Historic New England will conduct garden and greenhouse tours on Saturday, April 27 from 9 – 1 at the Lyman Estate in Waltham, Massachusetts, for volunteers willing to spend a few hours pulling invasive species out of the garden. Registration is recommended at 617-994-5900, ext. 6321. Do a good deed and dress comfortably.
Help protect Box Turtles, Peregrine Falcons and other endangered wildlife by supporting the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Fund when you file your state income tax this year. Since 1983, Massachusetts tax filers of Form 1 have had the option of donating to this effort through the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife’s Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Fund when filing their state income tax (Line 32a: “Endangered Wildlife Conservation”), and tens of thousands of people have done so over the years.
All contributions go directly into the Fund, an important portion of the annual operating budget of DFW’s Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program (NHESP), which conserves and protects endangered species and their habitats in Massachusetts. Over 20,000 tax filers support the program with over $200,000 in critically-important donations each year. Won’t you join them? With your contributions to the Fund, you directly help to study, protect, and restore endangered animals and plants and their habitats. Donations help restore populations and conserve and maintain habitat for many vulnerable kinds of wildlife, from raptors to reptiles.
Contribute directly to the Fund by writing a check payable to: “Comm. of Mass-NHESP Fund” and sending it to: NHESP, Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife, 100 Hartwell Street, Suite 230, West Boylston, 01583.
For those of you who like to help, join Historic New England volunteers and staff at the Codman Estate in Lincoln, Massachusetts every Thursday from April 4 – October 3, 9 – 12, to care for and learn about historic gardens and landscapes. As with the program called Weeding Wednesdays at the Lyman Estate, wear comfortable clothes and bring hand tools. Call 617-994-5900, x. 6321 for more information.
Volunteer along side Historic New England staff and members to care for and learn about historic gardens and landscapes. Weeding Wednesdays take place at the Lyman Estate in Waltham from April 3 – October 2, 9 – 12. Call 617-994-5900 x 6321 for more information. Dress comfortably, bring hand tools.
The Friends of Clarendon Street Playground and the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay invite you to join them on Saturday, March 30, at 10 am for an egg hunt, coffee, and donuts, plus a visit from the Easter bunny. The Clarendon Street Playground is at the corner of Clarendon Street and Commonwealth Avenue, and all age groups are welcome. Image below from www.fromfiretotable.com. Volunteers are needed to hide eggs at 8 am, so if you wish to do so, please contact NABB at 617-247-3961, or email playground@nabbonline.com.Â
Want to make a difference in your community? Join thousands of volunteers from throughout the watershed for the 14th Annual Earth Day Charles River Cleanup! Every year the Cleanup engages over 3,000 volunteers to beautify the Charles River and its tributaries by picking up trash and cleaning the riverbanks at over 100 sites from Milford to Boston. The Esplanade Association is now registering volunteers to participate in the Cleanup!
Last year volunteers helped remove 40 tons of trash along the Charles River. The Esplanade Association provides volunteers with cleanup supplies, snacks, and a free t-shirt. Following the Cleanup you are invited to a volunteer appreciation picnic at the Hatch Shell with music, games provided by Knucklebones, and other fun. Visit our website, www.esplanadeassociation.org, to find out more. March 14th is the last day to register to participate in the Cleanup. Spots on the Esplanade fill up very fast. We are already at 350 volunteers and we often meet our volunteer maximum of 600 people well before March 14th, so please register now!
The Shirley-Eustis House, a National Historic Landmark house museum and carriage house in Roxbury, Massachusetts is pleased to announce a fruit tree pruning workshop will be held on Saturday, February 23, 2012 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Please join the Shirley-Eustis House, Boston Urban Forest Council and Boston Natural Areas Network for a free workshop presentation entitled Fruit Trees: Pruning and Care at the Shirley-Eustis House, 33 Shirley Street, Boston.
Routine pruning is vital for healthy fruit trees. In this hands-on workshop, experts will demonstrate basic tree pruning techniques and guide you as you help prune the Shirley-Eustis House orchard trees. The workshop will teach you how and when to make pruning cuts, methods to boost the production of quality fruit and strategies to improve the health of fruit tree orchards.
Please register for this event by calling 617-542-7696 or by emailing info@bostonnatural.org. This event is free and open to the public. All pruning tools and equipment will be provided but we ask that you provide your own gloves and eye protection gear.
