State of Wellfleet Harbor Conference on November 8th

Let us continue the Wellfleet theme just a bit longer, shall we? SEANET ally Jenette Kerr sent along word of a great way to spend this Saturday should you find yourself on Cape Cod. Pertinent points to consider: the conference is free and open to the public AND includes a complimentary continental breakfast!

The 12^th annual State of Wellfleet Harbor Conference will be held Saturday, November 8 from
8:30 AM–2 PM at the Wellfleet Elementary School. The conference is free and open to the public.

Diamondback terrapin feels that you should attend this conference. (USDA photo by Jenny Mastanuono)

This year’s event features research and other activities related to the planned restoration of tidal flow to the Herring River as well as surveys aimed at learning more about animals that make a living in and near Wellfleet Harbor—oysters, river herring, horseshoe crabs, diamondback terrapins, and ocean sunfish. Among this year’s presenters will be Nauset High School students who’ve teamed up with fifth graders from Wellfleet and Truro to compare oyster growth and mortality in various locations of the Herring River and Mayo Creek.
“I think this year’s conference offers great examples of how our community of scientists, citizens, and organizations are using scientific inquiry at all scales, from satellites to test tubes, to meet our local natural resource challenges,” notes conference founder Abigail Franklin Archer. “I’m also looking forward to hearing from the youngest researchers we’ve ever had present!”
The conference also will feature a field trip on Sunday from 9:30–11:30 AM, a tour of upper Herring River culverts and road crossings led by some of the scientists and conservationists involved in the river’s planned restoration. Details about the conference and field trip can be found at http://www.massaudubon.org/wellfleet-harbor-conference.

Contemplating the Wellfleet area ecosystem from a hammock. Also a good way to spend a Saturday. (Photo by S. Courchesne)

Sponsors of this year’s State of Wellfleet Harbor Conference include Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank, Mid Cape Home Centers, the town of Wellfleet, the Wellfleet Conservation Trust, Friends of the Herring River and Mass Audubon. Food donations are being made by Mac’s Seafood, the Wellfleet Box Lunch, Dunkin Donuts, the South Wellfleet General Store, and PB Boulangerie.

For more information, contact conference coordinator Jenette Kerr at jkerr@massaudubon.org or
508-349-2615.