CONTENTS

This registration package contains:

· An invitation to the Annual Meeting and Conference

· A schedule of the meeting and conference

· A description of the field trips and workshops

· Information about the Sturbridge Host Hotel and accommodations

· Information about dining and other accommodations in Sturbridge

· Map

· A registration form for the meeting and conference

Please note: once you have registered for the Annual Meeting and Conference, you will receive acknowledgement of your choices.
INVITATION TO THE MASS AUDUBON ANNUAL MEETING AND CONFERENCE

To: Board members, members of the Massachusetts Audubon Society Council, members of the Sanctuary Advisory Committees, and Founder’s Circle members

From: Laura A. Johnson, President

August 16, 2002

The waning days of August bring thoughts of autumn and the Mass Audubon Annual Meeting and Conference. This year we will highlight central Massachusetts and its diverse habitats with a meeting in Sturbridge at the Sturbridge Host Hotel and Conference Center on Cedar Lake. I hope you will join others in the Mass Audubon community for two days of field trips and workshops, delectable food, and good company. The foliage should be spectacular on October 6 and 7 and the Hotel is located on a lake for kayaking, canoeing or walking.

The Mass Audubon Annual Meeting and Conference offers a wonderful opportunity to learn about how we are all working together to protect the nature of Massachusetts. Sunday’s activities will include field trips that start at 1:00, and a reception and dinner, with speaker, that begin at 6:00 p.m. Monday’s schedule includes morning workshops followed by a variety of afternoon workshops and field trips to hidden habitats of Worcester County, places you will enjoy but which are somewhat obscure, or even closed to the public. This is a wonderful opportunity to get to know the flora, fauna, and habitats of Worcester County.

The Sturbridge Host is holding a block of rooms for us at a special rate of $107 per room (for single or double occupancy) but you must make your reservation by September 6.

Information about dining, sightseeing, and other accommodations in the Sturbridge area is enclosed in this package.

I do hope you will be able to join us!

Massachusetts Audubon Society

Annual Meeting and Conference

October 6 & 7, 2002

“Hidden Habitats of Worcester County”

Text Box: Sunday, October 6, 2002

1:00 p.m.– 4:00 p.m. Field Trips (PLEASE NOTE: LUNCH IS NOT PROVIDED)

6:00 p.m. Cocktail Reception

7:00 p.m. Dinner

8:00 p.m. Speaker Mark Lynch , “Night Herons Among The Mills: Birds Up And Down The Blackstone River National Corridor”

9:00 a.m. Welcome – Laura Johnson, President

9:15 a.m. Annual Meeting – Franz Colloredo-Mansfeld, Chairman of the MAS Board of Directors

9:30 a.m. Mass Audubon Awards

9:55 a.m. Overview: Natural History of Worcester County – Chris Leahy, Holder of the G.A. Bertrand Chair of Natural History and Field Ornithology

10:15 a.m. Break

10:30 a.m. – 12:00 Morning Workshops

12:00 –12:45 p.m. Box Lunch

1:00 – 4:00 p.m. Field Trips or Afternoon Workshops (choose one)

§ 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Field Trips

§ 1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Workshops

4:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Wrap Up/Raffle

Text Box: SUNDAY AFTERNOON FIELD TRIPS

TRIPS

All trips depart from the Sturbridge Host Hotel

1:00 P.M. – 4:00 P.M.

Note: PLEASE EAT LUNCH BEFORE THESE TRIPS. Lunch is not provided

#1 Broad Meadow Brook, Worcester, MA

Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center and Wildlife Sanctuary, established in 1991, now totals over 400 acres of oak woods, fields, streams, and marshes and is home to a diversity of bird and mammal species. The Conservation Center offers year-round environmental programs for people of all ages including area schools, scout groups, civic and community organizations, and adult education groups. It also serves as a visitor information site for the National Park Service’s John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor. The Sanctuary lands are managed through cooperative agreements with the City of Worcester (Conservation Commission), Massachusetts Electric (a National Grid Company) and the Greater Worcester Land Trust that co-holds a conservation easement on the 80 acres of land acquired in the summer of 2001 from the Catholic Diocese and added to the City's holdings. A new trail has just been established that introduces sanctuary visitors to some of the ecological highlights of the sanctuary, including the black oak savannah lands, some of the cultural history of the area, and an old granite quarry.

