The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection will host a workshop with local conservation partners on the New England Cottontail Initiative, from 8 a.m. to noon Sunday at the Housatonic Valley Association Headquarters, l150 Kent Road (Route 7), Cornwall Bridge.

The workshop cover efforts and opportunities to help New England cottontails and other wildlife. It begins indoors and ends with an outdoor field trip, from 10:30 a.m. to noon, at the Housatonic River Wildlife Management Area in Kent.

Commission members, professional and volunteer land managers, conservation group leaders, landowners, and any other interested individuals are encouraged to attend. This workshop is being sponsored by the DEEP Wildlife Division, The Housatonic Valley Association, The Appalachian Mountain Club - Connecticut Chapter and Audubon Connecticut. Registration is required. For information or to register, contact Judy Wilson, DEEP Wildlife Division biologist at: (860) 295-9523 or at: judy.wilson@ct.gov.

The New England Cottontail Initiative is a regional effort to create, restore, and enhance New England cottontail habitat and populations. Once common in the Northeast, the New England cottontail is now scarce enough to be considered for protection under the federal Endangered Species Act. The range of this species has been reduced by more than 80 percent, mainly due to dwindling habitat.