Latest news with #MaineDepartmentofInlandFisheriesandWildlife
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Father-Daughter Tragedy: Second Hiker Found Dead on Mt. Katahdin
Mount Katahdin in Maine is most famous for being the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail, but this week, the area became a tragic focal point. A father and daughter from New York went missing on the mountain while hiking over the weekend. After 3 days of searching, both bodies have been found, according to authorities with Baxter State Park, where the mountain is located. Esther Keiderling, 28, and her father, Tim Keiderling, 58, were visiting Baxter State Park in Millinocket and had planned to hike to the 5,270-foot summit of Mt. Katahdin. They were last seen on the morning of Sunday, June 1, after leaving Abol Campground, according to a press release from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIFW). Park authorities said rangers began searching for the pair on Monday after the Keiderlings' vehicle was found still parked in the day-use parking lot. They began with the Abol and Hunt Trails, both popular routes for summiting Katahdin, and searched the Katahdin Tablelands. On Tuesday, Baxter State Park rangers expanded the search, assisted by more than 30 game wardens, including the Maine Warden Service Search and Rescue team and Maine Warden Service K9 Team. Maine Forest Service provided aerial support with three helicopters, and the Maine Army National Guard also assisted with Blackhawk and Lakota helicopters fitted with infrared thermal imaging devices. That afternoon, the K9 team located the body of Tim Keiderling on the Tableland, near the summit, according to park authorities. Teams continued to search the area for Esther, which carried over into today. A team of 25 game wardens, four K9 teams, and 21 rangers announced that at 1:00 p.m., the body of Esther Keiderling was identified in a wooded area of the Tablelands. GearJunkie reached out for comment but did not immediately hear back. There has been no report on the cause of death or what led the pair to go missing. Since 1933, 64 people have perished on Mount Katahdin, including two people in 2020. From 1992 to 2014, an average of 34 search and rescue missions had to be launched per year in the park. Hikers consider the summit of Katahdin to be one of the most difficult ascents in the Northeast. This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
Missing Daughter Found Dead on Hike a Day After Dad's Body Was Located Near Mountain Summit: Authorities
The bodies of a father and daughter who went hiking in Maine days ago have now been recovered Esther Keiderling, 28, and her father Tim, 58, were last seen on Sunday, June 1 Tim was found dead on Tuesday, June 3 — and his daughter's body was found the next dayThe body of a daughter who went missing along with her father after they set off on an Appalachian trail hike together has been located. Esther Keiderling, 28, and her father Tim, 58 were declared missing on Tuesday, June 3. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife said the pair were last seen around 10:15 a.m. local time on Sunday, June 1, when they set out from Abol Campground to hike Mount Katahdin. A few hours later on June 3, authorities announced in a statement that a Maine Warden Service K9 search team found Tim's body near the summit of the mountain, but that his daughter remained missing. The next day, they updated the statement with a grim announcement that searchers had found Esther's body. 'It is with deep regret that we share the news that today, at approximately 1:00 p.m. (June 4), search teams discovered the body of Esther Keiderling off the Tablelands, in a wooded area between two known trails,' authorities wrote, sharing that additional details would be provided later, after searchers returned to the base of the mountain. The father and daughter were both from Ulster Park, N.Y., according to authorities. Baxter State Park Rangers launched a search for the Keiderlings after their car was found still parked at the trailhead on the morning of Monday, June 2. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. The Baxter State Park website describes the Katahdin trail as a 'very strenuous climb, no matter which trailhead you choose,' noting that it can take an average of eight to 12 hours to hike round-trip. In addition to the rangers, the search expanded to include other rescue personnel like game wardens, K9 teams, helicopters from the Maine Forest Service, and the Maine Association of Search and Rescue Volunteers. 'The Maine Army National Guard and their helicopters also assisted with the transportation of searchers, and searching trails, streams and the Tablelands from the air,' officials said. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Hiker found dead in Maine, search continues for 28-year-old daughter
A 58-year-old hiker was found dead near a mountain summit in Maine while his 28-year-old daughter remains missing, authorities said Tuesday. The body of Tim Keiderling was located around 2:45 p.m. Tuesday on the Tableland near the summit of Mount Katahdin, the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife said. Search efforts were ongoing for Keiderling's daughter, Esther, officials said. Tim and Esther Keiderling, both from Ulster Park, New York, were last seen leaving the Abol Campground around 10:15 a.m. on Sunday morning to hike toward the summit of Katahdin, which is in Baxter State Park and is notably the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. Fox News' Mike Tobin Completes Risky Everest Climb And Shares Details Of High-stakes Summit Park rangers began searching for the pair Monday morning after their vehicle was found parked at the trailhead. Read On The Fox News App After the body of Tim Keiderling was found, his brother Joe issued a statement to WMTW-TV, saying that his "heart is broken for [Tim's] wife and children." "No one has had a brother