Site conditions for visitors: Well-established trails that traverse hilly terrain. Rest rooms are available.

Maximum number of participants: 40 people in two or three separate groups

#2 Quinebaug River, Brimfield, MA

The Quinebaug River rises in the Town of Holland on the Massachusetts-Connecticut boundary. It first flows northward and east before descending southward to the Thames River, of which it is a tributary. With a long history of serious flood related damage in the Thames River watershed, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers now regulates the flow of the Quinebaug River by managing the discharge at the East Brimfield Dam. Our field trip will begin at a canoe access point immediately below Holland Pond. From the outlet of the pond, the river is a broad, placid stream. It is bounded by open, vegetated marshes that provide habitat for a variety of birds, amphibians, and reptiles. This “canoe trail” eventually widens into the East Brimfield Lake, near Rt. 20 in Brimfield and Sturbridge.

Site conditions for visitors: Canoeing may be moderately strenuous if there are strong headwinds. No rest rooms.

Maximum number of participants: 24

#3 Wells State Park, Sturbridge, MA

Located in Sturbridge, this 1,470-acre protected open space is part of the state’s forest and park system. Located a few minutes drive from the conference hotel, this park offers an interesting array of habitats found in central Massachusetts. Walker Pond, a large freshwater pond includes an extensive wetland system on its southern margin. Upland areas of the park are largely forested. Interspersed throughout these woodlands are perennial and intermittent streams and small, vegetated wetlands. Vernal pools are also present. The varied topography of this site, including Hitchcock “Mountain,” presents a mix of forest communities and pleasant scenery. At least three different walks on separate trails throughout the park will be conducted.

Site conditions for visitors: Well-established, marked trails that traverse hilly terrain. Rest rooms are available.

Maximum number of participants: 40 people in three separate groups

#4 Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary, Wales, MA

This privately owned and managed nature preserve is based in Wales — Massachusetts, that is. It is an ever-expanding sanctuary that now extends into Connecticut as well as Massachusetts. Established as a gift of Arthur D. Norcross, a Wales native who founded Norcross Greeting Cards, the property now protects 4,000 acres of extensive woodlands, streams, ponds and wetlands. A visitor center includes displays of vegetation characteristic of eastern North America, examples of which have been planted within the sanctuary. Native fauna include a wide variety of migratory and resident birds as well as mammals such as bear, deer, fisher, and bobcat that are common in relatively large tracts of protected southern New England habitat, such as the Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary.

Site conditions for visitors: well-established trails that traverse hilly terrain. Rest rooms are available.

Maximum number of participants for this site visit: 12

Text Box: SUNDAY DINNER
PROGRAM AND SPEAKER

6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

NIGHT HERONS AMONG THE MILLS: BIRDS UP AND DOWN THE BLACKSTONE RIVER NATIONAL CORRIDOR

The Blackstone National Corridor is a unique National Park that runs from Worcester to Providence along the watershed of the Blackstone River. This river hosted the birth of the Industrial Revolution, was the site of a unique canal connecting Worcester to the sea, and became one of the most horribly polluted rivers in the nation. Thanks to the efforts of many organizations, including Mass Audubon, the "nation's hardest working river" is now well on its way to recovery. How have birds survived in this very urban setting? Do some migratory and invasive species regularly use this natural north/south corridor? What does the future hold for birds and other creatures in this unique National Park? Mark Lynch will talk about the first few years of monitoring in the Park and the many surprises he found.

