Additional work will be part of the long-term effort to manage the impacts of Southern Pine Beetle and restore natural communities within the parks.

To learn more about Southern Pine Beetle: http://www.dec.ny.gov/nature/animals-fish-plants/southern-pine-beetle