Landmark status for Albany Pine Bush Preserve
Dennis Yusko
ALBANY — Calling it a rich and rare ecosystem, the National Park Service on Monday designated the Albany Pine Bush Preserve a National Natural Landmark.
The 3,200-acre Albany Pine Bush is home to more than 1,300 plants, 156 species of birds, more than 30 species of mammals and 20 species of amphibians and reptiles, the National Park Service noted in a statement on Monday, calling the habitat "one of the best examples of inland pine barren ecosystems in the world."
"The globally rare pitch pine-scrub oak barrens that occupy the site's upland dunes and diverse wetlands support the federally listed endangered Karner blue butterfly, among numerous species of special concern," the park service said. The rare butterfly has been on the state's endangered species list since 1972, and has been considered federally endangered since 1991.
http://m.timesunion.com/local/article/Landmark-status-for-Albany-Pine-Bush-Preserve-5636430.php
