Bald eagles, wood turtles, eastern box turtles, and marbled salamanders are on the Massachusetts Endangered Species List with a “Threatened” or of “Special Concern” designation and all have been sighted in the Manchaug Pond watershed with the past year. Last week on May 19, Endangered Species Day was celebrated, a day the United States Congress appointed to increase awareness of imperiled species. Here in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts MassWildlife, through the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act with over 425 Endangered, Threatened, or Special Concern animals and plants on the state list, protects local native species that may or may not be federally protected. Species from the majestic Bald Eagle which we observe soaring and fishing Manchaug Pond to the inconspicuous salamanders, frogs and toads laying eggs in protected coves, neighboring wetlands, and watershed vernal pools to quiet turtles methodically traveling the forests of our hillside watershed are among the flora and fauna needing protection from extinction. The MassWildlife’s Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (NHESP) implements the state’s Endangered Species Act. This happens through field surveys and research, regulations, habitat management, land protection, and education. NHESP’s work is funded by grants and donations from supporters. What can you do to …
