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Knowing Your Landscape: Protecting Wetlands
Williamstown, MAJoin Williamstown Rural Lands for the on-the-land portion of their Knowing Your Landscape series. Wetlands are critical ecosystems for water quality, water storage, and biodiversity, and because of this, they come with a number of regulations regarding the use of…
Getting Started with Native Plants
Deerfield Town Hall 8 Conway Street, Deerfield, MA, United StatesJoin Jocelyn Demuth of Checkerspot Farm in Colrain, MA, to learn how to get started with native plants at home! The presentation will discuss the benefits of using native plants, practical tips for getting started, and how to build on…
Invasive Plant ID Walk with Robin Sears
Join Williamstown Rural Lands Executive Director Robin Sears for an interpretive walk at the Lehovec Natural Area in Williamstown. We will identify invasive plants, explore their effects on the ecosystem, and discuss approaches to management. The walk will be gentle along…
Grassland Birds Talk
William Cullen Bryant Homestead 207 Bryant Rd, Cummington, MA, United StatesHere in New England, our hayfields, pastures, and meadows serve as vibrant breeding grounds for threatened grassland bird species such as the beautiful bobolink. Learn about these sensitive species and how to manage habitat for them with a talk by…
Berkshire Green Drinks: “A Billion Years of the Berkshires, in Rocks and Landscapes” with geologist Mark Brandriss (hybrid event)
Online/In PersonWhat created the mountains, ridges, and valleys of the Berkshires? Join us at our July Berkshire Green Drinks gathering with geologist Mark Brandriss to read the stories written in the rocks and landscapes of western Massachusetts, and take a quick…
Seeds, Sprays, and So Much More: How Neonicotinoid Insecticides are Impacting Birds
OnlineIt's been 10 years since American Bird Conservancy (ABC) published its monumental report: The Impact of the Nation's Most Widely Used Insecticides on Birds which documented impacts from neonicotinoids (aka neonics) on our feathered friends. A decade later, and not…
Moth Mystique: Illuminating the Dark Side of Winged Wonders with Conservation Photographer Carla Rhodes
Online/In PersonIn anticipation of National Moth Week*, Carla Rhodes, a wildlife conservation photographer and moth enthusiast, will give a presentation all about moths: what mothing is, how to do it, why moths are important, and what moths you might see in…
Invasive Plant ID Walk at Sheep Hill
Sheep Hill 671 Cold Spring Rd, Williamstown, MAJoin Williamstown Rural Lands' Sheep Hill intern, Nikhil DeNatale, for an interpretive walk at Sheep Hill. Learn to identify invasive plants, explore their effects on the ecosystem, and discuss approaches to management at Sheep Hill. The walk will be gentle along…
Where are the Wildlands? The Case for New National Parks
Bascom Lodge 3 Summit Rd., Adams, MAMichael Kellett, RESTORE: The North Woods, and Susan Masino, Trinity College will discuss where our wildlands are, and review two new publications: “Forest-clearing to create early-successional habitats: Questionable benefits, significant costs” “Wildlands in New England: Past, Present, and Future” Come…
LEARN! Pollinator Protection Collaboration
OnlineJoin Berkshire Natural Resources Council for this online event discussing the community collaboration activities of Housatonic Heritage’s Operation Pollination Program and the Massachusetts Pollinator Network. The presenters will also provide seasonal recommendations to protect pollinators Click here to register. DATE:…
Invasive Worms and What You Need to Know
OnlineJumping worms? Snake worms? Crazy worms? These invasive worms, which go by many names, have spread surprisingly fast in New England in recent years. Find out what they are and why they are a threat to our forests, what they…
Berkshire Green Drinks: Massachusetts Wild Trout Fisheries with Adam Kautza of MassWildlife (hybrid event)
The Stationery Factory 63 Flansburg Avenue, Dalton, MAJoin us at our August Berkshire Green Drinks event with Adam Kautza, the Coldwater Fisheries Project Leader for MassWildlife. After giving some background on the wild trout found here in Massachusetts, Adam will discuss the status and distribution of the…
Boreal Forest Ecology Slideshow and Summit Walk
Bascom Lodge 3 Summit Rd., Adams, MALearn about the ecology of high-elevation Boreal Spruce-Fir forests on a short and easy plant/tree ID summit walk and a narrated slideshow in Bascom Lodge with naturalist Aimee Gelinas, Director of the Tamarack Hollow Nature & Cultural Center. Stay for…
Berkshire Green Drinks: ‘Beyond Recycling’ with Andrew Ferrara from Berkshire Zero Waste Initiative
OnlineJoin us for our September Berkshire Green Drinks event to meet Andrew Ferrara, the program manager of BEAT's Zero Waste Initiative, and learn about current projects and groups working to reduce waste in Berkshire County that go beyond just recycling!…
Fall Gardening for Pollinators: Creating a Resilient Garden for All Seasons
OnlineJoin Emily May, Pollinator Conservation Specialist with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, to talk about supporting pollinators and other wildlife in our yards and gardens through the changing seasons. Where do beneficial insects spend the winter? What does gardening…
“Pesticides and Children’s Health: How Can We Protect Our Community?” — Webinar
OnlineThe Town of Great Barrington's Agricultural Commission and Board of Health will co-host a webinar/talk on “Pesticides and Children’s Health: How Can We Protect Our Community?” The public is invited, and pre-registration is required. Click here to register. DATE: Thursday,…
“What is a Spider and What is Not” with Joseph Warfel at Berkshire Biodiversity Day
April Hill 62 Undermountain Rd., South EgremontJoseph Warfel will present on spiders and other arachnids at the 14th Annual Berkshire Biodiversity Day (or Bioblitz). He'll give an overview of spiders and their relatives, including brief life histories of arachnids and their place in nature and the global…
“Local Mushrooms and Their Roles in the Ecosystem” with John Wheeler at Berkshire Biodiversity Day
April Hill 62 Undermountain Rd., South EgremontJohn Wheeler will speak about local mushrooms and their role in the ecosystem at the 14th Annual Berkshire Biodiversity Day (or Bioblitz). He’ll go over the symbiotic relationship between plant roots and fungi (mycorrhizal fungi) and mushrooms that get their…
“Backyard Leafminers” with Charley Eiseman at Berkshire Biodiversity Day
April Hill 62 Undermountain Rd., South EgremontCharley Eiseman will speak about leafminers — insect larvae that spend at least part of their lives feeding between the thin, outer (epidermal) layers of leaves — at the 14th Annual Berkshire Biodiversity Day, or Bioblitz. In North America, leafminers…
“Meet the Native Bees of New England” with Aliza Fassler at Berkshire Biodiversity Day
April Hill 62 Undermountain Rd., South EgremontIn North America, there are approximately 4,000 species of wild bees that are critical for pollinating plants in our forests, gardens, and fields. At the 14th Annual Berkshire Biodiversity Day (or Bioblitz), Aliza Fassler will talk about the diversity of…