Two grants from the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation have made significant improvements at Audubon Community Nature Center. Needed electrical work was completed last spring at the nature center building, and Audubon President Leigh Rovegno is pictured using the new drinking fountain/water bottle filling station.
Jamestown, N.Y. – Audubon Community Nature Center (ACNC) has received help from Chautauqua Region Community Foundation (CRCF) in their commitment to conserve all planet Earth’s natural resources.
“We are really thrilled with the support we have received from two Community Foundation funds that have made wonderful improvements in the nature center building while lightening our impact on the environment,” said Audubon Program Director Jennifer Schlick.
Schlick said that the overhead lights in the lobby that were original to the 1992 addition had been starting to go out. Thanks to a grant from the Karl Peterson Fund at CRCF, Audubon was able to afford the special equipment to replace them all. The LED replacements are expected to save significantly on ACNC’s electric bill.
The Peterson grant also covered new lighting for the Simpson Bird Room that houses 100+ year old taxidermy mounts including three extinct species: the Carolina Parakeet, Passenger Pigeon, and Bachman’s Warbler. The life of these mounts will be extended with the removal of the damaging UV-emitting fluorescent lamps.
Volunteers installed the new lighting that also provides a teaching topic on conservation to building visitors.
The most recent building enhancement is the new combination water fountain/water bottle filling station made possible by a grant from the Blossom Fund of the Community Foundation. Not only does the new fixture replace a failing drinking fountain, it also gives ACNC’s visitors the option of filling their own water bottles. This offers a service to Audubon’s more than 19,000 annual visitors as well as providing an opportunity to teach about water and how reusable bottles can have a positive impact on the environment.
Audubon Community Nature Center is located at 1600 Riverside Road, one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown, N.Y., and Warren, Pa. The three-story Nature Center building contains interactive displays, a collection of live animals, and the Blue Heron Gift Shop.
Building hours are Monday-Saturday 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and Sundays 1-4 p.m. From dawn till dusk daily, visitors can enjoy the 600-acre wetland preserve with more than five miles of trails and Liberty, the non-releasable Bald Eagle.
To learn more about Audubon and its many programs, call (716) 569-2345 during business hours or visit auduboncnc.org.
Audubon Community Nature Center builds and nurtures connections between people and nature by providing positive outdoor experiences, opportunities to learn about and understand the natural world, and knowledge to act in environmentally responsible
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