New England Cottontail Workshop

The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), as part of its Earth Day Celebration, will be hold a New England Cottontail Workshop on Friday, April 15, 2011, from 8:30AM-12:30 PM, at the Sessions Woods Conservation Education Center, in Burlington.

The workshop is free and open to the public, particularly private landowners, members of land trusts and conservation organizations.

Registration begins at 8:30 AM and workshops begin at 9:00 AM.

Following the workshops, participants will drive to Roraback Wildlife Management Area in Harwinton where DEP Wildlife Division biologist Peter Picone will lead a tour of a demonstration site that highlights New England cottontail management activities and associated management equipment.

The workshop focuses on a new regional initiative to restore habitat for the New England cottontail, a candidate species for listing under the federal Endangered Species List. The DEP Wildlife Division, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are partners in this initiative. Once common throughout the region, the New England cottontail’s historic range has been reduced by over 80%.

Pre-registration for the workshop is requested, but not required.