Editing Eastern Prickly Pear (section)

=== Milford Point Colony (Milford) ===

The Milford Point Colony is a large colony of ''Opuntia humifusa'' living within the Smith-Hubbell Wildlife Refuge, an 8-acre parcel of preserve land adjacent to the Audubon Coastal Center at Milford Point.  The colony derives its name from the Audubon sanctuary (which, in turn, derives its name from a common term for the peninsula in Milford, Connecticut).

==== Background ====

On a website dedicated primarily to gardening with native plant species, an article about ''Opuntia humifusa'' briefly mentions that the cactus "grows naturally in Connecticut along the coast. You can see it at the Milford Point Coastal Audubon Center along the boardwalk."<ref name="eklund">Teresa. "Prickly Pear Cactus." Eklund Native Species Garden. N.p., 26 May 2009. Web. 19 Apr 2012. <http://eklundgarden.blogspot.com/2009/05/prickly-pear-cactus.html>.</ref>  Known formally as the Coastal Center at Milford Point, the preserve is owned and managed by the Connecticut Audubon Society and is comprised of an 8.4-acre protected barrier beach in Milford, Connecticut.<ref name="audubonmilfordpoint">"The Coastal Center at Milford Point." ''Connecticut Audubon Society''. Connecticut Audubon Society, n.d. Web. 23 Apr 2012. <http://www.ctaudubon.org/coastal-center-at-milford-point/>.</ref>

==== Exploration ====

===== April 28, 2012 =====

On April 28, 2012, I conducted a field exploration of the Audubon Coastal Center at Milford Point during which I explored the relatively small nature preserve for ''Opuntia humifusa'' which, based upon my previous research, were likely to found along the beach boardwalk.  This exploration involved a very short walk from the parking area to the boardwalk, as well as a brief off-trail survey of the area in which the cacti were discovered.  In total, my route covered approximately 0.29 miles.

Congruent with the claims discovered during my research, ''O. humifusa'' were visible from the short boardwalk which traverses a series of dunes and terminates at the seashore.  In many cases, these plants were only one to two feet from the boardwalk, unobstructed by any railings.

Although the boardwalk offered access to a few cacti, it was clear that other cacti could be found deeper in the dunes which were obstructed from view by various trees and shrubs.  In order to obtain a rough estimate of the total number of cacti on the property, I left the boardwalk and conducted a survey of all those portions of preserve which could reasonably be accessed by foot.  In total, I was able count 19 individual ''O. humifusa'' spread out over an area of approximately 1/2 acre.  Since my investigation of the dunes was not exhaustive, it is fair to say that my count is strictly a conservative estimate of the total cacti growing at Milford Point.

==== Status and Description ====

My field exploration of the Audubon Coastal Center at Milford Point has revealed that ''Opuntia humifusa'' are a "featured" attraction at this preserve.  The colony of cacti is not only exceptionally easy to find, but the boardwalk that traverses the dune area seems to have been constructed, in part, with the specific intention of exposing preserve visitors to wild cacti.

The colony of ''O. humifusa'' on Milford Point covers approximately 1/2-acre and includes at least 19 plants, however the actual number of plants is likely to be at least 10% higher than this estimate.  Most of these cacti were "individuals", which is to say that there were very few which had formed large clonal clusters.  

These findings stand in stark contrast to those of the colonies that I have discovered on inland ridges, which are generally isolated to a very small area (less than 50 square feet) and tend to be centered upon a clonal cluster, with "individual" plants accounting for less than half of the bio-mass of each colony.

The cacti colony at Milford Point was interspersed amongst dune shrubs, short coniferous trees and a variety of herbaceous plants.  In some cases, ''O. humifusa'' were found growing around the bases of trees and shrubs, while in other instances they were growing upon clearings in the dune with a certain margin of open sand between other plant life.  This, again, stands in stark contrast to inland mountain sites, upon which ''O. humifusa'' grows in areas with an exceptionally low diversity of trees and plants.

==== Concerns About Preservation ====

Of all of the sites at which I have observed ''Opuntia humifusa'', the Coastal Center at Milford Point offers the easiest access to these plants while at the same time providing the greatest level of protection.

While the cacti colonies in Plainville and New Haven are found upon state-owned property such as West Rock Ridge State Park and the Metacomet Trail, these parcels of land are very large and protective legislation is nearly impossible to routinely enforce.

The Audubon Coastal Center at Milford Point, while providing similar protective regulations, encompasses a very smaller parcel of land (less than 9 acres) upon which it is considerably more practical to conduct regular assessments of the colonies health.  Thus, I am confident that the colony of ''O. humifusa'' at Milford are relatively safe under the protection and monitoring of Audubon Center staff.

==== Colony Location and Statistics ====

The Milford Point Colony is located in Milford, Connecticut at the Audubon Coastal Center at Milford Point.  The coordinates of the colony within the Audubon Center are 41.175451° , -73.100733°.   

<ul>
<li>To view this location in Google Maps, [http://maps.google.com/?q=41.175451,%20-73.100733 click here].</li>
<li>To download the GPS tracklog of this exploration (KML  format), [[Media:West-Rock-Ridge-State-Park-South-Prickly-Pear-Cactus.kml|click here]].</li>
</ul>

Pertinent statistics concerning the location include:

<ul>
<li>'''Elevation of Colony:''' ~14 feet above sea level</li>
<li>'''Surficial Geology:''' Sand (composed primarily of quartz)</li>
<li>'''Habitat Type:''' Coastal Sand Dunes <ref name="habitat-types">Habitat type is categorized using the Habitats Classification Scheme (Version 3.0) defined by the ''International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources''. <http://www.iucnredlist.org/technical-documents/classification-schemes/habitats-classification-scheme-ver3>.</ref>
</li>
</ul>