ALLENS PONDMass Audubon’s

©2011 KARLEY SEARLESALL RIGHTS RESERVEDPRINTED IN THE USA

PUBLISHED BYTHE UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS DARTMOUTH285 OLD WESTPORT ROADNORTH DARTMOUTH, MA 02747

FOR ALLENS POND WILDLIFE SANCTUARY OF MASS AUDUBON

Allens PondA GUIDE TO ALLENS POND WILDLIFE SANCTUARY OF MASS AUDUBON IN DARTMOUTH MASSACHUSETTS

©2011 KARLEY SEARLESALL RIGHTS RESERVEDPRINTED IN THE USA

PUBLISHED BYTHE UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS DARTMOUTH285 OLD WESTPORT ROADNORTH DARTMOUTH, MA 02747

FOR ALLENS POND WILDLIFE SANCTUARY OF MASS AUDUBON

HISTORY

THE SANCTUARY

STEWARDSHIP

MASS AUDUBON • ALLENS POND • DARTMOUTH, MA

HABITATS • WILDLIFE

\WAYS TO HELP

HISTORY

George Bird Grinnell was tutored by Lucy Audubon, John James’s widow. Knowing Audubon’s reputation, Grinnell chose his name as the inspiration for the organization’s earliest work to protect birds and their habitats. Today, the name Audubon remainssynonymous with birds and bird conservation the world over.

Hemenway and her cousin Minna Hall started a campaign urging fellow socialites to stop wearing hats adorned with the feathers of endangered birds. Their work led to the founding of theMassachusetts Audubon Society.

Editor of Forest and Stream, he formed the first Audubon Society in 1886 with close to 40,000 initial members. Their numbers grew so quickly the following year that he had to disband the group.

GEORGE BIRD GRINNEL

JOHN JAMES AUDUBON

HARRIET AUGUSTUS HEMENWAY

INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE

HARRIETT AUGUSTUS HEMENWAY

GEORGE BIRD GRINNELL

JOHN JAMES AUDUBON

“It won’t,” Harriet replied,

Harriet squinted her eyes as the lady of fashion walked proudly by. “Arctic tern, I believe,’ Harriet whispered.“Looks ready to fly away,” said the parlor maid.

“It won’t,” Harriet replied, “sadly.”

Proper Boston ladies Harriet Hemenway and her cousin Minna Hall are absolutely incensed by the latest style: ladies’ hats topped with not just feathers but whole birds (“from egrets to pheasants to owls to warblers... even pigeons!”). The fad dovetails with the women’s suffrage movement: “Fashion was killing birds as well as killing women’s chances to have the right to vote and be listened to. For who would listen to a woman with a dead bird on her head?”

Harriet and Minna found the Massachusetts Audubon Society; take their crusade to sportsmen, socialites and schoolchildren; lobby for laws to protect wildfowl; and even help bust an illegal feather warehouse. Catrow contributes flamboyant caricatures of the behatted Bostonians in convincing period costume, and his watercolors of birds mimic John James Audubon’s own naturalistic paintings. Despite Lasky’s and Catrow’s enthusiasm, however, Harriet and Minna in their zealotry seem just as exaggerated and one-dimensional as their fashionably feathered foes.

SHE’S WEARING A DEAD BIRD ON HER HEAD! BY KATHRYN LASKY

– PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

MASS AUDUBON500,000 people visit Mass Audubon’s sanctuaries annually. Mass Audubon works to protect the nature of Massachusetts for people and wildlife. Together with more than 100,000 members, we care for 34,000 acres of conservation land, provide education programs for 225,000 children and adults annually, and advocate for sound environmental policies at the local, state, and federal levels.

500,000225,000100,00034,000

1509050MEMBERS

ACRES

CHILDREN AND ADULTS ATTEND ANNUAL PROGRAMS

DATE FOUNDED

MASSACHUSETTS COMMUNITIES EFFECTED

MASS AUDUBON SANCTUARIES OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

VISITORS ANNUALLY

DARTMOUTH, MASSACHUSETTS

Settled in 1616, Westport was incorporated as a separate town in 1787 from the Dartmouth Township. Dartmouth was settled in 1652, and along with Westport was purchased by the Massachusetts Bay Colony from the Indians Massasoit and Wamsutta.

