Events update
Dave Small
Athol Bird & Nature Club
Field Trips & Meetings 2012
Unless otherwise noted, programs meet at
the Millers River Environmental Center, 100 Main Street, Athol.
If weather is questionable on a field trip day,
please call the trip leader at least an hour before the scheduled meeting time.
Wednesday, February 8, 7 p.m. Wild Things of North Quabbin
At our regular meeting here at the Center, New Salem resident and nature lover Henry Cramer will present “Wild Things of North Quabbin,” an entertaining and educational documentary with natural sounds and narration. The film is a collection of action scenes featuring a wide variety of local animals, including some rarely observed behaviors of herons, turkeys, fish, bobcats, otters and more.
Wednesday, March 14, 7 p.m. Butterflies Near and Far
Join expert naturalist Sue Cloutier here at the Center for our regular monthly meeting, an evening of butterfly photos that will take you from your own neighborhood to the Arctic in search of these beautiful insects.
Tuesday, April 10, 8-10 a.m. Accessible Birding with Joe
Join Joe Superchi on the second Tuesday of the month visiting local sites. Open to birders of all abilities. Meet at the Center. Call ahead for wheelchair van access, 978-248-9491.
Additional programs which may be of interest to our members
"Mysterious Stone Chambers of New England"
Thurs., Feb 2nd, 7 pm. Sloan Theater, Greenfield Community College
This talk is by Jim Viera, stonemason. "Jim has been exploring local stone chambers for years now as a member of the Northeast Antiquities Research Association, which has studied these structures for some 60 years. He will describe the stone ceremonial landscape of New England, carbon dating evidence and historical texts. His slides document local sites and others in New England, and he will discuss what they represent and who may have built them." (PVI Brochure)
This talk is sponsored by the Pioneer Valley Institute, a multi-disciplinary educational program based at GCC. All the Spring PVI programs can be found on this GCC web site http://web.gcc.mass.edu/pvi/ Interesting!
Mass Audubon's 20th annual Birders Meeting will take place Saturday, March 3, at Bentley University in Waltham. The program, BIRDS, BALEEN, and 20 YEARS of MARINE CONSERVATION, will be co-hosted by the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, an organization also celebrating a 20th anniversary.
The all-day event will feature outstanding plenary presentations by well-known ornithologists and scientists Dr. STEVEN KRESS, best known for his efforts to successfully re-establish Atlantic Puffins to the Gulf of Maine; DEBI SHEARWATER, founder of the popular Shearwater Journeys, Inc. tour company; Dr. DAVID WILEY, scientist at Stellwagen Bank Marine Sanctuary highly acclaimed for his underwater studies of humpback whale foraging behavior; and SHAWN CAREY and JIM GRADY of Migration Productions, professional nature photographers and videographers who will premiere their latest video presentation on shorebirds.
Other speakers will include ANNE-MARIE RUNFOLA, Volunteer Coordinator for NOAA/Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary; Dr. JULIE C. ELLIS, seabird expert and professor at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University; BRIAN HARRINGTON, retired shorebird biologist at the Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences and authority on the Red Knot; and JOAN WALSH, Director of Bird Monitoring at Mass Audubon and Coordinator of the Massachusetts Breeding Bird Atlas 2.
Attendance at the Birders Meeting will include lunch, access to a variety of quality vendors, and the opportunity to take a chance on a variety of tempting raffle items and silent auction offerings. To register online or to get more information visit: www.massaudubon.org/birdersmeeting Hunt's Photo and Video will take the lead in sponsoring this not to be missed event!
Wayne R. Petersen, Director
Massachusetts Important Bird Areas (IBA) Program Mass Audubon
208 South Great Road
Lincoln, MA 01773
Protecting the Nature of Massachusetts
Please let us know if folks are interested in carpooling to this event
da...@dhsmall.net
2012 HOG ISLAND AUDUBON CAMP
Registration is open for the legendary 6-day residential birding and environmental education programs at the historic Audubon Camp in Maine on Hog Island. Programs are for adult birders, teens, families, educators, and Audubon Chapter leaders. Pete Dunne, Scott Weidensaul, Steve Kress, Lang Elliott, Don Kroodsma, Bill Thompson III and many more expert ornithologists, naturalists, educators and authors will be in residence during the 2012 sessions. All summer programs include field trips to nearby Eastern Egg Rock, where Dr. Steve Kress and his team of biologists have successfully restored an island colony of Atlantic Puffins, and Roseate, Arctic and Common Terns. Roger Tory Peterson was the camp’s first bird instructor in 1936 and many of America’s finest naturalists, including Rachel Carson, have spent time on the 330-acre wildlife sanctuary, located in mid-coast Maine, on Muscongus Bay. Participants live in restored wooden buildings dating back to the early 1900’s and are treated to three fabulous meals each day, prepared by chef extraordinaire Janii Laberge. Scholarships available.
For more information on the programs, visit http://hogisland.audubon.org. For questions, contact the Hog Island registrar, Erica Marx (VanEtten), at evan...@audubon.org or (607) 257-7308 ext 14.
Dave Small
president
Athol Bird and Nature Club
Millers River Environmental Center
100 Main Street Athol Ma 01331
