Times of Middle Country

Under brilliant sunshine, the Cougars of Centereach hosted the Bulls of Smithtown East in their Homecoming weekend football matchup on Saturday, Sept. 24.

The game would go scoreless through three quarters of play. On the opening possession of the fourth quarter, senior linebacker Xavier Calixte scooped up a Bulls’ fumble and went the distance, covering 27 yards for the score. Jason Zaita’s foot tacked on the extra point, putting the Cougars out front 7-0.

Smithtown East began to move the chains when senior runningback Ryan Rooney, with less than a minute left on the clock, punched into the endzone on short yardage. Smithtown East went for the win, attempting a two-point conversion run. But this bold maneuver came up short, handing Centereach a 7-6 victory.

Centereach quarterback Riddick Drab had 20 carries for 106 yards in the Div. II contest. The win lifts Centereach to 2-1 in this early season while the Bulls drop to 1-2.

Centereach is back in action on Friday, Sept. 30, when the team will host Huntington at 6 p.m. Smithtown East will celebrate its homecoming on Saturday, Oct. 1, when it will host Connetquot. Kickoff is at 2 p.m.

— Photos by Bill Landon

Milton
After an investigation, detectives from the Suffolk County SPCA have charged a Lake Grove woman with animal cruelty charges for allowing a dog to be left inside of a van for 5 1/2 hours on a 90 degree day, causing the dog’s death.
Roy Gross, Chief of the Suffolk SPCA said that its detectives charged Jodi Meyers, 51, of Lake Grove, with one count of animal cruelty and one count of failing to provide proper shelter and air for a 3-year-old black Labrador retriever dog named “Milton” in her care and custody, both misdemeanor charges. Meyers, an employee of the Guide Dog Foundation, had taken the dog out for training on July 22 but instead left the dog inside of a crate in a work van while the temperature outside was approximately 90 degrees. The dog was found dead 5 1/2 hours later.
Meyers surrendered to SPCA detectives on Sept. 21, and is scheduled to appear in First District Court, Central Islip, on Oct. 11..
Animal cruelty will not be tolerated in Suffolk County. If you witness any incident of animal cruelty or neglect in Suffolk County please contact the Suffolk County SPCA at 631-382-7722.
A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

Linda Johnson of Chocology at a previous Women's EXPO. Photo by Heidi Sutton
Popular marketplace of LI women entrepreneurs back for its 22nd year.

Save the date! The highly popular Women’s EXPO heads back to the Middle Country Public Library, 101 Eastwood Blvd., Centereach on Thursday, October 6, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Time to shop! Photo by Heidi Sutton

Featuring more than 80 vendors, the  indoor event provides a marketplace for Long Island women entrepreneurs who create or distribute a variety of products, including jewelry, pottery, soaps, food and more. This event is a great opportunity to support local women entrepreneurs while shopping for holiday gift giving.

The Women’s EXPO is presented by the Middle Country Library Foundation. Proceeds will help to support the library’s Miller Business Center, which supports regional economic development by meeting the information needs of the business community, promoting a literate and job-ready workforce, and providing employment information and career exploration opportunities.  Sponsors include TD Bank, People’s Alliance Federal Credit Union and BankUnited.

“We are excited to be back celebrating women entrepreneurs on Long Island with the 22nd annual Women’s EXPO, after two years of limitations due to the pandemic.” says Sophia Serlis-McPhillips, the Director of the Middle Country Public Library.

For more information go to www.WomensEXPOli.org or call 631-585-9393, ext. 296.

In the fall of 2021, ENL students attending Accompsett Middle School in Smithtown, above, created welcome signs in their native languages. Photo from Smithtown Central School District

School districts across the North Shore have experienced an increase in English language learners over the last several years.

English language learner refers to a student who is age 5 or older and who is learning English as a New Language — formerly known as English as a Second Language. This is an approach in which students who are not native English speakers are mainly taught in English. The respective abbreviated current terms are ELL and ENL.

