Saturday sunshine peaked out from behind the clouds for the first time in ages. I had planned on visiting the Aton Forest open house in Norfolk, CT. CT-TACF Director John Anderson is the Aton Forest Executive Director, and he'd kindly invited me to attend (it was, after all, an open house).
Before departure, domestic discussions about childcare ensued. I mentioned the painting, bird tagging and amphibian demonstration. Quickly apprehension turned to clamor – it turned out that the entire family wanted to come. I felt special for a change. So the car filled with spouse and two young daughters, 3 (and a half) and 5 (and a half) for what turned into one of the best days together any of us could remember.
Aton Forest is a wonderful place. It's an 1100 acre low impact ecological research site in Northern Connecticut, not far from the Massachusetts border. Due to its latitude and elevation (1500 ft +/-), it is classified as a northern hardwood and Hemlock Forest, the southern-most extension of the Berkshire Plateau. The mission surrounds and continues the long term scientific works of Dr. Frank Egler, a pioneer in theories of plant community development and stability.
What really impressed me was the program for the open house. Here I am arriving with two toddlers (though very interested in nature) at an event that was more adult oriented. But what a time we had. John had arranged for several interactive demonstrations and they proved a major hit with my kids and everyone present. Past Audubon President Roland C. Clement provided a demonstration on painting birds with watercolors. Both my girls love painting and drawing, and they practically became fixtures at Roland’s easel. They couldn’t get enough of watching the bird literally take shape upon the page. Roland didn’t seem to mind the audience. And most graciously, when done and dry he bestowed his paintings as gifts upon my children.
Birder Shelley Harms had unfurled her nets, and demonstrated catching, identifying, measuring, banding and releasing birds. My daughters thought holding a bird in their hands to be rather special.
We learned all about the secretive world of amphibians. We find them all the time on our hikes in the woods, but Joe Markow taught us about how they protect themselves by emitting toxic substances from their spots, or in some cases mimicing the colors of other toxic amphibians. Small mammals and birds instinctively know (or have learned) that certain amphibians (usually by color) do not make a particularly delectable snack. I also learned the tree frog freezes solid in winter and thaws in spring.
We were treated to beautiful harp and dulcimer music by Judi Castellano and friends. My children were enthralled. Did I have a good time? You bet! Any time my children learn about nature and associate it with a pleasant experience, I'm a thrilled parent.
What did I learn? I spoke to everyone I could, and spoke about TACF. People love to hear about a great success story, and TACF provides a common thread. And I met some fascinating people. Bill Moorhead is a Botanist from the Litchfield area, and we talked about rare plants and habit protection. Bill has come across many American chestnuts in the field … some of which he's had positively identified by Dr. Anagnostakis. He provided me the coordinates on some and two contacts he thought would be particularly promising. This one short conversation resulted in finding at least two new mother trees (already positively identified) for next year's pollination project. I was particularly excited because one of these trees is in the Old Lyme Region of Eastern Connecticut where we have an opportunity to make significant advances in our program.
You're probably asking yourself “why is Bill writing about his weekend adventures, and what's the take away?” I am consistently pleased at how interested people are in the TACF story. Attending the Aton Forest open house was not just a fun experience for my family, it was productive. I'd like to encourage you to seek out these same types of events. You'll meet interesting people who are doing great things for the environment. You'll tell the story of the American chestnut in CT and be surprised at how much other people know about the chestnut, and are interested in your story. You'll find new mother trees, new friends and wisdom, and you might even walk home with an original watercolor from Roland C. Clement.
