Grace McCulloch is a graduate student at the University of New Hampshire who is preparing for a career protecting vulnerable ecological communities. Great Bay NERR is fortunate to welcome her as our new Margaret A. Davidson Fellow. She will be joining us for the next two years and has spent this summer researching habitat use of the saltmarsh sparrow, a state listed Species of Greatest Conservation Need.
Flooding, erosion and other climate impacts are affecting NH’s coastal towns in different ways, and the strategies for increasing resilience will look different too. Despite these differences, there is a lot to be gained by sharing ideas across towns, visiting projects in progress, and looking for new partnerships.
Come explore the Great Bay Community Wildlife Garden! This beautiful demonstration garden is a place where everyone is invited to relax and get inspired to make their yards more wildlife friendly. This page explains the garden’s design so you can find a few ideas for your own yard or window box.
Many people recognize the firey hue glasswort brings to a salt marsh as it turns red in the fall. Even from a distance, those with a discerning eye can pick out the bands of low marsh that fringe the water’s edge. Real connoisseurs of drive-by marsh plant identification can even pick out the dusty grey-green of spike grass (Distichlis spicata) interwoven with the backdrop of salt marsh hay (Spartina patens), but why do these plants grow in the places they do?
Recently released high resolution tidal wetland habitat data for the state is available on the University of NH’s “Coastal Viewer”, an online mapping service available at nhcoastalviewer.org. It is a free, clickable easy-to-use web application that allows custom maps to be created for any area of interest.
Nearly three years ago, Great Bay Stewards board member Laura Byergo came to the group with a challenge. She had been pledged up to $5000 in matching funds toward the rehabilitation of Blanding’s turtle nesting sites. The Stewards rose to the task, obtaining donations from board members, crowdfunding, the Greenland Women’s Club, and Stewards members.
Today, through the hard work of multiple partners, new nesting sites have been created in the Seacoast region and the turtles have begun to arrive.
