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Wildlife Photo Exhibit Showcases Resurgence of Onondaga Lake

Scott Willis/WAER News

Bald Eagles.  A snowy owl.  A red-winged blackbird.  Even monarch butterflies.  All were captured by Syracuse-area wildlife photographers for the 5th annual photo exhibit this weekend at the Onondaga Lake Visitor’s Center.  The images are not only a demonstration of the beautiful wildlife in the area, they also document the resurgence of Onondaga Lake.

                                 

The 30 stunning photographs lining the walls were chosen from about 200 entries.  One of them is a snowy owl in flight, looking right at the camera.  Phillip Bonn of Fayetteville says he had seen the bird near gate 6 of the state fairgrounds.

 “I went back – this was probably the tenth or twelfth I went down to that spot – and it was early in the morning. It was perfect lighting and the bird was right in the correct area for me to take a nice photograph of him. A lot of times they sit there and you have enough photographs of a snowy owl on a post. So when he leaped up and actually flew at me, it was amazing.”

Bonn has been a nature photographer since he was a teenager, and is a regular visitor to the Montezuma refuge, Labrador Hollow, and other spots.  But he never thought he’d be capturing these images around Onondaga Lake.

Credit Scott Willis/WAER News
Phillip Bonn's photograph of a snowy owl taking flight near the New York State Fairgrounds.

 “I considered this a dump. I’ve kayaked up the shoreline here before renovations were done. I’ve walked these hills over here. There was trash, dead fish, all kinds of stuff. It was horrible. If you’ve never walked the shoreline before you would not have realized how big of a difference over the last seven years."
 

Director of the Montezuma Audubon Center Chris Lajewski also spoke on the lake’s progress. 

“We know that the lake is returning to life because the birds, and other wildlife, are returning here to use these newly restored habitats.  Now that we have done that, it is now our responsibility to continue to monitor these habitats and ensure they remain viable healthy, intact habitats. Not only for these birds and other wildlife that are showcased here in the exhibit, but also for people in our community.”

Credit Scott Willis/WAER News
A photograph of two eagles at the Onondaga Lake exhibit.

Hundreds of volunteers have planted native species on 90 acres of habitat and wetlands as part of the massive lake restoration effort.  Phillip Bonn says monarch butterflies are attracted to the nectar sources…

 “Lot of times they’re mowed down, or sprayed with herbicides or something like that. No milkweed, no monarchs. We’re at a risk of losing the eastern migration of monarch butterflies because of this.”

Lajewski with the Audubon center says the now-thriving lake and it ecosystem are becoming a living laboratory for school children across the county to conduct experiments.

Credit Scott Willis/WAER News
A photograph of a Painted Lady Butterfly at the exhibit.

“They’re observing the birds and other wildlife and conducting vegetation surveys with us to help document the resurgence of nature here at the lake. They then take that information and knowledge and passion and excitement home and into their communities and talk about their experiences here. So that is helping us change the mindset of the Central New York community.
 

The photo exhibit runs Saturday March 24th from 9 to 4 and Sunday March 25th from 1 to 4 at the Onondaga Lake Visitor’s Center off I-690.  A donation of $5 is suggested.