Restoring Habitat & Expanding Outreach

Manomet acquired most of its current land in 1969 from Ruth Ernst, persuaded by niece Rosalie Fiske. Fiske was a friend of Manomet’s founder, Kathleen ‘Betty’ Anderson, and felt Anderson should expand her ornithology research (known then as Operation Recovery) onto the property belonging to her aunt and uncle. In 1991, Manomet purchased the neighboring Holmes Farm property to preserve the land for research on bird migration and habitat management. Since then, Manomet has continued to manage these additional 20 acres, preserving the natural benefits that the land provides.

Due to its significance as a migratory stopover site, Manomet’s headquarters is an ideal location to study migratory and resident birds alike. The Landbird Conservation team has recorded over 1,000 species of organisms on the property, making its coastal forest and significant shoreline a rich laboratory for research.

As a part of the MCC initiative, the team has worked to restore the existing cranberry bogs to wetland habitat. “In the early days of Manomet, the property had many, many cranberry bogs. The area where we now have some of our mist nets to catch songbirds as part of our bird banding operation used to be operational cranberry bogs,” says Trevor Lloyd-Evans, Director of Landbird Conservation.

“Our team has done a lot of research into the history of the property prior to cranberry farming, and we have every indication that the bogs themselves were originally wetlands,” says Alan Kneidel, Staff Biologist. “We don’t know whether they were red maple or possibly cedar swamps, but we do know that water naturally belongs in those bogs. In their natural state, they better serve our conservation goals by restoring critical habitat in this area.”

Starting in 2018, Kneidel and the rest of the team began the restoration work. Consistently managing water levels in the bogs using existing farming infrastructure already has shown positive biodiversity results, including increases in plant, amphibian, reptile, mammal, and bird species not normally observed in the area; birds like rails and other marsh-dwelling species have been sighted anew. In addition to the bogs-turned-wetlands, the property features a stretch of grassland habitat already housing nesting Tree Swallows and Eastern Bluebirds. Even migrating flocks of Bobolinks, a regionally threatened species that depends on grassland habitat, use Manomet’s fields as a stopover site during migration.

“We are preserving and enhancing a globally rare and vanishing set of habitats, like natural wetlands and grasslands, that support a now disappearing set of species in our region,” says Evan Dalton, Lead Instructor of Landbird Conservation. “While the piece of land we are managing is small, we believe the impact can be much bigger. Our goal for restoring these habitats is not only for wildlife but also for people who want to enjoy the outdoor space. We are working to create an infrastructure including trails and educational materials to welcome all visitors and share the importance of maintaining this land.”

“What we have is an amazing natural resource,” adds Kneidel. “Managing this land for wildlife also increases our potential for research and on-site educational programming.”

Manomet’s 50-year legacy as a destination for discovery and exploration remains part of our core to this day, welcoming seasonal interns and volunteers and floods of school groups to the banding lab. The goal now is to expand these efforts in the community and beyond as soon as it is safe to do so. Some ideas for future programs include stargazing and nocturnal wildlife walks, monarch tagging, and pollinator garden tours.

“What a nice sight it will be to see elementary students walking up the road again,” says Lloyd-Evans. “We haven’t had a regular banding operation this year and we’ve really missed our interns and school groups. We can’t wait to welcome people back to Manomet.”

“The potential for engaging people of all ages and many different interest areas is quite large here, and that’s just talking about active engagement,” Dalton says. “These improvements will provide an interactive experience that deepens the appreciation for the natural world and it will be impossible for visitors to leave without learning or seeing something new. We are excited to add a safe and inclusive space to our community for people of all backgrounds, ages, and skill levels to learn, bird, and enjoy nature.”

In the meantime, Alan, Evan, and Trevor invite you to learn more about the monitoring work they have done so far this year, as well as some new ventures, here. You can also find archives of the webinars all of Manomet’s program staff have held since spring on our site here or on YouTube, including two hosted by Evan and Trevor.

Click here to learn more about our Wetlands Restoration and Community Outreach work and how you can help support Manomet’s ongoing work of connecting people to nature.

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