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A Look Under The Ice

Watershed Stories

Keep up with the work of Ausable Freshwater Center (AFC) staff. These stories share information about our stewardship and monitoring work, natural stream restoration, and culvert replacement techniques by highlighting specific projects in the Ausable and Boquet River watersheds of northern New York. They also give you fun facts about the plants and wildlife that live in these watersheds, as well as tips for enjoying responsible, low-impact recreational opportunities.

May
31
2023
East Branch Restoration Program Continues with Project Area 2 in Upper Jay
This summer, the Ausable River Association (AsRA) will undertake the second phase of construction in its East Branch Restoration Program with Project Area 2 in Upper Jay. This comprehensive program, developed in 2019 with funding from the Governor’s Office for Storm Recovery (now the Office of Resilient Homes and Communities), identifies 13 sites in the Town of Jay in need of restoration. Completing these river restoration projects will improve flood resilience, protect communities and infrastructure, and restore habitat for the food web that supports our native brook trout.
Restoration
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May
08
2023
My First Year as a Fellow
Learn about our GIS & Science Communications fellow's first year with AsRA and LCSG.
Stewardship
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Apr
18
2023
A Puddle Teeming with Life
On a rainy spring night, have you ever noticed a lot of frogs or salamanders on the road and wondered why they are there? These amphibians aren't just out enjoying the night. They are looking for somewhere to mate. While some amphibians stay in or close to water, others spend the majority of their time in forests, but they still need waterbodies for breeding. When spring comes, many make the journey to streams, ponds, and adjacent wetlands, while others venture to more isolated vernal pools to mate. Vernal pools may be small and dry out during the year, but their ecosystems are complex.
Ecology
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Mar
30
2023
SCALE: The Next Generation Adirondack Survey
In the spring of 2023, AsRA will participate in the pilot program for the research-consortium based Survey of Climate Change in Adirondack Lake Ecosystems (SCALE). This blog explores AsRA's role in SCALE, the work ahead, and SCALE's influence on the next generation of climate science.
Climate Change
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Mar
20
2023
Brook Trout: A Sentinel Species if Ever There Was One
Sleek and fast, black and purple, a pattern of mottled sunshine across their backs, the only native stream-dwelling trout, brook trout thrive in cold mountain streams that rush over boulders and form deep pools and cascades.
Brook Trout
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Mar
07
2023
Restoring Stream Health and Measuring Success
Over the past several years, AsRA has been working in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restore the health of the rivers and streams in our watershed. Restoring stream health involves many different strategies, but the goals are always the same. From a scientific perspective, a “healthy” stream is more than a collection of subjective ideas that mean different things to different people. In 2012, a group of scientists specializing in the study and restoration of rivers and streams established a framework to help them understand and quantify the health of these critical natural systems. AsRA’s approach to restoration is guided by this framework.
Restoration
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Nov
30
2022
How Much Water Moves Through the Ausable River Watershed?
While it is obvious that rivers move water, and that there are different amounts to be moved at any given time, this begs the question: how much water does the Ausable River and its two branches move in a day, or in a year?
Hydrology
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Nov
23
2022
Thankful for Trees
The Ausable River Association works to restore native grasses, plants, and trees to the once lush streamside, or riparian, habitats along river and stream corridors in the watershed. Whether we're planting to increase riparian shading or establishing plants on newly restored streambanks– we focus on bringing back the diverse native plant structure that is essential to stream health and wildlife diversity.
Ecology
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Nov
14
2022
How to see the Forest for the Trees (and Other Plants and Fungi)
Here are our top tips for anyone looking to get into learning their plants and fungi.
Recreation
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Nov
03
2022
New Educational Signs Installed Around Mirror Lake
The Ausable River Association (AsRA), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), and Paul Smith's College Adirondack Watershed Institute (AWI) partnered to design and produce the four educational signs.
Stewardship
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The Ausable River is a river on the edge.
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AsRA is working hard to protect the Ausable River.
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