Westport, MA – Is one of your New Year’s resolutions to get outside and walk or to learn more about the natural world around you? If yes, this is the perfect trip for you. Celebrate the start of the new year with a relaxing walk on Gooseberry Neck beach! The walk will focus on coastal ecology and bird identification. Winter is a wonderful time to walk the coast and observe the effects of wave action on the slope and shape of the beach.

Join Research Director, Mark Mello for a Lloyd Center tradition. Mark will explain how the beach changes from summer to winter and will identify the winter waterfowl. The program will be held on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 and is free to all. The walk will take place from 10:00 a.m. until noon. Participants should dress warmly and wear hiking boots; binoculars and cameras are also suggested. Participants will meet at the Gooseberry Neck Parking Lot in Westport. Follow Route 88 south until the very end, turn right and proceed across the causeway to the parking lot.

No registration is required. If you have questions about the program, call Mark Mello at 508-990-0505 ext.22. Start the New Year off “on the right foot” by walking the beach and enjoying our unique coastal habitats.

Founded in 1978 and situated with its headquarters and spectacular nature preserve overlooking the scenic Slocum River estuary in Dartmouth Massachusetts, the LLOYD CENTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT has achieved a well earned reputation for excellence in environmental research and education. Through its innovative outreach programs, it has established itself as a highly regarded leader in the ongoing effort to raise awareness of the area’s fragile coastal resources and the importance of protecting them.

Located on 55 acres of pristine salt marsh, maritime forest and wetlands at the mouth of the Slocum River, the Nature Center is open, at no charge, to the public Tuesdays through Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. It has a 15 foot pilot whale skeleton, as well as dolphin and leatherback turtle skeletons on display. The Center’s aquaria exhibit local fresh and saltwater fish and invertebrates, a touch-tank where you can pick up spider crabs, whelks, hermit crabs, periwinkles, mussels and green crabs. The top floor observatory with its magnificent views of the Elizabeth Islands and Buzzards Bay was named one of 15 special places by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Executive Office of Environmental Affairs. Trails are open from dawn to dusk, seven days a week. The Lloyd Center for the Environment is located at 430 Potomska Road, Dartmouth, Massachusetts. For more information, log onto www.lloydcenter.org or call 508-990-0505.

Lloyd Center For the Environment

The Lloyd Center is the only area organization focused on educating the public about coastal and watershed issues, and conducting research on coastal ecosystems and endangered species. The Lloyd Center serves individuals, agencies, and organizations in southeastern New England (Rhode Island to Boston to Cape Cod). It

The Center cooperates on a broader level in coastal, environmental, and educational programming throughout New England, nationally and internationally.

The Center's school-based activities further expand their reach to urban audiences. A scholarship program also provides space for ten urban New Bedford students, mostly African-American and other minorities, in the Summer Program. 

You can learn more about the Lloyd Center for the Environmental at: http://www.lloydcenter.org.

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