Conn. Official Urges Residents To Support Wildlife Conservation Efforts

HARTFORD, Conn. (CBSNewYork) -- It's not only the changing climate that is threatening the habitats of wildlife creatures. It's also subdivisions, business parks and housing developments, environmentalists say.

Bill Hyatt with Connecticut's Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, who leads preservation efforts, said warming waters are threatening many native species, including the brook trout, now restricted to increasingly smaller streams.

"At one time, they persisted throughout most of the watershed," he told WCBS 880 Connecticut Bureau Chief Fran Schneidau. "And it's a pattern not just seen in Connecticut, but throughout the northeast and the Appalachians."

Hyatt said that while there's been a loss of wildlife over past decades, there have been successes.

For example, black bears, once nearly extinct in Connecticut, have bounded back in numbers. And looking toward the skies, one might see a bald eagle, which in recent years was a very rare sight.

One person can make a difference, Hyatt said. He urged people to pay attention to what's going on in their landscape and to support conservation efforts. Without support, Hyatt said, there can be no progress in protecting habitat and wildlife.

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