WRWA River News June, 2021

Westport River Watershed Alliance

June, 2021

Don't Miss Out On This Summer's Concert at the Vineyard!

Tickets are going fast for the Amy Helm Band with guest Brian Dunne at Westport Rivers on Saturday, July 10

Guests are reminded that no food or beverages may be brought into the venue.

The Westport River Watershed Alliance will host the Amy Helm Band with special guest Brian Dunne on July 10, at our fifth annual (once interrupted) Summer Concert at Westport Rivers Vineyard. The concert is co-presented by the Narrows Center for the Arts in Fall River. Interest is high this year, as music fans are eager to get back out to see live music after Covid kept everyone home last summer. As with WRWA’s previous summer concerts, this one is expected to sell out well before the concert date. Those interested in attending should not delay!

Guests at the annual Summer Concert always enjoy a first-rate show with professional stage and sound in an intimate and relaxed setting, and have the option of bringing a lawn chair and/or blanket, or to sit in the row seating or at picnic tables that will be provided. The sloping lawn of the vineyard provides a great view for everyone. Beer and wine will be on sale, and food trucks will be selling hot food. Guests will not be permitted to bring food to the venue.

After making multiple albums and performing in far-flung places, Helm returned home to Woodstock's Levon Helm Studios just before the pandemic to record her newest album, What the Flood Leaves Behind and reclaim a sense of self. The studio was founded by her father Levon Helm, member and vocalist of “The Band.”

The show is sponsored by Dewey, Schmid and Kearns Architects of Dartmouth and Concord, MA, Westport Rivers Vineyard, Buzzards Bay Brewing, Lees Oil Service and Milbury Real Estate. Tickets are on sale on line at www.westportwatershed.org and www.narrowscenter.org. Member price $50, non-members $60. Gates open at 5:00 pm on Saturday. Rain date Sunday, July 11. Phone orders: 508-636-3016.

To see a preview of Amy Helm Band performing, click HERE!

Join WRWA as our

2021-22 TerraCorps Member

This year we are looking for one TerraCorps member to join the WRWA team! As a member you will be part of the 2021-2022 TerraCorps program and join up to 80 other members serving with nonprofit partner organizations across Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. As a TerraCorps member serving with WRWA, your focus will be on teaching the Watershed Education program to over 2,000 local students.

Members serve in full-time (38 hour/week) position from August 30^th, 2021- July 29^th, 2022. These 1,700-hour AmeriCorps positions receive a living allowance and are eligible for health insurance coverage, childcare assistance, education award, federal loan forbearance, and additional AmeriCorps benefits. Application specifics, position descriptions, and additional information about how to apply can be found at https://terracorps.org/apply-to-serve-with-terracorps/.

Applications will be accepted until all positions are filled. Interviews begin mid-May, and we aim to fill all positions by mid to late July.

AmeriCorps programs provide equal service opportunities. TerraCorps will recruit and select persons for all positions to ensure a diverse and inclusive community. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and varying experiences, including people with disabilities, people of color, and LGBTQIA individuals. We will provide reasonable accommodations for interviews and services upon request. TerraCorps is a grant program of the Corporation for National and Community Service.

WRWA Summer Gala

Saturday, August 14

We are pleased to be holding our traditional Summer Gala this year, after having to cancel last summer. Invitations are going out, and there is a lot of excitement brewing for this year's party. It will feature great food, an open bar, music, and a one-of-a-kind silent auction.

Tickets will be on sale soon on our webpage, $100 for members and $120 for non-members.

86 Photos submitted for calendar contest -

Members invited to help choose the winners

The Watershed Alliance had a big response to our call for photos for the annual photo contest for the 2022 calendar. We received over 85 landscape and nature photos that show the unique beauty and diversity of the Westport River watershed.

Here is your opportunity to help us choose the winners on-line, as we did so successfully last year. You can view the slideshow and choose your six favorites - then send your selections to [email protected]. We will announce the winners in late July.

Creature Feature

Yellow-Spotted Salamander

Ambystoma maculatum

by Chelsea Thiboutot

The yellow-spotted salamander is black with two rows of yellow and orange spots running along its back. They are amphibians, which means that when they are young, they start off life breathing through gills underwater and then metamorphosize into air-breathing adults with lungs on land. They have a permeable skin, which means that they are able to absorb oxygen through their skin. This helps them breathe as they chose to live in damp places near ponds and vernal pools.

Salamanders usually have four toes on their front legs and five toes on their back legs, and they are even able to regenerate their limbs.

Yellow-spotted salamanders hibernate through the winter, but once they awake for spring they typically return to the same pond or vernal pool every year to mate. When breeding, the yellow-spotted salamander is able to lay up to 200 eggs at a time. The larvae will live underwater for about four months before becoming fully grown. They can live to be about 20 years old.

The yellow-spotted salamander needs water in vernal pools to survive to their juvenile stage of life. If the water dries up, or if their habitat is threatened, the larvae will not be able to grow into land dwelling salamanders. Some causes for habitats being threatened include pollution, invasive species, chopping down trees, and dredging rivers. The species is not threatened, but some subpopulations are declining. The best thing that we can do for these creatures is let them be if you happen to spot one of these salamanders in the wild. They need specific conditions to thrive, and should never be brought back home with you.