MARK LYNCH has been a teacher and ecological monitor for Mass Audubon at Broad Meadow Brook since its inception. Among his projects was a multi-year monitoring project about how waterfowl use the city of Worcester waterways. Mark is the book review editor for the journal BIRD OBSERVER. He hosts a radio show on the arts and sciences on radio station WICN and is a teacher and docent at the Worcester Art Museum.

Text Box: MONDAY MORNING WORKSHOPS

10:30 a.m. – 12:00

#1 Invasive Species

Conservationists frequently identify invasive species as second only to habitat loss as a major threat to biodiversity. The ecologist Charles Elton was among the first to note this threat in 1958 in the classic book The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants. Since that time, the problem of invasive species has grown progressively worse. Today’s global economy has dramatically increased the spread of animal and plant species across and between continents, often with devastating ecological effects. It has also been suggested that milder winters associated with global climate change may make areas like New England more prone to the establishment and spread of invasive species than in the past. This workshop will present information on current efforts to address this issue, including the development of a strategy for managing invasive species on Mass Audubon’s sanctuary system.

#2 Moths, the Other Lepidoptera

There are thirteen times as many moths as butterflies in Massachusetts. Moths overwhelm the order Lepidoptera, but butterflies get the press; yet, in a single evening in July one can easily collect over 100 species, compared to 69 butterfly species found at Wachusett Meadow in ten years of year-round searching! Many moths are specific to habitats, plant communities, and even individual species of plants, as well as having multiple occupations. At any given time, you might find a dead leaf shredder, a bark or lichen feeder, leaf rollers, skeletonizers, borers, associated with the same tree. This aspect of moths may make them important indicators for critical habitats and communities. Arboreal birds, such as warblers, have evolved guilds to take advantage of lepidopteran larvae abundance as a food source. This program outlines the biodiversity of moths, the incredible range of families, species, niche and habitats they represent, the phenomena and processes they connect, and moth censusing at Wachusett Meadow, including a few of Worcester County’s rare species.

#3 Important Bird Areas in Massachusetts: a focus on Worcester County and a unique IBA

This workshop will provide an overview and progress report of the Important Bird Areas program to date. Specifically, it will describe some of the little known and unique sites that have been nominated within southern Worcester County, such as Quaboag River and marshes, Ware River Watershed and Blackstone National Heritage Corridor. The Blackstone IBA will be described in detail. The Blackstone River Corridor, encompassing 250,000 acres, flows 46 miles from Worcester to Providence. The area has unique historic significance during the Industrial Revolution, which led to its exploitation and pollution. More recently, local interest in cleaning the river has grown and Mass Audubon’s Broad Meadow Brook Wildlife Sanctuary has been a key player in developing environmental appreciation of this resource. The Corridor is known by local birders for migrating waterfowl and spring migrating landbirds. Aside from the avifauna that support its nomination as an IBA, the Corridor is also nominated for its unique opportunities for environmental education and monitoring.

#4 When Salamanders and the Law Collide

“Vernal” pools are a critical temporary habitat for many species including fairy shrimp, mole salamanders (yellow, blue-spotted, Jefferson, and Marbled), wood frogs, and some kinds of turtles. The workshop will compare and contrast the upland habitat needs of vernal-pool dependent wildlife with the limitations of regulatory programs such as the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act. A case study involving a golf course development proposed in and around a cluster of vernal pools supporting rare species will illustrate the issues and opportunities for effective citizen action. This includes a precedent-setting lawsuit arising over a proposed project in Sturbridge (Worcester County) challenging the validity of the state’s vernal pool certification program and permits required under the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act.

#5 Old-Growth Forest Preserves: How much is enough?

Old Growth forests are extremely rare in Massachusetts, covering only about 3,000 acres out of 3 million forested acres in the state. This workshop will present an overview of the status, composition, and age-structure of Massachusetts forests, providing a context for understanding Old Growth. The opportunities and need for designation of permanently protected Reserves in and surrounding Old Growth remnant forests will be examined. The benefits and limitations of the Department of Environmental Management’s Old Growth Policy will be discussed, and the proposed Old Growth Reserve Protection legislation explained.

