Le Moyne College, in preparation for the once-in-a-lifetime celestial event that will occur in just over a month, will be hosting a myriad of events to celebrate the eclipse, like a picnic and guest lecture by Syracuse University’s Dr. Peter Saulson. Additionally,  Dr. Jason Luscier, a biology professor at Le Moyne, will be hosting a nature walk during the eclipse to observe how it affects the local wildlife and their circadian rhythms.

Luscier is hoping to begin the April 8 walk about 30 minutes before totality begins, at around 2:50 p.m., so that the group gets the opportunity to observe the normal behaviors of the wildlife before total darkness. Ideally, by the time the sun is completely blotted out, the group will be at the hill overlooking the old reservoir near the center of the forest; Luscier said that he chose this spot because he knows that birds tend to congregate around the reservoir and the hill overlooks much of the forest.

From this vantage point, Luscier expects the group to see diurnal, active in the daytime, birds, due to their bright plumage and noticeable vocalizations, returning to nest as the eclipse reaches totality; he also hopes that the group will be able to see small mammals, like squirrels, acting similar to the birds, and even possibly that the group will get to see crepuscular animals, those most active during twilight like raccoons and foxes, coming out of their dens, although it is unlikely as those animals tend to shy away from humans, according to him.

For fans of nocturnal animals however, Luscier has bad news as he does not expect to notice any activity from any owls or crickets as they are either not in these woods or are not going to be active so early in the year according to him.

While Luscier said that he loves to lead these wildlife walks, he has yet to experience one like this, and is extremely excited to have this opportunity and to share it with students who share his curiosity. At the moment, there is no official way to sign up for the walk, but Luscier is planning on sending out a google form in the coming weeks, so keep an eye out for that as last week he said that he can only take so many students. Luscier is excited to have the ability to show these students this once-in-a-lifetime event in a way that few will ever get the chance to experience.