MCBP Welcomes our new Executive Director!
The Maryland Coastal Bays Program is excited to welcome Frank Piorko as our new Executive Director.
Piorko, a veteran of natural resource management programs throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, has spent the past 25 years with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, and the last 6 years as Director of the Division of Watershed Stewardship.
"I'm very excited to be joining the leadership of a great team of science and action oriented individuals and partners; committed to protecting and enhancing the watershed, which includes Ocean City, Ocean Pines, Berlin, and coastal communities east of Snow Hill and Pocomoke as well as Assateague Island National Seashore," said Piorko.
"Our watershed partners represent a diverse landscape that includes an ocean resort area, protected open space, a vibrant agricultural presence and of course over 100,000 acres of water and wetlands, " he said. "The opportunities are endless for development and execution of strategies that will implement the recently updated Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan for the watershed and Bays, completed in 2015".
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Great Worcester Herp Search Joins
Assateague National Seashore BioBlitz!
Maryland Coastal Bays Program and the annual Great Worcester Herp Search will join forces with our partners, the National Park Service for the BioBlitz Fun Day on Saturday, May 21 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Assateague Island National Seashore.
The objective of this event is to form teams to identify as many species as possible in our park. Species include will include birds, aquatic sampling, reptiles and amphibians, plants, GIS, shells, beach intertidal zone sampling, butterflies and flying insects.
Sign up for a team or be assigned to a team. There will be a morning session beginning at 9 am and then an afternoon session that starts at 1 pm. Pre -register before May 6th and receive a hot dog lunch. To pre-register, contact Kelly Taylor at
[email protected]
. Indicate which session you plan on attending. Pre-registration does not guarantee a spot on a specific team. Park entrance fees will be in effect.
On-site team registration begins at 8:00 a.m. at the North Beach Picnic Pavilion. Teams will consist of up to 20 people.
Sunscreen, hats, mosquito and tick repellant, greenbriar proof-pants, bright clothing, and boots are recommended.
This is marks the National Park Services Centennial, please help us celebrate!
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Assateague Outfitters Concessions Open
Assateague Outfitters, the concessions at the National Seashore of Assateague, are now open for business on weekends.
This fundraising initiative was rated superior last year by the National Park Service and we're hoping that this year will be an even bigger and better season.
Assateague Outfitters is a partnership between MCBP and SuperFun Eco Tours. Assateague Outfitters provides a convenience store and a rental stand. Come check us out and see our evolving business grow.
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Volunteer for our Horseshoe Crab Survey!
Horseshoe crabs begin spawning in our area in May! You might find a female crab buried in the sand on our many bay beaches, she is laying eggs and should be left alone. If you find a horseshoe crab stuck in rocks or rip-rap, remove it and release it into open water nearby. The proper way to hold a horseshoe crab is by the shell, never pick one up by it's tail, otherwise known as it's telson.
Volunteers are needed to survey horseshoe crabs at Homer Gudlesky Park in West OC. There will be 6 surveys, occurring every two weeks between May and July. Volunteers will need to commit to at least 5 of these dates. If interested, please contact Amanda at [email protected] or 410-213-2297 ext. 103.
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Thank you to our partners!
Above: Our Department of Natural Resources partners worked at Bishopville to install wood duck nest boxes, and plant trees.
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Tree planting at Ilia Fehrer in April
!
We planted 3,500 trees with 340 middle school students and volunteers over several planting days! Great work Stephen Decatur and Snow Hill Middle School students.
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Don't miss a chance to sign up for the Terrapin Survey!
This year, the annual Diamondback Terrapin Survey will be held from May 31st through June 4th.Trainings are
May 19th at 5:30 p.m. and Sunday, May 22nd at 2 p.m. If you are interested in volunteering contact Jen Rafter at
[email protected] |
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Check out our calendar!
Want to know what's happening in your coastal bays? Check out our calendar
here.
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Over 60 volunteers braved the elements to celebrate Earth Day with MCBP, Town of Ocean City, OC Surf Club and OC Surf Rider Foundation for the 7th annual beach clean up. Over 300 pounds of trash was picked up along beaches and bayside roads.
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Looking for one to two people interested in sharing weekend sifts at the Beach Hut. Must be able to work alone. It is fast paced action packed in the summer, and a lot of fun! Please contact [email protected]
g for more info.
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It's that time of year again! Raffle tickets are now available for a paddle board. Drawing to be held at this year's annual paddle board event slated for Saturday June 4, beginning at 9 am at Fager's Island Restaurant on 60th street. After the morning races, there will be a new event starting at noon, Float Fest, which will be an adult festival out on the bay with floats, bar-be-que and local breweries. Details to come shortly.
You can purchase tickets at the office or by emailing Sandi at [email protected]
rg.
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