Join The Small Sit, Manomet’s virtual science series, each month as we learn about the wonders of why birds migrate, the importance of river herring in coastal food webs, and so much more!

Fifty years ago, a large wildlife swept through the overgrown pine barrens of Myles Standish State Forest in Plymouth, Massachusetts. In the wake of that fire, scientists from the Manomet Bird Observatory began a two-year study of how the bird communities responded to the altered landscape. As stakeholder mindsets and forest management practices in the pine barrens of southeastern Massachusetts shift (from fire suppression to vegetation management), ornithologists from Manomet Conservation Sciences have been called upon again to assess the success of current and future vegetation management strategies.

This summer marked the first year of a study of breeding birds in Myles Standish State Forest. Birds are incredibly sensitive environmental indicators, and our goals are to assess how breeding birds respond to vegetation removal and controlled burns, in order to advise Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation and MassWildlife on an optimal management strategy for promoting pine barren-dependent bird communities and the diverse species assemblages associated with them.

Join Director of Manomet Observatory, Evan Dalton, who will describe the research plan and goals and share some preliminary results from our first field season. There will be ample time for questions and lively discussion, as well!

This program is free, but registration is required.