The Westerly Land Trust

Thursday Hikes: Hoffman Evergreen Preserve, Stonington, CT
2023-04-27 10:00 - 13:00 (America/New_York) | RI
This is an Avalonia Land Conservancy preserve. The trails offer beautiful scenery of evergreen and hardwood forests. A restoration project is underway to regenerate new growth and young forest patches where the old forest was dying due to disease drought, storm and insect damage. Expect to see brush piles of cut tree limbs created for wildlife, in addition to areas of dense vegetation of re-growing habitat. The area is crisscrossed by old stone walls, a colonial highway and stone structures of questionable age. Directions from Westerly: CT 2W (toward Norwich, CT), at traffic circle take 3rd exit onto CT 184W, turn right onto CT 201N (North Stonington Road), park on either side of road at trailhead.
To sign up, contact Co-Hike Leaders: Sally Hanson, (401) 348-9109 (h), (401) 932-5295 (c) and email sallyhanson242@gmail.com and Deidre O’Connor, (860) 287-7281, and email deirdreo@snet.net
Thursday hikes are FREE. Be sure to wear hiking boots or good walking shoes. If the weather is icy you should bring stabilizers or something for traction. If a lot of snow bring snowshoes. Hikes leave promptly.
PLEASE NOTE:

Ending times are estimated as it difficult to ascertain when it will finish due to number of people, how fast/slow the hikers walk, etc.
Please sign up with leader so that person will know how many are coming. If no one signs up the leader may not show up.
Inclement weather cancels and if in doubt, contact leader.
If you wish to bring a dog please contact the leader as some properties do not allow them. However, if a dog is present, they must be leashed at all times.

Stream Team: State Street (Grades 3-4)
2023-04-27 15:45 - 17:15 | RI
Living Laboratories for State Street Elementary School Grades 3-4

Humans, animals, plants, and the ecosystem all depend on clean water to survive! Join WLT educators to learn about water pollution and how water flows through a watershed. Explore Mastuxet Brook S. and learn how to test the quality of water. Grade K-2 will take a closer look at water samples with a magnifying glass. Grade 3 – 4 will take a deeper dive into the microworld of water pollutants using a microscope
Program is FREE thanks to a partnership with WPS.
Bus transportation available to and from program.

Voices of the Land: Working to Conserve our Native Amphibians & Reptiles
2023-04-28 17:30 - 19:00 | Barlow Nature Preserve, 449 Westerly Bradford Road, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
Join Dr. Scott Buchanan at WLT for an active discussion on Spadefoot Toads on Save Frogs Day!!

Scott Buchanan is the state herpetologist with the Rhode Island Division of Fish & Wildlife. During his talk he will provide a brief description of all the native amphibians and reptiles that occur in Rhode Island along with aspects of the natural history of a few representative species. He will also discuss the conservation threats that Rhode Island species face and how the Rhode Island Division of Fish & Wildlife is combatting these threats with conservation, management, and restoration.

This event is located at Barlow Nature Preserve.
Parking is available in the main parking lot, with overflow parking in the field behind the outbuildings to the east (up the farm road).
Registration is required.

Discussion is open to WLT members. Our members donate annually. Not a member and would like to be? Become a member today and click HERE.
To learn more about Scoot and his work click HERE.
Cover photo credit: Sarah Petrarca

Photo Credit: Sarah Petrarca

Photo Credit: Sarah Petrarca

Photo Credit: Scott Buchanan

Thursday Hike: Crandall Family Preserve, Westerly
2023-05-04 10:00 - 12:00 | RI
This flat 3-mile walk is through an interesting variety of woods, which are surrounded by extensive Atlantic White cedar swamp and open peatlands. Highlights include a platform overlooking a beaver lodge and the remnants of an old sawmill. Meet and park in the parking lot on the left prior to the end of Pound Road (do not block the gates), which is off Route 91, Westerly Bradford Road.
To sign up, contact hike leader: Jeff Walker # 401-447-1879. Email: Jeffrey.walker@cox.net
Thursday hikes are FREE. Be sure to wear hiking boots or good walking shoes.
PLEASE NOTE:

Hikes leave promptly.
Ending times are estimated as it difficult to ascertain when it will finish due to number of people, how fast/slow the hikers walk, etc.
Please sign up with leader so that person will know how many are coming. If no one signs up the leader may not show up.
Inclement weather cancels and if in doubt, contact leader.
If you wish to bring a dog please contact the leader as some properties do not allow them. However, if a dog is present, they must be leashed at all times.

FLUORESCENT ORANGE REQUIREMENTS:
In State Management areas everyone is required to wear 200 square inches of solid daylight fluorescent orange from last Thursday in April to the last day in May, annually.

Bumble Bee ID Walk- RESCHEDULED FOR MAY 7
2023-05-07 12:00 - 14:00 | Barlow Nature Preserve, 449 Westerly Bradford Road, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
Join the fun and inspiring Providence Pollinator Lab in a search for bumble bees. This event is perfect for the whole family!

We are excited to learn from the experts and hope you are too! Dr. Rachael Bonoan and her team at the Providence Pollinator Lab will lead this excursion as we search for, catch, ID, and release different bumble bee species. Discover bumble bee springtime habits and hopefully spot some queens as they look for a spot to nest. There is fun for all ages so bring your family, grab a net, and start to your adventure!

Registration required.
Event is open to ALL ages. Children must be accompanied by an adult.
Children under 12 are FREE.
Event is FREE for WLT members and $10 for not-yet-members.
CLICK HERE to become a member today!