like mine," Joe Keiderling said in the statement. "Tim lived exuberantly. He loved life, loved people, loved God. He was a storyteller like no one I've known with a rich sense of humor." Joe Keiderling added that he and his family are praying for first responders as they continue the search for Esther. Alaska Man Survives Being Pinned Face-down By 700-Pound Boulder In Creek After Help From His Wife More than 30 Maine Game Wardens, the Warden Service's K-9 and Search and Rescue teams, Maine Forest Service helicopters and the Maine Army National Guard have taken part in the search for the father and daughter. The Hunt and Abol Trails were closed on Tuesday due to the search effort. The Baxter State Park website notes that Katahdin is a "very strenuous climb," with an average round trip taking 8 to 12 hours. Katahdin is the tallest mountain in Maine, with an elevation of about 5,270 article source: Hiker found dead in Maine, search continues for 28-year-old daughter
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Peregrine falcons show signs of national decline, but not in Maine
May 27—After rebounding from near extinction, Maine's peregrine falcons appear to be holding steady, producing more chicks than usual last year to remain seemingly unaffected by the avian flu that is killing peregrines in other shoreline states. In 2024, about 35 years after their reintroduction to Maine, 33 peregrine falcon pairs raised 46 babies to their fledgling stage, or at least 28 days of age, resulting in a productivity rate of 1.39. That's better than 2023, when 30 pairs produced 37 fledglings, above the population's five-year productivity average. A new state report documents the peregrine falcon's status, laying out the productivity numbers but also raising concern about the future of a crow-sized bird that's celebrated as the fastest animal on the planet, capable of diving at speeds of up to 200 miles per hour. "Despite this relative stability in productivity in Maine, there is growing concern in other regions," said Erynn Call, state raptor biologist and report author. "In 2024, New Jersey and Virginia reported sharp declines in productivity and unusually high adult turnover, raising alarms among peregrine biologists." The nest success rate in New Jersey fell from 83% in 2023 to 63% in 2024, with an exceptionally high adult turnover rate due to highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, according to the report. Virginia's adult turnover rate more than doubled to 40%, with rates as high as 63.2% along the coasts. In other parts of the U.S., observers have documented significant drops in occupancy: 48% in Montana, 30% in New Mexico and 43% in Nevada. Steep declines have been reported internationally, in Denmark, France and Germany to Norway, as well as Sweden and Switzerland to as far away as Russia and Malaysia. In the report, Call says the pace and scale of these worldwide losses represent the most significant threat to peregrines since the DDT era, when widespread pesticide use caused the peregrine to disappear from Maine. The population collapse prompted state and federal regulators to declare the falcon endangered. Recovery began when DDT was banned. Peregrines were reintroduced to Maine in the 1980s, with 153 young birds released over a period of years. They began to nest here again in 1988, about 25 years after the last known breeding pair had been seen in Maine. While HPAI has been found in other wild birds in Maine, including Canada geese, red-tailed hawks and great horned owls as well as ducks, gulls and shorebirds, no peregrine falcons have tested positive for it, according to Tegwin Taylor, a wildlife biologist at Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. To date, five peregrines have been tested during treatment for injuries at a wildlife rehabilitation center. "While it's limited information, it's generally good news for peregrines in Maine!" Taylor said. Call and Taylor are not sure why Maine's peregrine falcons seem to have avoided the flu deaths of other coastal states, but say it could be because Maine peregrines tend to hunt songbirds, which are less likely to carry HPAI than the shorebirds and waterfowl favored by peregrines of other coastal states. Both Call and Taylor warn against reading too much into the HPAI testing results, noting there are still fewer than 50 nesting pairs of peregrine falcons in Maine. With a population that small, the loss of one bird, much less a nesting pair, is meaningful. Due to limited resources, state observers could not visit every potential falcon nesting site last year, nor locate every missing peregrine, so it is possible that a peregrine could have died from HPAI and remain undocumented, they warn. Looking beyond the fledgling count and bird flu, Call points to other signs of a stressed state population. Limited testing of injured peregrine fledglings and eggs shows high levels of lead and forever chemicals, contaminants that could hurt the peregrine's ability to successfully reproduce, Call said. More tests are needed to understand the exposure and risks. The presence of single birds at four nesting sites could also mean the population was not big enough for all of Maine's peregrines to find a mate. In others, the mate was a young, second-year falcon who had a harder time successfully raising chicks because they are still developing their hunting and nesting skills. But last year's count found other signs of hope, too, in newly discovered nests: at the Ripogenus Dam on the west branch of the Penobscot about 40 miles west of Millinocket, on Casco Bay's Cushing Island, and in a nesting box recently installed by Sappi Mill in Skowhegan. The peregrine falcon was removed from the federal endangered species list in 1999, its numbers robust enough to allow permitted captures in small numbers for hunting purposes. But it's still on Maine's list because of the small size of the local population and its sensitivity to nesting disturbance. Peregrines like to nest up high on cliffs, quarry walls, buildings, bridges or towers. They will defend the nest aggressively, which can pose problems for both people and birds. Eggs can get knocked out of nests, chicks can fall and fledglings take flight too early. When a nest is found, Call works with landowners to minimize disturbances. Visitors to Acadia National Park may be familiar with the peregrine's nesting season due to the March-August closure of the popular Precipice Trail. Copy the Story Link