Students tackling English

The number of English language learners varies from district to district along the North Shore of Western Suffolk County. For example, In the Middle Country school district, a spokesperson said 639 were enrolled in the ENL program this year out of the 8,534 students attending. Smaller districts such as Cold Spring Harbor had 15 students learning English, with 1,585 students overall in 2020-21. Port Jefferson had 38 ELL students with an overall enrollment of 962, according to the New York State Education Department website, during the same school year.

While some districts have seen an increase in ELL students, some have seen a decrease or have remained steady. According to a district spokesperson for the Northport-East Northport school district, the number of ELL students has remained stable. Currently, out of the 4,533 students enrolled in the district, 167 are ELL students, which is approximately 3.7% of the student population.

A spokesperson for Harborfields and Elwood school districts said Harborfields has experienced a modest decrease from 3.8% of the student population being ELL students last year to 3.6% this year. In Elwood, the percentage has increased slightly from 6.1% at the end of June to approximately 6.3% at the beginning of this academic year.

According to administrators from local districts, while the majority of students enrolled as English language learners are Spanish speaking, other languages spoken are Chinese dialects, Portuguese, Korean, Turkish, Hebrew, Hungarian, Ukrainian and Urdu, the official language of Pakistan. A smaller percentage speak Russian, Haitian Creole, Arabic, languages from India such as Tamil and Telugu and the Iranian Pashto, according to NYSED.

Kerri Golini, Three Village school district’s director of World Language and English as a New Language, said the ENL population in the district has increased by 21% in the past year. Currently, these students represent 2% of the district’s overall population.

While 13 different languages are spoken in the Three Village program, the majority of students speak Spanish and Chinese dialects.

New York State guidelines require ELL students to have integrated and stand-alone classes depending on comprehension level. In addition to instruction, there are also opportunities for parents to partake in activities.

“All families go through an orientation when their students are screened,” Golini said. “In the fall we host a parent academy to help families navigate the website, use email to communicate, complete forms requested by the district, [submit] applications for free and reduced lunch, and access the parent portal.”

Golini said it’s the district’s “goal to increase parent engagement.”

“Student success increases when there is someone at home who is involved in the child’s education,” she said.

Vicenza Graham, director of World Languages, ENL and Library Media Services in the Smithtown school district, said, families in the district also receive an orientation with translation services “in order to help acclimate our newcomers to their new school environment.”

As for studies, Graham said, “Students receive modified work based on their proficiency levels and lesson plans include scaffolded materials with both content and language objectives.”

Nicole Waldbauer, director of humanities at Shoreham-Wading River school district, said during her five-year tenure as director, the number of students has grown steadily by a few each year. Last year, she said there were 27 students throughout the district, and this year 29. The students represent less than 1.5% of the student population.

When she started with the district, she said there was one ENL teacher, who would travel to the different school buildings as the students are spread out throughout the grades and schools. Now there are three instructors, plus additional hours for them to work. When the hours are combined, they are the equivalent of a part-time position for the district.

Depending on their levels, determined by an assessment, the students are either in a co-taught class or general education class where the ENL teacher will be available for support. Children who are less proficient in English will have a stand-alone period for one-on-one with a teacher.

“The way that the state regulations work, their level dictates how many minutes of one-to-one or small group instruction they get strictly in ENL versus how many minutes they get of integrated co-teaching,” Waldbauer said. “They’re not separated from the general population. That was a change over time that the state ed department had made to make sure that there was more inclusivity.”

Fun ways to learn

Educators have found various ways to help children learn the English language, acclimate to life on Long Island and sometimes include the parents in leisure activities.

Golini said in the Three Village distinct a social event is held for all ELL families in the spring “to provide them with an opportunity to connect with each other and feel a part of the community.”

With COVID-19 restrictions lifted, Golini said the hope is to plan more evening events for the families. She has also worked with teachers to help increase ELL students’ participation in extracurricular activities and sports.

“We had more ELLs involved in the 3V community this past year than ever before,” she said.

Other activities in the district included elementary students visiting the library and high school students touring the Suffolk County Community College campus.

Toward the end of the 2021-22 school year, Harborfields High School’s English language learners visited Stony Brook University where they toured the buildings, lecture halls, student center and library, according to a district press release. The trip allowed students to explore post-secondary education options. While on campus, the high school students also interviewed an SBU student.