#6 Inland Fishes of Massachusetts

Freshwater fishes are beautiful, fascinating, and ecologically important elements of the biodiversity of Massachusetts. Yet, because they live underwater, their exquisite forms and details of their lives are not as readily observable as those of birds and other vertebrate animals. This program seeks to redress the undeserved obscurity of the Commonwealth’s freshwater ichthyofauna. For instance, which of our native inland fishes are endangered? What is the threat associated with the exotic fish species, like the snakehead, to our native aquatic fauna? These and other topics will be addressed in this presentation along with a preview of Mass Audubon’s newest publication, Inland Fishes of Massachusetts.

#7 Losing Ground / Saving Ground: Implementing Mass Audubon's New Land Protection Strategy

Across the Commonwealth, unprecedented rates of land conversion are resulting in accelerated habitat fragmentation and loss. In much of the state, the "window of opportunity" to make a meaningful difference in the conserved landscape is closing rapidly. In order to best meet this challenge and most effectively Protect the Nature of Massachusetts, Mass Audubon has recently adopted an updated, science-based framework to guide its future land protection efforts. The foundation of this plan is the creation of a Geographic Information System data layer that will enable the organization to be more focused, selective and proactive in its land protection work. This presentation will include a review of the strategy adopted and outline key steps in its implementation statewide. The workshop will also highlight new directions that will increase the effectiveness of our land protection efforts and the examples of parcel-level land protection plans being prepared at several high priorities sanctuaries in central Massachusetts.

Text Box: MONDAY AFTERNOON FIELD TRIPS

1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Elm Hill Wildlife Sanctuary

Elm Hill Wildlife Sanctuary located in Brookfield and North Brookfield in southern Worcester County is one of the larger sanctuaries managed by Mass Audubon. The 1090-acre property is rich in ecological, historical and scenic values. The wide diversity of habitats include mesic and dry acidic forests, rich mesic forests, vernal pools, graminoid marshes, stream banks, wet meadows and open agricultural fields. The flora includes approximately 600 plant species including showy goldenrod, hepatica, rue anemone, Canadian burnet and the globally rare variable sedge. The dominant features of the landscape are the numerous drumlins, which offer some of the finest views of southern Worcester County. Finally, the land’s rich cultural history dates back to the land grants and homesteads established in the late 1600s. The Bay Path, the first all season road through Massachusetts, established in 1673 and the Ben Franklin Highway also known as the Post Road pass through the sanctuary. Currently the sanctuary is not prepared for public use but can be explored through programs sponsored by various MAS sanctuaries.

Choose from the following three walks:

Field Trip #1 Elm Hill Wildlife Sanctuary, Brookfield

Take in views of southern Worcester County from one of the sanctuary’s drumlins then explore the woodlands on the northern portion of the sanctuary. This walk will concentrate on the historical uses of trees and forests of the area and the northeast, past and current threats and the importance of preserving large tracts of land.

Site conditions for visitors: No established trails; may be poison ivy, or wetness in some places. Tick check advised. No rest rooms

Maximum number of participants: 20

Field Trip #2 Elm Hill Wildlife Sanctuary, Brookfield

The hickory - hop hornbeam forest on the west slope of Cooley Hill is a remarkable forest, which although selectively managed in recent decades is beginning to display old growth characteristics. Tree core data estimated ages of 200 years for white oak, 164 for sweet pignut hickory and 154 for hop hornbeam. The forest is also unusually rich in plant species, with 116 vascular plants documented in five plots, and supports a couple of rare plant species.