CoCoRaHS is an acronym for the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network. CoCoRaHS is a unique, non-profit, community-based network of volunteers of all ages and backgrounds working together to measure and map precipitation (rain, hail and snow). By using low-cost measurement tools, stressing training and education, and utilizing an interactive Web-site, our aim is to provide the highest quality data for natural resource, education and research applications. It operates now in all fifty states. The network originated with the Colorado Climate Center at Colorado State University in 1998 thanks in part to the Fort Collins flood a year prior. In the years since, CoCoRaHS now includes thousands of volunteers nationwide. This is a community project. Everyone can help, young, old, and in-between. The only requirements are an enthusiasm for watching and reporting weather conditions and a desire to learn more about how weather can effect and impact our lives.
Each time a rain, hail or snow storm crosses your area, volunteers take measurements of precipitation from as many locations as possible. These precipitation reports are then recorded on www.cocorahs.org. The data are then displayed and organized for many of our end users to analyze and apply to daily situations ranging from water resource analysis and severe storm warnings to neighbors comparing how much rain fell in their backyards. CoCoRaHS is used by a wide variety of organizations and individuals. The National Weather Service, other meteorologists, hydrologists, emergency managers, city utilities (water supply, water conservation, storm water), insurance adjusters, USDA, engineers, mosquito control, ranchers and farmers, outdoor & recreation interests, teachers, students, and neighbors in the community are just some examples.
CoCoRaHS has several goals (as stated in its mission statement): 1) provide accurate high-quality precipitation data for our many end users on a timely basis; 2) increasing the density of precipitation data available throughout the country by encouraging volunteer weather observing; 3) encouraging citizens to have fun participating in meteorological science and heightening their awareness about weather; 4) providing enrichment activities in water and weather resources for teachers, educators and the community at large to name a few. To learn more about how to get involved (all you need is a rain gauge!), visit www.cocorahs.org.
The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) is asking for help from sportsmen, birders, and other interested conservationists across the state to report sites where wild ducks and geese (waterfowl) are being fed or to report sightings of ducks and geese they see feeding at artificial waterfowl feeding sites from January 6 – January 26, 2013. Information needed for these reports include town, specific location (address, map, or GPS coordinates), date, number, and the kinds of wild ducks and/or geese observed. Currently, MassWildlife is trying to determine if there is a correlation between artificial feeding sites and waterfowl population size. Feeding site locations or waterfowl feeding reports should be reported to H Heusmann, MassWildlife Waterfowl Project Leader by e-mail at: h.heusmann@state.ma.us; phone (508) 389-6321; Fax (508) 389-7890; or postal mail at DFW Park Mallard Survey, 100 Hartwell Street, Suite 230, West Boylston, MA 01583.
Every five years, since 1973, MassWildlife has conducted a winter waterfowl survey of sites where people feed wild ducks and geese. Designed primarily as a count of wintering mallards, the survey includes information on all waterfowl seen, including Canada geese. The statewide survey covers public and private property in city, suburban, and rural areas. Sites may be located on fresh water, salt water, and estuaries. Other feeding sites include parks, beaches, and backyard bird feeding stations. Because feeding locations change between each 5-year cycle, the most current information on artificial waterfowl feeding locations is valuable.
While MassWildlife discourages feeding of wildlife, there is no state law or regulation prohibiting this activity and the feeding of ducks on some sites has been going on for decades. Some municipalities do restrict or prohibit feeding. Mallards are by far the most common duck seen at feeding sites, but MassWildlife is also interested in obtaining information about other ducks and geese seen feeding at these sites: black ducks are commonly observed along with wood ducks, pintails, gadwalls, wigeons, and hooded mergansers. Canada geese are well known visitors to feeding sites and their presence is often the impetus for towns and cities to pass feeding prohibition bylaws. Results from this year’s survey compared to past surveys will be available later in the winter.
The Wild Ones (www.wildones.org) is compiling a national butterfly host and native nectar plant list that will become available on their website. In an effort to gather the most accurate native plant data possible, the Monarch Committee, is looking for input. To help, send them a list of the common milkweed native to your locale. List your geographic area and up to five plant species. Additionally, they are asking for any local native butterfly host and nectar plant lists for your region.
Send your data to Pam Wolfe, co-chair of Wild Ones, Wild for Monarchs at florawings@earthlink.net.