In the same district, at the end of last school year, Oldfield Middle School students went on a field trip to the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden City to learn about aviation and aerospace history on Long Island.

In the Smithtown school district, in the fall of 2021, Accompsett Middle School students created welcome signs in their native languages. In addition to English, the signs were written in Hebrew, Hungarian, Korean, Mandarin, Spanish, Turkish and Ukrainian.

Waldbauer said with grant money, the Shoreham-Wading River district was able to have an after-school tutoring program for ENL students from K to 8. Last year there was also a Saturday enrichment program that included field trips for the students and their families who along with the teachers and Waldbauer, visited places such as Quogue Wildlife Refuge and the Long Island Aquarium.

“The goal of that was to get the families all together and to have them make connections, but then also giving them a safe space and place to integrate into the community with people there,” she said.

Teachers

While the increase of English language learners hasn’t been drastic, districts at times compete with neighboring communities to secure ENL teachers as the number of teachers certified in the field hasn’t kept up with the increase of students.

Waldbauer said ENL teachers are special and unique people who ensure students are receiving a proper education and any services they need, plus are in touch with parents regularly answering any questions they may have: “They go above and beyond with just instructing the kids.”

Dragon boats were back in the water during the 8th annual Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival on Saturday, Sept. 17.

Sponsored by The Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce, this event is a way to foster community togetherness. It also serves to promote Asian and Asian American culture and customs. 

Barbara Ransome, the chamber director of operations, said dozens of community organizations and business groups participated during the event, bringing together hundreds more community members. 

“This is six months in the making,” Ransome said. “It’s a tremendous amount of organizing, not only with the teams … but all of this entertainment. It’s wonderful to see this all going well, flawlessly and without a hitch.”

A total of 23 teams participated in the boat races. Among the organizations represented in the dragon boat competition were Stony Brook University, Suffolk County Police Asian Jade Society, Mather and St. Charles hospitals, and club teams from as far as New York City, among others.

The day kicked off with the ceremonial “Dotting of the Eyes.” During this ritual, team captains and local officials painted a dragon head. Among them was Port Jeff village trustee Rebecca Kassay, who described the rush of this ceremonial gesture. 

“It was a beautiful moment to dot the eyes and tongue and forehead of the dragon,” she said. “You feel connected with the people around you, and I think that’s something we’re missing these days. To be a part of something where you’re connecting with others is really special.” 

This year was Kassay’s first dragon boat festival. For her, the event was an opportunity to celebrate the community’s rich culture and diverse people. “I am so delighted to see so many people come out, the diversity of people here, and the enthusiasm of everyone here for this cultural event on Port Jefferson Harbor,” Kassay said.

Town of Brookhaven Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich (D-Stony Brook) also made an appearance. He seemed overjoyed by the festival’s sizable turnout and the many people he encountered throughout the day.

“I’m excited to see our friends here, especially my friends from Long Island Youth Development and the Chinese School at Stony Brook,” he said. “We are excited to enjoy the awakened spirit of Port Jeff Harbor for another year.”

Kornreich also recognized the festival as a cause for celebration. He described the invaluable contributions of Asian Americans and their steadfast commitment to building a stronger community.

“The Asian American population here in our area is growing,” he said. “They have a huge presence and enrich our community so much with their culture and with their friendship, as with their dedication to the community.” He added, “They’re an amazing group of people, and we’re just excited to enjoy this day with them.”

The East Setauket-based LI Youth Development Inc., or LIYD, is a nonprofit organization founded in 2021. The organization is dedicated to supporting the community youth through extracurricular programs. LIYD instructors host weekly sessions to reinforce these skills regularly.

“We started as a way to help teach kids around our communities about different topics and subjects,” said LIYD member Luke Hou. “For example, we have a bunch of different clubs inside of LIYD that each teach their own thing, like tennis club, art club, music club and so on.”

David Wu, one of Hou’s team members, discussed how the lessons of teamwork and cooperation learned from the dragon boat competition harmonize with LIYD’s organizational principles. “Although this is our first year competing, through the practices it has been pretty fun,” he said.

