Summer may be winding down but our programs are heating up!
Da...@dhsmall.net
Athol Bird & Nature Club
Field Trips & Meetings 2025
http://www.atholbirdclub.org
Note: August calendar error resolution is explained at the bottom of this email
Field Trips in Brown Text – Indoor Meetings in Black Text
Tracking Air Quality at the MREC
In April 2023, the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts installed an air quality sensor at the Millers River Environmental Center, 100 Main Street Athol Ma, to track the local air quality. View the current conditions and learn more about this program.
This information has become more useful as we work through another summer of Wildfire Smoke moving in from Canada. Our MREC sensor has been down for a few weeks but thanks to the Public Health Institute a new sensor was provided and installed by ABNC volunteers. To see regional air quality stations check out the Purple Air Website
DCR Les and Terry Campbell Quabbin Visitor Center
Thursday, August 14, 2025, 10am – 11:30am Barrens Restoration Habitat Site Walk
1.5 miles Moderate – footing will be uneven
Meet at Gate 29 and we will caravan over to the hike location
Gays Hill Barrens is a habitat restoration project underway at DCR-DWSP Quabbin Reservoir. Barrens habitats are globally rare, supporting many rare and endangered species. Explore how DCR-DWSP is creating a network of "refugia" for these specialized species to flourish and expand their populations. Terrain is a mix of flat and small hills with mostly easy slopes; however we will be walking off trail on uneven ground, so caution is advised. Much of the area is very open so bring protection from sun as well as ticks, mosquitoes, etc. Please wear appropriate footwear and bring water. Dogs are not allowed anywhere at Quabbin.
Register here: Thursday, August 14, 2025, 10am – 11:30 am Barrens Restoration Habitat Site Walk
Friday August 15th at 9:30 am The North Central Mass. Nature Journal collaborative is having another outing on August 15th at 9:30 at Eagle reserve conservation area in Royalston, Ma. It is a short but very uneven trail with incredible views. Everyone is welcome to join us to investigate and draw our surroundings. Please contact Trina at thewa...@gardnerale.com if you can attend in case our trip is changed due to weather.
Sunday, August 17 (10 am - 4 pm) Join us at Quonquont Farm's Caterpillooza, a celebration of caterpillars, their roles in the natural world and the varied habitats that support them.
The main event will feature a caterpillar extravaganza by The Caterpillar Lab, with multiple displays and hundreds of live caterpillars inside Quonquont's beautiful, air-conditioned barn. There, you'll be able to explore at your own pace, get close-up looks of caterpillars on their native food plants, watch real-time caterpillar behaviors through digital microscopes, and learn amazing details about caterpillar biology from The Caterpillar Lab's Sam Jaffe and his talented team of educators.
Throughout the day, you'll also have the opportunity to: Join guided walks with expert naturalists to learn more about caterpillars and other wildlife. Watch butterflies and other pollinators in Quonquont's fields and gardens. Explore a new butterfly-themed garden. Purchase cool, caterpillar-themed merchandise from The Caterpillar Lab. Check out Quonquont's farm store for fresh, local offerings. Learn more about the organizations in our area working to protect caterpillar habitat, pollinator plants and biodiversity. And, more good news--during the event, you'll be able to purchase your favorite ice cream treats from Herrell's Ice Cream truck, delicious wood-fired pizza from Longitude Catering, and refreshing non-alcoholic drinks and adult beverages from Quonquont's own Silo Bar.
All ages welcome and encouraged. Due to limited parking, please click here to reserve your parking space; the parking space fee of $5/carload includes a coupon for a free lemonade slushy from the Quonquont Farm Stand.
Caterpillooza! Where: Quonquont Farm, Whately, Massachusetts
When: Sunday, August 17th from 10-4 pm Rain or Shine
Sunday August 24, 2025, 1:30 PM Chris Coyle had the wonderful experience of growing up part of each year in Maine in 
a rustic backwoods cabin. In the days before cell phones, computers, and even before his folks owned a television set, he found my own amusement and learned from the world around him.
Chris has recently completed a book, We Lived in the Woods, a memoir from a bygone era and time, with a chapter written by Chris’s father, Bob Coyle, founder of the Athol Bird and Nature Club. The book was published by Haley’s of Athol.
On August 24 Chris will present a program about how the book came to be, show some images from the book and tell a few stories about this special time in his life. Books will be available for purchase.
The WARE RIVER NATURE CLUB newsletter for August.
It can also be accessed by copying and pasting this link into your browser:
https://www.warerivernatureclub.org/uploads/4/4/1/6/44166651/wrnc_august_2025_newsletter.pdf
Wednesday 7:00 pm September 10th, The Impact of Rodenticides on Wildlife in New England.
A zoom presentation with Stephanie Ellis and Laura Kiesel. Hawks, owls, eagles, foxes and other predators are highly effective at keeping rodent populations in check and ecosystems in balance. But the increased use of rodenticides, particularly second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides, poses a growing threat to wildlife. These highly toxic and persistent pesticides are having a wide-ranging impact on predator and prey species in both urban and rural environments, sickening and killing non target species and becoming widespread in the wildlife food web. Several states have introduced legislation to restrict or ban anticoagulant rodenticides, and some municipalities in Massachusetts have successfully worked to pass regulations restricting or prohibiting their use.
Stephanie Ellis, wildlife rehabilitator and Director of Wild Care, Inc. in Eastham, and Laura Kiesel, journalist and founder of Save Arlington Wildlife and the nonprofit Save Massachusetts Wildlife, will lead a discussion around the reasons behind the rise of the use of anticoagulant rodenticides, how they are impacting wildlife, and how citizens can advocate for safer and more effective alternatives to rodent poisons in their communities.
We love our Garlic and Arts volunteers.
We hope you will join us once again on September 27th and 28th in 2025 to work with the Organizers on the field. Sign up to volunteer as an individual or a team.
2025 ABNC Calendar Error
As previously communicated, an error was identified on two pages of the 2025 ABNC calendar. The starting day for August was shown as occurring on Saturday, when it should have been Friday. The starting day for September was shown as occurring on Tuesday when it should have been Monday.
There are several options for correcting this mistake:
- Request corrected sheets with an adhesive back peel-off cover for each of the two months. Complete the request on the ABNC website, including your mailing address and the number of calendars you are amending. The sheets will be sent to this address free of charge.
- PDF copies of the corrected months are available on the ABNC website. Simply download the corrected months, print, and either tape or glue the PDF copies over the impacted months. If you would like to have the PDF copies sent to your mailing address, please complete the request on the ABNC website, including your mailing address and the number of calendars you are amending. The sheets will be sent to this address free of charge.
- You can simply make a notation on the impacted months indicating the change in the starting date.
Use this link to request corrected pages - ABNC Calendar Revision - Athol Bird & Nature Club
We regret this error and appreciate your continued support when purchasing this unique calendar.
Dave Small
978-413-1772
Athol Bird and Nature Club
Millers River Environmental Center
100 Main Street, Athol Ma 01331
The Environmental Center is now open by appointment and available for use by our partners
