Winter lectures at the Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary are offered free of charge on
Saturdays at 1:30 pm.  Space is limited; call 413-267-9654 or email
[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>  to register.
In case of inclement weather please call ahead, check our Facebook page or visit
www.norcrosswildlife.org<http://www.norcrosswildlife.org>.

Saturday, March 4th

Gypsy Moth and Winter Moth
Do you remember last summer? Joe Elkinton has been a professor of entomology in the
Dept. of Environmental Conservation at UMass Amherst since 1980. His lab conducts
research on population dynamics and biological control of invasive forest insects,
including winter moth, hemlock woolly adelgid, black oak gall wasp and gypsy moth.
He is currently involved with efforts to introduce predatory beetles to control
hemlock woolly adelgid and a tachinid parasitoid to control winter moth.

Saturday, March 11th
Weird Sex in
Nature: How Plants Get It On
One of the most romantic features of a plant is its flower, which we know is a major
way that plants create new plants. You would think that plant sex is probably about
as interesting as watching paint dry, right? Think again. The ways plants, algae,
and fungi reproduce tell us a lot about how procreation has evolved over time. Join
Elizabeth Farnsworth, a Senior Research Ecologist with the New England Wild Flower
Society, for this racy lecture about the many interesting reproductive strategies
these species pursue. Be prepared to blush.

Saturday, March 18th
From
Pine Barrens to Whip-Poor-Wills
Fire has played a critical role in shaping the post-glacial landscape of
Massachusetts, resulting in a mosaic of highly specialized and occasionally quite
rare ecosystems across the region.  As modern attitudes about fire on the landscape
have shifted toward exclusion and suppression a new set of ecological issues has
arisen: everything from difficulty in regenerating oak forests to the near absence
of the once common song of the whip-poor-will.
Chris Buelow, a Restoration Ecologist with the MA Natural Heritage & Endangered
Species Program, will provide an introduction to fire history in Massachusetts,
describe the fire adapted natural communities of our area, the processes that
maintain these communities, the specialized plants and animals associated with them,
and how these communities are being managed by various organizations today.
[cid:[email protected]2A9E0]The Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary was established
in 1939 by Arthur D. Norcross. Its present area includes thousands of acres of
wooded hills, ponds and streams. It is maintained by the Norcross Wildlife
Foundation, Inc. whose purpose is the conservation of wildlife and the active
practice of conservation for the benefit of the public. This includes propagation of
native plants, the preservation of birds and wildlife and the conservation of land
and water.

Sanctuary hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00am to 4:00pm. Trails are open,
conditions permitting.  There is no admission charge.

The Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary is located at 30 Peck Road in Wales, MA.
Please use this address if you are navigating here with a GPS.