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Yahoo
Amphibians on the march for their Big Night
May 3—On warm, rainy spring nights, hundreds of volunteers stake out roads across Maine keeping watch for any movement. Their goal is to do what they can to usher some of the state's smallest creatures across to the road to ensure the next generation of amphibians will live to take the same trip in years to come. Maine's annual spring migration brings throngs of frogs and salamanders down from the forested uplands to shallow seasonal or vernal pools, where amphibians gather to breed each night. But the migration paths often take them across the state's network of paved roads, putting the frogs and salamanders at risk of death from traffic. Greg LeClair, biologist at Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, sought a solution to the carnage. In 2018 he founded Maine Big Night, a community science project that invites volunteers across Maine to help amphibians safely cross dark roads while collecting data to support long-term species survival. Derek Yorks, wildlife biologist at Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, said it's special to see synchronized migration between the various species. The most common migrating species in Maine are spotted salamanders, red-backed salamanders, blue spotted salamanders, four-toed salamanders, wood frogs and spring peepers, who can be heard nightly. On April 20, a law was passed to designate the spring peeper as Maine's official state amphibian. "They're all a little different, but their habitat is shared and the migration is shared," Yorks said. "So it can be quite the spectacle, definitely worth seeing for yourself if you get a chance." Opportunities to see amphibians aren't exclusive to nighttime. On a recent Saturday, the Sebasticook Regional Land Trust and Maine Master Naturalists held a vernal pool walk at Freedom Forest Reserve in Freedom, and the Kennebec Valley Land Trust hosted a vernal pool field workshop at the Ezra Smith Wildlife Conservation Area in Mount Vernon. They were just two of several vernal pool exploration events scheduled in April. These events increase human understanding of amphibians, said Noah Charney, assistant professor of conservation biology at the University of Maine who helped found the Maine Big Night nonprofit organization. "The understanding that people walk away with of what species are out there and what they need to survive, and understanding vernal pools and amphibians, I think, adds a layer of broader societal understanding and acceptance," Charney said, "and knowledge about what is in our world and what we need to do to protect it." While migration occurs over multiple nights, the Big Night is the night where conditions are optimal: rainy weather, wet roads and a temperature in the upper 40s or 50s. On those nights, amphibians race to be first to the pond so their larva can develop and metamorphosize before the pond dries up, Charney said. "They're trying to get there as soon as they thaw out, as soon as it's warm enough and wet enough for them to get there, and be the first to lay the eggs," Charney said, which are then fertilized. "So it's a race for these vernal pools in the early spring — the first warm, rainy night — although there's often a trickle of salamanders and frogs moving on a variety of different nights. But in general, the first warm, rainy night, they all try to get down to the ponds." This year, rainy nights throughout April brought earlier movement in southern Maine and a large peak night in central and northern Maine on April 15. Volunteers shared updates on species movement on Maine Big Night's Facebook page, noting location and weather conditions. The social media group is also home to hundreds of photos and videos of brightly colored frogs and salamanders, often perched in the hands of volunteers outfitted with headlamps and clad in reflective safety vests. Maine's amphibian species live the majority of their lives underground anywhere from a couple hundred to 1,000 feet from vernal pools. They venture out only to breed, making spring the perfect time to spot reclusive species before they return home. Charney said some amphibians stay in their hiding places for years. "If it's deep into late April, May, and there hasn't been any warm, rainy nights, at some point they're going to try to take whatever they can take to get down to those ponds," Charney said. "Or they'll decide to just skip the year entirely and wait until next year to migrate. Spotted salamanders in particular will do that." Synchronized amphibian migration happens across the Northeast each spring, but Maine Big Night was the first statewide, volunteer-led community science event, according to its website. Data has been recorded on over 20,000 amphibians since 2018. Charney said large-scale community science projects like Big Night reveal the pros and cons of human interaction with wildlife. Most times, he said, the positives win out. "There can definitely be a negative, direct impact felt by amphibians sometimes when there's too much interest in them," Charney said. "But I think that overall, in the bigger picture, I'd rather have more people excited about the amphibians and learning about them and understanding them and the kids playing with them — I think that in the long run, it has more positive impacts than the direct use of that wetland that night." Copy the Story Link
