The most important obligation of a Land Trust holding a Conservation Agreement on privately owned lands is the yearly monitoring that must take place in order to determine if any restrictions on the lands have been violated. In the case of the Balkwill Conservation Agreement, restrictions exist on the natural heritage and on the agricultural lands ...
Bill Balkwill reported that his brother Jack observed an amusing event on December 2, 2008. Jack was watching a Red-bellied Woodpecker through the front window as the bird feed on the feeding platform. As Jack watched, a House Sparrow flew in beside the Red-bellied Woodpecker. The woodpecker leaned over, seized the sparrow "by the scruff of its neck," dropping the sparrow over the edge of the feeding platform ...