Boston Flora

Tag: Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust

  • Wednesday, June 24, 7:00 pm – Life in a Leaf: The Wonderful World of Leafminers Webinar

    Join Charley Eiseman online on June 24 at 7 pm to learn the secrets of Leafminers, insect larvae that spend at least part of their lives feeding between the epidermal layers of leaves. This presentation will introduce the major groups of leafminers, as well as share some new discoveries Charley made in the course of completing his guide to the North American species that includes keys to the mines found on each plant genus. In North America they include over 2,000 species of moths, flies, beetles, and sawflies, belonging to over 50 different families. These insects are typically quite host-specific, and the form of the mine varies considerably depending on what insect produces it. As a result, it is often possible to identify the responsible insect using only the host plant and mine characteristics. 

    Charley Eiseman is a freelance naturalist based in western Massachusetts. He has been conducting plant and wildlife surveys and natural resource inventories throughout New England for over twenty years, as well as teaching courses and workshops on interpreting animal tracks and sign (both vertebrate and invertebrate). He holds an MS in Botany (Field Naturalist) from the University of Vermont and a BS in Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation and Management from the University of Massachusetts. Charley is the author of Tracks & Sign of Insects and Other Invertebrates (Stackpole Books, 2010), Leafminers of North America (self-published e-book, 2019), and an insect-themed blog called “BugTracks.” He has also published over 40 scientific papers on insect natural history, including the description of over 60 new species. http://charleyeiseman.com/

    Sponsored by the Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust. Free. Register here.

  • Thursday, April 22, 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm – Introduction to Butterfly Watching Webinar

    Join Athol Bird and Nature Club president Dave Small on Thursday, April 22 Eastern Daylight Savings Time, to learn about the life cycle, Identification terminology, best equipment to bring (binoculars and camera) and the families of butterflies you can encounter here in the North Quabbin. Be ready as temperature warm and butterflies begin to emerge, any days that are sunny and 60 degrees will bring out butterflies. This webinar is co-hosted by Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust. And special thanks to the Massachusetts Butterfly Club. Use the link below to sign up. 

    https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_40iChhrNS16cHe7R5_k0AA

  • Saturday, July 25, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm – Fern Walk

    Elizabeth Farnsworth, botanist and nationally recognized fern expert, will lead a Fern Walk on Masson Ridge. The 183-acre property has been protected with a Forever Wild conservation restriction held by Mount Grace and sits in the middle of the Satan’s Kingdom Wildlife Management Area. This event is free. Elizabeth Farnsworth is Senior Research Ecologist with the New England Wild Flower Society and past Garden Club of the Back Bay speaker. Her unique background as a botanist, professor, illustrator and author provide her with a wealth of information to share during this botanical exploration. Meet at West Road in Northfield. For complete information visit The Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust at www.mountgrace.org.  Image from www.mywoodlandgarden.com.

  • 2013 Position Openings with MassLIFT AmeriCorps

    The Massachusetts Land Initiative for Tomorrow (MassLIFT) is an AmeriCorps program managed by Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust. Members build organizational capacity to meet critical community needs for land protection, stewardship of protected lands, conservation outreach and education, and service learning that engages young people in conservation.

    MassLIFT supports 20 AmeriCorps members who serve with regional conservation organizations across the state and serve in one of four positions: land stewardship coordinator, regional conservation coordinator, service learning coordinator, or community engagement coordinator.

    These full-time AmeriCorps positions come with living allowances, health insurance, and the potential to earn education awards. Our 2013 program runs from September 16, 2013 through August 15, 2014.

    Application specifics, position descriptions, and information about the program and organizations hosting MassLIFT members can be found on the Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust website: www.mountgrace.org/masslift-americorps.

    http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/p206x206/531130_487304611291512_573396247_n.jpg

  • Saturday, January 26, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Wild Things of North Quabbin

    In cooperation with the Athol Council on Aging, Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust is sponsoring a free screening of Hank Cramer’s 40-minute film Wild Things of North Quabbin at the Athol Town Hall (584 Main Street, Athol) on Saturday January 26th from 7-8:30pm.

    Shot in the New Salem woods, the film offers us glimpses into the secret lives of locally common birds and mammals. “The wild things in the film encourage us to conserve the local landscape they need for a home and can remind us that people need the land, too, for air to breathe, water to drink, wood for our homes, and, as importantly, for inspiration,” says Leigh Youngblood, Mount Grace Executive Director. Youngblood will be speaking at the event, which will also include a chance to meet some of the animals currently staying with local wildlife rehabilitator Medicine Mammals.

    Hank’s love of nature, perseverance, and sense of curiosity give us a glimpse across four seasons in our local landscape. The movie, edited and assembled from five years of footage, features more than 25 species, including rarely seen behaviors of beavers, bears, bobcats, turkeys, fish, coyotes and herons. The event is free and is designed to introduce people to the wildlife of the region and the importance of land conservation in our communities. For more information about Mount Grace or to reserve seats, visit www.mountgrace.org.

  • Tuesday, October 16, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm – Autumn Naturalist Walk

    Join North Quabbin Trails Association president Bobby Curley and Athol Bird & Nature Club naturalist Allen Young for a look at two outdoor gems, on Tuesday, October 16 from 9 – 1. The group will meet at the Millers River Environmental Center, 100 Main Street in Athol, and proceed by shuttle bus to Skyfields Arboretum, the headquarters of Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust, for a walkabout of the arboretum and information about Mount Grace. Then the group will head on to S. Royalston and the brand new P+P loop trail, a short, easy walk along the just-developed eight-mile Millers/Baquaq River trail, before returning to the Center. Please register with Curley at atphocon@yahoo.com. This event is cosponsored by ABNC, NQTA, MGLCT, Americorps and the Athol Council on Aging.

  • Saturday, August 11, 9:00 am – 12:00 noon – Out-of-the-Way Athol: Lawton State Forest

    Join naturalists Lula Field and Christine Beckert Long on Saturday, August 11 in exploring a part of Lawton State Forest with two beautiful ponds. Meet at Skyfields, the headquarters of Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust, 1461 Old Keene Rd., Athol. Wear long pants. Bring water, camera, field guides. Heavy rain cancels. Info: Chris Long, 978-249-0246. Co-sponsored by the Athol Bird and Nature Club and  MGLCT and part of both organizations’ celebration of Athol 2012.

  • Friday, July 20, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm – Invasive Plant Workshop

    Elizabeth Farnsworth is Senior Research Ecologist at the New England Wild Flower Society and Research Associate at Harvard Forest. On Friday, July 20, from 2 – 4, she will introduce Go Botany, a brand new interactive, online plant sharing and identification tool, at Harvard Forest, 324 Main Street in Petersham.  Part of the training will also take place in the field, identifying flora around Harvard Forest. Participants are encouraged to bring laptops, iPods and iphones for easy identification. Participants will also be asked to continue stewardship work on conservation land in their area by identifying invasives and reporting them to the Go Botany blog. Whether you have photographs, sketches, stories about using the Go Botany tool or recipes for cooking with invasives your experiences will help track invasive plants in the North Quabbin region.  The program is free.

    Please RSVP to Aja Lippincott, AmeriCorps Outreach Coordinator, Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust: 978-248-2055 ext. 21, or by email at outreach_americorps@mountgrace.org.