Kids Walk at Great Meadows in Concord

Trip leader Kathy Dia and special guest Dr. Bryan Windmiller, from Zoo New England, led a bird and turtle walk at the Great Meadows NWR impoundments in Concord. Bryan set several live traps in the marsh before the walk, and though no turtles were caught, participants saw lots of wildlife! Pictured participants are observing leopard froglet (no longer a tadpole and not yet a frog), dragonfly nymph and other marsh creatures.

Twenty-three bird species were seen or heard, including Marsh Wren, Swamp Sparrow, Wood Duck ducklings, Cedar Waxwings, and Osprey. Participants observed various insects, including firefly and damselfly, and stopped to smell the common milkweed!

Dr. Bryan told participants about the endangered Blanding’s turtles, which make their home at Great Meadows. Since 2008, a sampling of hatchlings have been  “headstarted” (cared for so they can grow to a less vulnerable size) and released in a program that involves local fourth graders. Females are radio tagged and tracked. The population at Great Meadows has increased from an estimated 80 to about 500, Blanding’s turtles reach sexual maturity at about age fifteen. On June 25, the first nesting by one of these headstarted females was confirmed! This conservation success story builds on the efforts of both school children and local residents and farmers whose land provides turtle nesting sites.