A group of fourth grade students from Catskill Elementary School returned to the field trip circuit recently, visiting Columbia-Greene Community College’s Hudson River Environmental Field Station at Cohotate Preserve in Athens, N.Y.
The excursion, lead by Catskill Elementary School teacher and Greene County legislator Matt Luvera and C-GCC Associate Professor of Biological Sciences Rebecca Pinder, Ph.D., welcomed more than 70 students for a full day at the field station, which serves as serves as a laboratory, classroom, and study and research center for the College.
“It was a really wonderful day and the kids were so happy to be there,” said Pinder, explaining that a full, multi-disciplinary lesson plan was developed prior to the students’ arrival that included flora and fauna bingo, a history walk to discover more about the Hudson River’s ice houses, a seining demonstration (a fishing technique), a plankton pull complete with a microscope session, and an overview of what types of fish live in the river.
“For example, the striped bass lives most of its life in the ocean and returns to the Hudson to spawn, whereas the American eel lives most of its life in the Hudson and surrounding tributaries and then returns to the ocean to spawn,” Pinder said.
The field station is located on the west bank of the Hudson River and also serves as the Greene County Environmental Education Center. It was constructed in 1996 by the Greene County Soil and Water Conservation District, C-GCC, Greene County Buildings and Grounds Department, Greene County Highway Department, the Town of Athens Highway Department, and private builders.
The purpose of the river field station is fourfold: to expand the laboratory resources and teaching capability of C-GCC’s Division of Science; to provide extracurricular study opportunities for area grade school and secondary school students; to establish a river research facility for grant-funded projects, and to provide an ecological study and research center to support efforts to improve the Hudson River environment.
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