Several dance and choral groups gave moving performances throughout the day. These often paid homage to the cultural and linguistic traditions of the performers.

Twilight Zone. Pixabay photo

By Daniel Dunaief

Daniel Dunaief

Conversations with friends, relatives and neighbors have taken a turn into “The Twilight Zone” episodes recently.

Decades ago, when I spoke with my friends, we discussed our activities, ambitions and plans. We might have complained about our bosses, described a business trip, shared an encounter with a stranger on a plane or train, or described our frustrations with our favorite sports teams.

Sure, we still do that, but, as the years pass, the discussions drift. This is where I’d cue the music.

In Episode One, we have two college friends who shared a room for several years, who sweated through a spectacularly hot summer in Boston with no air conditioning, and who, over the decades, visited each other’s homes with and without our wives and children.

So, these two friends recently started catching up.

“I can’t stand the hair that’s coming out of my ears,” I offered. “It makes it harder to hear and to be taken seriously by anyone looking at me.”

“Yeah, that’s pretty unwelcome,” my friend laughed. “My back is killing me. I wake up every morning and it takes me a while to feel comfortable enough to stand and shuffle to the bathroom.”

“My hip has been a problem,” I reply.

“I also don’t see particularly well. I don’t like driving when it’s dark,” he added.

“My knee is sore,” I added, “but I think that’s from compensating for my hip.”

And so it went, for about 10 minutes, until we broke the description of all that ails us and transitioned to a discussion of all that inspires, and worries, us about our college-age children.

“I hope you feel better soon,” I offered as we got off the phone.

“At this point, I’d just take not feeling worse,” he said.

Okay, so that wasn’t too terrifying, right? Two 50-ish guys chatted and shared personal details about the aging vessels that carry us through life.

That takes us to Episode Two. Imagine, if you will, a group of older adults, representing the 50ish and the 80ish generation, chatting in person together.

“Have you been to the doctor recently?” one of the people asked.

“Which one? For what?” a second one replied.

“How many doctors do you have?” a third one asked.

And that is where the conversation became a competition. Each person, slowly and deliberately, shared the number of doctors he or she visits.

“I’ve had kidney stones, so I have a urologist,” I offered, as if I were recounting trophies on a shelf or comparing the number of friends I have with someone else in fourth grade rather than recalling a specialist who helped me deal with excruciating agony.

“Do you have an ENT doctor? I have one,” someone else said.

My competitive spirit again got the best of me.

“I have the best GI guy, who gave me a great colonoscopy. I had such a nice rest while I was under anesthesia,” I said.

I pictured a younger version of me, sitting with the group, staring, open-mouthed at the enthusiasm with which all of us, me included, counted our doctors and the reason we needed them.

In Episode Three, a man in his 30s walked his dog, limping along with a supportive black boot on his leg. Another man (me) appeared, pulled along by his oversized dog.

“Not to get too personal,” I said, “but your shoes don’t match.”

The good-natured man smiled and said he thought he had shin splints from running, but discovered he had a hairline fracture that required several weeks of rest in a boot.

“I went to my parents’ house in New Hampshire and ran over five miles on an uneven road. The next day, I could barely move. I have to rest it for six weeks,” he said.

I nodded and wished him a speedy recovery.

“Well, maybe it hurts just because I’m older,” he offered.

You have no idea, I thought, as I could feel the urge to hold back a clock that pushes each of us forward through time. 

Cue the music.

The Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Civic Association held its Meet the Candidates forum at Comsewogue Public Library on Tuesday, Sept. 20.

The Democratic and Republican nominees for New York State’s 1st Senate District and 4th Assembly District attended this civic meeting. The candidates received time to deliver opening statements, then answered questions covering a range of local subjects, followed by closing remarks. 

(Left to right) Anthony Palumbo, Skyler Johnson, Steve Englebright, and Edward Flood. Photos by Raymond Janis

Introductions

Before entering elective office, incumbent state Sen. Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk) worked as an attorney in the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. He was in private practice for roughly 10 years before running for the state Assembly in 2013. He served the 2nd Assembly District until 2020, after which he assumed his current position.

