GRANVILLE, OHIO (October 19, 2022) The Licking Park District is pleased to announce the opening of a newly paved path at Infirmary Mound Park, located at 4351 Lancaster Road, Granville, OH. The six-foot wide path is .42 miles in length and surrounds Mirror Lake. Since its completion, the path has been used daily by people of all ages for walking and jogging.
GRANVILLE, OHIO (April 5, 2021) The Licking Park District actively supports research that informs the management of our natural resources. Invasive species, and the detrimental impact they have on native species, are of particular concern. In 2020, The Ohio State University graduate student Krystal Pocock collected native crayfish from Lobdell Reserve as part of a larger project examining differences in leaf consumption by crayfish in Ohio. Crayfish are important to stream systems as they break down nutrient rich, coarse leaf litter. However, research has suggested streams with non-native crayfish have accelerated leaf litter breakdown and reduced standing leaf litter. This reduces available habitat and food for fish and aquatic macroinvertebrates and may lead to reduced biodiversity.
GRANVILLE, OHIO (January 19, 2021) A pilot study to assess the presence/absence of bobcats, red fox, gray fox, and coyotes within Licking County was recently led by Dr. Shauna L. Weyrauch of the Ohio State University at Newark. Bobcats (Lynx rufus) in particular were of interest as they are a recovering species in Ohio after being extirpated in the mid-1800s. Currently little is known about their abundance and distribution within Licking County, which sits on the north-west edge of their range. Multiple parks managed by the Licking Park District were selected for observation using non-baited camera trapping stations set up along game trails.