Meadows are disappearing as a habitat here in Connecticut. Wildlife that depend on meadows are struggling to survive. We have witnessed the disappearance of Ruffed Grouse here in the last 25 years. At Joshua’s Trust’s Josias Byles Sanctuary in Ashford there are two meadows. One meadow is 8-10 acres in size; the other is smaller, 2-3 acres. The meadows are surrounded by a bio-diverse climax forest characterized by a tall leaf canopy. As trail stewards, we initiated a program to keep these meadows open. Keeping the meadows open allows suitable habitat for certain wildlife.
The milkweed that thrives in the meadow is food for Monarch butterflies. The Monarchs know about this location, and feed to fuel up for their fall migration to Mexico. It’s hard to believe that these fragile looking creatures can accomplish such a long journey. On our fishing trips we see them flying across breezy Long Island Sound heading towards New York, New Jersey and south. The best time to see the Monarchs is probably in July after the Milkweed is up, through September on warm sunny days. The meadows are also suitable for many mammal and avian species that will not make their home anywhere else. Bird watchers have reported seeing rare Warblers nesting there.
The meadows are scheduled to be cleared by brush hog every two years. This prevents the forest from taking over. On the advice of retired State of Connecticut ecologist Ken Metzler, the earth was also scarified. This “scratching” will give the milkweed a better chance to take root and hopefully displace the Barberry and Multiflora Rose. These meadows were cleared in a timely manner in late winter by contractors Don Bunce and Greg Peck. They did a terrific job, and were done before nesting season had started.
Josias Byles Sanctuary is located in Ashford, across from the North Vet clinic on Rt 44. There are three marked hiking trails as well as the meadows for the public to enjoy. Trail stewards Nord Yakovleff, Peggy Rux, and Marian Matthews hope you will come visit.
~Nord Yakovleff
Thanks, Nord,
Speaking of meadows, I’ve been watching the fireflies for the last week, and hoping that a place like Byles Sanctuary has a lot more than the ones left in my yard. At least it makes walking around at night with insomnia a little more interesting. I remember being a kid in Connecticut……but I always let them go after a little while.
George Jacobi