Challenging Palumbo is Democrat Skyler Johnson, a 22-year-old Mount Sinai native and former political aide to Southampton Village Mayor Jesse Warren. If Johnson were to win this November, he would become the youngest person to serve in the state Legislature since Theodore Roosevelt.

In the Assembly race, incumbent state Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) is also up for reelection. Englebright, a geologist by training, joined the state Assembly in 1992. Before that, he served as a Suffolk County legislator for nearly a decade.

Edward Flood is Englebright’s Republican challenger in this race. Flood serves as an assistant attorney for the Town of Brookhaven and is the town’s lead prosecutor for town code violations.

LIRR electrification

Each candidate supported electrifying the Port Jefferson Branch line of the Long Island Rail Road, with some variations in approach. 

Englebright advocates moving the existing Port Jefferson train station onto the county-owned Lawrence Aviation property. This plan, the assemblyman believes, would bring value to the community in the form of cleaner air and higher property values. 

“I am working to try to get the Long Island Rail Road to come into the modern age,” he said. “We will prevail. The first thing to do is to have a community that’s united. … If this community is supportive of that, that will be a big boost.”

Flood condemned the MTA for its historical neglect of Long Island communities. He seeks to pressure the MTA’s governing board and add a local representative to that body. “I don’t believe we have a local representative, and I don’t think anyone on that board cares much about us,” he said. “That needs to change.”

Johnson criticized the needless delays for residents traveling to New York City by rail. He favored allocating more state resources to address these concerns.

“It’s not the most fun trip getting onto the Long Island Rail Road,” he said. “We need to continually invest in the Long Island Rail Road because that will properly benefit our communities, it will help people commute, help people live better lives, and it will make our communities cleaner and safer.”

Palumbo underscored several of these points, backing his support behind moving the Port Jeff train station to the Lawrence Aviation property. “All of those issues are extremely important to this community,” he said. “I think we all agree that this is something that needs to be done.”

Homelessness

Another central topic for Port Jefferson Station/Terryville residents is homelessness. 

Flood proposed that many of the problems associated with homelessness stem from alcohol and substance abuse. He proposed strengthening addiction treatment programs and mental health services. 

“Unfortunately, addiction is rampant throughout the homeless community and possibly the reason why they are homeless,” the Assembly candidate said. “We need to do a better job finding resources to adequately treat people.”

Englebright approached the subject of homelessness through the lens of planning. According to him, this requires offering a coherent vision for the Port Jefferson Station area, much of that concentrated around managing the Lawrence Aviation property, followed by investment.

“That would make it possible for us to accelerate the investment into Port Jefferson Station itself,” he said. “We hear a lot of talk about transit-oriented development, and this is the appropriate place for that policy to be fully fleshed out.”

Johnson supported a “great investment into mental health” to ensure people experiencing homelessness receive the necessary tools to get off the streets. He also said the issue is tied to the affordability and housing crises on Long Island. 

“We do not have proper affordable housing, and we do not have proper workforce housing on Long Island,” the state Senate candidate said. “I’m going to make sure that we do everything that we can to bring home the funds so that we are investing in housing projects, while investing in our critical infrastructure, our public transportation, our roads to make sure that we are keeping up with the flux of people coming into our community.”

Palumbo discussed homelessness as a multifaceted issue, requiring changes in affordable housing, enforcement practices and mental health services.

“I think, generally, Long Island is unaffordable,” he said. “We need to lower the cost of living on Long Island, make it all more affordable, and most importantly do what we can to deal with an affordable housing crisis.”

Concluding remarks

During their closing statements, the candidates were asked to provide their two highest legislative priorities that would also affect Port Jefferson Station/Terryville residents.

Johnson stated his two highest priorities would be affordability and infrastructure improvements. “We need to make sure that we are putting money back in the pockets of everyday people,” he said. “And I’m going to make sure that we do that, and we’re going to make sure that we are investing in our roads and infrastructure.”

Palumbo said his two highest priorities are closely linked to one another. He first hopes to alleviate the burden of high taxes and the unaffordable cost of living on Long Island, then tackle rising crime rates.

