The BBC, through our Conservation and Education Committee, has made a conservation donation in honor of Mark Blazis to the Auburn Birdbanding Research Station, which Mark directed until he passed away in November 2021. A former BBC trip leader and supporter of our scholarship program, Mark was a dedicated educator, committed conservationist, and accomplished nature writer. A longtime resident of Grafton, Mark co-authored and edited ten field guides to the fauna and flora of Massachusetts, and he was awarded the Richard Cronin Award– the highest honor of the New England Outdoors Writers Association–for his weekly “Outdoors” column for the Worcester Telegram and Gazette. Internationally, Mark led many field trips to Africa, Amazonia, the Galapagos, India, the Arctic and Antarctica. He and his wife Helen were honored by an American Red Cross Hometown Hero Award for their work in bringing medical care to the Kichwa tribe in the rainforest of Ecuador, where he also assisted residents in banding birds (see photo) and forming their own bird-guiding company. In addition to numerous awards for conservation education and research from organizations such as Massachusetts Audubon and the Garden Club of America, Mark was personally selected by the late Roger Tory Peterson as North America’s Nature Educator of the Year.
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Upcoming Field Trips
Field Trips / Events
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RESCHEDULED to April 16 Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Concord RESCHEDULED
Concord - Great Meadows Concord Unit, Entrance Rd, Concord, MA, United StatesDue to weather, this trip is rescheduled to April 16.
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Fruitlands Museum, Harvard
Harvard - Fruitlands Museum 102 Prospect Hill Rd., Harvard, MA, United StatesCosponsored with Boxborough Birders. We will look for local avian non-migratory species and early migrant arrivals. Expect to walk about two miles on trails through meadows and woods, with some steep sections. Prepare for ticks. We will bird at the meeting location for about 30 minutes so any latecomers can catch up.
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Westborough WMA in Two Parts
Northborough - Watson Park, Bartlett Pond 35A Lyman St, Northborough, MA, United StatesPart 1: 7 AM -10 AM / Part 2: 10:30 AM -1:00 PM. We will hike at a slow pace through mild moderate trails in search of sparrows and other migrants. For the first part we will hike the Eastern trails between Lake Chauncy and Little Chauncy(about 3 miles). Then we will again meet at
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Belle Isle Marsh and Vicinity
East Boston - Belle Isle Parking Lot 1399 Bennington Street, Boston, MA, United StatesLed by DCR staff. We will search on foot up to one mile on flat, easy terrain, for migrating or resident songbirds, raptors, shorebirds, and marsh birds at this birding hotspot and state park. This is a traveling program by car or bike. Prepare for ticks and mosquitoes. Ages: Adults and kids 8 years+ with
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Millennium Park
Boston - Millennium Park Canoe Launch 300 Gardner Street, Boston, MA, United StatesJoin us to observe resident birds and spring migrants in a unique urban habitat that is a favorite for many bird species, including uncommon and rare flycatchers, swallows & warblers. Birders of all levels welcome. The trails are generally flat and easy to walk, with some rough patches. A water bottle, sunblock, insect repellent, waterproof