It was bought for thirty yards of cloth, eight moose skins, fifteen axes, fifteen pairs of breeches, eight blankets, two kettles, one clock, two English pounds of Wampum, eight pairs of shoes, one iron pot, and ten shillings. In those early years the Town was settled mostly by the Society of Friends, commonly called Quakers, that sought to break away from the religious orthodoxy of the Plymouth County.

THE BEGINNINGS OF DARTMOUTH

The sanctuary’s mailbox is across Horseneck Road on the West-port side. All of the sanctuary’s land is in Dartmouth.

THE

SANCTUARY

With 905 acres and a diverse variety of habitats including a coastal salt pond, salt marsh, heath, scrub and forested uplands and early-successional agricultural habitats, Al-lens Pond offers 6+ miles of hiking trails accessible from two locations: A small parking lot is located at Allens Neck Road next to the Horseneck Holy Ghost in Dartmouth and our Field Station is located at 1280 Horseneck Road in Westport. Please note that we do not have a nature center.

Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary was established in 1986 with the purchase of 70 acres along Horseneck Road and Buzzards Bay from one of the oldest families in the community. During the subsequent decade and a half, the sanctuary grew as Mass Audubon acquired additional parcels thanks to the generosity of those who contributed to ambitious capital campaigns and donated critical beach lots along the bay.

ALLENS POND

905300+296+

ACRES

MILES OF TRAILS

RARE SPECIES OF WILDLIFE

BIRD SPECIES

19852001

THE YEAR ALLENS POND WAS FOUNDED

THE YEAR FULL-TIME STAFF PRESENCE BEGAN

Allens Pond has managed to remain a pristine wildlife habitat.Its watershed has remained largely undeveloped, and thereforeprovides a useful model for comparative research and management.

Allens Pond has managed to remain a pristine wildlife habitat.Its watershed has remained largely undeveloped, and thereforeprovides a useful model for comparative research and management.

MASS AUDUBON’S GOAL

The Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary is a great place to observe spectacular bird life and salt marsh activity with over three hundred bird species recorded during migration or nesting season. The sanctuary’s half-mile stretch of beach provides important nesting habitat for rare piping plovers and least terns. The sanctuary also attracts birds of prey in all seasons including nesting ospreys, migrant bald eagles, short-eared owls, peregrine falcons, and northern harriers. From midsummer through fall the salt marshes and tidal flats host many species of shorebirds and wading birds such as yellowlegs, snowy and great egrets, willets, and great blue herons.

Mass Audubon’s goal is to use the sanctuary as a model for research and adaptive ecological management and the staff as a community resource for local avian research and conserva-tion initiatives. A full-time staff presence at the sanctuary began in 2001 at the Field Station on Horseneck Road. Staff members work year-round to maintain 4 miles of trail, provide outreach to local schools and communities, support a corps of volunteers, and conduct ecological monitoring of animals such as piping plovers, least terns, ospreys, grassland birds, and butterflies, as well as habitats including the salt marsh and a newly established, fifty five acre, warm-season grassland. They also work with local towns and organizations to help protect and preserve the watersheds of Buzzards Bay.

Buzzards Bay has only a few coastal salt ponds and, as they are productive habitats for wildlife such as fish, shellfish and birds, they are a particularly valuable resource to protect.

HABITATS

BARRIER BEACH A sand ridge that rises slightly above the surface of the sea that runs roughly parallel to the shore

SHRUBLAND Land on which shrubs are the dominant vegetation

FOREST A large area covered chiefly with trees and undergrowth

GRASSLAND Farmland occupied chiefly by forage plants and grasses

COASTAL SALT POND Pond and marsh communities with brackish to fresh water

SALT MARSH Flat land that is overflowed by salt water

Because of the pristine and rare habitats the sanctuary protects, Allens Pond is seen as one of the most ecologically significant coastal systems in southern New England. In fact, it is centered within a site identified by The Nature Conservancy as one of the most intact coastal complexes remaining in the North Atlantic Coast Ecoregion and, as such, they have designated it a portfolio site of conservation priority.

Allens Pond is seen as one of the most ecologically significant coastal systems in souther New England.

WILDLIFE

The Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary is a great place to observe spectacular bird life and salt marsh activity with over 300 bird species recorded during migration or nesting season.

The sanctuary’s half-mile stretch of beach provides important nesting habitat for rare piping plovers and least terns. The sanctuary also attracts birds of prey in all seasons including nest-ing ospreys, migrant bald eagles, short-eared owls,peregrine falcons,and northern harriers. From midsummer through fall the salt marshes and tidal flats host many species of shore-birds and wading birds such as yellowlegs, snowy and great egrets, willets, and great blue herons.