“I think other things will fall in place if we get control of the crime issue,” the state senator said. “Coupling that with affordability … we’re losing people for a number of reasons in New York, and we shouldn’t be losing anyone.” He added, “We’re an amazing state, and we need to do what we can to save it.”

Though he did not identify the two highest priority issues, Flood highlighted several matters he would like to remediate if elected. Among these are rising crime, bail reform and better state budgeting.

“I see firsthand some of the effects the state has put into place in terms of bail reform,” Flood said. “They’ve added extra hardships to prosecutors and those in criminal justice, and you see it in an increase of crime, in the inability of a district attorney to bring cases forward, and in that, you have local governments who are handcuffed in trying to comply with a lot of these laws.”

For Englebright, his two highest priorities are the electrification of the Port Jefferson line and better community planning. The assemblyman foresees many positive effects if the existing railyard relocates to the Lawrence Aviation property.

“This is, after all, Port Jefferson Station,” he said. “Our station area should be enhanced, and the plan that we put forward for that should not just be something that looks like South Brooklyn. It should look like a vision of what this community should look like when it looks itself in the mirror.” He concluded, “It should be a place of pride. I believe it should be a public park.”

Pixabay photo

By Leah S. Dunaief

Leah Dunaief

COVID caught me. After two and a half years of bobbing and weaving, trying to elude the virus, I finally have been felled. It’s like being shot on the last day of the war. 

I did all the right things. I avoided crowds, driving back from my South Carolina vacation at the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020 instead of using my return plane ticket. I stopped going to the opera and to Broadway shows in New York City. I didn’t eat in restaurants, even after they reopened, for fear of who might be harboring pathogens at the next table. We closed the office to all but those with appointments. We ordered masks for the staff by the dozens and hand sanitizer by the gallon. We practiced social distancing at the bank, that is, before the bank closed its doors and moved away. We stopped holding events, such as “People of the Year” and “Cooks, Books and Corks” and “Reader’s Choice” that might turn into superspreaders. My family and I zoomed rather than visited. Our family holiday celebrations and vacations were suspended. And we took to our computers, to the extent we were able, for everything from classroom learning to shopping for toilet paper.

Remember all that?

Well, as much as we would like to declare the pandemic over, as President Joe Biden (D) recently did, the virus is still with us. I stopped social distancing, then recently became casual about wearing my mask. I started getting together, first with family, then with close friends, then with business colleagues. Recently, I have been eating inside a couple of restaurants. I stopped asking every repairman to please wear a mask in my house. I pushed COVID phobia way down in my consciousness.

Then I got it.

There are, of course, some differences between catching COVID early on and now. The health care professionals know so much more now about treating the disease. Hospitalizations are fewer but still some 32,000 daily, intubations are less common. But people are still dying, some 400-500 a day, to put numbers on it. Through Sept. 19, Suffolk County reported more than one death per day for the month, according to the Suffolk County Department of Health.

“We’ve had two million cases reported over the last 28 days, and we know underreporting is substantial,” Dr. Michael T. Osterholm, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Minnesota, was quoted in the Tuesday edition of The New York Times. He continued that COVID-19 was the No. 4 cause of death in the country.

Many of us were feeling what Biden was expressing. Yes, we have vaccines and medicines now that successfully hold the pathogen at bay, and most people have every expectation of recovering. Nonetheless, it has been a dreaded disease, especially for those of a certain age or with underlying conditions. With me, it started as a little dry cough throughout the afternoon, hardly noticeable. By nightfall, the cough had deepened and a headache began. The next day, the miserable irritation at the back of the throat started. By the end of the day, my temperature began to climb, eventually four degrees, and my body ached.

Of course, my doctor was on vacation that week, but the backup staff responded valiantly. They called me in for THE test, and when it was positive, they gave me three options. I could go to the Emergency Room and get an infusion of monoclonal antibodies, which would take an hour (not including the inevitable wait.) They could phone in a prescription for paxlovid, and I could take three pills in the morning, then three at night, for five days. They spelled out the side effects of both treatments, which didn’t sound too cheerful. Or I could just monitor the situation, drinking plenty of liquids, taking some Tylenol and see how it goes.