Site conditions for visitors: No established trails; may be poison ivy, or wetness in some places. Tick check advised. No rest rooms

Maximum number of participants: 20

Field Trip #3 Elm Hill Wildlife Sanctuary, Brookfield

Explore the edge of Dunn Brook, one of the largest sites of the globally rare variable sedge. This area, underlain by the deposits of glacial Lake Brookfield, contains graminoid marshes, shrub swamp, red maple swamp and beech forest communities. Scattered throughout the woodlands are large trees

Site conditions for visitors: No established trails; may be poison ivy, or wetness in some places. Tick check advised. No rest rooms

Maximum number of participants: 20

Field Trip #4 Rock House Reservation, West Brookfield

Rock House Reservation, managed by the Trustees of Reservations, is so-named for the massive, cave-like shelter exposed after the last glacial retreat, 10,000 years ago. Native Americans once used the rock shelter as a hunting camp in the cold-weather months. An amateur archeological dig in the 1930s revealed early tools, pottery, and bones from wolf, bear and deer. By the mid-1800s, it was part of a farm owned by William Adams whose descendent, F. A. Carter, dammed a small stream to create Carter Pond and built the cottage now serving as a trailside museum. The property’s diverse habitats offer great opportunities for nature study. In addition to the pond, there are mature upland woods comprised of hemlock, maple, oak, spruce, and pine. Resident wildlife includes deer, coyote, porcupine, mink, beaver, fox, and a variety of year-round and migratory birds.

Site conditions for visitors: Well-established, marked trails that traverse hilly terrain. No rest rooms.

Maximum number of participants: 20

Field Trip #5 Quaboag River, Brookfield

The 24-mile Quaboag River rises in the town of Brookfield from headquarters in Quaboag Lake. It flows westward where it merges with the Ware and Swift rivers to form the Chicopee, which ultimately drains into the lower Connecticut. This field trip is centered on the upper portion of the Quaboag River, which features the most attractive scenery and richest wildlife. It is also a historic part of the waterway including former Native American settlements as well as the first colonial settlement in the central highlands of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1600s. The river in this location is a wide, slow moving and meanders through broad, treeless marshes. These extensive wetlands provide habitat for a great variety of fish, reptiles, amphibians, and birds.

Site conditions for visitors: Canoeing may be moderately strenuous if there are strong headwinds. No rest rooms.

Maximum number of participants: 24

Field Trip #6 Wells State Park, Sturbridge

Located in Sturbridge, this 1,470-acre protected open space is part of the state’s forest and park system. Located a few minutes drive from the conference hotel, this park offers an interesting array of habitats found in central Massachusetts. Walker Pond, a large freshwater pond includes an extensive wetland system on its southern margin. Upland areas of the park are largely forested. Interspersed throughout these woodlands are perennial and intermittent streams and small, vegetated wetlands. Vernal pools are also present. The varied topography of this site, including Hitchcock “Mountain,” present a mix of forest communities and pleasant scenery. At least three different walks on separate trails throughout the park will be conducted.

Site conditions for visitors: Well-established, marked trails that traverse hilly terrain. Rest rooms are available.

Maximum number of participants: 60 people in three separate groups

Field Trip #7 Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary, Wales

Site conditions for visitors: well-established trails that traverse hilly terrain. Rest rooms are available.

Maximum number of participants for this site visit: 12

1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

#1 Invasive Species

Conservationists frequently identify invasive species as second only to habitat loss as a major threat to biodiversity. The ecologist Charles Elton was among the first to note this threat in 1958 in the classic book The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants. Since that time, the problem of invasive species has grown progressively worse. Today’s global economy has dramatically increased the spread of animal and plant species across and between continents, often with devastating ecological effects. It has also been suggested that milder winters associated with global climate change may make areas like New England more prone to the establishment and spread of invasive species than in the past. This workshop will present information on current efforts to address this problem, including the development of a strategy for managing invasive species on Mass Audubon’s sanctuary system.

