Visitors are attracted to our nature preserves to pursue a variety of outdoor activities. What all these activities have in common are the health benefits and pure enjoyment of being in the presence of nature.
On August 9th, eighteen people got a preview of what’s in store when the Charron Farm Preserve is opened to the public. There is still a lot to do. Keep an eye on this website for announcements of work parties at the Preserve. We rely on volunteer help for all that we do. Thanks to Dick LaCivita for the photos below.
The Charron Farm Preserve, donated to the Attleboro Land Trust in 2023, will soon be ready to be opened to the public, although there is still a lot left to do. A walk will be held on the preserve on Saturday, August 9, at 9:00 am. The purpose of the walk is to provide a preview of the property, and to let you know about opportunities to help in the weeks to come.
Some of the tasks remaining are to plant grass in a water retention area, construct a split-rail fence, and install signposts along the trail.
Rain date for the walk is Sunday, August 10, at 1:00 pm.
Directions:
From downtown Attleboro, take County Street south for 3.8 miles.
Turn right onto Read Street and drive 1/2 mile.
Turn left onto Morse Avenue and drive 1/4 mile.
Turn into the gravel parking area on your right.
(Don’t rely on Google Maps, which mislabels part of Morse Ave. as Gillette Ave.)
Any cancellations due to weather will be posted on this website.
Rhododendron thicket, Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve, 6/28/22
Deborah’s Garden, Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve, 7/14/18
Baltimore checkerspot (Euphydryas phaeton)
Lower Hayfield, Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve, 6/26/16
Great spangled fritillary (Speyeria cybele)
Lower Hayfield, Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve, 6/26/16
Common evening primrose (Oenothera biennis)
Lower Hayfield, Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve, 7/16/16
Bull thistle (Cirsium vulgare) alien
Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve, 8/31/13
Spotted Joe-Pye weed (Eutrochium maculatum)
Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve, 8/31/13
Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
Shaw-Denham Memorial Forest, 8/20/13
Peony at Richardson Preserve, May 2021.
Trillium at Richardson Preserve, May 2021.
Pink lady’s slipper (Cypripedium acaule) at Vaughan Memorial Forest, May 2014.
Violets at Vaughan Memorial Forest, May 2014.
Dogwood at Colman Reservation, May 2014.
Bluet (Houstonia caerulea) at Leach Sanctuary, May 2014.
Blue Flag Iris (Iris versicolor) at Lawrence Preserve, May 2009.
Wild oats or sessile bellwort (Uvularia sessilifolia) with wood anemone (Anemone quinquefolia) in background at Lawrence Preserve, May 2007.
Thanks to everyone who participated in our 5K Challenge fundraiser on November 9. About 65 people completed the hike and we raised about $700.
Wheaton Professor Jessie Knowlton, with her students at the Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve
You are invited to attend the 35th annual meeting of the Attleboro Land Trust:
Tuesday, November 19
Murray Unitarian Universalist Church
505 North Main Street, Attleboro
The meeting will begin at 6:30 pm with the traditional social gathering with light refreshments, followed at 7:00 pm by the business meeting and keynote address.
We are excited to have Jessie Knowlton, Associate Professor of Biology at Wheaton College, deliver our keynote: “A Year in the Life of the Lawrence Preserve.”
Professor Knowlton will be discussing the one-year scientific study of our Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve that began this summer and share the observations that her team from Wheaton and our local “citizen scientists” have made to date. Her presentation will include photos and video from a remotely-triggered wildlife camera, including deer, wood ducks, a coyote, and a bobcat.
This project, which will lead to recommendations for protecting the Lawrence Preserve ecosystem, is supported by a Giving While Living Grant from the Woodard & Curran Foundation.
The annual meeting is open to the public, so please bring a friend. Only members of the Attleboro Land Trust may vote during the brief business meeting.
If you have donated $25 or more in the past year, you are automatically considered a member. If you have donated $50 or more in the past year, two adult members of your household are entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. Members should have received a notice of the meeting by U.S. mail. If you donate now, your membership will not expire until December 31, 2025.
Several volunteers look on as biology professor Jessie Knowlton demonstrates how to use the iNaturalist app to record observations at the Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve.
The Attleboro Land Trust’s Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve is currently the focus of a one-year scientific study of its ecosystem. Jessie Knowlton, Associate Professor of Biology at Wheaton College, is leading the study, which began in June.
Professor Knowlton and her team of Wheaton students have already identified many species of plants and animals observed over the summer. The study will continue through fall, winter, and spring. You are invited to help as a Volunteer Observer by visiting the Preserve once in each season on your own and reporting what you observe.
To find out more about how the study is being conducted, and how you can help, you are invited to attend a free Orientation Session to be held on Monday, October 7, at 7:00 pm at the Attleboro Public Library, 74 North Main Street, Attleboro.
This project is made possible by a Giving While Living Grant from the Woodard & Curran Foundation.
The Attleboro Land Trust invites you to participate in a one-year scientific study of the Anthony Lawrence Wildlife Preserve. Jessie Knowlton, Associate Professor of Biology at Wheaton College, is leading the study, which began in June. More information is available on the project page.
Professor Knowlton and her team of Wheaton students have already identified many species of plants and animals observed over the summer. The study will continue through fall, winter, and spring. You are invited to help as a Volunteer Observer by visiting the Preserve once in each season on your own and reporting what you observe. As a citizen scientist, you might spot a rare bird or other animal or plant that no one else has seen.
You may submit observations in the form of photos, videos, drawings, notes, or audio recordings. If you are tech savvy, you may upload photos using a free cell phone app called iNaturalist. Photos submitted may be viewed at the iNaturalist website.
At the conclusion of the study, a final report will include recommendations for maintaining and protecting the Preserve’s ecosystem, and for engaging the public in stewardship of the property.
If you or your child would like to sign up as a Volunteer Observer, use the online form on this website or email attleborolandtrust@gmail.com. If you are under 18, ask an adult partner to co-sign your application and go with you on your site visits.
This project is made possible by a Giving While Living Grant from the Woodard & Curran Foundation.
Join Ryan and Emily from The Mushroom Hunting Foundation on a Guided Mushroom Walk! We will meet at the Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve at 577B Wilmarth St., in Attleboro, to begin our hunt. Participants will meet back at the parking area by 6:30 pm to talk about our finds! Participants are encouraged to also attend the mushroom hunting slideshow on 9/11, but it is not a requirement.
Please register to ensure that we have enough space for all participants. Contact Darcie at dschillinger@sailsinc.org or 508-222-0157 with any questions.
Wednesday, September 18
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
at the Richardson Nature Preserve
Sponsored by the Attleboro Public Library
Register here There are 17 spaces available.