I chose the paxlovid.

Yes, it causes a metallic taste after it’s ingested. But it seems to have worked. 

Will I be as cavalier about relaxing precautions? No, I don’t think so. It is possible to get it again, and I REALLY don’t want it again.  I will get the next booster when I am eligible, I will continue to wear a mask regardless of what those around me are doing, and I will limit my dining, to the extent possible, to the great outdoors.

Video by Bill Doherty

By Donna Deedy

While boating alone just outside of Port Jefferson Harbor over the Labor Day holiday, South Setauket resident Bill Doherty had what he called a once-in-a-lifetime thrill. First, a big splash caught his eye. Then, another. 

Humpbacks, above, devour sea life during a recent whale watching expedition. Researchers attribute more whale sightings to a thriving menhaden or bunker fish population. Photo by Artie Raslich/Gotham Whale

“I kept my eye on the water thinking it could be a boat accident or something,” he said. “I undid the anchor to get a little closer — but not too close — and realized it was a whale.”

For 15 to 20 minutes, Doherty watched in amazement as the whale put on a show spouting and breaching in the water about a mile off Old Field Point. He recorded it on a cellphone video just so he could prove to his friends this was no joke.

A big yacht and another passing boat, he said, cut their engines nearby so the passengers could enjoy the spectacle. 

Whale sightings, as unlikely as it might seem, are becoming more regular events in the New York area, including the Long Island Sound. 

Barrett Christie is director of animal husbandry at The Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk, Conn. His team has been tracking whale activity in the Sound since the museum opened in 1988. 

Almost every year since 2009, Christie said, more and more yachters and fishermen are seeing marine mammals in local waters.

Since 2015 whale counts, predominantly humpbacks but also minke whales, have been ramping up. The aquarium’s annual whale counts range from no sightings at all, to one per year, up to as many as a half dozen or more.

The aquarium’s observations, he noted, are consistent with the findings of other researchers. A Staten Island-based research organization Gotham Whale, for instance, documented in 2011 three whales and five sightings. Recently, the number was up to more than 260. The whale population has become so bountiful around the mouth of New York Harbor, Gotham Whale now coordinates research expeditions with the public in conjunction with five commercial whale watching vessels.

Healthier ecosystems

Scientists praise the Clean Water Act for improving water quality to protect marine habitats. The landmark environmental law, passed in 1972, regulates pollutants from agriculture, industry and wastewater to prevent or limit discharges into waterways.

“It’s taken fish populations more than 30 and up to 50 years to rebound,” Christie said. “We’re seeing not only more whales, but also more Atlantic white-sided dolphin, more seals, more sharks and further down the food chain more sand eels and herring.” 

After a long history of decline, Christie explained that forage fish such as menhaden or bunker and alewife, both in the herring family, have returned to spawn in the many freshwater tributaries that flow into the Sound. 

“The turnaround is miraculous,” Christie said.

Maxine Montello is a wildlife ecologist and the rescue program director at the New York Marine Rescue Center. She teaches a marine mammal and sea turtle course at Stony Brook University. 

After viewing Doherty’s cellphone video, she quickly identified that whale as a humpback. It’s huge pectoral fins, visible as the creature leaped out of the sea, made it easy to distinguish. 

Humpbacks, she said, are baleen whales — they have no teeth. To capture its prey, it swallows and strains seawater through the long and narrow strips of fingernail-like material called baleen that grows out of its jaw. Through this feeding process, it consumes krill, plankton and small fish, such as menhaden.

A flourishing menhaden population in the food chain, researchers are noticing, attracts whales.

In fact, researchers from the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, when conducting aerial surveys, track whales by following menhaden movement. 

Some 15 years ago, they saw few clusters or bait balls of menhaden along Long Island’s southern coastline. Today, Rob DiGiovanni, the society’s chief scientist, said a continuous stream of bunker stretches from Montauk to the New York Bight. Consequently, whales are more abundant there and traveling closer to shore and staying in the area longer. 