BIRDS

Common Loon, Pied-billed Grebe, Sharp-shinned Hawk, North-ern Harrier, Bald Eagle, American Bittern, Peregrine Falcon, Pip-ing Plover, Least Tern, Roseate Tern, Common Tern, Common Moorhen, King Rail, Short-eared Owl, Cooper’s Hawk

RARE BIRDS AT ALLENS POND

Monarch butterflies are not able to survive the cold winters of most of the United States so they migrate south and west each autumn to escape the cold weather. The monarch migra-tion usually starts in about October of each year, but can start earlier if the weather turns cold sooner than that.

Monarch butterflies will spend their winter hibernation in Mexico and some parts of Southern California where it is warm all year long. If the monarch lives in the Eastern states, usually east of the Rocky Mountains, it will migrate to Mexico and hibernate in oyamel fir trees. If the monarch butterfly lives west of the Rocky Mountains, then it will hibernate in and around Pacific Grove, California in eucalyptus trees. Monarch butterflies are the only insect that migrates to a warmer climate that is 2,500 miles away each year.

Monarch, Black Swallow Tail, Mourning Cloak, Red Autumn, Cabbage White, Orange Sulphur, Clouded Sulphur, Eastern Tailed-Blue, American Lady, Painted Lady, Question Mark, Common Buckeye, Pearl Crescent, Least Skipper, Peck’sSkipper, American Copper

MONARCH BUTTERFLY

BUTTERFLIES

COMMON BUTTERFILES AT ALLENS POND

The animal life consists of more than birds and butterflies. The deer are out at dawn and dusk. Otters are also roaming, but very rarely seen. There’s a variety of salamanders. Diamondback ter-rapins trudge along their own routes, and weasels can sometimes be spotted scuttling along the stone walls. Farm animals can be found on the outskirts of the property.

OTHER ANIMALS

STEWARDSHIP

Protecting the nature of Massachusetts requires an extraor-dinarily diverse and concerted array of activities that depend upon an effective partnership among the staff and volunteers, public and private conservation organizations, and, of course, the members.

Open space in Massachusetts is under ever-increasing pres-sure, with more than 40 acres— fileds, forests, and farmland— lost to development every day. If we’re going to stem that tide before it’s too late, it’s essential that we work together to secure the most imporant places across the state.

And that’s how you can help. Supported by membership dues, Mass Audubon’s statemide system of wildlife snactuaries has grown to 32,000 acres. Their sanctuaries are home to 175 endangered and threatened native species, and provide members and visitors witha wealth of opportunities to explore and enjoy the natural beauty of Massachusetts.

Mass Audubon is the leader that inspired a nationwide conservation movement among people who were heartened to discover that they could take action to protect the natural world. When you join Mass Audubon today, you’ll become a part of this proud legacy.

Open space in Massachusetts is under ever-increasing pressure, with more than 40,000 acres lost to development every day.

Help with fundraisingPublic ProgramsLead rambles and kayak trips.Sanctuary maintenanceHelp maintain an inviting atmosphere in which people of all ages can learn about and enjoy nature by assisting with trails and grounds maintenance, like clearing stone walls of invasive plants.GardeningTend the gardens around the cottage. Plant and maintain flowers that are native to the area. Create a special butterfly garden.Information kioskMaintain literature and information at the trail site kiosk. Research stories to share.Ecological monitoringHelp count breeding birds with staff. Monitor species of interest such as orchids and turtles.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Pick up trashTrash is a life-threatening danger to wildlifeDo not tresspass on other people’s propertyKeep movingNature can handle movement. When you settle into a space, like the beach, species are driven away and this disrupts their living patterns.Follow the rules that are posted

WHEN YOU VISIT, PLEASE…

HOW TO HELP

Please visit www.facebook.com/MassAudubonAllensPond and like Allens Pond to receive updates and more information. You can also check out their website at www.massaudubon.org/allenspond

508-636-2437

Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary1280 Horseneck RoadWestport, MA 02790

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DESIGNED BY KARLEY SEARLES IN THE FALL OF 2011 FOR GRAPHIC DESIGN V IN THE GRAPHIC DESIGN PROGRAM AT UMASS DARTMOUTH. TYPEFACES USED INCLUDE META AND META SERIF BOOK. IMAGES WERE TAKEN ON A CANON REBEL XS BY KARLEY SEARLES.

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