#2 When Salamanders and the Law Collide

#3 Losing Ground / Saving Ground: Implementing Mass Audubon's New Land Protection Strategy

Text Box: POSTER SESSIONS

There are so many wonderful initiatives taking place at Mass Audubon that cannot be accommodated in a workshop. Throughout the day on Sunday, October 6, and Monday, October 7, you are invited to visit the lobby areas outside the ballroom and at the Conference registration desk to view exhibits about these undertakings. These poster sessions will include:

¶ Visitor Experience Project

¶ Ways of Giving: Supporting Mass Audubon

¶ Mass Audubon Publications

¶ Audubon Shop

¶ Natural History Travel

¶ Wildwood

¶ Major Capital Projects

¶ Mass Audubon Environmental Alert Network

¶ Visual Arts Center: the Bussewitz slides

DIRECTIONS AND ACCOMMODATIONS

THE STURBRIDGE HOST HOTEL AND CONFERENCE CENTER ON CEDAR LAKE

366 Main Street, Sturbridge

Telephone 508-347-7393

Text Box: From east or west, take the Mass Turnpike to Exit 9 to Route 84.

Take Exit 3B off Route 84 to route 20 West.

The hotel driveway is about 1 mile on the right, between the McDonalds and Burger King.

Look for the Mass Audubon flags.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT ACCOMMODATIONS!!!!

¶ The Sturbridge Host Hotel is holding a block of rooms for Mass Audubon participants. The rate is $107/night for single or double occupancy. You must make your own reservations by September 6.

(DOUBLE OCCUPANCY IS STRONGLY ENCOURAGED!!)

¶ OTHER ACCOMMODATIONS NEAR THE STURBRIDGE HOST INCLUDE MOTELS, BED AND BREAKFASTS AND CAMPING (please see attached).

If you want to stay overnight in the area, it is up to you to make you own arrangements. Please consult with your supervisor about how to pay for your overnight accommodations.

WWW.STURBRIDGE.ORG

For more information about Sturbridge and environs go to www.sturbridge.org.

ANNUAL MEETING AND CONFERENCE

REGISTRATION FORM

October 6 & 7, 2002

Board of Directors, MAS Council, Sanctuary Advisory Committees, Founder’s Circle Members

Please return the form by September 10, 2002

NAME: ______________________________________

SANCTUARY AFFILIATION (if any): _____________________

Guest Name: ______________________________________________

Enclosed please find: I plan to bring a guest for:

$130 for both days: $_____ Both days ($130): $ _____

$100 for one day only: $_____ Dinner only ($60): $ _____

One day only ($100): $_____

For a Total of $_________

Please make checks payable to Mass Audubon Society and return with your registration.

SUNDAY, October 6 Field Trips 1:00 to 4:00

LUNCH IS NOT PROVIDED

Choice #1 Choice #2

1:00 to 4 Broad Meadow Brook, Worcester, MA

1:00 to 4 Quinebaug River, Brimfield, MA

1:00 to 4 Wells State Park, Sturbridge, MA

1:00 to 4 Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary, Wales, MA
Guest Choices: _________________________

SUNDAY DINNER

6:00 – 9:00 Reception and dinner Will attend Guest

Special dietary needs:____________________________

MONDAY, OCTOBER 7

10:30 – 12:00 Morning Workshop

1^st Choice (Title and #) ____________________Guest__________

2^nd Choice (Title and #) ____________________Guest_________

12:00 – 12:45 Lunch Will attend Guest Special Dietary needs _______________________________

1:00 – 400 Field Trip or Afternoon Workshop

1^st Choice (Title and #) _________________Guest_____________

2^nd Choice (Title and #) _________________Guest____________

Please return this form to:

Eleanor Pansar

Mass Audubon

208 South Great Road

Lincoln, MA 01773

By Tuesday, SEPTEMBER 10.

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT IF YOU ARE STAYING AT THE STURBRIDGE HOST, YOU MUST MAKE YOUR OWN ROOM RESERVATIONS BY SEPTEMBER 6, BY CALLING 1-800-582-3232