Montello and DiGiovanni also praise the Clean Water Act for improving marine habitats. But, with humpbacks near extinction in 1972, another bold act of Congress that year also deserves credit for reviving the whale population. 

“I would say that the Marine Mammal Protection Act has really changed the game for marine mammals,” Montello said. “This act has provided great protection and awareness of these charismatic species.”

This law prohibits hunting, capturing, collecting, harassing or killing marine mammals such as whales, dolphins, seals and manatees.

Whaling once was one of Long Island’s most important commercial industries, according to the Cold Spring Harbor-based Whaling Museum with Cold Spring Harbor, Greenport and Sag Harbor serving as the Island’s three whaling ports. 

Today, people are armed with cameras and spreadsheets instead of harpoons, and more interested in spearheading marine restoration projects that aim to protect rather than slaughter these giant marine mammals. 

If you are lucky enough to spot a whale, scientists want to hear from you with photos. Like human fingerprints, whales bear distinct characteristics on their tails. Gotham Whale has an extensive and growing archive of these tail shots. Through such photos, researchers there have been able to identify and track the activities of 269 individual whales, according to Paul Sieswerda, Gotham Whale’s executive director. 

“It would be interesting to find out if whales — our New York City whales — are the same ones traveling through the Sound,” he said. 

To report whale sightings, contact: Atlantic Marine Conservation Society at www.amseas.org/reportsighting; Gotham Whale at www.gothamwhale.org/citizen-science; The Maritime Aquarium, Norwalk at 203-852-0700.

Graphic from the town website: https://www.brookhavenny.gov/DocumentCenter/View/29593/Brookhaven-Proposed-Districts-2022

The Town of Brookhaven has released its first proposed map to reapportion the Brookhaven Town Council. 

Last week, the town’s appointed bipartisan redistricting committee disbanded after failing to adopt an official map for the six council districts. Without a recommendation from the committee, the Town Board is now responsible for redrawing the district lines.

Following the dissolution of the redistricting committee, Brookhaven Town Supervisor Ed Romaine (R) met with the six representatives on the Town Council to discuss their priorities for the new map. 

Jack Krieger, the town’s communications director, offered a statement outlining the methodology used to arrive at this new proposal. The supervisor could not be reached for comment.

“Over the course of the last several months, more than a dozen public hearings were held across the town by the Brookhaven Redistricting [Committee] in an open, transparent and public process,” Krieger said. “At these meetings, in emails to the [committee], and in local media, numerous residents, civic associations and community leaders voiced their concerns and opinions as to what newly created districts should include, and what they should not.” The communications director added, “The map that will be voted on includes numerous elements from these suggestions.”

In an exclusive interview, Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich (D-Stony Brook) offered some points he raised during his conversation with the supervisor. 

“The supervisor outlined a couple of his priorities, like keeping communities together and making as few changes as possible,” Kornreich said. “Another one that he expressed, which I didn’t happen to agree with, was getting as close to zero [percent deviation] as possible.” The councilmember added, “As long as it’s legal, as long as it’s within the tolerance, that [zero deviation] is just not as important to me. The other criteria are more important.”

One of the reasons for the outpouring of public resistance throughout the committee hearings was a general fear of dividing communities of interest across political boundaries and consequently diluting their voting power, leading to possible gerrymandering.

Krieger defended the new map in his statement, arguing that it “reduces the number of hamlets that are split between districts of multiple council members, has substantially equal populations with the least possible deviation, and contains clear and readily identifiable boundaries.” He added, “The map makes only minimal changes to accomplish this, with 90 percent of residents seeing no change in the district in which they live.”

Kornreich also addressed the public’s concerns. He said the debate surrounding his district, Council District 1, has been about defending the integrity of communities rather than advancing the interest of a particular party.

“This whole thing of me trying to defend the integrity of my council district was never a political effort,” he said. “It was a bipartisan civic effort. The people who had my back in this were as Republican as they are Democrat.”

Residents will again have an opportunity to weigh the redistricting plans during a public hearing on Thursday, Sept. 29, at Brookhaven Town Hall. The hearing will begin at 5 p.m.