Providing Habitat for Grassland Birds
Grab your binoculars and come take a walk through Witter Farm’s beautiful bobolink habitat. Join Dr. Amber Roth, Assistant Professor of Forest Wildlife Management and bobolink research manager, and Ag Allies grassland bird program for a free grassland walk & talk on at Witter Farm’s Park Avenue fields in Orono.
The workshop will cover practices for improving and managing grasslands for bird habitat, forage production and even pollinators! If you are interested in revitalizing an old field to improve grassland habitat, this workshop is the place to get advice on starting that process. We will also discuss the life history of our steeply declining grassland bird species and conservation practices that can be implemented to help them. The most exciting part is that the timing of this workshop will allow participants to view grassland bird nesting behaviors of bobolinks, Savannah sparrows, and even Northern Harriers.
Founder of MYA, Holly Twining, helped bring these fields to the attention of Ag Allies and last year was thrilled to have a section devoted to the bobolinks; they were granted the time & space to raise their families successfully. Please come and see the beauty of these fields!
About Witter Farm: The J. Franklin Witter Teaching & Research Center is a working dairy farm and the home for the college’s teaching and research programs in animal sciences and sustainable agriculture. Research at the Witter Farm supports Maine’s dairy and equine industries. Current projects include studies on fertility problems in horses and cows, and horse related diseases. The facilities are an integral part of the college’s teaching programs.
About Ag Allies: Since 2016, Ag Allies, hosted by Somerset County SWCD, has worked with land trusts and landowners statewide to increase the nesting success of grassland birds using incentive payments, technical assistance, and education. The program empowers landowners to make sustainable, bird-friendly management changes on their land and improve the chance for nesting success of grassland birds in Maine.
