The Christmas Bird Count (CBC), one of the longest running citizen science projects in the world, is organized by the National Audubon Society. It was originally started in 1900’s by ornithologist Frank Chapman, who thought it was better to count the birds instead of hunting them on Christmas Day. This year, the Christmas Bird Count…
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By Dr Jen Karberg, Research Program Supervisor On an island like Nantucket it’s hard lately to not read something about climate change, sea level rise, coastal resilience, erosion, etc. These buzz words can be heard all around the island from the flash flooding on Easy St to storm erosion near Hummock Pond. From south shore…
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With Thanksgiving just around the corner, it will soon be shotgun deer hunting season here on Nantucket and elsewhere across Massachusetts. Although archery season has been underway since October 5th and runs through November 28th, the most concentrated hunting activity takes place during the two-week shotgun season window, which is scheduled this year between Monday…
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2020 is clearly a year for change. Last fall, we could never have imagined the alterations that have occurred in our daily lives, jobs, and household routines. 2019 was the year we made big plans to update the landscaping around the Nantucket Conservation Foundation office at 118 Cliff Road. Why make the change, and why…
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Every year at the end of October, we at the Nantucket Conservation Foundation celebrate International Bat Week along with our batty colleagues the world over as a way to highlight the important role that bats play in nature and to counter the narrative that bats are just spooky creatures associated with Halloween. This year, we…
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Summer may have officially ended, but there is still plenty to see in bloom around Nantucket. August through mid-October bring a roster of newly emerging late bloomers, with the fall asters and goldenrods taking center stage. These members of the Aster Family (Asteraceae, or Compositae), have flower heads that are composed of several to many…
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Our Science and Stewardship Department is excited to move forward with a new phase of habitat management work within the Serengeti area on the north side of the Milestone Road. For many years, residents and visitors have enjoyed the wide-open vistas across this portion of the Middle Moors, thanks to grassland restoration and management work…
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By Dr. Jennifer Karberg, Research Program Supervisor The Nantucket Select Board has officially recognized September as Climate Change Awareness Month and there are many local events to help learn about climate change particularly on Nantucket “We, the Select Board of the Town of Nantucket in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, do hearby officially proclaim the month…
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You may have noticed NCF or other conservation organizations’ staff out working along Nantucket roadsides or bike path edges. In more typical years, the Nantucket Biodiversity Initiative’s Invasive Plant Species Committee organizes group digs, but with Covid-19, we are all out fighting the good fight separately and with the help of some dedicated solo volunteers.…
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Every year the shorebird breeding season has its challenges and 2020 was no different. Fortunately for us, the shorebirds were unaware of Covid-19 and still continued to nest at their respective beaches across the island. From the 2020 preliminary data for Nantucket which includes Tuckernuck and Muskeget Islands, there was a total of 57 breeding…
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