Thanks to the environmental movement, there are now more whales in the ocean near Boston than there have been in at least the past hundred years, scientists say. On April 19, 2010 scientists saw a group of right whales in Block Island Sound. Researchers at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center saw 98 North Atlantic right whales. There are about 400 right whales on earth.

These photos were taken on a trip guided by scientists from the Whale Center of New England www.whalecenter.org on June 5, 2009.

photos by Eesha Williams

This photo was taken at Hamilton Falls in Jamaica, Vermont on March 28. Jamaica is about 20 miles from Brattleboro. To make the photo bigger, click on it. Among the kinds of wildlife that can be seen near the waterfall are mountain lions, bears, and moose. The Vermont Land Trust www.vlt.org works to protect land like this. There is still snow and ice on the steep trail to the base of the waterfall, so it's a good idea to wear metal spikes on your shoes. These can be purchased for about $10 at Brown & Roberts Hardware in Brattleboro.

A photo of a mountain lion is at:

Vermont governor Jim Douglas says he wants more ATVs and other motorized vehicles in state parks. In recent weeks, more than a thousand people wrote to Douglas and his employees about his plan. As of July 1, the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources had received 148 letters and about 1,600 e-mails about the proposal. The writers opposed the rule by about 3 to 1.

But at a public hearing in June in Montpelier, about 250 people showed up to support Douglas's plan, far outnumbering opponents.

The comment period ends on July 6. Contact info is at www.anr.state.vt.us/site/html/contact.htm

A rare Henslow's sparrow was seen in June on Meadow Road in Montague, Mass. People travelled hundreds of miles to see the bird. Mark Fairbrother of Montague saw the sparrow first, according to the Greenfield Recorder newspaper.

photo by Steve Mirick

Pisgah State Park is the biggest state park in New Hampshire. It's a 10 minute drive from both Brattleboro and Keene, and is just a few miles from Massachusetts. On June 8, the New Hampshire Parks Advisory Council released a proposed plan that placed Pisgah State Park in a class which, among other choices for alternative management, includes "disposal," the so-called “C” list.

There will be public hearings, but not in Keene. The closest is in Peterborough:

June 23, 4 p.m.

Peterborough Town Hall
1 Grove Street
Peterborough, NH

There is also the opportunity for written comment:

From the Keene Sentinel: A hungry young black bear ripped open a homeless man’s tent Tuesday (May 26) and chased him through the woods in Keene, according to wildlife officials. The local man, identified as Dave Kolek, was not injured during the incident. Kolek wears tattered clothing, has a thick beard and long hair and is known by an array of nicknames, including “Tarzan” and “Jumanji.”

The bear tore open Kolek’s tent, which was located in a wooded area near the intersection of Main Street and Route 101, shortly after 10:30 a.m., N.H. Fish and Game Officer Josiah Towne said.

There have been numerous reports of bears in people's yard in Dummerston, Vermont over the past few weeks. Dummerston borders Brattleboro. The state police shot a bear in East Dummerston on May 3. To avoid attracting bears, take down your bird feeders, put the feed inside, have your grill and all other possible food sources and garbage under cover so bears can't get at it.

On May 19 more than 100 people attended a meeting with bear expert Ben Kilham at the Dummerston School. The event was hosted by the Dummerston Conservation Commission and the Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center.

photos by Eesha Williams