Sandra Bonzagni  shared her experience with tick-borne diseases by telling about the difficulties in  diagnosis and treatment of this disease.  Information was also given about other tick-born infections, such as Babesiosis and Anaplasmosis as well as information about  personal and property protection from ticks. This program was supported by a grant from the Southborough Community Fund. You can see a video of the presentation here. The video was recorded and posted by Southborough Access Media.

SOLF is pleased to announce that it received a $2500 grant from the Southborough Community Fund. The grant money will be used to continue the wildlife survey begun last year at Beals Preserve and to fund educational programs for the community.

Nine happy hikers participated in a Nature Walk, Sunday October 19, at the Beals preserve, led by SOLF trustee Debbie Costine. The weather was cooler than the previous several days but the activity kept us all nice and warm! None had been to the Preserve before so this also served as an orientation. We saw several swans on the reservoir channel, some interesting fungus, beautiful colored leaves and the children pulled lots of the “invasive” Buckthorn bush.

SOLF and the Friends of the Southborough Library jointly sponsored a presentation on May 21, 2014, by Michael Tougias, author of Quabbin, A History and Explorers Guide. As you may know, the Quabbin Reservoir is the source of Southborough’s drinking water. Michael  gave a narrated slide presentation about the Quabbin Reservoir including a discussion  of the “lost towns” flooded to create the Quabbin, the construction of the  reservoir, and how the Quabbin works today. In addition, he took the audience on a natural history tour of the Quabbin and surrounding area with suggestions for day trips. His slides include before and after images of the lost towns, workers building the dams and aqueduct, the grand opening of the reservoir, wildlife of the Quabbin, unique natural places, and favorite trails and entrance gates. If you would like to watch a video of the presentation, click here. The presentation is about an hour in length. The video was produced by Katelyn Willis, Executive Director, Southborough Access Media. We thank her for  her gracious and willing assistance in this project. Thank you Katelyn!

Did you ever wonder where Southborough gets its wonderful drinking water? Join us on May 21, 2014, when SOLF and the Friends of the Southborough Library jointly sponsor a presentation by Michael Tougias, author of Quabbin, A History and Explorers Guide. Michael has written many books about outdoor activities and the history of New England. His most recent book, The Finest Hours, is being made into a motion picture by Disney. Michael will present a narrated slide presentation about the Quabbin Reservoir including a discussion  of the “lost towns” flooded to create the Quabbin, the construction of the  reservoir, and how the Quabbin works today. In addition, Tougias will take the audience on a natural history tour of the Quabbin and surrounding area with suggestions for day trips. His slides include before and after images of the lost towns, workers building the dams and aqueduct, the grand opening of the reservoir, wildlife of the Quabbin, unique natural places, and favorite trails and entrance gates. View a flyer here.

Please join us for this wonderful presentation. It will be held at 7:00PM at the Southborough Library, 25 Main Street, Southborough. The presentation is free and open to the public.

If you would like more information about the Quabbin Reservoir or recreational activities, visit the MassGove website.

The 2014 Annual Meeting of SOLF  featured a presentation  by Dr. Thomas French from  Massachusetts Fish and Widlife on the History of  Wildlife Conservation  and Recovery in Massachusetts. In this presentation, Dr. French discussed the overabundance of wildlife encountered by our earliest settlers to the subsequent endangerment of many  species because of the loss of woodlands due to land clearing for farming and over hunting in the 18th and 19th centuries. He also discussed recent and projected changes to the suburban wildlife of our region, including the increased sightings of bear and moose. Dr. French has graciously shared his presentation with us and you can download it here as a pdf file (7.3 mb).

The Annual Meeting of SOLF  featuring a presentation  by Dr. Thomas French from  Massachusetts Fish and Widlife was held May 7, 2014 at the Southborough Community House.

Dr. French,  Assistant Director  for the Department of Fish and Game’s (DFG) Natural Heritage Program spoke  on the History of  Wildlife Conservation  and Recovery in Massachusetts, from the overabundance of wildlife encountered by our earliest settlers to the endangerment of many species because of the loss of woodlands and over hunting in the 18th and 19th centuries. He also discussed recent and projected changes to the suburban wildlife of our region, including the increased sightings of bear and moose. Dr. French has graciously shared his presentation with us and you can download it here as a pdf file (7.3 mb).

It was also announced that the Elaine Beals Conservation Award was presented to Betty Meyer. Because Betty was unable to be at the meeting to receive the award, it will be presented at a ceremony later in the year. This award is presented annually by SOLF  to a person who has worked to help protect the environment in Southborough. Betty, a 23 year member of the Board of Trustees of SOLF was honored for her contributions to SOLF and the preservation of open land in Southborough.

Dr. French answering questions