The Providence Pollinator Lab has teamed up with WLT to measure pollinator biodiversity across WLT properties and has an amazing specimen collection to share with us. To learn more about Rachael and her lab click here.

Voices of the Land: Trends of the Rhode Island Osprey Nest Locations
2023-05-09 17:30 - 19:00 | Barlow Nature Preserve, 449 Westerly Bradford Road, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
Discover the changing trends in nest locations of the RI Osprey. Discussion is led by Lincoln Dark of Audubon Society of RI Naturalist.

Join us in a seminar with Audubon Society of Rhode Island Naturalist, Lincoln Dark, about his research on the changes and trends in the nest locations of Rhode Island’s Osprey. In this seminar, you will learn about the natural history of the Osprey, the history of both local and international efforts to conserve this species, where Osprey are moving in the state, and where they may go in the future.

This event is located at Barlow Nature Preserve.
Parking is available in the main parking lot, with overflow parking in the field behind the outbuildings to the east (up the farm road).
Registration is required.

Discussion is open to WLT members. Our members donate annually. Not a member and would like to be? Become a member today and click HERE.

River Rangers: Springbrook(Grades K - 2)
2023-05-10 15:45 - 17:15 | RI
Living Laboratories for Springbrook Elementary School Grades K-2

Join WLT educators to explore the plants and animals that call the river home. Use a dip net to trap and observe these animals in their natural habitat. Discover the important role rivers play on our Earth. Grade 3 – 4 will have the opportunity to perform a water salinity test using more advanced technology!
Program is FREE thanks to a partnership with WPS.
Bus transportation available to and from program.

Thursday Hikes: Tucker Woods and Patricia Sprague Forest Preserve, Charlestown
2023-05-11 10:00 - 12:00 | RI
These 2 small properties are maintained by the Charlestown Conservation Commission. Tucker Woods is 66.5 acres of woodlands with 1.5 miles of mostly flat trails and views
of a stream. After hiking there we will travel a short distance to Patricia Sprague on Railroad Ave, off Route 91. Hiking there will also be on flat trails through forests and fields. There will be an option to go down a short hill to view the Pawcatuck River. Meet at Tucker Woods on Route 91 (639 – 719 Alton-Carolina Rd). From Westerly,
take Route 91 North. Parking area is on the right, just past Jay Cronin Fishing Access. From Route 1 North, take King’s Factory Rd to Route 91 and turn right. From Route 1 South, take Route 112 North. Stay on 112 when Route 2 bears right. Take a left onto 91 at K and S Pizza. The parking area will be on the left.
To sign up, contact hike leader: Janice Fifer, 401-213-6479 Email: jhfifer@verizon.net
Thursday hikes are FREE. Be sure to wear hiking boots or good walking shoes.
PLEASE NOTE:

Hikes leave promptly.
Ending times are estimated as it difficult to ascertain when it will finish due to number of people, how fast/slow the hikers walk, etc.
Please sign up with leader so that person will know how many are coming. If no one signs up the leader may not show up.
Inclement weather cancels and if in doubt, contact leader.
If you wish to bring a dog please contact the leader as some properties do not allow them. However, if a dog is present, they must be leashed at all times.

FLUORESCENT ORANGE REQUIREMENTS:
In State Management areas everyone is required to wear 200 square inches of solid daylight fluorescent orange from last Thursday in April to the last day in May, annually.

River Rangers: Springbrook (Grades 3-4)
2023-05-11 14:30 - 16:00 | RI
Living Laboratories for Springbook Elementary School Grades 3-4

Join WLT educators to explore the plants and animals that call the river home. Use a dip net to trap and observe these animals in their natural habitat. Discover the important role rivers play on our Earth. Grade 3 – 4 will have the opportunity to perform a water salinity test using more advanced technology!
Program is FREE thanks to a partnership with WPS.
Bus transportation available to and from program.

World Migratory Bird Day: Guided Bird Count
2023-05-13 06:30 - 10:00 | Barlow Nature Preserve, 449 Westerly Bradford Road, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
Celebrate World Migratory Bird Day with the WLT and expert ornithologists by getting outside and experiencing the spring migration.

World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) is an annual awareness-raising campaign highlighting the need for the conservation of migratory birds and their habitats. It has a global outreach and is an effective tool to help raise global awareness of the threats faced by migratory birds, their ecological importance, and the need for international cooperation to conserve them (worldmigratorybirdday.org/about).
Join us as we welcome back the neo-tropical migrants as they return to their summer territories — from thrushes to warblers, bluebirds to tanagers and beyond. This years WMBD theme is water- groups will observe birds across a variety of habitats, including wetlands and learn about the importance of water to birds and beyond.
Don’t forget to bring your binoculars! We will meet at Barlow Nature Preserve. Groups will head out to different WLT properties and gather back at Barlow to share our counts, stories and coffee and snacks.

Registration required, spots are limited.
FREE for members, $10 for not-yet-members.
Not a member and would like to be? CLICK HERE!

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From World Migratory Bird Day 2023
Water: Sustaining Bird Life
Water is fundamental to life on our planet. The vast majority of migratory birds rely on aquatic ecosystems during their life cycles. Inland and coastal wetlands, rivers, lakes, streams, marshes, and ponds are all vital for feeding, drinking, or nesting, and also as places to rest and refuel during their long journeys.
Unfortunately, aquatic ecosystems are becoming increasingly threatened around the world and so are the migratory birds that depend on them. The increasing human demand for water, as well as pollution and climate change, are having a direct impact on the availability of clean water and the conservation status of many migratory birds. (Bonn, 1 December 2022. worldmigratorybirdday.org)
