As we are experiencing the harsh winds and temperatures of the winter season, the waterfowl are embracing it day in and day out. One duck in particular, the Bufflehead, migrates to the coastal waters of southeastern Massachusetts each winter. The Bufflehead is one of the first winter waterfowl to arrive in this area. If you [...] Read more »

The weather outside may be frightful but the view from the Osprey Room Observatory at the Lloyd Center for the Environment is delightful! This month, come and visit the top floor of the museum in search of the three types of seals we have in our area – the Gray, Harp and the Harbor seal. [...] Read more »

As I was perusing the Lloyd Center property on a mild autumn morning looking for the next installment of Creature Feature, I noticed a lot of slugs under fallen logs. I thought to myself that I hadn’t really studied or examined these critters before. With that being said, I give you November’s Creature Feature: the [...] Read more »

You may have noticed while on your walks on the Lloyd Center property, the presence of butterflies, particularly the Monarch. Monarchs are one of the well known species with their vibrant colors, both as a caterpillar and butterfly. These colors advertise that they are poisonous to their predators, due to their diet as caterpillars, they [...] Read more »

What has 5 pair of eyes and feeds on the blood of its prey!? This month’s Creature Feature, the freshwater leech! It is not the most popular or favorable organism, but that is because we only know part of their story. The freshwater leech, Macrobdella decora, lives in slow moving freshwater and feeds on the [...] Read more »

Summer is in full swing, which means wetlands are teeming with life! July’s Creature Feature is the Eastern Newt, an amphibian that lives within the deciduous and coniferous forests and thrives in the freshwater ponds and marshes as an adult. The Eastern Newt is unique compared to other amphibians where they go through four life [...] Read more »

Snakes are often depicted as evil and scary, but not all snakes are venomous or dangerous. There are only two poisonous snakes found in New England, the Copperhead and the Timber Rattlesnake, but they are not found in the Cape Cod region. There are about 8 different species of snakes found in New England and [...] Read more »

Spring has sprung!! The weather has turned, the snow has melted and the perennials are starting to emerge – which means a lot of organisms are going to be poking their heads from their “winter siestas”. One organism in particular that will be hopping around the leaf litter will be the Springtails! Springtails are tiny [...] Read more »

You can learn a lot about an animal by its scientific name; clues on how the animal behaves, relationship to other animals, or where the species is found. The Blue Crab’s scientific name, Callinectes sapidus, tells a lot about the creature. Callinectes means beautiful swimmer and sapidus means tasty; so if we put those two [...] Read more »

Hello all! A new year has arrived and so has the Creature Feature. I will give you a couple of hints to try and figure out January’s Creature Feature. Your job is to grab a pencil and paper to draw what you think this month’s creature feature looks like. Okay – grab your drawing utensils [...] Read more »