Seneca Bluffs Restoration Day!!!

Seneca Bluffs Park, one of the city's most amazing natural areas, received an extreme makeover this week when over 120 volunteers descended on the park for a restoration work day.

Seneca Bluffs is a 15-acre peninsula nestled right on the Buffalo River. It's a key hotspot for wildlife, from migrating birds to basking turtles to wandering deer. The park is also heavily used by the local community for hiking, fishing, dog-walking, bird-watching and just relaxing.

Volunteers leveled huge swaths of stubborn, invasive Mugwort and Japanese Knotweed that was taking over the park. We then planted fast-growing native species of shrubs and trees with high wildlife value, including maples, serviceberry, birch, buttonbush, redbud, dogwood, butternut, walnut, bayberry, sycamore, cherry, oak, sumac, elderberry and viburnum.

A big thanks goes out to Riverkeeper's partners in this project! HSBC Bank provided over 100 hard-working volunteers as well as trees and shrubs for the effort, and Erie County Department of Environment and Planning and US Fish & Wildlife Service came throughwith vibrant group leaders, equipment and gritty volunteers. Ecology & Environment chipped in with inspiration and ecological expertise in the form of Paul Fuhrmann, one of the original site designers. Erie County Parks brought us a huge load of mulch on short notice.

All in all it was a great day!!! We're looking forward to the next tree planting at Seneca at the end of October. Join us!