[SEMCO] [Mass Audubon] Summer Bayside Talk Series

[Amy Fleischer]

Mass Audubon's Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary
invites you to the 2013 Bayside Talk Series

Rescuing Sea Turtles on Cape Cod
Bob Prescott, Sanctuary Director
Wednesday, July 24, 7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
The nutrient-rich waters of Cape Cod Bay and Nantucket Sound are a mecca for migrating sea turtles in the summer. Endangered loggerhead, green, Kemp's Ridley, and leatherback sea turtles swim and dive amongst the recreational and fishing boats. Juveniles that don't leave before the temperature drops and trade winds shift can become trapped in Cape Cod Bay; they are found cold-stunned and stranded on our beaches in November and December. Sanctuary director Bob Prescott will share his experiences rescuing sea turtles on Cape Cod for over thirty years. You will learn about sea turtle biology, strand theories, and how to help with the rescue efforts, which were featured on CNN this past winter and ABC-TV's Sea Rescue this spring.

Monsters of the Sea: Whales, Sharks, and Ocean Sunfish
Carol "Krill" Carson, Director of the New England Coastal Wildlife Alliance and Naturalist on Captain John Boats
Wednesday, July 31, 7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Join Carol "Krill" Carson for an special presentation on the large and unique marine wildlife that feed in the waters off Cape Cod. Learn about the endangered whales, sea turtles, seals, fish and sharks that call Stellwagen Bank and the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary their home each summer. From the immense and powerful humpback whale to the swift and deadly great white shark, these "monsters of the sea" are only monsters in our mind. Most are gentle giants of the deep. Many of these mammoth creatures feed on small prey items like copepods and schooling fish. Some, like the ocean sunfish and the leatherback sea turtle, feed on jellyfish and other gelatinous critters, while others, like the basking shark and the North Atlantic right whale, filter copepods from the water. How lucky are we in New England to live in such close proximity to some of the largest and most impressive creatures that live on this planet! Learn how you can get involved to help protect and conserve this rich treasure of life found off our Cape Cod shores.

Dynamic Coastlines
Greg Berman, Coastal Processes Specialist for Woods Hole Sea Grant and Cape Cod Cooperative Extension
Wednesday, August 7, 7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Have you noticed a change in the shape of our shoreline since last year? Low-lying communities like those on the Outer Cape are particularly impacted by a rising sea level and the changing frequency and intensity of coastal storms. On the occasion of Wellfleet's 250th anniversary, we will examine what the next 250 years hold for our community. Greg Berman, the Coastal Processes Specialist for Woods Hole Sea Grant and Cape Cod Cooperative Extension, illustrates the effects of wind and water on our coastlines through graphics and video. In this presentation, he will share information and visualizations about historic and recent sea level rise, along with a range of relative sea level rise projections and the associated potential local impacts.

Menacing or Being Menaced? Biology and Conservation of Sharks and Their Relatives
Dr. John Mandelman, Associate Director of Research and a Research Scientist in the John H. Prescott Marine Laboratory and Marine Stress Program of the New England Aquarium in Boston
Wednesday, August 14, 7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
While traditionally viewed by people as menacing creatures to be avoided at all costs, sharks are actually the ones with reason to fear. While only a handful of people are fatally attacked by sharks each year, fishing pressure and additional threats from humans are responsible for millions of sharks killed annually, with reported population reductions in many species around the globe in recent years. Dr. John Mandelman from the New England Aquarium will be here to discuss the most glaring threats to these animals, why they are so vulnerable to these threats, and the positive conservation actions and shark image changes that bode well for the future fate of their populations. Among other topics, he will also debunk some of the myths surrounding shark-human interactions, specifically shed light on New England species, and discuss the amazing diversity across the now 500+ identified sharks, as well as their relatives the stingrays and skates.

Meet the Birds of Prey
Mass Audubon's Blue Hills Trailside Museum presentation featuring live raptors
Wednesday, August 21, 7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Power. Ferocity. Majesty and mystery. Human beings have invested birds of prey with these qualities for thousands of years. We've featured them in our stories, used their images on our currency and national flags, and associated their names with everything from basketball teams to fighter planes. Their abilities to do the amazing continue to inspire our thoughts and excite our imaginations. But which ideas about these birds are facts and which are fictions? This program will use live birds of prey, visiting from Mass Audubon's Trailside Museum in the Blue Hills, to explore what makes a "bird of prey," the role they play in the environment, and how humans affect their ability to survive. Audience members will be able to see the birds up close, handle touchable natural history artifacts, and ask an experienced naturalist their questions.


$9 member/ $11 non-member, $2 less for children 8 and older
You may register by calling us at 508.349.2615, or by signing up online at http://tinyurl.com/laqz37b
Our summer program brochure can be viewed here: http://www.massaudubon.org/PDF/newsletters/Wellfleet_Bay_275.pdf

We hope to see you at the sanctuary soon!

Best wishes,
Amy


Amy Fleischer, Education Director/ Public Programs Coordinator
Mass Audubon's Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary
PO Box 236, South Wellfleet, MA 02663
afleischer at massaudubon.org
508-349-2615, ext 114
Office Schedule: Tuesday - Saturday, 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Protecting the Nature of Massachusetts
www.massaudubon.org/wellfleetbay

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